Table of Contents | Previous | Next | Index

Netscape Directory SDK 3.0 for C Programmer’s Guide


Chapter 6
Searching the Directory

This chapter explains how to call the LDAP API functions to search the directory, retrieve search results, and get attributes and values from each entry in the search results. The chapter also provides examples of calling synchronous and asynchronous functions to search the directory.

This chapter contains the following sections, which explain how to create and execute a search of the directory:

Overview: Searching with LDAP API Functions

In the LDAP v3 protocol, a server can send three different types of results back to the client:

Results are represented by LDAPMessage structures.

Note that in order to receive search references from the Netscape Directory Server 3.0, you must identify your client as an LDAP v3 client. If you do not, the server will return the LDAP error code LDAP_PARTIAL_RESULTS and a set of referrals. See "Specifying the LDAP Version of Your Client" for details.

The Netscape Directory SDK for C provides functions that allow you to search the directory and retrieve results from the server:

This chapter includes examples of searching the directory synchronously (see "Example: Searching the Directory (Synchronous)") and asynchronously (see "Example: Searching the Directory (Asynchronous)").

Sending a Search Request

To search the directory, call ldap_search_ext_s() or ldap_search_ext():

The syntax for these functions are:

LDAP_API(int) LDAP_CALL ldap_search_ext( LDAP *ld, const char *base, 
   int scope, const char *filter, char **attrs, int attrsonly,
   LDAPControl **serverctrls, LDAPControl **clientctrls,
   struct timeval *timeoutp, int sizelimit, int *msgidp );
LDAP_API(int) LDAP_CALL ldap_search_ext_s( LDAP *ld, const char *base, 
   int scope, const char *filter, char **attrs, int attrsonly,
   LDAPControl **serverctrls, LDAPControl **clientctrls,
   struct timeval *timeoutp, int sizelimit, LDAPMessage **res );
For either function, you specify the search criteria using the following arguments:

Figure 6.1 illustrates how search criteria works.

Figure 6.1   Search criteria for an LDAP search operation

Specifying the Base DN and Scope

When sending a search request, you need to specify the base DN and scope of the search to identify the entries that you want searched.

The base DN (the base argument) is the DN of the entry that serves as the starting point of the search.

To specify the scope of the search, you pass one of the following values as the scope parameter:

Figure 6.2   Example of a search with the scope LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE

  • LDAP_SCOPE_ONELEVEL searches all entries at one level below the base entry (as illustrated in Figure 6.3). The base entry is not included in the search. Use this setting if you just want a list of the entries under a given entry. (See "Listing Subentries" for an example.)
  • Figure 6.3   Example of a search with the scope LDAP_SCOPE_ONELEVEL

  • LDAP_SCOPE_BASE searches only the base entry. Use this setting if you just want to read the attributes of the base entry (as illustrated in Figure 6.4). (See "Reading an Entry" for an example.)
  • Figure 6.4   Example of a search with the scope LDAP_SCOPE_BASE

    Specifying a Search Filter

    When you search the directory, you use a search filter to define the search. Here is the basic syntax for a search filter:

    (attribute operator value)
    Here is a simple example of a search filter:

    (cn=Barbara Jensen)
    In this example, cn is the attribute, = is the operator, and Barbara Jensen is the value. The filter finds entries with the common name Barbara Jensen

    For a listing of valid attributes that you can use in your search filter, see the documentation for the LDAP server. (For information on the attributes in the schema for the Netscape Directory Server, see the Administrator's Guide.)

    Table 6.1 lists the valid operators you can use.

    Table 6.1 Basic operators for search filters
    Operator Description Example
    =

    Returns entries whose attribute is equal to the value.

    (cn=Barbara Jensen) 

    finds the entry "cn=Barbara Jensen"

    >=

    Returns entries whose attribute is greater than or equal to the value.

    (sn >= jensen) 

    finds all entries from "sn=jensen" to "sn=z..."

    <=

    Returns entries whose attribute is less than or equal to the value.

    (sn <= jensen) 

    finds all entries from "sn=a..." to "sn=jensen"

    =*

    Returns entries that have a value set for that attribute.

    (sn =*) 

    finds all entries that have the sn attribute.

    ~=

    Returns entries whose attribute value approximately matches the specified value. Typically, this is an algorithm that matches words that sound alike.

    (sn ~= jensen) 

    finds the entry "sn = jansen"

    Note that when comparing values containing letters, the letter a is less than the value z. For example, the following filter finds all entries with last names beginning with a through jensen:

    (sn<=jensen)
    Using Boolean operators and parentheses, you can combine different sets of conditions. Here is the syntax for combining search filters:

    ( boolean_operator (filter1)(filter2)(filter3) ) 
    Table 6.2 lists the valid boolean operators you can use.

    Table 6.2 Boolean operators for search filters
    Boolean Operator Description
    & 

    Returns entries matching all specified filter criteria.

    | 

    Returns entries matching one or more of the filter criteria.

    !

    Returns entries for which the filter is not true.You can only apply this operator to a single filter. For example, you can use:

    (!(filter))

    but not:

    (!(filter1)(filter2))

    For example, you can use this filter to search for all entries with the last name Jensen or the last name Johnson:

    (|(sn=Jensen)(sn=Johnson))
    You can also include wildcards to search for entries that start with, contain, or end with a given value. For example, you can use this filter to search for all entries whose names begin with the letter F:

    (givenName=F*)

    Specifying the Attributes to Retrieve

    Using the attrs argument, you can either retrieve all attributes in entries returned by the search, or you can specify the attributes that you want returned in the search results. For example, you can specify that you want to return the following attributes:

    Note that if you plan to sort the results on your client (see "Sorting the Search Results"), you need to return the attributes that you plan to use for sorting. For example, if you plan to sort by email address, make sure that the mail attribute is returned in the search results.

    Some attributes are used by servers for administering the directory. For example, the creatorsName attribute specifies the DN of the user who added the entry.These attributes are called operational attributes.

    Servers do not normally return operational attributes in search results unless you specify the attributes by name. For example, if you pass NULL for the attrs argument to retrieve all of the attributes in entries found by the search, the operational attribute creatorsName will not be returned to your client. You need to explicitly specify the creatorsName attribute in the attrs argument.

    To return all attributes in an entry and selected operational attributes, pass a NULL-terminated array containing LDAP_ALL_USER_ATTRS and the names of the operational attributes as the attrs argument.

    The following table lists some of the operational attributes and the information they contain.

    Table 6.3 Information available in operational attributes
    Attribute Name Description of Values

    createTimestamp

    The time the entry was added to the directory.

    modifyTimestamp

    The time the entry was last modified.

    creatorsName

    Distinguished name (DN) of the user who added the entry to the directory.

    modifiersName

    Distinguished name (DN) of the user who last modified the entry.

    subschemaSubentry

    Distinguished name (DN) of the subschema entry, which controls the schema for this entry. (See "Getting Schema Information" for details.)

    Setting Search Preferences

    For a given search, you can specify the maximum number of results to be returned or the maximum amount of time to wait for a search. Use the timeoutp and sizelimit arguments of the ldap_search_ext_s() or ldap_search_ext() functions.

    Note the following:

    To specify these preferences for all searches under the current connection, call ldap_set_option() and set the LDAP_OPT_SIZELIMIT and LDAP_OPT_TIMELIMIT options. If you do not want to specify a limit (basically, no limit), set the value of the option to LDAP_NO_LIMIT.

    Note that the LDAP server may already have time and size constraints set up that you cannot override.

    The following example sets these session preferences so that a search returns no more than 100 entries and takes no more than 30 seconds.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    ...
    LDAP *ld;
    int max_ret, max_tim;
    char *host = "localhost";
    ...
    /* Initialize a session with the LDAP server ldap.netscape.com:389. */
    if ( ( ld = ldap_init( host, LDAP_PORT ) ) == NULL ) { 
       perror( "ldap_init" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* Set the maximum number of entries returned. */
    max_ret = 100;
    ldap_set_option(ld, LDAP_OPT_SIZELIMIT, (void *)&max_ret );
        
    /* Set the maximum number of seconds to wait. */
    max_tim = 30;
    ldap_set_option( ld, LDAP_OPT_TIMELIMIT, (void *)&max_tim );
    ...

    Example of Sending a Search Request

    The following example sends a search request to the server for all entries with the last name (or surname) "Jensen" in the Airius.com organization.

    ...
    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    ...
    #define BASEDN "o=Airius.com"
    #define SCOPE LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE
    #define FILTER "(sn=Jensen)"
    ...
    LDAP         *ld;
    int         msgid, rc;
    ...
    /* Send the search request. */
    rc = ldap_search_ext( ld, BASEDN, SCOPE, FILTER, NULL, 0, NULL, 
       NULL, NULL, LDAP_NO_LIMIT, &msgid );
    if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       fprintf( stderr, "ldap_search_ext: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
       ldap_unbind( ld );
       return( 1 );
    }
    ...

    Getting Search Results

    In the LDAP v3 protocol, a server can return the following types of results to your client:

    The server returns the search results as a chain of LDAPMessage structures. Each structure contains an entry, a search reference, or an LDAP result code. Because the results are represented as a chain, you should not free individual LDAPMessage structures within the chain. (When you are done working with the results, you can free the chain itself, rather than individual structures within the chain.)

    To access data from entries found by the search, you need to follow this general process:

    1. Get each entry in the results.
    2. Get the attributes from each entry.
    3. Get the values from each attribute.
    Figure 6.5 illustrates the relationship between entries, attributes, values, and search results.

    Figure 6.5   Search results in terms of entries, attributes, and values

    This section explains how to get search results and retrieve data from the search results. Topics covered include:

    Getting Results Synchronously

    If you called the ldap_search_ext_s() function to search the directory synchronously, the function blocks until all results have been received. The function returns a chain of the results in the result parameter (a handle to an LDAPMessage structure).

    You can iterate through the results in this chain by calling different API functions. See the section "Iterating Through a Chain of Results" for details.

    Getting Results Asynchronously

    If you use the asynchronous function ldap_search_ext() instead, you need to call ldap_result() to determine if the server sent back any results:

    LDAP_API(int) LDAP_CALL ldap_result( LDAP *ld, int msgid, int all, 
       struct timeval *timeout, LDAPMessage **result );
    You can specify how you want to get the results:

    If you specify either LDAP_MSG_ALL or LDAP_MSG_RECEIVED, the function passes back a chain of search results as the result argument. For details on how to retrieve the results from this chain, see "Iterating Through a Chain of Results".

    If specify LDAP_MSG_ONE, the function passes back a single search result as the result argument. The function normally returns the type of the first search result; in this case, since only one result is returned, the function returns the type of that result. A search result can be one of the following types:

    To determine what type of result was returned, call the ldap_msgtype() function. A search result can be one of the following types:

    Note that in order to receive search references from the Netscape Directory Server 3.0, you must identify your client as an LDAP v3 client. If you do not, the server will return the LDAP error code LDAP_PARTIAL_RESULTS and a set of referrals. See "Specifying the LDAP Version of Your Client" for details.

    The following section of code gets results one at a time and checks the type of result.

    ...
    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    ...
    #define BASEDN "o=Airius.com"
    #define SCOPE LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE
    #define FILTER "(sn=Jensen)"
    ...
    LDAP         *ld;
    LDAPMessage      *res;
    int            msgid, rc, parse_rc, finished = 0;
    struct timeval   zerotime;
    zerotime.tv_sec = zerotime.tv_usec = 0L;
    ...
    /* Send the LDAP search request. */
    rc = ldap_search_ext( ld, BASEDN, SCOPE, FILTER, NULL, 0, NULL, NULL, 
       NULL, LDAP_NO_LIMIT, &msgid );
    ...
    /* Poll the server for the results of the search operation. */
    while ( !finished ) {
       rc = ldap_result( ld, msgid, LDAP_MSG_ONE, &zerotime, &res );
       switch ( rc ) {
       case -1:
          /* An error occurred. */
          ...
       case 0:
          /* The timeout period specified by zerotime was exceeded. */
          ...
       case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_ENTRY:
          /* The server sent one of the entries found by the search. */
          ...
       case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_REFERENCE:
          /* The server sent a search reference .*/
          ...
       case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_RESULT:
          /* Parse the final result received from the server. */
          ...
       }
    ...
    }
    ...

    Iterating Through a Chain of Results

    The results of a search are represented by a chain of LDAPMessage structures. Each entry and search reference is contained in an LDAPMessage structure. The final result code of the LDAP search operation is also contained in one of these structures.

    To retrieve results from a chain of search results, you can call one of the following sets of functions:

    Note that each LDAPMessage structure is part of a chain and can point to other structures in the chain. You should not attempt to free individual LDAPMessage structures from memory; you may lose the rest of the results if you do this.

    If you are iterating through each result, you can determine the type of the result by calling the ldap_msgtype() function. A search result can be one of the following types:

    Note that in order to receive search references from the Netscape Directory Server 3.0, you must identify your client as an LDAP v3 client. If you do not, the server will return the LDAP error code LDAP_PARTIAL_RESULTS and a set of referrals. See "Specifying the LDAP Version of Your Client" for details.

    The following section of code retrieves each result in a chain and determines the type of the result.

    ...
    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    ...
    #define BASEDN "o=Airius.com"
    #define SCOPE LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE
    #define FILTER "(sn=Jensen)"
    ...
    LDAP         *ld;
    LDAPMessage      *res, *msg;
    BerElement      *ber;
    char         *matched_msg = NULL, *error_msg = NULL;
    int            rc, msgtype, num_entries = 0, num_refs = 0;
    ...
    /* Perform the search operation. */
    rc = ldap_search_ext_s( ld, BASEDN, SCOPE, FILTER, NULL, 0, NULL, NULL, 
       NULL, LDAP_NO_LIMIT, &res );
    if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       fprintf( stderr, "ldap_search_ext_s: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
       if ( error_msg != NULL && *error_msg != '\0' ) {
          fprintf( stderr, "%s\n", error_msg );
       }
       /* If the server cannot find an entry and 
          returns the portion of the DN that can find 
          an entry, print it out. (For details, see 
          "Receiving the Portion of the DN Matching an Entry" on page 73.) */
       if ( matched_msg != NULL && *matched_msg != '\0' ) {
          fprintf( stderr, 
             "Part of the DN that matches an existing entry: %s\n", 
             matched_msg );
       }
       ldap_unbind_s( ld );
       return( 1 );
    }
    ...
    num_entries = ldap_count_entries( ld, res );
    num_refs = ldap_count_references( ld, res );
    ...
    /* Iterate through the results. */
    for ( msg = ldap_first_message( ld, res ); msg != NULL; 
       msg = ldap_next_message( ld, msg ) ) {
       /* Determine what type of message was sent from the server. */
       msgtype = ldap_msgtype( msg );
       switch( msgtype ) {
       case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_ENTRY:
          /* The result is an entry. */
          ...
       case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_REFERENCE:
          /* The result is a search reference. */
          ...
       case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_RESULT:
          /* The result is the final result sent by the server. */
          ...
       }
    ...
    }
    ...

    Getting Distinguished Names for Each Entry

    Because the distinguished name of an entry differentiates it from other entries, you may want to access the distinguished names of entries in the search results. You may also want to parse the name into its individual components.

    The LDAP API provides functions for both of these tasks. You can call functions to get the name of an individual entry and to split the name into its components.

    Getting the Distinguished Name of an Entry

    To get the distinguished name of an entry, call the ldap_get_dn() function. The function returns the distinguished name of the entry.

    When you are finished working with the distinguished name returned by this function, you should free it from memory by calling the ldap_memfree() function.

    The following section of code prints the distinguished name for each entry found in a search.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    ...
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *result, *e;
    char *dn;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(sn=Jensen)";
    ...
    /* Search the directory. */
    if ( ldap_search_s( ld, my_searchbase, LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE, my_filter, 
             NULL, 0, &result ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_search_s" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* For each matching entry found, print the name of the entry.*/
    for ( e = ldap_first_entry( ld, result ); e != NULL; 
             e = ldap_next_entry( ld, e ) ) {
       if ( ( dn = ldap_get_dn( ld, e ) ) != NULL ) {
          printf( "dn: %s\n", dn );
          /* Free the memory used for the DN when done */
          ldap_memfree( dn );
       }
    }
    /* Free the result from memory when done. */
    ldap_msgfree( result );

    Getting the Components of a Distinguished Name

    If you want to access individual components of a distinguished name or a relative distinguished name, call the ldap_explode_dn() and ldap_explode_rdn() functions.

    Both functions return a NULL-terminated array of the components of the distinguished name. When you are done working with this array, you should free it by calling the ldap_value_free() function.

    You can specify whether or not you want the names of the components included in the array by using the notypes parameter.

    Getting Attributes from an Entry

    To get the value of the first attribute in an entry, call the ldap_first_attribute() function.

    This function returns the name of the first attribute in the entry. To get the value of this attribute, you need to pass the attribute name to the ldap_get_values() or ldap_get_values_len() functions. (See "Getting the Values of an Attribute" for details.)

    To get the name of the next attribute, call the ldap_next_attribute() function.

    Note that operational attributes attributes such as creatorsName and modifyTimestamp are not normally returned in search results unless you explicitly specify them by name in the search request. For more information, see "Specifying the Attributes to Retrieve."

    When you are finished iterating through the attributes, you need to free the BerElement structure allocated by the ldap_first_attribute() function, if the structure is not NULL. To free this structure, call the ldap_ber_free() function.

    You should also free the attribute name returned by the ldap_first_attribute() function. To free the attribute name, call the ldap_memfree() function.

    The following section of code retrieves each attribute of an entry.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    ...
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *result, *e;
    BerElement *ber;
    char *a;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(sn=Jensen)";
    ...
    /* Search the directory. */
    if ( ldap_search_s( ld, my_searchbase, LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE, my_filter, 
             NULL, 0, &result ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_search_s" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* Get the first matching entry.*/
    e = ldap_first_entry( ld, result );
    /* Retrieve the attributes of the entry. */
       for (a = ldap_first_attribute(ld, e, &ber); a != NULL; 
                a = ldap_next_attribute(ld, e, ber)){
          ...
          /* Code to get and manipulate attribute values */
          ...
          }
          ldap_memfree( a );
       }
       /* Free the BerElement structure from memory when done. */
       if ( ber != NULL ) {
          ldap_ber_free( ber, 0 );
       }
    ...

    Getting the Values of an Attribute

    The values of an attribute are represented by a NULL-terminated array. The values are either a list of strings (if the attribute contains string data, such as a name or phone number) or a list of berval structures (if the attribute contains binary data, such as a JPEG file or an audio file).

    To get the number of values in an attribute, call the ldap_count_values() or ldap_count_values_len() function. Both functions return the number of values in the attribute.

    When you have finished working with the values of the attribute, you need to free the values from memory. To do this, call the ldap_value_free() or ldap_value_free_len() function.

    The following section of code gets and prints the values of an attribute in an entry. This example assumes that all attributes have string values.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    ...
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *result, *e;
    BerElement *ber;
    char *a;
    char **vals;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(sn=Jensen)";
    int i;
    ...
    /* Search the directory. */
    if ( ldap_search_s( ld, my_searchbase, LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE, my_filter, 
             NULL, 0, &result ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_search_s" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* Get the first matching entry.*/
    e = ldap_first_entry( ld, result );
    /* Get the first matching attribute. */
    a = ldap_first_attribute( ld, e, &ber );
    /* Get the values of the attribute. */
    if ( ( vals = ldap_get_values( ld, e, a ) ) != NULL ) {
       for ( i = 0; vals[i] != NULL; i++ ) {
          /* Print the name of the attribute and each value */
          printf( "%s: %s\n", a, vals[i] );
       }
       /* Free the attribute values from memory when done. */
       ldap_value_free( vals );
    }
    ...
    The following section of code gets the first value of the jpegPhoto attribute and saves the JPEG data to a file.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    ...
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *result, *e;
    BerElement *ber;
    char *a;
    struct berval photo_data;
    struct berval **list_of_photos;
    FILE *out;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(sn=Jensen)";
    ...
    /* Search the directory. */
    if ( ldap_search_s( ld, my_searchbase, LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE, my_filter, 
             NULL, 0, &result ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_search_s" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* Get the first matching entry.*/
    e = ldap_first_entry( ld, result );
    /* Find the jpegPhoto attribute. */
    a = ldap_first_attribute( ld, e, &ber );
    while ( strcasecmp( a, "jpegphoto" ) != 0 ) {
       a = ldap_next_attribute( ld, e, ber );
    }
    /* Get the value of the attribute. */
    if ( ( list_of_photos = ldap_get_values_len( ld, e, a ) ) != NULL ) {
       /* Prepare to write the JPEG data to a file */
       if ( ( out = fopen( "photo.jpg", "wb" ) ) == NULL ) {
          perror( "fopen" );
          return( 1 );
       }
       /* Get the first JPEG. */
       photo_data = *list_of_photos[0];
       /* Write the JPEG data to a file */
       fwrite( photo_data.bv_val, photo_data.bv_len, 1, out );
       fclose( out );
       /* Free the attribute values from memory when done. */
       ldap_value_free_len( list_of_photos );
    }
    ...

    Getting Referrals from Search References

    A search reference returned from the server contains one or more referrals (LDAP URLs that identify other LDAP servers). To get these referrals, you need to call the ldap_parse_reference() function.

    The following section of code gets and prints the referrals in a search reference.

    ...
    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    ...
    LDAP               *ld;
    LDAPMessage               *msg;
    char               **referrals;
    int               i, rc, parse_rc;
    ...
    parse_rc = ldap_parse_reference( ld, msg, &referrals, NULL, 0 );
    if ( parse_rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       fprintf( stderr, "ldap_parse_result: %s\n", 
          ldap_err2string( parse_rc ) );
       ldap_unbind( ld );
       return( 1 );
    }
    if ( referrals != NULL ) {
       for ( i = 0; referrals[ i ] != NULL; i++ ) {
          printf( "Search reference: %s\n\n", referrals[ i ] );
       }
       ldap_value_free( referrals );
    }
    ...

    Sorting the Search Results

    The LDAP API contains functions that you can use to sort entries and values in the search results. You can either sort entries on your client, or you can specify that the server should return sorted results.

    To sort results on the server, you need to send a server-side sorting control with the search request. For details, see "Using the Server-Side Sorting Control."

    The rest of this section explains how to sort results on your client. Topics include:

    Note that you need to return any attributes that you plan to use for sorting the results. For example, if you plan to sort the results by email address, make sure that the mail attribute is one of the attributes returned in the search. For details on specifying the attributes returned, see "Specifying the Attributes to Retrieve."

    Sorting Entries by an Attribute

    To sort the search results by a particular attribute, call the ldap_sort_entries() function. Note that if you don't specify an attribute for sorting (that is, if you pass NULL for the attr parameter), the entries are sorted by DN.

    The following section of code sorts entries by the roomNumber attribute.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <string.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    ...
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *result;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(sn=Jensen)";
    char *sortby = "roomNumber";
    ...
    /* Search the directory. */
    if ( ldap_search_s( ld, my_searchbase, LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE, my_filter, 
          NULL, 0, &result ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_search_s" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* Sort the results by room number, using strcasecmp. */
    if (ldap_sort_entries(ld, &result, sortby, strcasecmp) != LDAP_SUCCESS){ 
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_sort_entries" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    ... 

    Sorting Entries by Multiple Attributes

    To sort the search results by a particular attribute, call the ldap_multisort_entries() function. Note that if you don't specify a set of attributes for sorting (that is, if you pass NULL for the attr parameter), the entries are sorted by DN.

    The following section of code sorts entries first by the roomNumber attribute, then by the telephoneNumber attribute.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <string.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *res;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(sn=Jensen)";
    char *attrs[2]; 
    attrs[0] = "roomNumber"; 
    attrs[1] = "telephoneNumber";
    attrs[2] = NULL; 
    ...
    /* Search the directory. */
    if ( ldap_search_s( ld, my_searchbase, LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE, my_filter, 
             NULL, 0, &res ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_search_s" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* Sort the results, using strcasecmp. */
    if (ldap_multisort_entries(ld,&res,attrs, strcasecmp) != LDAP_SUCCESS){
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_sort_entries" );
       return( 1 );
    }

    Sorting the Values of an Attribute

    You can also sort the values of a particular attribute. To do this, call the ldap_sort_values() function.

    In the ldap_sort_values() function, the comparison function must pass parameters of the type char **. You should use the ldap_sort_strcasecmp() function, rather than a function like strcasecmp() (which passes parameters of the type char *).

    The following section of code sorts the values of attributes before printing them.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <string.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *result, *e;
    BerElement *ber;
    char *a, *dn;
    char **vals;
    int i;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(sn=Jensen)";
    ...
          if ( ( vals = ldap_get_values( ld, e, a ) ) != NULL ) {
             /* Sort the values of the attribute */
             if (ldap_sort_values(ld, vals, strcasecmp)) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
                ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_sort_values" );
                return( 1 );
             }
             /* Print the values of the attribute. */
             for ( i = 0; vals[i] != NULL; i++ ) {
                printf( "%s: %s\n", a, vals[i] );
             }
             /* Free the values from memory. */
             ldap_value_free( vals );
          }
    ...

    Freeing the Results of a Search

    The results of the search are returned in an LDAPMessage structure. After you are done working with the search results, you should free this structure from memory.

    To free the search results, call the ldap_msgfree() function. The ldap_msgfree() function returns the type of the last message freed from memory.

    Example: Searching the Directory (Asynchronous)

    The following section of code prints out the values of all attributes in the entries returned by a search.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    void do_other_work();
    int global_counter = 0;
    /* Change these as needed. */
    #define HOSTNAME "localhost"
    #define PORTNUMBER LDAP_PORT
    #define BASEDN "o=Airius.com"
    #define SCOPE LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE
    #define FILTER "(sn=Jensen)"
    int
    main( int argc, char **argv )
    {
        LDAP         *ld;
        LDAPMessage      *res;
        BerElement      *ber;
       LDAPControl      **serverctrls;
        char         *a, *dn, *matched_msg = NULL, *error_msg = NULL;
        char         **vals, **referrals;
        int            version, i, msgid, rc, parse_rc, finished = 0, num_entries = 0, num_refs = 0;
        struct timeval   zerotime;
        zerotime.tv_sec = zerotime.tv_usec = 0L;
        /* Get a handle to an LDAP connection. */
        if ( (ld = ldap_init( HOSTNAME, PORTNUMBER )) == NULL ) {
          perror( "ldap_init" );
          return( 1 );
        }
       version = LDAP_VERSION3;
       if ( ldap_set_option( ld, LDAP_OPT_PROTOCOL_VERSION, &version ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          rc = ldap_get_lderrno( ld, NULL, NULL );
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_set_option: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          ldap_unbind( ld );
          return( 1 );
       }
        /* Bind to the server anonymously. */
        rc = ldap_simple_bind_s( ld, NULL, NULL );
       if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_simple_bind_s: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          ldap_get_lderrno( ld, &matched_msg, &error_msg );
          if ( error_msg != NULL && *error_msg != '\0' ) {
             fprintf( stderr, "%s\n", error_msg );
          }
          /* If the server cannot find an entry, 
             print the portion of the DN that matches 
             an existing entry. (For details, see 
             "Receiving the Portion of the DN Matching an Entry.") */
          if ( matched_msg != NULL && *matched_msg != '\0' ) {
             fprintf( stderr, 
                "Part of the DN that matches an existing entry: %s\n",
                matched_msg );
          }
          ldap_unbind_s( ld );
          return( 1 );
        }
        /* Send the LDAP search request. */
        rc = ldap_search_ext( ld, BASEDN, SCOPE, FILTER, NULL, 0, NULL, NULL, NULL, LDAP_NO_LIMIT, &msgid );
       if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_search_ext: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          ldap_unbind( ld );
          return( 1 );
        }
        /* Poll the server for the results of the search operation. 
          Passing LDAP_MSG_ONE indicates that you want to receive 
          the entries one at a time, as they come in.  If the next
          entry that you retrieve is NULL, there are no more entries. */
        while ( !finished ) {
          rc = ldap_result( ld, msgid, LDAP_MSG_ONE, &zerotime, &res );
          /* The server can return three types of results back to the client,
             and the return value of ldap_result() indicates the result type:
             LDAP_RES_SEARCH_ENTRY identifies an entry found by the search,
             LDAP_RES_SEARCH_REFERENCE identifies a search reference returned
             by the server, and LDAP_RES_SEARCH_RESULT is the last result 
             sent from the server to the client after the operation completes.
             You need to check for each of these types of results. */
          switch ( rc ) {
          case -1:
             /* An error occurred. */
             rc = ldap_get_lderrno( ld, NULL, NULL );
             fprintf( stderr, "ldap_result: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
             ldap_unbind( ld );
             return( 1 );
          case 0:
             /* The timeout period specified by zerotime was exceeded.
                This means that the server has still not yet sent the 
                results of the search operation back to your client.
                Break out of this switch statement, and continue calling  
                ldap_result() to poll for results. */
             break;
          case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_ENTRY:
             /* The server sent one of the entries found by the search 
                operation. Print the DN, attributes, and values of the entry. */
             /* Keep track of the number of entries found. */
             num_entries++;
             /* Get and print the DN of the entry. */
             if (( dn = ldap_get_dn( ld, res )) != NULL ) {
                printf( "dn: %s\n", dn );
                ldap_memfree( dn );
             }
             /* Iterate through each attribute in the entry. */
             for ( a = ldap_first_attribute( ld, res, &ber );
             a != NULL; a = ldap_next_attribute( ld, res, ber ) ) {
                /* Get and print all values for each attribute. */
                if (( vals = ldap_get_values( ld, res, a )) != NULL ) {
                   for ( i = 0; vals[ i ] != NULL; i++ ) {
                      printf( "%s: %s\n", a, vals[ i ] );
                   }
                   ldap_value_free( vals );
                }
                ldap_memfree( a );
             }
             if ( ber != NULL ) {
                ber_free( ber, 0 );
             }
             printf( "\n" );
             ldap_msgfree( res );
             break;
          case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_REFERENCE:
             /* The server sent a search reference encountered during the 
                search operation. */
             /* Keep track of the number of search references returned from
                the server. */
             num_refs++;
             /* Parse the result and print the search references. 
                Ideally, rather than print them out, you would follow the
                references. */
             parse_rc = ldap_parse_reference( ld, res, &referrals, NULL, 1 );
             if ( parse_rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
                fprintf( stderr, "ldap_parse_result: %s\n", ldap_err2string( parse_rc ) );
                ldap_unbind( ld );
                return( 1 );
             }
             if ( referrals != NULL ) {
                for ( i = 0; referrals[ i ] != NULL; i++ ) {
                   printf( "Search reference: %s\n\n", referrals[ i ] );
                }
                ldap_value_free( referrals );
             }
             break;
          case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_RESULT:
             /* Parse the final result received from the server. Note the last
                argument is a non-zero value, which indicates that the 
                LDAPMessage structure will be freed when done.  (No need
                to call ldap_msgfree().) */
             finished = 1;
             parse_rc = ldap_parse_result( ld, res, &rc, &matched_msg, &error_msg, NULL, &serverctrls, 1 );
             if ( parse_rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
                fprintf( stderr, "ldap_parse_result: %s\n", ldap_err2string( parse_rc ) );
                ldap_unbind( ld );
                return( 1 );
             }
             /* Check the results of the LDAP search operation. */
             if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
                fprintf( stderr, "ldap_search_ext: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
                ldap_get_lderrno( ld, &matched_msg, &error_msg );
                if ( error_msg != NULL & *error_msg != '\0' ) {
                   fprintf( stderr, "%s\n", error_msg );
                }
                if ( matched_msg != NULL && *matched_msg != '\0' ) {
                   fprintf( stderr, "Part of the DN that matches an existing entry: %s\n", matched_msg );
                }
             } else {
                printf( "Search completed successfully.\n"
                   "Entries found: %d\n"
                   "Search references returned: %d\n"
                   "Counted to %d while waiting for the search operation.\n",
                   num_entries, num_refs, global_counter );
             }
             
             break;
             
          default:
             break;
          }
          
          /* Do other work here while waiting for the search operation to complete. */
          if ( !finished ) {
             do_other_work();
          }
       }
        /* Disconnect when done. */
        ldap_unbind( ld );
        return( 0 );
    }
    /*
     * Perform other work while polling for results.  This doesn't do anything
     * useful, but it could.
     */
    static void
    do_other_work()
    {
        global_counter++;
    }

    Example: Searching the Directory (Synchronous)

    The following section of code prints out the values of all attributes in the entries returned by a search.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    /* Change these as needed. */
    #define HOSTNAME "localhost"
    #define PORTNUMBER LDAP_PORT
    #define BASEDN "o=Airius.com"
    #define SCOPE LDAP_SCOPE_SUBTREE
    #define FILTER "(sn=Jensen)"
    int
    main( int argc, char **argv )
    {
        LDAP         *ld;
        LDAPMessage      *res, *msg;
       LDAPControl   **serverctrls;
        BerElement      *ber;
        char         *a, *dn, *matched_msg = NULL, *error_msg = NULL;
        char         **vals, **referrals;
        int            version, i, rc, parse_rc, msgtype, num_entries = 0, num_refs = 0;
        /* Get a handle to an LDAP connection. */
        if ( (ld = ldap_init( HOSTNAME, PORTNUMBER )) == NULL ) {
          perror( "ldap_init" );
          return( 1 );
        }
       version = LDAP_VERSION3;
       if ( ldap_set_option( ld, LDAP_OPT_PROTOCOL_VERSION, &version ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          rc = ldap_get_lderrno( ld, NULL, NULL );
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_set_option: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          ldap_unbind( ld );
          return( 1 );
       }
        /* Bind to the server anonymously. */
        rc = ldap_simple_bind_s( ld, NULL, NULL );
       if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_simple_bind_s: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          ldap_get_lderrno( ld, &matched_msg, &error_msg );
          if ( error_msg != NULL && *error_msg != '\0' ) {
             fprintf( stderr, "%s\n", error_msg );
          }
          if ( matched_msg != NULL && *matched_msg != '\0' ) {
             fprintf( stderr, "Part of the DN that matches an existing entry: %s\n", matched_msg );
          }
          ldap_unbind_s( ld );
          return( 1 );
        }
        /* Perform the search operation. */
        rc = ldap_search_ext_s( ld, BASEDN, SCOPE, FILTER, NULL, 0, NULL, NULL, NULL, LDAP_NO_LIMIT, &res );
       if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_search_ext_s: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          if ( error_msg != NULL && *error_msg != '\0' ) {
             fprintf( stderr, "%s\n", error_msg );
          }
          if ( matched_msg != NULL && *matched_msg != '\0' ) {
             fprintf( stderr, "Part of the DN that matches an existing entry: %s\n", matched_msg );
          }
          ldap_unbind_s( ld );
          return( 1 );
        }
        num_entries = ldap_count_entries( ld, res );
       num_refs = ldap_count_references( ld, res );
       /* Iterate through the results. An LDAPMessage structure sent back from a search
          operation can contain either an entry found by the search, a search reference, 
          or the final result of the search operation. */
       for ( msg = ldap_first_message( ld, res ); msg != NULL; msg = ldap_next_message( ld, msg ) ) {
          /* Determine what type of message was sent from the server. */
          msgtype = ldap_msgtype( msg );
          switch( msgtype ) {
          /* If the result was an entry found by the search, get and print the
             attributes and values of the entry. */
          case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_ENTRY:
             /* Get and print the DN of the entry. */
             if (( dn = ldap_get_dn( ld, res )) != NULL ) {
                printf( "dn: %s\n", dn );
                ldap_memfree( dn );
             }
             /* Iterate through each attribute in the entry. */
             for ( a = ldap_first_attribute( ld, res, &ber );
             a != NULL; a = ldap_next_attribute( ld, res, ber ) ) {
                /* Get and print all values for each attribute. */
                if (( vals = ldap_get_values( ld, res, a )) != NULL ) {
                   for ( i = 0; vals[ i ] != NULL; i++ ) {
                      printf( "%s: %s\n", a, vals[ i ] );
                   }
                   ldap_value_free( vals );
                }
                ldap_memfree( a );
             }
             if ( ber != NULL ) {
                ber_free( ber, 0 );
             }
             printf( "\n" );
             break;
          case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_REFERENCE:
             /* The server sent a search reference encountered during the 
                search operation. */
             /* Parse the result and print the search references. 
                Ideally, rather than print them out, you would follow the
                references. */
             parse_rc = ldap_parse_reference( ld, msg, &referrals, NULL, 0 );
             if ( parse_rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
                fprintf( stderr, "ldap_parse_result: %s\n", ldap_err2string( parse_rc ) );
                ldap_unbind( ld );
                return( 1 );
             }
             if ( referrals != NULL ) {
                for ( i = 0; referrals[ i ] != NULL; i++ ) {
                   printf( "Search reference: %s\n\n", referrals[ i ] );
                }
                ldap_value_free( referrals );
             }
             break;
          case LDAP_RES_SEARCH_RESULT:
             /* Parse the final result received from the server. Note the last
                argument is a non-zero value, which indicates that the 
                LDAPMessage structure will be freed when done.  (No need
                to call ldap_msgfree().) */
             parse_rc = ldap_parse_result( ld, msg, &rc, &matched_msg, &error_msg, NULL, &serverctrls, 0 );
             if ( parse_rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
                fprintf( stderr, "ldap_parse_result: %s\n", ldap_err2string( parse_rc ) );
                ldap_unbind( ld );
                return( 1 );
             }
             /* Check the results of the LDAP search operation. */
             if ( rc != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
                fprintf( stderr, "ldap_search_ext: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
                if ( error_msg != NULL & *error_msg != '\0' ) {
                   fprintf( stderr, "%s\n", error_msg );
                }
                if ( matched_msg != NULL && *matched_msg != '\0' ) {
                   fprintf( stderr, "Part of the DN that matches an existing entry: %s\n", matched_msg );
                }
             } else {
                printf( "Search completed successfully.\n"
                   "Entries found: %d\n"
                   "Search references returned: %d\n", 
                   num_entries, num_refs );
             }
             
             break;
             
          default:
             break;
          }
       }
        /* Disconnect when done. */
        ldap_unbind( ld );
        return( 0 );
    }

    Reading an Entry

    You can use the search functions to read a specific entry in the directory. To read an entry, set the starting point of the search to the entry, and set the scope of the search to LDAP_SCOPE_BASE and specify (objectclass=*) for the search filter.

    Figure 6.6   Using the LDAP_SCOPE_BASE scope to read an entry

    The following section of code prints the attributes of the entry for Barbara Jensen.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include "ldap.h"
    /* Change these as needed. */
    #define HOSTNAME "localhost"
    #define PORT_NUMBER   LDAP_PORT
    #define FIND_DN "uid=bjensen, ou=People, o=Airius.com"
    int
    main( int argc, char **argv )
    {
        LDAP   *ld;
        LDAPMessage   *result, *e;
        BerElement   *ber;
        char   *a;
        char   **vals;
        int      i, rc;
        /* Get a handle to an LDAP connection. */
        if ( (ld = ldap_init( HOSTNAME, PORT_NUMBER )) == NULL ) {
          perror( "ldap_init" );
          return( 1 );
        }
        /* Bind anonymously to the LDAP server. */
        if ( ( rc = ldap_simple_bind_s( ld, NULL, NULL ) ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_simple_bind_s: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          return( 1 );
        }
        /* Search for the entry. */
        if ( ( rc = ldap_search_ext_s( ld, FIND_DN, LDAP_SCOPE_BASE, "(objectclass=*)", 
          NULL, 0, NULL, NULL, LDAP_NO_LIMIT, LDAP_NO_LIMIT, &result ) ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
          fprintf( stderr, "ldap_search_ext_s: %s\n", ldap_err2string( rc ) );
          return( 1 );
        }
        /* Since we are doing a base search, there should be only one matching entry.  */
        e = ldap_first_entry( ld, result ); 
       if ( e != NULL ) {
          printf( "\nFound %s:\n\n", FIND_DN );
          /* Iterate through each attribute in the entry. */
          for ( a = ldap_first_attribute( ld, e, &ber );
             a != NULL; a = ldap_next_attribute( ld, e, ber ) ) {
             /* For each attribute, print the attribute name and values. */
             if ((vals = ldap_get_values( ld, e, a)) != NULL ) {
                for ( i = 0; vals[i] != NULL; i++ ) {
                   printf( "%s: %s\n", a, vals[i] );
                }
                ldap_value_free( vals );
             }
             ldap_memfree( a );
          }
          if ( ber != NULL ) {
             ber_free( ber, 0 );
          }
       }
       ldap_msgfree( result );
       ldap_unbind( ld );
       return( 0 );
    }

    Listing Subentries

    You can use the search functions to list the subentries under a specific entry in the directory. To list the subentries, set the starting point of the search to the entry, and set the scope of the search to LDAP_SCOPE_ONELEVEL.

    Figure 6.7   Using the LDAP_SCOPE_ONELEVEL scope to list subentries

    The following section of code lists all entries one level below the o=Airius.com entry in the directory hierarchy.

    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <ldap.h>
    LDAP *ld;
    LDAPMessage *result, *e;
    BerElement *ber;
    char *a, *dn;
    char **vals;
    char *my_searchbase = "o=Airius.com";
    char *my_filter = "(objectclass=*)"
    /* Search one level under the starting point. */
    if ( ldap_search_s( ld, my_searchbase, LDAP_SCOPE_ONELEVEL, my_filter, 
             NULL, 0, &result ) != LDAP_SUCCESS ) {
       ldap_perror( ld, "ldap_search_s" );
       return( 1 );
    }
    /* For each matching entry, print the entry name and its attributes. */
    for ( e = ldap_first_entry( ld, result ); e != NULL; 
             e = ldap_next_entry( ld, e ) ) {
       if ( ( dn = ldap_get_dn( ld, e ) ) != NULL ) {
          printf( "dn: %s\n", dn );
          ldap_memfree( dn );
       }
       for ( a = ldap_first_attribute( ld, e, &ber ); a != NULL; 
             a = ldap_next_attribute( ld, e, ber ) ) {
          if ( ( vals = ldap_get_values( ld, e, a ) ) != NULL ) {
             for ( i = 0; vals[i] != NULL; i++ ) {
                printf( "%s: %s\n", a, vals[i] );
             }
             ldap_value_free( vals );
          }
          ldap_memfree( a );
       }
       if ( ber != NULL ) {
          ldap_ber_free( ber, 0 );
       }
       printf( "\n" );
    }
    ldap_msgfree( result );
    ...


    Table of Contents | Previous | Next | Index

    Last Updated: 10/01/98 17:03:49