Solution extends Active Directory group policy to Linux and UNIX systems and

enables single sign-on for enterprise applications 

BELLEVUE, Wash. - January 23, 2007 - Centeris Corporation, a pioneer in developing software for easy management of Linux® servers in a Microsoft® Windows® network, today introduced Likewise Identity 3.0, a cross-platform identity management solution that provides seamless integration of Linux and UNIX users and systems with Microsoft Active Directory.   Centeris created Likewise Identity after customers and large enterprise companies showed interest in more breadth around Active Directory integration - which was one of the core features in their flagship product, Likewise 2.0.

Likewise Identity 3.0 allows companies to leverage their existing Active Directory infrastructure to consolidate user accounts and provide end users with a single password for all non-Windows systems.   It features a single, lightweight agent install that allows administrators to join Linux and UNIX machines to Active Directory in less than five minutes and offers flexible modes of Active Directory integration - with or without schema extensions. "The addition of Likewise Identity to our product set is proof of our continued commitment to solving interoperability challenges for our customers," said Barry Crist, chief executive officer of Centeris Corporation.   "Because of our deep expertise with Samba, Likewise Identity is based on this stable open source technology to extend Active Directory to Linux and UNIX - helping our customers to reduce the cost and complexity of identity management in their mixed networks."

Likewise Identity 3.0 makes it easy for administrators to preserve pre-existing security identities by grouping Linux and UNIX systems within Active Directory and define multiple UIDs and GIDs as well as Network Information Service (NIS) mapping to support legacy directory migration.  Likewise Identity also allows organizations to extend Active Directory Group Policy to Linux and UNIX systems as well as enable single sign-on for any enterprise application that supports Kerberos and LDAP including Samba, Apache, SSH, NFS, WebSphere, JBoss, Tomcat, SAP, Oracle, and MySQL . 

"At Experian, we were adding and removing user accounts locally, which is a potential security risk," said Ferris Rezvani, IT Infrastructure Manager.  "Likewise Identity allows us to adhere to our strategy of centralizing user account management in Active Directory for all systems, strengthen the security of our network, and lower operational overhead."

"Organizations today are faced with the complexity of managing mixed networks and multiple identity management systems as well as the additional pressures of meeting regulatory compliance demands," said John Enck, Research Vice President and Research Director at Gartner Inc. "Customers are looking for ways to leverage their existing Active Directory infrastructure to lower costs and better meet security and regulatory requirements."

About Centeris

Centeris solutions improve management and interoperability of Windows, Linux, and UNIX systems with easy to use software for Linux administration and cross-platform identity management.

Our products, Likewise Admin and Likewise Identity, provide familiar Windows-based tools for system administrators to easily configure server roles and seamlessly integrate Linux and UNIX systems with Microsoft Active Directory. This enables companies running mixed networks to utilize existing Windows skills/resources, maximize the value of their Active Directory investment, strengthen the security of their network and lower Linux server TCO.

Centeris Corporation is a Bellevue, WA-based software company funded by leading venture capital firms Ignition Partners, Intel Capital, and Trinity Ventures. Centeris has experienced management and engineering teams in place and is led by senior executives from leading technology companies such as Microsoft, F5 Networks, EMC and Mercury.

For more information, visit www.centeris.com.