Re: attributes with empty values

[Peter Marschall <peter@adpm.de>]

Hi,

On Sunday 07 December 2003 17:38, Ace Suares wrote:
> On a related note - it seems impossible to give an atribute the empty
> string as value.
> [ .. example deleted ..]
> Is this a problem with the SYNTAX of the attribute, or is this a general
> thing?
> Ans is the only way to effect an 'empty' valued attribute, to remove the
> attribute fromt he entry ? I believe it works that way, but I'd like
> confirmation. 
This is the way that I have understood LDAP:
Attribute values have to be non-empty and unique with regard to the 
attribute's EQUALITY matching rule.
Empty attribute values simply do not exist.

> I think I can understand why values may not be 'empty' but
> can't there be situations where an attribute is a MUST in the schema but
> can have the empty string as one of it's possible values ?
In a proprerly designed schema this cannot occur. If the schema designer 
created the schema with the information above in mind it is logically not 
possible.
Either an attribute is a MUST, then it needs to always have a non-empty value,
or it is a MAY, then its absence is considered legal.

Peter

-- 
Peter Marschall
eMail: peter@adpm.de