What distinguishes Active Directory integration from local authentication in VMware?

Active Directory integration in VMware provides a significant advantage by allowing the use of external data sources for user management and authentication. By utilizing Active Directory, organizations can centralize their user identities, streamline user access, and apply consistent security policies across the environment. This integration facilitates not only the management of users but also grants them access based on their roles within the organization, leveraging existing Active Directory groups and permissions.

In contrast, local authentication typically involves managing users and access permissions within the confines of a single system or instance. This method does not provide the broader, centralized management capabilities associated with Active Directory, thus limiting scalability and ease of administration.

The integration with external data sources through Active Directory means that user accounts and permissions can be managed from a central directory service, allowing for enhanced security and compliance measures. This makes it much easier for IT administrators to manage a large number of users across various VMware environments without duplicating effort.