Tombstone - Record deleted entries

IBM i Directory Server provides the tombstone feature to record information, such as all the attributes, of a to-be deleted entry into a tombstone subtree before the entry gets deleted from the backend database.

Using the tombstone feature, you can move the to-be-deleted entries to the tombstone subtree, cn=Deleted Objects. Subsequently, the attribute table is updated for the entry to mark the entry as deleted by adding an attribute such as isDeleted.

Note:
  • This feature is supported only in the primary RDBM backend of the directory server.
  • Tombstones are not supported in configuration, schema, or change log backend.
  • Tombstone feature is disabled by default.

The tombstone feature is defined by the ibm-slapdTombstoneEnabled attribute in the cn=Directory, cn=RDBM Backends, cn=IBM Directory, cn=Schemas, cn=Configuration entry of the ibmslapd.conf file. Additionally, the ibm-slapdTombstoneLifetime attribute in the cn=Directory, cn=RDBM Backends, cn=IBM Directory, cn=Schemas, cn=Configuration entry of the configuration file defines the tombstone lifetime. The tombstone lifetime determines the time that deleted entries are retained, the default value is 7 days.

Use command line or WebAdmin to enable or disable tombstone.