NetPro Announces Fifth Annual Directory Experts Conference

NetPro Computing, Inc., a leading provider of distributed services management software, today announced the Fifth Annual Directory Experts Conference (DEC) 2006, the only international event focused on advancing the skills of the most experienced Active Directory users. Sponsored in part by Microsoft, DEC 2006 will provide advanced education on key Microsoft Identity and Access Management (IAM) technologies, including Active Directory, Microsoft Identity Integration Server (MIIS), and Active Directory Federated Services (ADFS.) For the first time ever, the conference will also include a dedicated "Masters" track for Microsoft's Active Directory and MIIS MVP community and other highly experienced users.

DEC 2006 will be held March 26-29, 2006, at the Green Valley Ranch Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The theme, Achieving Secure Enterprise Identity Management and Access Control with Microsoft IAM Technologies, links the Active Directory and MIIS tracks and sets the tone for the conference's advanced and masters-level technical sessions. Stuart Kwan, Microsoft's Director of Program Management for Identity and Access, will return as keynote speaker for the fifth consecutive year, detailing the roadmap and future direction of Microsoft's highly integrated IAM technologies.

"The complexities of Identity and Access Management impact IT professionals and users worldwide and have far reaching implications for everything from network security and compliance to manageability and availability," said Gil Kirkpatrick, NetPro's CTO and DEC founder. "Over the course of the past five years, DEC has become the foremost event for focused, technical education in this area. We are committed to building on its stellar reputation with another powerful slate of speakers, technical sessions and networking opportunities that delegates can't get anywhere else."

Every year, DEC draws many return delegates and speakers, including Lance Russell, a principal with the Chicago-based IT consulting firm, PointBridge. "As consultants in the infrastructure space, we have to stay ahead of the curve, anticipating issues and knowing how to solve them before they happen at our customer sites," said Russell. "DEC presents a caliber of technical education that truly stands out among other conferences I've attended, helping us stay one step ahead."

DEC attendees point to the quality of the speaker line up as the key driver behind DEC's value. And, the conference's top-rated speakers have signed on to join the event again this year, including:

--  Stuart Kwan, Product Unit Manager, Directory Services, Microsoft
--  Andreas Luther, MIIS Group Program Manager, Microsoft
--  Paul Rich, Senior Architectural Engineer, Microsoft
--  Guido Grillenmeier, Senior Consultant, Microsoft Services, HP
    Consulting
--  Wook Lee, Senior Engineer, HP
--  Jesse Sutela, Senior IT Consultant, HP
--  Don Jones, Director, ScriptingAnswers.com

DEC 2006 will focus on a wide variety of sessions led by the top experts on Microsoft Active Directory and MIIS, offering in-depth technical presentations, as well as roundtable discussions designed to encourage delegate participation. In addition to traditional technical sessions held throughout the three-day event, DEC 2006 will also include a pre-conference Active Directory Disaster Recovery Workshop featuring hands-on instruction on different Disaster Recovery requirements, such as deleted user, malicious attack, fatal group policy configuration, etc. By popular demand, the conference will also feature a hands-on evening workshop billed as "IAM All Night: Gambling with Identity," where attendees will roll up their sleeves with speakers to build an identity management solution amid troubleshooting challenges and provisioning pitfalls.

To bolster the outstanding line up of Active Directory and MIIS experts already slated to speak, NetPro has opened a "Call for Papers." Individuals seeking consideration for speaking opportunities at the event will find complete details at http://www.dec2006.com. Proposals must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. MST November 30, 2005, for consideration. Speakers selected through the DEC 2006 Call for Papers process will be detailed in an announcement on Dec. 13, 2005.

DEC 2006 is offered on a tiered pricing schedule that includes all food, beverages and conference materials. The early bird registration fee for delegates who register by Jan. 6, 2006, is $1395 USD per person. Delegates who register after Jan. 6 and before Feb. 24, 2006, will pay $1595 USD. The late registration fee for those delegates who register after Feb. 24, 2006, is $1695 USD. To register for the Directory Experts Conference for Active Directory, please visit: http://www.dec2006.com

World famous for its gambling, night life, opulent hotels, shopping and shows, the incomparable Las Vegas plays host to the Fifth Annual DEC. And the four-star Green Valley Ranch Resort, Casino and Spa provides the ideal setting for the conference, featuring an intimate resort experience that's close to the action, but a world apart. NetPro has negotiated a group rate of $199 per night for a standard room through the Green Valley Ranch Resort. For more information about the Green Valley Ranch, visit: http://www.greenvalleyranchresort.com