About Profiles

You use the Profiles modules to manage profile definitions, profiles, site terms, and Active Directory group membership for sites based on the SupplierActiveDirectory solution site. You can specify where profile data is stored when it is collected, and what type of profile data (for example, user data) is exported to the Data Warehouse. For information about exporting data to the Data Warehouse, see Specifying Data to be Imported into the Data Warehouse and Running the Profile Data Import DTS Task. You can add properties to profile definitions that will collect data you can use to distinguish those users to whom you want to deliver targeted ads or discounts. You can create site terms to standardize and restrict the choices shown to users when you request user input on your site.

The Profiles modules are designed so you can manage the data you collect about any business-related item, such as a user, a company, or a business process. Business Desk Profiles provides the following modules:

• Profile Definition Designer. You use the Profile Definition Designer module to update the types of information you collect on your Web site, such as adding a new question to your user registration page.
• Users. You use the Users module to create, find, and update user profile information, such as assigning a user a new password.
• Organizations. You use the Organizations module to create, edit, and delete organization profiles. Organization profiles contain information about organizations, such as contact information for a department within a company.
• Profile Editor. You use the Profile Editor module to update generic profiles. Generic profiles store generic profile definitions, which are profile definitions other than user or organization profile definitions, such as an Address profile definition.
• Site Terms Editor. You use the Site Terms Editor module to create site terms that standardize and limit the responses users can give to a particular question.
• Publish Profiles. You use the Publish Profiles module to publish to your Web site changes made with the Profile Definition Designer module.
• Group Manager. (Available only in the SupplierActiveDirectory site.) You use the Group Manager module to control the level of access that groups of users have on your Web site by managing user membership in Active Directory groups.

Note

• Business Desk permissions are set in the Permissions module in the Security category. Permissions can be assigned by module, by profile definition, and by profile property. You must have access to the Profiles modules to make changes to site terms, profile definitions, and profiles. For information about Business Desk permissions, see About Business Desk Security.

This section contains:

• Using Profiles in Web Site Management
• Collecting and Storing Profiles
• User Profiles, Organization Profiles, and Generic Profiles
• Profile Structure
• Profiling System Design Considerations
• Profiling System Run-time Considerations
• Site Terms
• Active Directory Groups

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