The LDAP authentication method allows authentication using an existing LDAP server and user/password logins. This allows Vault to be integrated into environments using LDAP without being duplicated the user/password configuration in multiple places. The mapping of groups and users in LDAP to Vault policies is managed by using the users and groups paths.
Authentication methods must be configured in advance before users or machines can authenticate it. These steps are usually completed by an operator or configuration management tool which is very helpful in the authentication process.
