Compare Directory Sync with GCDS

Feature	GCDS	Directory Sync
Hardware & software installation required?	Yes, requires on-premises software.	No, Directory Sync is a cloud-based solution.
External directory support	Supports all LDAP-compliant directories, including Active Directory and OpenLDAP.	Supports Microsoft Active Directory (AD) and Microsoft Azure Active Directory (Azure AD).
How it connects to the external server	Usually resides on the same network as your LDAP server.	AD—Uses Cloud VPN or Cloud Interconnect to access your on-premises LDAP server. Alternatively, you can host your LDAP server using Google Compute Engine. For more information, go to Supported network connections. Azure AD—Uses the administrator's Microsoft credentials to connect. Admin must have the Global Administrator role.
Types of data synced	Users (including admins), groups, calendar resources, external contacts, passwords. Go to What is synced?	Non-admin users and groups.
Able to sync from multiple external sources?	No	AD—Supports syncing from multiple directories. Azure AD—Supports syncing from only one directory.
Complexity of set up	Can be highly complex, depending on your organization's needs.	Simplified setup using your Google Admin console.
Frequency of sync	Configurable by admin. Requires third-party scheduling software to automate syncs.	Full sync starts one hour after the previous sync finishes. This interval can't be altered.
Troubleshooting & logging	Might need to compile log files from multiple servers.	Centralized reporting in the Google Admin console. You can filter, search, and set custom alerts.
User attribute mapping	You can map: Up to 35 system attributes. Custom attributes.	You can map the following attributes: First name. Last name. Email address. Recovery phone number. Recovery email address.
Organizational unit mapping	Automatically places users in designated organizational units.	Users can be mapped to a specified organizational unit.