What's the difference between LDIFDE and CSVDE? Usage considerations?

What's the difference between LDIFDE and CSVDE? Usage
considerations?

Question Posted / vijayendra

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What's the difference between LDIFDE and CSVDE? Usage considerations?..

Answer / sunilvishu

Introduction to CSVDE and LDIFDE

The main purpose of this page is to explain the differences
between Microsoft's CSVDE and LDIFDE. If you can provide
data about your users, computers or contacts in a text file,
then CSVDE or LDIFDE can create the corresponding account in
Windows Server 2003/8 Active Directory.

The second purpose of this page is to act as a mini sitemap
to guide you to my tutorials for importing and export with
CSVDE and LDIFDE.

However, before I go into detail, here are three classic
uses of the these Windows Server 2003 and 2008 commands;

Bulk import of NEW user accounts. (CSVDE)
Creation of computer accounts.
Modification of EXISTING Active Directory accounts. (LDIFDE)

CSVDE

Comma Separated Value Data Exchange.
Uses a comma-delimited file with LDAP fields in the first
row, followed by rows of account data. Excel is a good
vehicle to hold and manipulate CSVDE files.

When importing accounts, always try CSVDE first because the
syntax is so much easier than LDIFDE.

Another advantage of Microsoft's CSVDE is it understands and
thrives on CSV files. This means that you can manipulate
the data in a spreadsheet before you import data into Active
Directory.
LDIFDE

Lightweight Data Interchange Format, Data Exchange.
Has line-separated values between each record. The data is
not suitable for spreadsheets.

My advice is use Microsoft's LDIFDE when ever CSVDE is not
up to the job, for example, if you need to import users with
passwords CSVDE will not work.

LDIFDE has more powerful verbs, for instance CSVDE can only
add users, whereas LDIFDE can modify or even delete their
accounts.