What is the primary purpose of Active Directory?

The primary purpose of Active Directory is to serve as a shared registry for all network users and computers. This directory service provides a comprehensive framework that allows for the organization and management of information about networked resources, such as users, computers, and applications. By storing these entities in a centralized database, Active Directory enables administrators to effectively manage permissions and access controls, ensuring that users can authenticate and locate needed resources across the network.

Active Directory facilitates user management by allowing administrators to define user roles, control group memberships, and apply other attributes that help in managing how users interact with various network resources. It also supports hierarchical organization through organizational units (OUs), allowing for a structured representation of the environment, which simplifies administration tasks.

While the other options present functions that can be related to Active Directory, they do not capture its primary purpose as effectively. For example, managing software deployments, enforcing security policies, and monitoring network traffic are important tasks within an IT environment but are more accurately regarded as ancillary functions that can be supported by Active Directory rather than its primary function.