Abstract: A distributed architecture for an enterprise portal involves a network of connected, department-sized portal servers working together as a group of federated portals, including a union of independent entities working together to provide specific functions. An enterprise portal architecture includes a number of user systems connected, over a network, to at least two portals, a plurality of data sources coupled over a network to the portals, where each of the portals include a knowledge framework unit. The knowledge framework units, which are interconnected, each include a digital business identity and a knowledge broker, wherein the digital business identity includes a user directory configured to store information unique to a subset of said plurality of users, and wherein the knowledge broker includes a meta-data directory.