User authentication server

I've been thinking about network authentication for Linux. I see that the alternatives are NIS, LDAP and SMB. I understand that NIS is considered obsolete, due to security concerns. My question concerns the ability to log on to the computer, when it's not able to reach the authentication server. For example, with Windows, when a user logs into a domain, the required key is downloaded to the computer, so that the user can later log into the computer, while disconnected from the network. Does the SMB method support this, as in Windows? Does LDAP? What about pros and cons, for either method, in a small network? What about one with both Windows and Linux computers? tnx jk