Single Sign-On (SSO)
Implementing Single Sign-On (SSO) across multiple domains. Here's a high-level overview of how you could approach this:
-
Centralized Authentication Server (Main Domain):
- Maintain a centralized authentication server on your main domain that handles the user login/authentication process. This server will issue tokens or session identifiers upon successful login.
-
Authentication Protocol:
- Use a standardized authentication protocol like OAuth 2.0 or OpenID Connect. These protocols allow you to securely authenticate users and issue tokens.
-
Token Issuance:
- When a user logs in through the main domain, the authentication server should issue a token (e.g., JWT) that contains information about the user and their authentication status.
-
Cross-Domain Communication:
- Implement Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) to allow other domains to make authenticated requests to the main domain. This enables secure communication between domains.
-
Popup/Redirect Flow:
- When a user on a secondary domain needs to authenticate, you can implement a popup or redirect flow to the main domain's login page.
- The main domain's login page should handle the authentication process, and upon successful login, it can close the popup or redirect back to the secondary domain.
-
Token Verification:
- The secondary domain can receive the token from the main domain once the user is authenticated. This token can be used to verify the user's identity on the secondary domain.
- The secondary domain should validate the token with the main domain's authentication server to ensure its authenticity and check the user's session.
-
Session Management:
- Sessions in web applications are typically domain-specific. However, you can implement shared session management by using a centralized session store or database.
- When a user logs in on the main domain, their session information is stored in the centralized session store.
- Other domains can query this centralized session store to check if a user is authenticated. This would require some communication between domains.
-
Access Tokens vs. Session IDs:
- Instead of sharing session IDs, it's better to use access tokens (JWTs) for authentication. JWTs are designed to be portable and can carry authentication information securely.
-
Security Considerations:
- Implement strong security measures to protect the tokens and ensure secure communication between domains. Use HTTPS, validate tokens on the server, and handle token expiration and revocation.
Remember that implementing SSO and cross-domain authentication can be complex, and security is paramount. You should carefully plan and design your authentication flow and consider using established authentication libraries or frameworks to ensure the highest level of security. Additionally, legal and privacy considerations, such as GDPR compliance, may also apply when handling user data across multiple domains.
How it can be done with Python
Certainly, I can provide you with a high-level description, sample code blocks, and sample data for each point in the Single Sign-On (SSO) implementation. However, please note that this is a complex task, and the actual implementation may vary based on your technology stack and requirements.
1. Centralized Authentication Server (Main Domain):
A centralized authentication server handles user login and token issuance.
Sample Data: No specific data to provide.
2. Authentication Protocol:
Use OAuth 2.0 or OpenID Connect for secure authentication.
Sample Code (OAuth 2.0): Sample code will depend on your chosen programming language and library. Below is a simplified example using a hypothetical library.
python# Sample OAuth 2.0 server code (Python with Flask)
from flask import Flask, request, jsonify
app = Flask(__name__)
# Endpoint for user login (authentication)
@app.route('/login', methods=['POST'])
def login():
# Authenticate the user (e.g., check username and password)
# If authenticated, issue an access token
access_token = 'sample-access-token'
return jsonify({'access_token': access_token})
if __name__ == '__main__':
app.run()
3. Token Issuance:
Issue a token (e.g., JWT) upon successful login.
Sample Data (JWT): The issued JWT may look like this:
cssHeader:
{
"alg": "HS256",
"typ": "JWT"
}
Payload:
{
"sub": "user123",
"exp": 1630454400 # Expiration time (Unix timestamp)
}
Signature:
HMACSHA256(
base64UrlEncode(header) + "." +
base64UrlEncode(payload),
secret
)
4. Cross-Domain Communication:
Implement Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) to allow secure communication between domains.
Sample Code (JavaScript):
javascript// Sample CORS configuration for Express.js (Node.js)
const express = require('express');
const cors = require('cors');
const app = express();
// Enable CORS for all routes
app.use(cors());
// Your routes and logic here
app.listen(3000, () => {
console.log('Server is running on port 3000');
});
5. Popup/Redirect Flow:
Implement a popup or redirect flow for authentication.
Sample Code (JavaScript - Popup Flow):
javascript// Sample JavaScript to open a popup for authentication
const loginButton = document.getElementById('login-button');
loginButton.addEventListener('click', () => {
const popup = window.open('https://main-domain.com/login', 'loginPopup', 'width=400,height=400');
// Handle the popup's communication and close logic
});
6. Token Verification:
The secondary domain verifies the token issued by the main domain.
Sample Code (JavaScript):
javascript// Sample JavaScript to verify the JWT on the secondary domain
const token = 'sample-access-token';
// Send a request to the main domain for token verification
fetch('https://main-domain.com/verify-token', {
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'Content-Type': 'application/json',
},
body: JSON.stringify({ token }),
})
.then(response => response.json())
.then(data => {
if (data.valid) {
// Token is valid; user is authenticated
console.log('User is authenticated');
} else {
// Token is not valid; user is not authenticated
console.log('User is not authenticated');
}
})
.catch(error => {
console.error('Error verifying token:', error);
});
7. Session Management:
Implement shared session management using a centralized store.
Sample Data (Centralized Session Store): Data in the centralized store may look like this:
json{
"user123": {
"authenticated": true,
"session_data": {
// Session data for the user
}
},
// Other user sessions
}
8. Access Tokens vs. Session IDs:
Use access tokens (JWTs) for authentication, as shown in "Sample Data (JWT)" above.
9. Security Considerations:
Ensure secure communication (HTTPS), token validation on the server, token expiration checks, and secure handling of sensitive information.
Please note that these are simplified examples, and actual implementation details will depend on your technology stack and specific requirements. Additionally, you may need to use libraries or frameworks tailored to your chosen programming language and platform for authentication and token management.
How it can be done with php
Here is the sample PHP code blocks, and sample data for each point in the Single Sign-On (SSO) implementation using PHP. Please note that this is a high-level overview, and the actual implementation may vary based on your specific requirements and PHP framework (if any).
1. Centralized Authentication Server (Main Domain):
A centralized authentication server handles user login and token issuance.
Sample Data: No specific data to provide.
2. Authentication Protocol:
Use OAuth 2.0 or OpenID Connect for secure authentication.
Sample Code (OAuth 2.0):
Here's a simplified example of an OAuth 2.0 server using PHP with the Slim framework:
php<?php
use Slim\Factory\AppFactory;
require __DIR__ . '/vendor/autoload.php';
$app = AppFactory::create();
// Endpoint for user login (authentication)
$app->post('/login', function ($request, $response, $args) {
// Authenticate the user (e.g., check username and password)
// If authenticated, issue an access token
$access_token = 'sample-access-token';
return $response->withJson(['access_token' => $access_token]);
});
$app->run();
3. Token Issuance:
Issue a token (e.g., JWT) upon successful login.
Sample Data (JWT): The issued JWT may look like this:
cssHeader:
{
"alg": "HS256",
"typ": "JWT"
}
Payload:
{
"sub": "user123",
"exp": 1630454400 // Expiration time (Unix timestamp)
}
Signature:
HMACSHA256(
base64UrlEncode(header) + "." +
base64UrlEncode(payload),
secret
)
4. Cross-Domain Communication:
Implement Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) to allow secure communication between domains.
Sample Code (PHP - Slim Framework):
CORS middleware can be added to your Slim application:
phpuse Slim\Middleware\CorsMiddleware;
$app->add(new CorsMiddleware([
'origin' => ['https://domain2.com', 'https://domain3.com'],
'methods' => ['GET', 'POST', 'PUT', 'DELETE'],
]));
5. Popup/Redirect Flow:
Implement a popup or redirect flow for authentication.
Sample Code (JavaScript - Popup Flow):
This part remains the same as in the previous example (JavaScript code for opening a popup).
6. Token Verification:
The secondary domain verifies the token issued by the main domain.
Sample Code (PHP):
php<?php
// Sample PHP code to verify the JWT on the secondary domain
$token = 'sample-access-token';
// Send a request to the main domain for token verification
$verificationUrl = 'https://main-domain.com/verify-token';
$data = json_encode(['token' => $token]);
$ch = curl_init($verificationUrl);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST, "POST");
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, $data);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, [
'Content-Type: application/json',
]);
$response = curl_exec($ch);
curl_close($ch);
$verificationResult = json_decode($response, true);
if ($verificationResult['valid']) {
// Token is valid; user is authenticated
echo 'User is authenticated';
} else {
// Token is not valid; user is not authenticated
echo 'User is not authenticated';
}
7. Session Management:
Implement shared session management using a centralized store.
Sample Data (Centralized Session Store): This part remains the same as in the previous example (JSON data for centralized session store).
8. Access Tokens vs. Session IDs:
Use access tokens (JWTs) for authentication, as shown in the "Sample Data (JWT)" section above.
9. Security Considerations:
Ensure secure communication (HTTPS), token validation on the server, token expiration checks, and secure handling of sensitive information.
Please note that these are simplified examples, and actual implementation details will depend on your specific requirements and the PHP framework you're using (if any). Additionally, you may need to use libraries or components tailored to PHP for authentication and token management.
Back to Pragmatic Engineering
posted by Pragmatic Engineering @ September 03, 2023
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