SAML 2.0

Today, organizations rely on their enterprise software applications to carry out business functions more efficiently. However a disconnected heap of independent software applications can cause more problems than they solve. In order to make the most out of enterprise software deployments, they should be integrated to work together in perfect synchronicity. Though it seems simple enough, connecting a myriad of diverse applications with their different programming languages, platforms, data formats, protocols, and QoS requirements can be an architect's worst nightmare.

The benefits of cloud computing are undeniable – Faster project deployment, lower maintenance costs and ease of scalability are just a few. However, these benefits can only be enjoyed if the right security protocols are in place, thereby making security a key concern in the buildup and migration of applications on the cloud.

Single Sign On (SSO) systems have become very popular since it is a very secure and convenient authentication mechanism. WSO2 Stratos and Google Apps can be taken as best examples for Single Sign On systems where users can automatically login to multiple web applications once they are authenticated at a one place using a single credential.

Security Assertian Markup Language (SAML) version 2.0 Profiles Specification defines a web browser based single sign on system. This article briefly explains the SAML 2.0 web browser based SSO profile and guids to build your own SAML 2.0 Assertions Consumer using the OpenSAML 2.2.3 Java library. The demo application provided with this article would help to understand how SAML 2.0 based SSO systems work and how to use WSO2 Identity Server as the Identity Provider in a SSO system.

[Curated on 26th March 2012]