This page has been deprecated. It was an intermediate work product. The final report and the completed saml2int profile should be used as primary sources of information.
This table is a result of copying the original Implementation Profile WG Interop Issues List, and modifying it for use by the deployment profile WG.
Column 1 captures the identified issues.
Column 2 attempts to recast each issue as a "requirement" (note, the recasting may not work, so this column should be looked at skeptically).
Column 3 categorizes the issue per Walter's note.
Column 4 is for record keeping to identify whether/where each issue is captured and addressed in the work put forward by the working group.
Column 5 is a Yes/No indicator of whether the issue is in-scope for the work of the deployment profile WG
This list will also be used ongoing as a "parking lot" for any issues that are raised in discussion that are not immediately captured in the profile documentation.
| # | Issue | Issue restated as requirement | Limitation | Resolved | How Resolved | In-Scope for Deployment Profile | Candidate For | Notes | Questions and Answers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manual exchange of metadata or (worse) raw config into | Automated, ongoing metadata exchange and validation | Software/Operational | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-MD04, IIP-ME04 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 2 | Security risk/change control risk inherent in one-time MD exchange | Automated, ongoing metadata exchange and validation | Operational | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-ME03, IIP-ME04 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 3 | Lack of precise documentation and sloppy use of SAML constructs (in custom deployments) | More specificity for use of some specific SAML features | Software | Yes | Implementation profile - throughout | Yes | Documentation profile | ||
| 4 | SP-initiated SSO as a "special" case | Support for SP-initiated SSO | Software | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-SSO01 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 5 | Lack of deep link support | Support for deep linking | Software/Operational | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-SP13 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 6 | Use of frames that break with 3rd party cookies | Keeping authentication screens as top level windows (not iframes) | Operational | Yes | Saml2int | ||||
| 7 | Lack of dynamic provisioning/entitlement-like attribute based authZ | Support for attributes indicating group membership/entitlements (when customers handle authZ) | Software/Operational | Yes | Application profile | ||||
| 8 | Lack of focus on AuthZ space and support | Support for attributes indicating group membership/entitlements (when customers handle authZ) | Operational | Yes | Application profile | ||||
| 9 | Lack of clock skew allowance | Support for clock skew and NTP | Software | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-G01, | Yes | Saml2int | also recommend adding recommendation for consumption of time server service in a deployment profile | |
| 10 | Lack of encryption support | Support for XML encryption at the SP | Software | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-SP13, IIP-SSO04, IIP-MD09, IIP-SP02,IIP-MD10, IIP-MD11, Section 2.5 (IIP-ALG01 - 06), IIP-IDP11, IIP-IDP19 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 11 | Lack of key rollover support | Support for key rollover | Software | Yes | Implementation profile Section 2.1.3 (IIP-MD07, IIP-MD08, IIP-SP13, IIP-IDP19) | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 12 | Requiring valid (vendor signed and/or expiring) certs | Support for long-lived, self-signed certs, which may or may not be expired | Software/Operational | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-MD05, IIP-MD03, IIP-MD11 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 13 | Lack of discovery support/portable links (w/o hard coded IdP refs) | Support for discovery services | Software | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-SP09 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 14 | Hard coded 1:1 SP:IdP models | Support for multiple IdPs | Software/Operational | Yes | Saml2int | ||||
| 15 | Require non-opaque, non-transient NameID (rather than attribute) | Support for account identifiers in attributes (rather than NameIDs) | Software/Operational | Partial; SP requirements simply state "don't misuse persistent" and "don't require nameid policy in AuthRequests". IdP says "don't require NameID in assertion". Do we need statement about SP accepting assertions not containing NameIDs? | Implementation profile IIP-SP03, IIP-SP08, IIP-IDP12, IIP-SSO05 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 16 | Requiring literal account IDs be asserted by IdP | Support for identifier mapping (i.e., IdP ID is mapped to an internal account ID) | Operational | Best Effort: Whether an SP actually supports this is a configuration issue, agreed that the profile allows for the desired configuration, even if a deployment forgoes leveraging the configuration capability. | Implementation profile IIP-SP03 | Yes | SAML subject-id profile | ||
| 17 | AuthnContextClass: not specifying at SP, but failing if PPT not used by IdP | Specify ACC; if unspecified, accept any ACC (unless there is a security reason not to) | Software | Partial; Addresses the requirement in a roundabout way. Does not state "must not require an ACC if it is not specified in metadata". (Not clear that such a requirement would belong in this document, though). | Implementation profile IIP-IDP10 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 18 | AuthnContextClass: can't handle locally defined AuthnContextClasses | Allow support of extended ACC's (as part of site-specific configuration) | Software | Possibly; arguably inferable from IIP-IDP10, but it is not clear from IDP10 that IdP must support arbitrary values for ACC. | Implementation profile | Yes | Application profile | ||
| 19 | AuthnContextClass: no "step-up" support | Support use of "step-up" authentication (re-auth with new ACC and poss ForceAuthn | Software/Operation | Application profile | App profile at best - Some of these are really hard - probably need to update saml2int and then work backwards from gaps | ||||
| 20 | Assuming Logout URL exists | Verify advertised IdP SLO endpoint before directing user there | Software | Partial; Says IdP must support SLO, but does not indicate that SPs must honor IdP metadata. Do we need an SP requirement here? | Implementation profile Section 4.5 (IIP-IDP17-20) | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 21 | Logoff handling | ??? | SAML | Probably | Implementation profile Section 4.5 (IIP-IDP17-20) | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 22 | Expectations of SLO | ??? | Operational | Partial; (assuming this is largely a duplicate of issue 20) | Implementation profile Section 4.5 (IIP-IDP17-20) | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 23 | Browser cookie behavior impacting functionality (sessions not clearing, etc) | ??? | SAML | No | Probably needs to be called out, somehow, about this behavior | ||||
| 24 | Attribute release standards for IdPs | ??? | Operational | Yes | InCommon "new rules" | Perhaps attribute release recommendations SHOULD be part of this group's final report | |||
| 25 | Attribute release: suppressing grad students (FERPA concerns) | ??? | Operational | Is this and 24 about configuring conditional release of data from specfiic users? | ??? | Probably needs to be reworded, less specific, ask LIGO folks (Scott K) | |||
| 26 | Privacy practices: what is actually being kept private? | ??? | Tangential | No | |||||
| 27 | Standardized and effective workflow for dealing with attribute release | Configuring attribute release based on available context | Operational | Partial; IIP-IDP05 is useful for support of entity categories, and IIP-IDP06 is useful to the extent that including md:RequestedAttributes is part of the operational solution. IIP-MD04 is useful to the extent that consuming or excluding metadata simplifies the process | Implementation profile IIP-IDP05, IIP-IDP06, arguably IIP-MD04 | Application profile | Only addressed in the context of the new SAML subject-id profile | ||
| 28 | Vendors charging fees for setup and support of SAML | SAML support should be part of base service | Operational | InCommon "new rules" | |||||
| 29 | Lack of framework/contract terms; change controls, support escalation | ??? | Operational | InCommon "new rules" | |||||
| 30 | Lack of testing SP/IdP facilities (test SP, test IdP) | Run a testing SP/IdP for validation purposes during initial integration testing? | Operational | Recommendation in a final report | |||||
| 31 | Knowledge gaps with some vendors on how SAML works. | ??? | Operational | No | |||||
| 32 | Advertised but unsupported functionality in metadata (artifact endpoints, etc.) | Advertise only supported endpoints | Operational | Partial; MA01-02 address listed encryption profiles. Arguably the metadata exchange requirements imply some support of this, but no specific requirements are listed. | Implementation profile IIP-MD09; IIP-SP02; IIP-IDP02 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 33 | Availability of POP/mechanism for assessing risk | InCommon: stronger focus on POP? [May be addressed in different workgroups] | Operational | No | Deprecated by baseline practices | ||||
| 34 | Publishing metadata contact info for security incident response | Include security incident response (usually security or help desk) in metadata | Operational | Yes | R&E profile | InCommon behavioral/Sirtfi thing | |||
| 35 | ForceAuthn: IdPs not ensuring user is reauthenticated | Verify function of reauth before resetting authninstant | Operational | Yes; at least to the extent we can define it across authN methods. | Implementation profile IIP-IDP08 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 36 | ForceAuthn: SPs not checking authninstant | Verify (or allow verification) of authninstant currency | Software/Operational | Application profile | |||||
| 37 | OASIS Standards have not been updated with Errata, current Errata out-of-date | Recommend in report-out of WG that someone be resourced to update the Errata and a modify the standard to include the changes from Errata (working with OASIS) (Scott C says someone has informally volunteered to do this. Who?) | Standards | Partial; Addressed separately (Scott C, Eric), but not included in the OASIS repository. | No | Noted | Not part of profile, but may be worth pursuing separately. | ||
| 38 | Review with REFEDS once a solid draft is done | Nick to check in with Nicole on this | Standards | Nick | Tangential | ||||
| 39 | Research collaboration requirements for adoption of a persistent nameID | Use of persistent nameID or other mechanism to enable seamless collaboration across multiple SPs in a research organization. | Operational | Scott K | Yes | Application profile | |||
| 40 | "Ready For Collaboration" entity category for IdPs | Description of an entity category that would signal that an IdP is configured for ease of collaboration with no manual intervention by operators, does not re-assign ePPN, and/or uses persistent nameID... etc. TBD | Operational | David W | Yes/Tangential? | Application (or federation) profile | |||
| 41 | "Red IdPs" | eduGAIN has the "ECCS" service (https://technical.edugain.org/eccs/index.html) for highlighting various levels of IdP operability. Tom Scavo has a script that looks for "dead" IdPs. Is there some useful baseline for IdP operability or interoperability that this group would recommend and could it be tested for? | Operational | Nick / Scott Koranda | Yes | R&E profile | Possibly recommend inserting entity attribute for 'red' IdPs | ||
| 42 | Don't respond to Unsolicited assertions. | (Still working to clarify specific requirement) | Software | No | |||||
| 43 | Include language in SAML2int regarding support for multiple IdPs asserting against access to the same resource URL/entityID. (I.e., clarify that federation presumes cloud vendors can support multiple IdPs and discovery, not just externalized authentication) | Software/Operational | Yes | Saml2int | Followup to item 14 to be addressed in SAML2INT work | ||||
| 44 | Attribute or NameID values too short or disallow legal XML characters | Minimum implementation requirements for attribute/nameid values (in particular xs:string) length and legal characters | Software | Yes | Implementation profile IIP-G03 | Yes | Saml2int | ||
| 45 | Lack of scope validation | DEDUPLICATE into binding ID to issuer one) Attribute scopes can be validated against allowed scopes defined in metadata (or elsewhere?). | Software. | Yes | Saml2int | ||||
| 46 | Lack of time synchronization (separate from, but as important as clockskew) | Require that SP and IdP deployments use time synchronization against time servers | Operational | Yes | Saml2int | ||||
| 47 | Java and md5/sha1 certificate support | Deployment profile should call out that all certs should be signed with modern signing algorithms to avoid being rejected by cryptographic code that is increasingly aggressive about rejecting older signature types, even in cases where signature verification is not required. | Operational | Yes | Saml2int | ||||
| 48 | Binding of an identifier to its issuer or more broadly checking scope | See:http://www.economyofmechanism.com/office365-authbypass.html | Software/Operational | Yes | Saml2int | ||||
| 49 | Broken or missing errorURL in IdP metadata | Recommend an errorURL in IdP metadata. If an IdP does not have a working errorURL in metadata, it should be tagged with hide-from-discovery. | Operational | Yes | |||||
| 50 | No standard attribute set | Define or reference a standard attribute set. (I.e., do we use eduPerson LDAP objectclass vs. InCommon POP/Wiki vs. some broader spec) | Operational | Added during 10/6 meeting discussion |
Note: not included here are some recommended reference links, as those have been captured in the working group's list of references already