Role Mapping Service for Cross-Service Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems face challenges in managing and assigning user roles across different services efficiently, particularly in service-to-service role mapping, leading to duplication of authentication and role definition processes.
Innovation Solution
A role mapping service that establishes roles for a first service based on metadata from a second service, such as an active directory, to leverage permissions and user information, thereby eliminating the need for redundant authentication and role definition at the first service level.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If user roles are managed separately for each service, then each service can have customized role definitions, but authentication and role definition processes are duplicated across services
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal authentication mechanism where a single authentication process in the directory service can be reused by multiple services. The identity service acts as a universal authority that multiple services can trust, allowing them to leverage each other's authentication without duplicating the process. This enables service-specific role customization while avoiding redundant authentication complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an identity service as an intermediary between the directory service and other services. This intermediary translates and trusts role information from the directory service, allowing seamless role mapping without requiring each service to directly implement its own authentication logic. The intermediary handles the complexity of cross-service authentication while presenting a simplified interface to individual services.
2Adaptability or versatility
If each service defines its own roles independently, then role definitions can be tailored to specific service needs, but role assignment becomes redundant and inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary role definition in the directory service, where roles are defined once with sufficient flexibility to accommodate multiple services. The identity service then performs preliminary translation of these roles into service-specific formats, eliminating the need for each service to independently define and assign roles. This preliminary action maintains role definition flexibility while dramatically improving assignment efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses copying mechanisms where role definitions from the directory service are copied and adapted for use in other services. The identity service creates trusted copies of role information that can be directly applied across services without requiring重新definition. This copying approach preserves the flexibility of service-specific role needs while eliminating redundant role assignment work.
3Reliability
If services implement their own authentication processes, then each service can control its security requirements, but authentication processes are duplicated and efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The identity service acts as a trusted intermediary that other services can rely on for authentication decisions. Instead of each service implementing its own authentication process, they delegate to the identity service which has already performed authentication through the directory service. This maintains security control through the intermediary's enforcement of policies while dramatically improving efficiency by eliminating redundant authentication processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the authentication processes of multiple services into a single unified process handled by the identity service. By combining the authentication logic and trusting the directory service's authentication, multiple services can share a common authentication mechanism. This merging maintains security through centralized policy enforcement while improving efficiency by eliminating duplicate authentication operations.
Data Source
AI summary
Service-to-service role mapping systems and methods are disclosed herein. An example role mapping service is positioned between a directory service and a search engine service, the directory service managing user information and permissions for users, the role mapping service mapping one or more search engine service roles to a user based on the user information and permissions received from the directory service.