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add documentation for SAML IdP initiated flow
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scotthew1 authored and Moustafa Amer committed Dec 20, 2023
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# Authentication through SAML 2.0

## Overview

The SAML provider allows authentication through the SAML 2.0 HTTP POST binding. The connector maps attribute values in the SAML assertion to user info, such as username, email, and groups.

The connector uses the value of the `NameID` element as the user's unique identifier which dex assumes is both unique and never changes. Use the `nameIDPolicyFormat` to ensure this is set to a value which satisfies these requirements.

## Caveats

__The connector doesn't support refresh tokens__ since the SAML 2.0 protocol doesn't provide a way to requery a provider without interaction. If the "offline_access" scope is requested, it will be ignored.

The connector doesn't support signed AuthnRequests or encrypted attributes.

## Group Filtering

The SAML Connector supports providing a whitelist of SAML Groups to filter access based on, and when the `groupsattr` is set with a scope including groups, Dex will check for membership based on configured groups in the `allowedGroups` config setting for the SAML connector.

## Configuration

```yaml
connectors:
- type: saml
# Required field for connector id.
id: saml
# Required field for connector name.
name: SAML
config:
# SSO URL used for POST value.
ssoURL: https://saml.example.com/sso

# CA to use when validating the signature of the SAML response.
ca: /path/to/ca.pem

# Dex's callback URL.
#
# If the response assertion status value contains a Destination element, it
# must match this value exactly.
#
# This is also used as the expected audience for AudienceRestriction elements
# if entityIssuer isn't specified.
redirectURI: https://dex.example.com/callback

# Name of attributes in the returned assertions to map to ID token claims.
usernameAttr: name
emailAttr: email
groupsAttr: groups # optional

# List of groups to filter access based on membership
# allowedGroups
# - Admins

# CA's can also be provided inline as a base64'd blob.
#
# caData: ( RAW base64'd PEM encoded CA )

# To skip signature validation, uncomment the following field. This should
# only be used during testing and may be removed in the future.
#
# insecureSkipSignatureValidation: true

# Optional: Manually specify dex's Issuer value.
#
# When provided dex will include this as the Issuer value during AuthnRequest.
# It will also override the redirectURI as the required audience when evaluating
# AudienceRestriction elements in the response.
entityIssuer: https://dex.example.com/callback

# Optional: Issuer value expected in the SAML response.
ssoIssuer: https://saml.example.com/sso

# Optional: Delimiter for splitting groups returned as a single string.
#
# By default, multiple groups are assumed to be represented as multiple
# attributes with the same name.
#
# If "groupsDelim" is provided groups are assumed to be represented as a
# single attribute and the delimiter is used to split the attribute's value
# into multiple groups.
groupsDelim: ", "

# Optional: Requested format of the NameID.
#
# The NameID value is is mapped to the user ID of the user. This can be an
# abbreviated form of the full URI with just the last component. For example,
# if this value is set to "emailAddress" the format will resolve to:
#
# urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.1:nameid-format:emailAddress
#
# If no value is specified, this value defaults to:
#
# urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:2.0:nameid-format:persistent
#
nameIDPolicyFormat: persistent
```
A minimal working configuration might look like:
```yaml
connectors:
- type: saml
id: okta
name: Okta
config:
ssoURL: https://dev-111102.oktapreview.com/app/foo/exk91cb99lKkKSYoy0h7/sso/saml
ca: /etc/dex/saml-ca.pem
redirectURI: http://127.0.0.1:5556/dex/callback
usernameAttr: name
emailAttr: email
groupsAttr: groups
```
## Identity Provider Initiated Login
The SAML connector can support the identity provider (IdP) initiated flow with some special configuration. This flow allows a SAML user to initiate the login from a portal on their provider without needing to redirect back to the provider for further authentication.
Because this flow does not follow the normal OAuth flow (App -> Auth Provider -> App), dex requires some configuration on the client to know how to handle an unprompted AuthnResponse. For each client that you would like to support SAML's IdP initiated flow, you must configure the `samlInitiated` section.

As a static client:

```yaml
staticClients:
- id: example-app
name: "Example App"
secret: ZXhhbXBsZS1hcHAtc2VjcmV0
redirectURIs:
- http://127.0.0.1:5555/callback
samlInitiated:
redirecURI: http://127.0.0.1:5555/callback
scopes: ["openid", "profile", "email"]
```

Or via the API:

```golang
client := &api.Client{
Id: "example-app",
Name: "Example App",
Secret: "ZXhhbXBsZS1hcHAtc2VjcmV0",
RedirectUris: []string{"http://127.0.0.1:5555/callback"},
SamlInitiated: &api.SamlInitiatedConfig{
RedirectURI: "http://127.0.0.1:5555/callback",
Scopes: []string{"openid", "profile", "email"}
},
}
```

The scopes above are optional. If they are not provided the default set `openid profile email groups` will be used. However, without `samlInitiated.redirecURI` dex will reject any IdP initiated login for that client.

When configuring an application on your SAML provider, you must provide the `client_id` as the Default Relay Sate. This is how dex will match the AuthnResponse to the client, decide what claims to build, and where to redirect the user after handling the response.

After handling the AuthnResponse dex will redirect back to your application with a `code` and an empty `state`. Your application must be willing to accept the empty `state` and redeem the `code` for user tokens. The implicit flow is not supported since there is no way of generating a verifiable `nonce` in this setup.

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