SharePoint Extranet and ADFS

A number of my customers are in the process of deploying an extranet using SharePoint 2003. They would ideally like to implement single-sign on capabiliy to other applications in their enterprise from SharePoint. I have been compiling a number of SSO options for them so I've been getting educated on a number of new technologies. Starting with Web SSO, I began with ADFS. For those interested in this technology, there is a good introductory Web cast entitled:

Web Single Sign-On and Identity Federation with Active Directory Federation Services

After this I was longing for a more thorough understanding of the ADFS technology so if you do as well, then I would highly recommend the second Web cast below as well. Keep in mind that you will need some understanding of the WS-* specification and a general understanding of Web services but this is really cool. It also gives you a look at the future which includes not just SSO for Web clients but smart clients as well (which is possible because of the Web service approach). Net,.....the vision is to deliver for the extranet what Kerberos has done for the desktop and intranet.

An In-Depth Look at Active Directory Federation Services Architecture

Now I know that currently there are some support boundaries with this type of approach with the current version of ADFS and SharePoint but this understanding definitely helped me prepare for discussions with some of the vendors in this space like Quest, Netegrity, etc.....More on this again.....

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