Glossary of Message Security Terminology

The terminology used in this document is described below. The concepts are also discussed in Configuring the Enterprise Server for Message Security.

• Authentication Layer

  The authentication layer is the message layer on which authentication processing must be performed. The Enterprise Server enforces web services message security at the SOAP layer.

• Authentication Provider

  In this release of the Enterprise Server, the Enterprise Server invokes authentication providers to process SOAP message layer security.

  • A client-side provider establishes (by signature or username/password) the source identity of request messages and/or protects (by encryption) request messages such that they can only be viewed by their intended recipients. A client-side provider also establishes its container as an authorized recipient of a received response (by successfully decrypting it) and validates passwords or signatures in the response to authenticate the source identity associated with the response. Client-side providers configured in the Enterprise Server can be used to protect the request messages sent and the response messages received by server-side components (servlets and EJB components) acting as clients of other services.

  • A server-side provider establishes its container as an authorized recipient of a received request (by successfully decrypting it) and validates passwords or signatures in the request to authenticate the source identity associated with the request. A server-side provider also establishes (by signature or username/password) the source identity of response messages and/or protects (by encryption) response messages such that they can only be viewed by their intended recipients. Server-side providers are only invoked by server-side containers.

• Default Server Provider

  The default server provider is used to identify the server provider to be invoked for any application for which a specific server provider has not been bound. The default server provider is sometimes referred to as the default provider.

• Default Client Provider

  The default client provider is used to identify the client provider to be invoked for any application for which a specific client provider has not been bound.

• Request Policy

  The request policy defines the authentication policy requirements associated with request processing performed by the authentication provider. Policies are expressed in message sender order such that a requirement that encryption occur after content would mean that the message receiver would expect to decrypt the message before validating the signature.

• Response Policy

  The response policy defines the authentication policy requirements associated with response processing performed by the authentication provider. Policies are expressed in message sender order such that a requirement that encryption occur after content would mean that the message receiver would expect to decrypt the message before validating the signature.