John Merrells <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:

> On 11-Feb-06, at 3:17 PM, Eric Rescorla wrote:
>
>> When the user contacts the Membersite (1), it responds with a web
>> page prompting the user to enter the URL of its Homesite (2). The
>> user then enters the Homesite URL (3).
>
> Actually, we call it the Homesite Path. The user provides it, so it may
> not be a well-formed URL, so we say Path and encourage the
> Membersite to turn it into a URL. eg. yahoo.com -> http://yahoo.com/
>
>> The Membersite contacts the
>> Homesite (4,5) to determine whether the Homesite can provide the
>> appropriate kind of authentication.
>
> Capability, rather than authentication. Yes, a capability could be
> a means of authentication. ie. MS wants a HS that can perform
> authentication with a Foo-Bar-Baz 2-factor device.

Uh, Capability has a pretty well understood meaning in information
security, and it doesn't seem to me that that matches what you're
doing here. I would advise finding a new name.


>> If it can, the Membersite
>> sends the client a redirect (6) (using Javascript) to the
>> Homesite. In some way that's not entirely clear
>
> True.
>
>> the Homesite
>> validates the request and returns a ticket to the Client (8)
>> The Client then (via Javascript?) sends the ticket to the
>> the Membersite (9). The Membersite contacts the Homesite with
>> a digest of the ticket in order to confirm its validity (10)
>> If the Homesite says its OK (11), the Membersite returns OK
>> to the Client (12)
>
> Not sure it's a Ticket, but... the HS sends a message digest
> and a signature that is a digest of the message digest and
> a HS secret... if that's a ticket then yes.
>
> The MS sends both the digest and the signature to the HS
> for verification .

Well, we're running a bit short on names (credential, ticket,
token, certificate, cookie, etc. being all taken) so I just
picked the one I thought was closest on the theory that
the term you were using "message" wasn't that evocative.

The bottom line here is that the Homesite sends the Membersite
a message through the client that vouches for the authentication/
properties/whatever of the client/user. Ticket seems like
as good a name as anything for that.

-Ekr

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