1. System Architecture University of Maryland David Henry Office of Information Technology December 6, 2002

2. The Situation Systems developed over time A number of Legacy issues Result –Many independent systems –Inconsistent user interfaces –More confusing to users Need a more cohesive environment

3. Applications - Today Some applications run on central systems Some are web-based Some are client/server User ID/password on each may be independent of other systems WEB Application Inst. data WEB Application Inst. data Web Browser User

4. Applications - Future Most are web-based Some are client/server Share common data collections Use common ID/password Use common roles management system Easily incorporated into a portal

5. IT Infrastructure Common ID/Password Check Web Application Institutional data Common User Information (ID/Password Check) Web Browser User

6. IT Infrastructure Directory –LDAP - Lightweight Directory Access Protocol Unique ID management system Standard ID/password verification services Clearly defined set of attributes for use in determining roles and access rights

7. IT Infrastructure - The Directory University Directory Contains information on everyone in the Organization Defines Unique ID Includes: –Unique ID –Name –E-mail –Phone –Address –Status (Faculty, Staff, Student, Affiliate) –Position Title & Department

8. IT Infrastructure - The Directory University Directory May be used for: –User ID and Password verification/authentication –Storing and Retrieving information about an individual –Determining the Role of an individual/authorization Is an Enterprise Resource May contain information on other than people (equipment, rooms, etc.)

9. IT Infrastructure - Typical App Web Application Roles/Rules Institutional data University Directory Web Browser User

10. Constituencies/Roles Faculty Staff Students Affiliates Prospective Students Alumni

11. IT Infrastructure - The Directory Single sign-on Common and consistent (standards-based - LDAP) mechanism for authentication and authorization 24X7 services Ability to use freely available access tools Many COTS packages contain hooks for LDAP already!

12. Applications Web Application Roles/Rules Institutional data University Directory Web Application Roles/Rules Web Browser User

13. Portal App1 Roles/Rules Institutional data Web Portal App2App3 University Directory Web Browser User

14. Conclusion A stable infrastructure for distributed applications is critical Single Sign-on is better than multiple ID/password pairs The directory can provide the basis for the overall architecture