Abstract: A method is presented for managing authentication credentials for a user. A session management server performs session management with respect to the user for a domain that includes a protected resource. The session management server receives a request to access the protected resource, which requires authentication credentials that have been generated for a first type of authentication context. In response to determining that authentication credentials for the user have been generated for a second type of authentication context, the session management server sends to an authentication proxy server a first message that contains the authentication credentials for the user and an indicator for the first type of authentication context. The session management server subsequently receives a second message that contains updated authentication credentials for the user that indicate that the updated authentication credentials have been generated for the first type of authentication context.

Abstract: A method is presented for managing authentication credentials for a user. A session management server performs session management with respect to the user for a domain that includes a protected resource. The session management server receives a request to access the protected resource, which requires authentication credentials that have been generated for a first type of authentication context. In response to determining that authentication credentials for the user have been generated for a second type of authentication context, the session management server sends to an authentication proxy server a first message that contains the authentication credentials for the user and an indicator for the first type of authentication context. The session management server subsequently receives a second message that contains updated authentication credentials for the user that indicate that the updated authentication credentials have been generated for the first type of authentication context.

Abstract: A method is presented for managing session identifiers amongst a set of servers. The servers receive resource requests from clients, and the servers maintain sessions having session state information wherein each session is associated with a session identifier. When a server sends a response to a client, the response is accompanied by a first cookie and a second cookie, wherein the first cookie contains a copy of the session identifier and the second cookie contains a copy of the session identifier that has been cryptographically protected using a cryptographic key, wherein each server in the set of servers possesses a copy of the cryptographic key. If a server does not recognize the session identifier in the first cookie, the server decrypts the second cookie, and if the session identifier from the cookies are identical, the server will reuse the session identifier rather than generating a new session identifier.

Abstract: A method is presented for providing an HTTP-based authentication mechanism. A request for a controlled resource is received from a client at a first server, which sends a request for an uncontrolled resource to a second server, which may be an HTTP-based authentication server, e.g., by redirecting a request via the client to the second server or by forwarding a request directly to the second server. The second server then obtains authentication information from the client. The second server returns the authentication credential or the authenticated identify to the first server within a response message, e.g., by storing the authentication credential within one or more HTTP headers. In response to receiving the authentication information, the first server builds a session for the client and processes the original request for the controlled resource, e.g., by sending a redirection for the controlled resource through the client.