Client certs can be used for authentication with no changes to a Firefox browser or an Apache server. GTK based as well as web based software to create certs also already exists. What sort of patch are you looking for? I could certainly provide a page running in an apache server to validate a request for and implant a client cert in a Firefox browser. The issue of certificate creation needs a little more discussion, not because it is difficult or requires a lot of new software to execute, but because it is important to be clear about the requirements. When you describe the overhead, do you mean the overhead of creating the certs? Examining them when someone first logs on? <br>
<br>I raised this alternative because you said that a bespoke browser was a requirement to have automatic authentication with the school server. To me, the benefits of running a standard browser are so substantial that this trade off should be considered.<br>
<br><div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Jul 7, 2008 at 3:39 PM, Martin Langhoff <<a href="mailto:martin.langhoff@gmail.com">martin.langhoff@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<div class="Ih2E3d">On Mon, Jul 7, 2008 at 7:20 PM, Carol Lerche <<a href="mailto:cafl@msbit.com">cafl@msbit.com</a>> wrote:<br>
> Why does automatic authentication require a custom browser? Client<br>
> certificates work well for this function in ordinary web applications<br>
> (assuming a properly configured server).<br>
<br>
</div>I haven't delved into this deeply yet, but I suspect that, while I am<br>
fond of client certs, they won't work - SSL network and CPU overhead<br>
and sidestepping PKI madness for server certs. More on this when I get<br>
to implement it.<br>
<br>
Now, anyone who wants to have a strong say on how I am developing this<br>
is free to start implementing it ahead of me, and showing me some<br>
fantastic patches :-)<br>
<br>
cheers,<br>
<div><div></div><div class="Wj3C7c"><br>
<br>
<br>
m<br>
--<br>
<a href="mailto:martin.langhoff@gmail.com">martin.langhoff@gmail.com</a><br>
<a href="mailto:martin@laptop.org">martin@laptop.org</a> -- School Server Architect<br>
- ask interesting questions<br>
- don't get distracted with shiny stuff - working code first<br>
- <a href="http://wiki.laptop.org/go/User:Martinlanghoff" target="_blank">http://wiki.laptop.org/go/User:Martinlanghoff</a><br>
</div></div></blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br>-- <br>Frisbeetarianism is the belief that when you die, your soul goes up on the roof and gets stuck -- George Carlin