Single Sign-On and the System Administrator

Large organizations are increasingly shifting critical computing operations from traditional host-based application platforms to network-distributed, client-server platforms. The resulting proliferation of disparate systems poses problems for end-users, who must frequently track multiple electronic identities across different systems, as well as for system administrators, who must manage security and access for those systems. Single sign-on mechanisms have become increasingly important in solving these problems. System administrators who are not already being pressured to provide single sign-on solutions can expect to be in the near future. Duke University has recently embarked on an enterprise-wide single sign-on project. This paper discusses the various factors involved in the decision to deploy a single sign-on solution, reviews a variety of available approaches to the problem of electronic identity proliferation, and documents Duke’s research and findings to date.