AspNetSaml

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Very simple SAML 2.0 consumer module for ASP.NET/C#

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# AspNetSaml

Very short and simple SAML 2.0 "consumer" implementation in C#.

It's a *SAML client* library, not a *SAML server*. As in - allows adding SAML single-sign-on to your ASP.NET app, but *not* to provide auth services to other apps. In other words, it's a library for "service-providers" not for "identity providers".

## Installation

`Install-Package AspNetSaml`

Adds a very small .NET Standard 2.0 library (11KB dll) that works with both ASP.NET Core and the "old" ASP.NET Framework. Please refer to [releases](https://github.com/jitbit/AspNetSaml/releases) for the change log.

# Usage

## How SAML works? (please read this)

SAML workflow has 2 steps:

1. User is redirected to the SAML provider (with some magic in the query-string) where he authenticates
2. User is redirected back to your app, where you validate the payload

Here's how you do it (this example is for ASP.NET Core MVC):

## 1. Redirecting the user to the saml provider:

```c#
//this example is an ASP.NET Core MVC action method
public IActionResult Login()
{
	//TODO: specify the SAML provider url here, aka "Endpoint"
	var samlEndpoint = "http://saml-provider-that-we-use.com/login/";

var request = new AuthRequest(
		"http://www.myapp.com", //TODO: put your app's "entity ID" here
		"http://www.myapp.com/SamlConsume" //TODO: put Assertion Consumer URL (where the provider should redirect users after authenticating)
	);

//now send the user to the SAML provider
	return Redirect(request.GetRedirectUrl(samlEndpoint));
}
```

## 2. User has been redirected back

User is sent back to your app - you need to validate the SAML response ("assertion") that you recieved via POST.

Here's an example of how you do it in ASP.NET Core MVC

```c#
//ASP.NET Core MVC action method... But you can easily modify the code for old .NET Framework, minimal API etc.
public async Task<IActionResult> SamlConsume()
{
	// 1. TODO: specify the certificate that your SAML provider gave you
	string samlCertificate = @"-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
BLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAHBLAH123543==
-----END CERTIFICATE-----";

// 2. Let's read the data - SAML providers usually POST it into the "SAMLResponse" var
	var samlResponse = new Response(samlCertificate, Request.Form["SAMLResponse"]);

// 3. Validate the response. "audienceEntityId" is your app's EntityID.
	var audienceEntityId = "http://www.myapp.com";
	if (samlResponse.IsValid(audienceEntityId)) //all good?
	{
		//WOOHOO!!! the user is logged in
		var username = samlResponse.GetNameID(); //let's get the username
		
		//the user has been authenticated, now what?
		//we can call context.SignInAsync() for ASP.NET Core
		//or call FormsAuthentication.SetAuthCookie() for .NET Framework
		//or do something else, like set a cookie or something...
		
		//FOR EXAMPLE this is how you sign-in a user in ASP.NET Core 3,5,6,7,8
		await context.SignInAsync(new ClaimsPrincipal(
			new ClaimsIdentity(
				new[] { new Claim(ClaimTypes.Name, username) },
				CookieAuthenticationDefaults.AuthenticationScheme)));
		//Yeah, it's a mouthful, sorry, not my fault
		
		return Redirect("~/"); //redirect authenticated user back to homapage for example
	}
	
	return Content("Unauthorized");
}
```

# Bonus: reading more attributes from the provider

SAML providers usually send more data with their response: username, first/last names etc. Here's how to get it:

```c#
if (samlResponse.IsValid("http://www.myapp.com")) //your app's EntityID
{
	//WOOHOO!!! user is logged in

//Some more optional stuff
	//let's extract username/firstname etc
	try
	{
		var username = samlResponse.GetNameID();
		var email = samlResponse.GetEmail();
		var firstname = samlResponse.GetFirstName();
		var lastname = samlResponse.GetLastName();
		
		//or read some custom-named data that you know the IdP sends
		var officeLocation = samlResponse.GetCustomAttribute("OfficeAddress");
	}
	catch (Exception ex)
	{
		//insert error handling code
		//in case some extra attributes are not present in XML, for example
		return null;
	}
}
```

# Notes about the source code

All the functionality sits in one single short file [Saml.cs](https://github.com/jitbit/AspNetSaml/blob/master/AspNetSaml/Saml.cs) other stuff in this repo are just unit tests, nuget-packaging etc. You can take that file and throw it in your project, it should work just fine.

P.S. This library has been battle-tested for years in production in our [helpdesk app](https://www.jitbit.com/helpdesk/) please check it out if you're looking for a ticketing system for your team. Cheers.

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