SAML Definitions

Definitions:
SAML 2.0 (Source : WIKIPEDIA )
========
Security Assertion Markup Language 2.0 (SAML 2.0) is a version of the SAML OASIS standard for exchanging authentication and authorization data between security domains. SAML 2.0 is an XML-based protocol that uses security tokens containing assertions to pass information about a principal (usually an end user) between a SAML authority, that is an identity provider, and a web service, that is a service provider. SAML 2.0 enables web-based authentication and authorization scenarios including single sign-on (SSO).

What is SAML?  (Source : SLIDESHARE )

=============

Security Assertion Markup Language

XML based protocol

OASIS approved standardSAML 1.0 November 2002

SAML 1.1 September 2003

SAML 2.0 March 2005

Flexible and extensible protocol designed to be used by other standards

SAML (Security Assertion Markup Language)    (Source : TECHTARGET )

=========================================

SAML (Security Assertion Markup Language) is an Extensible Markup Language (XML) standard that allows a user to log on once for affiliated but separate Web sites. SAML is designed for business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions.

SAML specifies three components: assertions, protocol, and binding. There are three assertions: authentication, attribute, and authorization. Authentication assertion validates the user's identity. Attribute assertion contains specific information about the user. And authorization assertion identifies what the user is authorized to do.

Protocol defines how SAML asks for and receives assertions. Binding defines how SAML message exchanges are mapped to Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) exchanges. SAML works with multiple protocols including Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and also supports SOAP, BizTalk, and Electronic Business XML (ebXML). The Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) is the standards group for SAML.