Azure Active Directory and BIG-IP APM Integration with PeopleSoft using Easy Button (Introduced in 16.0)

Overview

This guide is written for IT professionals designing an F5 network. These IT professionals can fill a variety of roles:

Systems engineers requiring a standard set of procedures for implementing solutions
Project managers creating statements of work for F5 implementations
F5 partners selling technology or creating implementation documentation

This guide covers using single sign-on to access an Oracle PeopleSoft application requiring header-based authentication.

Figure 1 Secure hybrid application access

Microsoft Azure Active Directory and F5 BIG-IP APM Design

For organizations with a high security demand with low risk tolerance, the need to keep all aspects of user authentication on premise is required.

The Microsoft Azure Active Directory and F5 BIG-IP APM solution integrates directly into AAD configured to work cooperatively with an existing header-based, header based or variety of authentication methods. The solution has these components:

BIG-IP Access Policy Manager (APM)
Microsoft Domain Controller/ Active Directory (AD)
Microsoft Azure Active Directory (AAD)
PeopleSoft Application (header-based authentication)

Figure 2 APM bridge SAML to header-based authentication components

Deploying Azure Active Directory and BIG-IP APM integration

The joint Microsoft and APM solution allow legacy applications incapable of supporting modern authentication and authorization to interoperate with Azure Active Directory. Even if an app doesn’t support SAML, and only is able to support header-based authentication, it can still be enabled with single sign-on (SSO) and support multi-factor authentication (MFA) through the F5 APM and Azure Active Directory combination. Azure Active Directory as an IDaaS delivers a trusted root of identity to APM creating a bridge between modern and PeopleSoft application, delivering SSO and securing the app with MFA.

Access Guided Configuration 7.0 – Azure AD Easy Button

In version 16.0 of F5 BIG-IP, Access Guided Configuration v7.0 (AGC) for APM has added the ability for administrators to simply onboard and operationally manage mission-critical applications to Azure AD. The administrator no longer needs to go back and forth between Azure AD and BIG-IP as the end-to-end operation policy management has been integrated directly into the APM AGC console. This integration between BIG-IP APM and Azure AD delivers an automated “easy button” to ensure applications can quickly, easily support identity federation, SSO, and MFA. This seamless integration between BIG-IP APM and Azure AD reduces management overhead, meaning that the integration now also enhances the administrator experience.

Configure F5 BIG-IP APM

These instructions configure with APM to be used with Azure AD SSO for PeopleSoft application access.
For SSO to work, you need to establish a link relationship between APM and Azure AD in relation to the PeopleSoft

Step 1: In BIG-IP click Access > Guided Configuration > Microsoft Integration > Azure AD Application

Step 2: Click Next.

Step 3: In the Configuration Properties page, configure the following information, leave default settings and click Save & Next.

Configuration Name: www
Single Sign-On (SSO): On
Copy Account Info from Existing Configuration: On
Existing Configuration: portal
Click Copy
Click Test Connection

Step 4: In the Service Provider page, configure the following information, leave default settings and click Save & Next.

Host: www.aserracorp.com
Entity ID: https://www.aserracorp.com/

Step 5: In the Azure Active Directory page, double click Oracle PeopleSoft

Step 6: In the Azure Active Directory page, complete the following information then click Add button in User And Groups.

Display Name: Corporate Site
Signing Key: www.aserracorp.com
Signing Certificate: www.aserracorp.com
Signing Key Passphrase: <passphrase>
Signing Option: Sign SAML assertion
Signing Algorithm: RSA-SHA256

Step 7: in User And Groups section, select the following click Close and then click User Attribute and Claims tab at the top of the form.

Type: User Group
Legacy Application Users: Add

Step 8: In the Azure Active Directory page, User Attribute and Claims tab click Add button.

Step 9: In the Azure Active Directory page, User Attribute and Claims tab, Additional Claims section, complete the following information, click Done and then click Save & Next at the bottom of the page.

Name: EMPLID
Source Attribute: user.employeeid

Step 10: In the Virtual Server Properties page, configure the following information, leave default settings and click Save & Next.

Destination Address: 206.124.129.183
Service Port: 443 HTTPS (default)
Enable Redirect Port: Checked (default)
Redirect Port: 80 HTTP (default)
Client SSL Profile: Create new
Client SSL Certificate: Client SSL Certificate
Associated Private Key: www.aserracorp.com

Step 11: In the Pool Properties page, configure the following information, leave default settings and click Save & Next.

Advanced Settings: On
Select a Pool: Create new
Health Monitors: /Common/http
Load Balancing Method: Least Connections (member)
IP Address/Node name: /Common/172.16.60.105
Port: 80 HTTP

Step 12: In the Single Sign-On Settings page, click Enable Single Sign-On, and then click on Show Advanced Settings, configure the following information, leave default settings and click Save & Next.

Select Single Sign-On Type: HTTP header-based
Username Source: session.saml.last.identity
SSO Headers
- Header Operation: replace
- Header Name: Authorization
- Header Value: %{session.saml.last.attr.sAMAcountName}
- Header Operation: insert
- Header Name: EMPLID
- Header Value: %{session.saml.last.attr.EMPLID}
- Header Operation: replace
- Header Name: Authorization
- Header Value: %{session.saml.last.attr.name.http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/ws/2005/identity/claims/givenname}