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    Configure Authentication Portal
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    2. Next-Generation Firewall
    3. User-ID
    4. Map IP Addresses to Users
    5. Map IP Addresses to Usernames Using Authentication Portal
    6. Configure Authentication Portal
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    Next-Generation Firewall

    Configure Authentication Portal

    Table of Contents

    Configure Authentication Portal

    Configure the Authentication Portal to verify users whose web requests match an authentication policy rule. Authentication Portal ensures that only authorized users access certain resources. If you configure the PAN-OS® integrated User-ID™ agent, it redirects the web requests to a firewall interface (redirect host) and creates or updates user mappings based on information collected during authentication.
    Authentication Portal operates in two modes—redirect and transparent. It supports three authentication methods: web form, Kerberos single sign-on (SSO), and client certificate authentication.
    SSL Inbound Inspection does not support the Authentication Portal redirect mode. To use the Authentication Portal in redirect mode and for decryption, you must use SSL Forward Proxy.
    The applications that users access through Authentication Portal vary in sensitivity and require different authentication methods and settings. To accommodate these requirements, you can use default or custom authentication enforcement objects. Each object associates an authentication policy rule with an authentication profile and authentication method.
    • Default authentication enforcement objects—Use the default objects to associate multiple authentication policy rules with the same global authentication profile. You must configure an authentication profile before configuring Authentication Portal, and then assign the profile in the Authentication Portal Settings. For rules that require multifactor authentication (MFA), you cannot use default authentication enforcement objects.
    • Custom authentication enforcement objects—Use a custom object for each authentication policy rule that requires a different authentication profile than the global profile. Custom objects are mandatory for rules that require MFA. To use custom objects, create authentication profiles and assign them to the custom objects when you configure authentication policy.
    You need authentication profiles only if users authenticate through an Authentication Portal web form or Kerberos SSO.
    If you use Authentication Portal without the other User-ID functions (user mapping and group mapping), you don’t need to configure a User-ID agent.
    1. Configure the interfaces that the firewall will use for incoming web requests, authenticating users, and communicating with directory servers to map usernames to IP addresses.
      When the firewall connects to authentication servers or User-ID agents, it uses the management interface by default. As a best practice, isolate your management network by configuring service routes to connect to the authentication servers or User-ID agents.
      1. (MGT interface only) Select DeviceSetupInterfaces, edit the Management interface, select User-ID, and click OK.
      2. (Non-MGT interface only) Assign an Interface Management Profile to the Layer 3 interface that the firewall will use for incoming web requests and communication with directory servers. You must enable Response Pages and User-ID in the Interface Management profile.
      3. (Non-MGT interface only) Configure a service route for the interface that the firewall will use to authenticate users. If the firewall has more than one virtual system (vsys), the service route can be global or vsys-specific. The services must include LDAP and potentially the following:
        • Kerberos, RADIUS, TACACS+, or Multi-Factor Authentication—Configure a service route for any authentication services that you use.
        • UID Agent—Configure this service only if you Enable User- and Group-Based Policy.
      4. (Redirect mode for IPv4 only) Create a DNS address (A) record that maps the IPv4 address on the Layer 3 interface to the redirect host. If you use Kerberos SSO, you must also add a DNS pointer (PTR) record that performs the same mapping.
      5. (Redirect mode for IPv6 only) If you want to create a DNS address (AAAA) record that maps the IPv6 address on the Layer 3 interface to the redirect host, use the CLI commands to configure the FQDN of the redirect host.
        IPv6 is supported for deployments using SAML authentication or LDAP with MFA. Support for these commands is available in PAN-OS version 10.2.9 and 11.2.
        • Enter the debug user-id cp-redirect-host-v6 value <redirect-host-FQDN> CLI command on the firewall (where <redirect-host-FQDN> represents the FQDN of the redirect host that uses IPv6).
        • To view the currently configured IPv6 redirect host, use the debug user-id cp-redirect-host-v6 show CLI command on the firewall.
        • To remove the currently configured IPv6 redirect host, use the debug user-id cp-redirect-host-v6 clear CLI command on the firewall.
        Depending on whether you configure your redirect host for IPv4, IPv6, or both, make sure to include the necessary IP addresses as DNS attributes in the SAN fields for the certificate or certificates that you configure for the Authentication Portal.
      If your network doesn’t support access to the directory servers from any firewall interface, you must Configure User Mapping Using the Windows User-ID Agent.
    2. Make sure Domain Name System (DNS) is configured to resolve your domain controller addresses.
      To verify proper resolution, ping the server FQDN. For example:
      admin@PA-220> ping host dc1.acme.com
    3. Configure clients to trust Authentication Portal certificates.
      Required for redirect mode—to transparently redirect users without displaying certificate errors. You can generate a self-signed certificate or import a certificate that an external certificate authority (CA) signed.
      To use a self-signed certificate, create a root CA certificate and use it to sign the certificate you will use for Authentication Portal:
      1. Select DeviceCertificate ManagementCertificates, then Device Certificates (PAN-OS 11.2 and earlier) or Custom Certificates (PAN-OS 12.1.0 and later).
      2. Create a Self-Signed Root CA Certificate or import a CA certificate (see Import a Certificate and Private Key).
      3. Generate a certificate to use for Authentication Portal.
        Be sure to configure the following fields:
        • Common Name—Enter the DNS name of the intranet host for the Layer 3 interface.
        • Signed By—Select the CA certificate you just created or imported.
        • Certificate Attributes—Click Add, for the Type select IP and, for the Value, enter the IP address of the Layer 3 interface to which the firewall will redirect requests.
      4. Configure an SSL/TLS Service Profile and assign the Authentication Portal certificate to it.
        You apply this profile to the Authentication Portal settings in a later step.
        If you do not assign an SSL/TLS Service Profile, the NGFW negotiates the following TLS versions:
        • PAN-OS 12.1 and earlier: TLS 1.2 only
        • PAN-OS 12.2 and later: TLS 1.2 or TLS 1.3
      5. Configure clients to trust the certificate:
        1. Export the CA certificate you created or imported.
        2. Import the certificate as a trusted root CA into all client browsers, either by manually configuring the browser or by adding the certificate to the trusted roots in an Active Directory (AD) Group Policy Object (GPO).
    4. (Optional) Configure Client Certificate Authentication.
      You don’t need an authentication profile or sequence for client certificate authentication. If you configure both an authentication profile/sequence and certificate authentication, users must authenticate using both.
      1. Use a root CA certificate to generate a client certificate for each user who will authenticate through Authentication Portal. The CA in this case is usually your enterprise CA, not the firewall.
      2. Export the CA certificate in PEM format to a system that the firewall can access.
      3. Import the CA certificate onto the firewall: see Import a Certificate and Private Key. After the import, click the imported certificate, select Trusted Root CA, and click OK.
      4. Configure a Certificate Profile.
        • In the Username Field drop-down, select the certificate field that contains the user identity information.
        • In the CA Certificates list, click Add and select the CA certificate you just imported.
    5. (Optional) Configure Authentication Portal for the Apple Captive Network Assistant.
      This step is only required if you are using Authentication Portal with the Apple Captive Network Assistant (CNA). To use Authentication Portal with CNA, perform the following steps.
      1. Verify you have specified an FQDN for the redirect host (not just an IP address).
      2. Select an SSL/TLS Service Profile that uses a publicly-signed certificate for the specified FQDN.
      3. Enter the following command to adjust the number of requests supported for Authentication Portal: set deviceconfig setting ctd cap-portal-ask-requests <threshold-value>
        By default, the firewall has a rate limit threshold for Authentication Portal that limits the number of requests to one request every two seconds. The CNA sends multiple requests that can exceed this limit, which can result in a TCP reset and an error from the CNA. The recommended threshold value is 5 (default is one). This value will allow up to 5 requests every two seconds. Based on your environment, you may need to configure a different value. If the current value is not sufficient to handle the number of requests, increase the value.
    6. Configure the Authentication Portal settings.
      1. Select DeviceUser IdentificationAuthentication Portal Settings and edit the settings.
      2. Enable Authentication Portal (default is enabled).
      3. Specify the Timer, which is the maximum time in minutes that the firewall retains an IP address-to-username mapping for a user after that user authenticates through Authentication Portal (default is 60; range is 1 to 1,440). After the Timer expires, the firewall removes the mapping and any associated Authentication Timestamps used to evaluate the Timeout in authentication policy rules.
        When evaluating the Authentication Portal Timer and the Timeout value in each authentication policy rule, the firewall prompts the user to re-authenticate for whichever setting expires first. Upon re-authenticating, the firewall resets the time count for the Authentication Portal Timer and records new authentication timestamps for the user. Therefore, to enable different Timeout periods for different rules, set the Authentication Portal Timer to a value the same as or higher than any rule Timeout.
      4. Select the SSL/TLS Service Profile you created for redirect requests over TLS.
      5. Select the Mode (in this example, Redirect).
      6. (Redirect mode only) Specify the Redirect Host, which is the intranet hostname (a hostname with no period in its name) that resolves to the IP address of the Layer 3 interface on the firewall to which web requests are redirected.
        If users authenticate through Kerberos single sign-on (SSO), the Redirect Host must be the same as the hostname specified in the Kerberos keytab.
      7. Select the fall back authentication method to use:
        • To use client certificate authentication, select the Certificate Profile you created.
        • To use global settings for interactive or SSO authentication, select the Authentication Profile you configured.
        • To use authentication policy rule-specific settings for interactive or SSO authentication, assign authentication profiles to authentication enforcement objects when you configure authentication policy.
      8. Click OK and Commit the Authentication Portal configuration.
    7. Next steps...
      The firewall does not display the Authentication Portal web form to users until you configure authentication policy rules that trigger authentication when users request services or applications.

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