>
    Configure TACACS+ Authentication
    Focus
    Download PDF
    Focus
    1. Home
    2. PAN-OS
    3. Authentication
    4. Configure TACACS+ Authentication
    Download PDF

    Configure TACACS+ Authentication

    Table of Contents
    End-of-Life (EoL)

    Configure TACACS+ Authentication

    You can configure TACACS+ authentication for end users as well as firewall or Panorama™ administrators. You can also use a TACACS+ server to manage administrator authorization (role and access domain assignments) by defining Vendor-Specific Attributes (VSAs). For all users, you must configure a TACACS+ server profile that defines how the firewall or Panorama connects to the server. You then assign the server profile to an authentication profile for each set of users who require common authentication settings. What you do with the authentication profile depends on which users the TACACS+ server authenticates:
    • End users—Assign the authentication profile to an authentication enforcement object and assign the object to Authentication policy rules. For the full procedure, see Configure Authentication Policy.
    • Administrative accounts with authorization managed locally on the firewall or Panorama—Assign the authentication profile to firewall administrator or Panorama administrator accounts.
    • Administrative accounts with authorization managed on the TACACS+ server—The following procedure describes how to configure TACACS+ authentication and authorization for firewall administrators. For Panorama administrators, refer to Configure TACACS+ Authentication for PanoramaAdministrators.
    1. Add a TACACS+ server profile.
      The profile defines how the firewall connects to the TACACS+ server.
      1. Select DeviceServer ProfilesTACACS+ or PanoramaServer ProfilesTACACS+ on Panorama and Add a profile.
      2. Enter a Profile Name to identify the server profile.
      3. (Optional) Select Administrator Use Only to restrict access to administrators.
      4. Enter a Timeout interval in seconds after which an authentication request times out (default is 3; range is 1–20).
      5. Select the Authentication Protocol (default is CHAP) that the firewall uses to authenticate to the TACACS+ server.
        Select CHAP if the TACACS+ server supports that protocol; it's more secure than PAP.
      6. Add each TACACS+ server and enter the following:
        • A Name to identify the server.
        • The TACACS+ Server IP address or FQDN. If you use an FQDN address object to identify the server and you subsequently change the address, you must commit the change for the new server address to take effect.
        • A Secret and Confirm Secret to encrypt usernames and passwords.
        • The server Port for authentication requests (default is 49).
      7. Click OK to save the server profile.
    2. Assign the TACACS+ server profile to an authentication profile.
      The authentication profile defines the authentication settings that are common to a set of users.
      1. Select DeviceAuthentication Profile and Add a profile.
      2. Enter a Name to identify the profile.
      3. Set the Type to TACACS+.
      4. Select the Server Profile you configured.
      5. Select Retrieve user group from TACACS+ to collect user group information from VSAs defined on the TACACS+ server.
        The firewall matches the group information using the groups you specify in the Allow List of the authentication profile.
      6. Select Advanced and in the Allow List, Add the users and groups that can authenticate with this authentication profile.
      7. Click OK to save the authentication profile.
    3. Configure the firewall to use the authentication profile for all administrators.
      1. Select DeviceSetupManagement and edit the Authentication Settings.
      2. Select the Authentication Profile you configured and click OK.
    4. Configure the roles and access domains that define authorization settings for administrators.
      If you already defined TACACS+ VSAs on the TACACS+ server, the names you specify for roles and access domains on the firewall must match the VSA values.
      1. Configure an Admin Role Profile if the administrator will use a custom role instead of a predefined (dynamic) role.
      2. If the firewall has more than one virtual system, configure an access domain by selecting DeviceAccess Domain, Add an access domain, enter a Name to identify the access domain, and Add each virtual system that the administrator will access, and then click OK.
    5. Commit your changes to activate them on the firewall.
    6. Configure the TACACS+ server to authenticate and authorize administrators.
      Refer to your TACACS+ server documentation for the specific instructions to perform these steps:
      1. Add the firewall IP address or hostname as the TACACS+ client.
      2. Add the administrator accounts.
        If you selected CHAP as the Authentication Protocol, you must define accounts with reversibly encrypted passwords. Otherwise, CHAP authentication will fail.
      3. Define TACACS+ VSAs for the role, access domain, and user group of each administrator.
        When you predefine dynamic administrator roles for users, use lower-case to specify the role (for example, enter superuser, not SuperUser).
    7. Verify that the TACACS+ server performs authentication and authorization for administrators.
      1. Log in the firewall web interface using an administrator account that you added to the TACACS+ server.
      2. Verify that you can access only the web interface pages that are allowed for the role you associated with the administrator.
      3. In the Monitor, Policies, and Objects tabs, verify that you can access only the virtual systems that are allowed for the access domain you associated with the administrator.

    © 2025 Palo Alto Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.