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1 Introduction 5

1.1 Terminology 5

1.2 Outline 6

1.3 Normative References 6

1.4 Non-Normative References 7

2 SAML V1.1 Subject Profile 8

2.1 Required Information 8

2.2 Profile Description 8

2.3 Usage of <saml:Subject> Element 8

2.4 Example 8

2.5 Strongly Matching Subjects 9

3 SAML V1.1 Subject-based Assertion Profile 10

3.1 Required Information 10

3.2 Profile Description 10

3.3 Usage of <saml:Assertion> Element 10

3.4 Example 11

4 SAML V1.1 Extensions 13

4.1 Complex type SubjectStatementType 13

5 Implementation Conformance 14

6 Acknowledgments 15

7 Revision History 16

1 Introduction

The Subject-based Profiles for SAML V1.1 Assertions specifies two profiles:

SAML V1.1 Subject Profile
SAML V1.1 Subject-based Assertion Profile

The primary goal of the SAML V1.1 Subject-based Assertion Profile (which relies on the SAML V1.1 Subject Profile) is to provide guidance to deployments that support both SAML V1.1 and V2.0. In that case, there is some flexibility in SAML V1.1 that is not present in SAML V2.0 (and vice versa). This profile places constraints upon SAML V1.1 subjects and assertions so that they have properties similar to SAML V2.0 subjects and assertions. This may aid interoperability and speed the ultimate transition from SAML V1.1 to SAML V2.0.

An implementation of the SAML V1.1 Web Browser SSO Profile is very likely conformant to this profile. Other applications of SAML may not be conformant, however. For example, the Web Services Security SAML Token Profile [WSSSAML] provides for both SAML V1.1 and SAML V2.0 tokens. Due to differences between the two versions of SAML [SAMLDiffs], an implementation that wished to support both would tend to constrain the tokens such that they exhibited an equivalent semantic. This profile provides one such set of constraints.

A major difference between SAML V1.1 and SAML V2.0 is that the latter elevates the <saml2:Subject> element to be a child element of the <saml2:Assertion> element, and therefore the <saml2:Subject> element applies to all the statements in the assertion. In SAML V1.1, on the other hand, each statement has its own <saml:Subject> element, which opens the door to a wide range of possibilities. This profile constrains SAML V1.1 assertions so that each statement contains an equivalent <saml:Subject> element. Formally, this is done by extending the notion of strongly matches to an equivalence relation, which culminates in section 3.3.

1.1 Terminology

This specification uses normative text to describe the contents of conforming SAML subjects and assertions.

The keywords "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT", "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this specification are to be interpreted as described in [RFC 2119]:

…they MUST only be used where it is actually required for interoperation or to limit behavior which has potential for causing harm (e.g., limiting retransmissions)…

These keywords are thus capitalized when used to unambiguously specify requirements over protocol and application features and behavior that affect the interoperability and security of implementations. When these words are not capitalized, they are meant in their natural-language sense.

Listings of XML schemas appear like this.

Example code listings appear like this.

Conventional XML namespace prefixes are used throughout the listings in this specification to stand for their respective namespaces as follows, whether or not a namespace declaration is present in the example:

Prefix	XML Namespace	Comments
saml:	urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.1:assertion	This is the SAML V1.1 assertion namespace [SAMLCore].
saml2:	urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:2.0:assertion	This is the SAML V2.0 assertion namespace [SAML2Core].
samlsap:	urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.1:profiles:assertion:subject	This is the SAML V1.1 subject-based assertion namespace defined by this document and its accompanying schema [SAMLSAP-XSD].
ds:	http://www.w3.org/2000/09/xmldsig#	This is the W3C XML Signature namespace, defined in the XML-Signature Syntax and Processing specification [XMLSig] and schema [XMLSig-XSD].
xs:	http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema	This is the XML Schema namespace [Schema1]. This is the default namespace used throughout this document.
xsi:	http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance	This is the XML Schema namespace for schema-related markup that appears in XML instances [Schema1].

This specification uses the following typographical conventions in text: <UnqualifiedElement>, <ns:QualifiedElement>, Attribute, Datatype, OtherKeyword.

1.2 Outline

Section 2 describes a profile that constrains SAML V1.1 subjects so that they have properties similar to SAML V2.0 subjects. Section 3 describes a profile that places constraints upon SAML V1.1 assertions so that they have properties similar to SAML V2.0 assertions. Section 4 describes a SAML V1.1 extension that provides a SAML V2.0 capability not present in SAML V1.1. Finally, section 5 specifies requirements that all conforming implementations must follow.

1.3 Normative References

[RFC 2119] S. Bradner. Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement Levels. IETF RFC 2119, March 1997. See http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2119.txt

[SAML2Core] S. Cantor et al. Assertions and Protocols for the OASIS Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) V2.0. OASIS Standard, March 2005. See http://docs.oasis-open.org/security/saml/v2.0/saml-core-2.0-os.pdf

[SAMLCore] E. Maler et al. Assertions and Protocols for the OASIS Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) V1.1. OASIS Standard, September 2003. Document ID oasis-sstc-saml-core-1.1. See http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/download.php/3406/oasis-sstc-saml-core-1.1.pdf

[SAMLSAP-XSD] Schema for Subject-based Profiles for SAML V1.1 Assertions. OASIS, December 2007. Document ID sstc-saml1-profiles-assertion-subject.xsd. See http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/download.php/26573/sstc-saml1-profiles-assertion-subject.xsd

[Schema1] H. S. Thompson et al. XML Schema Part 1: Structures. World Wide Web Consortium Recommendation, May 2001. See http://www.w3.org/TR/2001/REC-xmlschema-1-20010502/

[XMLSig] D. Eastlake et al. XML-Signature Syntax and Processing. World Wide Web Consortium Recommendation, February 2002. See http://www.w3.org/TR/2002/REC-xmldsig-core-20020212/

[XMLSig-XSD] Schema for XML Signatures. World Wide Web Consortium Recommendation, February 2002. See http://www.w3.org/TR/2002/REC-xmldsig-core-20020212/xmldsig-core-schema.xsd

1.4 Non-Normative References

[MACEAttrib] S. Cantor et al. MACE-Dir SAML Attribute Profiles. Internet2 MACE, April 2006. See http://middleware.internet2.edu/dir/docs/internet2-mace-dir-saml-attributes-200604.pdf

[RFC2246] T. Dierks and C. Allen. The TLS Protocol Version 1.0. IETF RFC 2246, January 1999. See http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2246.txt

[SAMLDiffs] Differences between SAML 2.0 and 1.1. SAML XML.org. See http://saml.xml.org/differences-between-saml-2-0-and-1-1

[WSSSAML] R. Monzillo et al. Web Services Security: SAML Token Profile 1.1. OASIS Standard, 1 February 2006. See http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/download.php/16768/wss-v1.1-spec-os-SAMLTokenProfile.pdf

2 SAML V1.1 Subject Profile

This SAML V1.1 Subject Profile constrains SAML V1.1 subjects so that they have properties similar to SAML V2.0 subjects.

2.1 Required Information

Identification:
urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.1:profiles:subject

Contact information: security-services-comment@lists.oasis-open.org

Description: Given below.

Updates: N/A

Extends: N/A

2.2 Profile Description

This profile specifies a SAML V1.1 <saml:Subject> element that can be readily mapped to SAML V2.0.

2.3 Usage of <saml:Subject> Element

Neither SAML V1.1 nor SAML V2.0 explicitly requires a name identifier, but certain SAML V2.0 profiles (most notably the Single Logout Profile) implicitly require one, so a <saml:Subject> element that conforms to this profile SHOULD contain a <saml:NameIdentifier> element. To further align with SAML V2.0, the NameQualifier attribute on the <saml:NameIdentifier> element SHOULD be omitted unless the identifier's type definition explicitly defines its use and semantics. In particular, if the Format attribute on the <saml:NameIdentifier> element has a value specified in section 7.3 of [SAMLCore], the NameQualifier attribute SHOULD be omitted.

Certain deprecated features of SAML V1.1 were removed in SAML V2.0. Thus a <saml:Subject> that conforms to this profile MUST NOT contain a <saml:NameIdentifier> element with any of the following Format attribute values:

urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.0:assertion#emailAddress
urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.0:assertion#X509SubjectName
urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.0:assertion#WindowsDomainQualifiedName

See section 7.3 of [SAMLCore] for the URIs to be used in lieu of these deprecated values.

In SAML V1.1, a <saml:Subject> element contains at most one <saml:SubjectConfirmation> element containing one or more <saml:ConfirmationMethod> elements. In SAML V2.0, on the other hand, there may be multiple <saml2:SubjectConfirmation> elements, each with a required Method attribute. Therefore, a <saml:Subject> element that conforms to this profile MAY contain a <saml:SubjectConfirmation> element, but that element MUST contain one and only one <saml:ConfirmationMethod> element.

2.4 Example

<saml:Subject>

<saml:NameIdentifier

Format="urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.1:nameid-format:X509SubjectName">

C=US, O=NCSA-TEST, OU=User, CN=trscavo@uiuc.edu

</saml:NameIdentifier>

<saml:SubjectConfirmation>

<saml:ConfirmationMethod>

urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.0:cm:holder-of-key

</saml:ConfirmationMethod>

<ds:KeyInfo>

<ds:X509Data>

<ds:X509Certificate>

MIICiDCCAXACCQDE+9eiWrm62jANBgkqhkiG9w0BAQQFADBFMQswCQYDVQQGEwJV

UzESMBAGA1UEChMJTkNTQS1URVNUMQ0wCwYDVQQLEwRVc2VyMRMwEQYDVQQDEwpT

UC1TZXJ2aWNlMB4XDTA2MDcxNzIwMjE0MVoXDTA2MDcxODIwMjE0MVowSzELMAkG

A1UEBhMCVVMxEjAQBgNVBAoTCU5DU0EtVEVTVDENMAsGA1UECxMEVXNlcjEZMBcG

A1UEAwwQdHJzY2F2b0B1aXVjLmVkdTCBnzANBgkqhkiG9w0BAQEFAAOBjQAwgYkC

gYEAv9QMe4lRl3XbWPcflbCjGK9gty6zBJmp+tsaJINM0VaBaZ3t+tSXknelYife

nCc2O3yaX76aq53QMXy+5wKQYe8Rzdw28Nv3a73wfjXJXoUhGkvERcscs9EfIWcC

g2bHOg8uSh+Fbv3lHih4lBJ5MCS2buJfsR7dlr/xsadU2RcCAwEAATANBgkqhkiG

9w0BAQQFAAOCAQEAdyIcMTob7TVkelfJ7+I1j0LO24UlKvbLzd2OPvcFTCv6fVHx

Ejk0QxaZXJhreZ6+rIdiMXrEzlRdJEsNMxtDW8++sVp6avoB5EX1y3ez+CEAIL4g

cjvKZUR4dMryWshWIBHKFFul+r7urUgvWI12KbMeE9KP+kiiiiTskLcKgFzngw1J

selmHhTcTCrcDocn5yO2+d3dog52vSOtVFDBsBuvDixO2hv679JR6Hlqjtk4GExp

E9iVI0wdPE038uQIJJTXlhsMMLvUGVh/c0ReJBn92Vj4dI/yy6PtY/8ncYLYNkjg

oVN0J/ymOktn9lTlFyTiuY4OuJsZRO1+zWLy9g==

</ds:X509Certificate>

</ds:X509Data>

</ds:KeyInfo>

</saml:SubjectConfirmation>

</saml:Subject>

2.5 Strongly Matching Subjects

In general, the notion of strongly matches defined in section 3.4.4 of [SAMLCore] is overly restrictive, for at least two reasons: 1) a <saml:NameIdentifier> element with no Format attribute is semantically equivalent to a <saml:NameIdentifier> element with Format equal to "urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.1:nameid-format:unspecified", and 2) a <saml:SubjectConfirmation> element with confirmation method "urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.0:cm:holder-of-key" must have a <ds:KeyInfo> element, but two distinct <ds:KeyInfo> elements can refer to the same key so two distinct <saml:SubjectConfirmation> elements can be semantically equivalent. For these reasons, especially the latter, this profile adopts an alternate definition of strongly matches that more closely aligns with SAML V2.0.

The name identifier parts of the definition of strongly matches in the two versions of SAML are the same if we ignore the language regarding encryption in the SAML V2.0 definition (which of course SAML V1.1 does not support). On the other hand, the subject confirmation part of strongly matches has a distinctly different flavor, so we reformulate the subject confirmation part of strongly matches in SAML V1.1 so that it aligns with SAML V2.0.

Under the assumption that a <saml:SubjectConfirmation> element contains only and only one <saml:ConfirmationMethod> element (section 2.3), we define strongly matches as follows:

A <saml:Subject> element S1 strongly matches S2 if and only if the following two conditions both apply:

If S2 includes a <saml:NameIdentifier> element, then S1 MUST include an identical <saml:NameIdentifier> element.
If S2 contains a <saml:SubjectConfirmation> element, then S1 MUST contain a <saml:SubjectConfirmation> element such that the subject identified by S1 can be confirmed in the manner described by the <saml:SubjectConfirmation> element in S2.

Like the definition of strongly matches in [SAMLCore], the above relation is not symmetric since S1 strongly matches S2 does not imply that S2 strongly matches S1. In other words, the order of operands S1,S2 matters.

3 SAML V1.1 Subject-based Assertion Profile

This SAML V1.1 Subject-based Assertion Profile places constraints upon SAML V1.1 assertions so that they have properties similar to SAML V2.0 assertions.

In SAML V1.1, each statement contains a <saml:Subject> element, but in SAML V2.0, there is one <saml2:Subject> element per assertion. Thus, in SAML V2.0, every statement necessarily applies to the same subject. To achieve an equivalent semantic in SAML V1.1, this profile places suitable restrictions on multi-statement assertions.

See section 2 of the SAML V1.1 Assertions and Protocols specification [SAMLCore] for general requirements regarding SAML assertions. Where this profile conflicts with [SAMLCore], the former takes precedence.

3.1 Required Information

Identification:
urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.1:profiles:assertion:subject

Contact information: security-services-comment@lists.oasis-open.org

Description: Given below.

Updates: N/A

Extends: N/A

3.2 Profile Description

This profile places the following constraints upon conforming assertions:

Deprecated elements must not be used.
Each statement of the assertion must have a <saml:Subject> element.
Each <saml:Subject> element must satisfy the SAML V1.1 Subject Profile described in section 2. Moreover, each pair of <saml:Subject> elements must very strongly match, a notion made precise in the next section.

Such an assertion is called a subject-based assertion.

3.3 Usage of <saml:Assertion> Element

An assertion that conforms to this profile MUST satisfy the following general requirements:

The assertion MUST NOT contain a <saml:AuthorityBinding> element.
Every statement in the assertion MUST have a type derived from abstract type saml:SubjectStatementAbstractType [SAMLCore].
The <saml:Subject> element of each statement MUST satisfy the SAML V1.1 Subject Profile described in section 2.
If the <saml:Assertion> element contains more than one statement, each pair of <saml:Subject> elements MUST very strongly match, which we now define. Let S1 and S2 be two <saml:Subject> elements. S1 very strongly matches S2 if S1 strongly matches S2 and S2 strongly matches S1. Note that this definition depends on the notion of strongly matches defined in section 2.5.

An assertion is valid according to this profile if and only if it satisfies the above requirements.

3.4 Example

The following SAML assertion was obtained by a principal who authenticated to an identity provider via TLS [RFC2246] client authentication. Note that the <saml:Subject> elements in the two statements very strongly match (indeed, the <saml:Subject> elements are identical).

<saml:Assertion

xmlns:saml="urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:1.0:assertion"

xmlns:xs="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema"

xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"

xmlns:ds="http://www.w3.org/2000/09/xmldsig#"

AssertionID="_33776a319493ad607b7ab3e689482e45"

IssueInstant="2006-07-17T20:31:41Z"

Issuer="https://idp.example.org/saml"

MajorVersion="1" MinorVersion="1">

<saml:Conditions

NotBefore="2006-07-17T20:31:41Z"

NotOnOrAfter="2006-07-18T20:21:41Z">

</saml:Conditions>

<saml:AuthenticationStatement

AuthenticationInstant="2006-07-17T20:31:41Z"

AuthenticationMethod="urn:ietf:rfc:2246">