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Overview#

A session is a reference identifier on the Jans Auth Server that connects to a person's authentication state. During an authentication workflow, Auth Server writes a cookie with the session_id in the person's browser. OpenID Native SSO defines a way for mobile apps from the same vendor to use the iOS or Android protected secret storage to store the session_id. By correlating the session, the IDP can return an identity assertion (id_token) to a client without needing to re-authenticate the person. SSO ensues.

For example, let's say a person uses a browser to navigate to the website of Relying Party (RP1), which redirects to Jans Auth Server for authentication. Once the person is authenticated, the OP creates a session_id cookie, sets the state to authenticated, and places it in the cache. If the person mavigates their browser to the website of RP2, it redirects to the OP for authentication; since the session_id detected via the cookie is already authenticated, the OP authenticates the person automatically for RP2 (without an authentication prompt).

Jans Auth Server stores user session data in its cache. Auth Server performance retrieving the session will vary depending on whether the session is stored in memory, Redis, Memcached or the database, as controlled by the cacheProviderType Auth Server configuration property.

The Auth Server session can have one of two states:

  • unauthenticated - a browser that has started, but not completed an authentication workflow.
  • authenticated - when a person has successfully authenticated

The following Auth Server configuration properties are related to sessions:

  • sessionIdCookieLifetime - The lifetime of session_id cookie in seconds. If 0 or -1 then expiration is not set. session_id cookie expires when browser session ends. Default value is 86400.
  • sessionIdLifetime - lifetime of the OP session in seconds (server side object). If not set, falls back to session_id cookie expiration set by sessionIdCookieLifetime configuration property.
  • sessionIdUnusedLifetime - unused OP session lifetime in seconds. If an OP session is not used for a given amount of time, the OP session is removed. Default value is 86400.
  • sessionIdUnauthenticatedUnusedLifetime - lifetime in seconds of unauthenticated OP session. This determines how long the user can be on the login page while unauthenticated. Default value is 120.
  • sessionIdRequestParameterEnabled - Boolean value specifying whether to enable session_id HTTP request parameter. Default value is False.
  • sessionIdPersistOnPromptNone - specifies whether to persist or update the session object with data if prompt=none. Default value is True.
  • invalidateSessionCookiesAfterAuthorizationFlow - this is special property which specifies whether to invalidate session_id and consent_session_id cookies right after successful or unsuccessful authorization.
  • changeSessionIdOnAuthentication - Using a different session after the user authenticates improves security. The default value is True.
  • sessionIdPersistInCache - If True, sessions are stored according to cacheProviderType. Otherwise, sessions are persisted in the database. Default value is False.
  • sessionIdPersistInCache Default value is False.

For both unused properties, Jans Auth Server calculates this period as currentUnusedPeriod = now - session.lastUsedAt. So for OP session with states:

  • unauthenticated - if currentUnusedPeriod >= sessionIdUnauthenticatedUnusedLifetime, then the session object is removed.
  • authenticated - if currentUnusedPeriod >= sessionIdUnusedLifetime, then the session object is removed.

Jans Auth Server updates lastUsedAt property of the session object:

  • During creation
  • For each Auth Server authentication attempt (regardless of success)

Killing Sessions#

The End Session endpoint (/end_session) is where the user can end their own session. See OpenID Logout for more information.

To end another person's session, Jans Auth Server has a Session Revocation Endpoint (/revoke_session).

Session Event Interception Scripts#

It is possible to add custom business logic as Jans Auth Server detects session events, see:

Session data structure in Persistence#

LDAP#

All sessions can be found under ou=sessions,o=jans Object class janssessid - https://github.com/JanssenProject/jans/blob/main/docs/admin/reference/database/ldap-schema.md#janssessid

MySQL#

All session information is saved in this table : https://github.com/JanssenProject/jans/blob/main/docs/admin/reference/database/mysql-schema.md#janssessid

FAQ#

How can we force the user to log out if the user is idle on the RP for 4 hours?#

The OP doesn't know anything about end-user activity on the RP. Therefore, the RP has to track activity internally, and when the inactivity period is reached (in this case, 4 hours) the RP should perform front-channel logout.

How can we force the user to log out if the browser is closed?#

Setting sessionIdLifetime to -1 value sets the session_id cookie value to expires=session, and sets the OP session object to not have an expiration time. Most browsers clear cookies with expires=session when the browser is closed, removing the session object at that time. Javascript may be necessary to override undesirable default browser behavior.

Can we have a single session across multiple browsers?#

Unfortunately, each browser has its own session cookies, and therefore its own sessions.

Last update: 2024-02-06
Created: 2022-09-02