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5*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<title>Kerberos Terminology</title></head>
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8*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<h1><a name="top"> Kerberos Terminology</a></h1>
9*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<p>
10*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertIt is helpful to understand three terms when using Kerberos; <a href="#principal"> principals</a>, <a href="#realm"> realms</a>, and <a href="#ticket"> tickets</a>.</p>
11*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<p>
12*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<table>
13*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<tbody><tr>
14*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<th><a name="principal">Principals</a></th>
15*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</tr>
16*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<tr>
17*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<td>
18*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert A Kerberos <i>principal</i> is a unique identity that uses
19*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertKerberos. For users, it is the identity you use to log on to Kerberos.
20*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertPrincipals are a combination of your user name and the name of the <a href="#realm"> realm</a> (or domain) you belong to, in the form <span class="typed">username@REALM.NAME.</span> For example: <span class="typed">jdoe@SALES.WIDGET.COM.</span>
21*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertSome people will have more than one principal. An administrator might
22*7f2fe78bSCy Schuberthave a regular principal and a separate one with administrative rights.
23*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertOr if a particular installation uses multiple realms and requires a
24*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertseparate log-on for each one, people with access to multiple realms
25*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertwill have a principal for each realm.
26*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<p></p>
27*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertBecause Kerberos provides <em>mutual</em> authentication, the
28*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertnetwork resources that use Kerberos also have unique principals.
29*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertHowever, you do not need to know a service's principal to access it.<p></p>
30*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<a href="#top">Back to Top</a>
31*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</td>
32*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</tr>
33*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<tr>
34*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<th> <a name="realm"> Realms</a> </th>
35*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</tr>
36*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<tr>
37*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<td>
38*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert Kerberos <i>realms</i> are a way of logically grouping
39*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertresources and identities that use Kerberos. Your realm is the home of
40*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertyour Kerberos identity and your point of entry to the network resources
41*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertcontrolled by Kerberos. In Windows, realms are called <em>domains.</em>
42*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<p></p>
43*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertWhen a Kerberos installation is set up, administrators decide how to
44*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertgroup identities and network resources into realms. For example, some
45*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertinstallations group all network resources into one realm. Others group
46*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertall identities into one realm that is solely used as an entry point to
47*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertresources grouped in other realms. Depending on your installation and
48*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertyour needs, you might have a <a href="#principal"> principal</a>
49*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert(or principals) in only one realm that provides you with all the access
50*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertyou need, or you might have different principals for accessing
51*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertdifferent realms.
52*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<p></p>Realms are usually named after the DNS domain they correspond
53*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertto, but using all upper case letters. For example, Widget Makers
54*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertIncorporated might have a realm named <span type="" typed="">WIDGETMAKERSINC.COM.</span>  By definition, each network resource in a Kerberos realm uses the same Kerberos installation  for authentication.<p></p>
55*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert  <p></p>
56*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<a href="#top">Back to Top</a>
57*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</td>
58*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</tr>
59*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert
60*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<tr>
61*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<th> <a name="ticket">Tickets</a></th>
62*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</tr>
63*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<tr>
64*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<td>
65*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertKerberos uses the concept of <i>tickets </i> to keep passwords
66*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertfrom being transmitted in the clear and to provide users the
67*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertconvenience of a single log-on to access multiple services and hosts. <p></p>
68*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertOnce a you provide a valid principal and password, Kerberos issues you
69*7f2fe78bSCy Schuberta ticket with a limited lifetime. This ticket is an encrypted block of
70*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertdata that authenticates you. In most cases the ticket allows you to
71*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertaccess all of the appropriate network resources in the realm you use,
72*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertfor the lifetime of the ticket, without having to take any further
73*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertaction. <p></p>
74*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertWhen you access one of these resources, MIT Kerberos passes your
75*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertinitial Ticket Granting Ticket (TGT) to the service. Kerberos verifies
76*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertthe ticket and then issues a separate ticket that allows access to that
77*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertservice. You don't have to worry about obtaining or managing these new
78*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertservice tickets; they are automatically issued. Service tickets can be
79*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertviewed with MIT Kerberos but cannot be directly obtained or destroyed
80*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertthrough it.
81*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<p></p>
82*7f2fe78bSCy SchubertTickets contain two <a href="JavaScript:popup.TextPopup(popupEncryptionKey, popfont,9,9,-1,-1)">encryption keys</a>:
83*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertthe ticket key and the session key. The ticket key is shared between
84*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertthe Kerberos infrastructure and the service you are using. The session
85*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertkey is shared between you and the service, and is used to encrypt and
86*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertdecrypt communication with the service. <p></p>
87*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<a href="#top">Back to Top</a>
88*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</td>
89*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</tr>
90*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</tbody></table>
91*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</p><h2>Related Help</h2>
92*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<ul id="helpul">
93*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<li><a href="HTML/Kerberos.htm">What is Kerberos?</a></li>
94*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<li><a href="HTML/How_Kerberos_Works.htm">How does Kerberos work?</a></li>
95*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<li><a href="HTML/Encryption_Types.htm">Encryption types</a></li>
96*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert</ul>
97*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert
98*7f2fe78bSCy Schubert<script language="JavaScript">
99*7f2fe78bSCy Schubertpopfont="Arial,.725,"
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