Configure Apache to use mod_auth_kerb for authentication

To password-protect university websites, UITS recommends using IU Login. If for some reason you cannot, and Apache is your web server, mod_auth_kerb is one alternative for authentication.

To use mod_auth_kerb on your site:

1. Install Kerberos on your web server; see Set up a Unix computer as a Kerberized application server. Instead of installing the keytab file in /etc/krb5.keytab, you may want to install it in the same location as your web server configuration files (for example, /opt/apache/etc/krb5.keytab). Use the chown(1) and chmod(1) commands to make this keytab file readable by the web server user. The following example assumes a web server user of www:

   $ sudo chown root:www krb5.keytab
   $ sudo chmod 640 krb5.keytab
   $ ls -l krb5.keytab
   -rw-r-----  1 root  www  134 Apr  9 10:43 krb5.keytab

2. Download the mod_auth_kerb Apache module from http://modauthkerb.sourceforge.net/.

   The website includes build instructions. When building, set the KRB5_VERIFY_TICKET option and specify the location of the keytab file with KRB5_DEFAULT_KEYTAB. For example, when building mod_auth_kerb as a dynamic shared object (DSO), use something like:

   apxs -c -DKRB5 -DKRB5_VERIFY_TICKET \
   -DKRB5_DEFAULT_KEYTAB=\"\\\"FILE:/opt/apache/etc/krb5.keytab\\\"\" \
   -I/opt/krb5/include -L/opt/krb5/lib -lkrb5 \
   -ldl -lcom_err -lk5crypto mod_auth_kerb.c

   This example assumes your keytab is in /opt/apache/etc/krb5.keytab and Kerberos 5 is installed in /opt/krb5.

   For more about DSOs in Apache 2.4, see Dynamic Shared Object (DSO) Support. For older versions of Apache, see the resources at Apache HTTP Server Documentation.

3. Finish installing mod_auth_kerb according to the instructions on the Kerberos Module for Apache website.
4. Using .htaccess files or Directory or Location directives in your httpd.conf file, enable Kerberos authentication for the appropriate portions of your site. The only mod_auth_kerb directives you should need are:

   AuthName "IU Network ID"
   AuthType KerberosV5
   KrbServiceName HTTP
   Require valid-user
   SSLRequireSSL

   The Require valid-user directive will allow anyone with a valid IU Network ID to authenticate. You can restrict this further by replacing valid-user with user followed by a list of usernames, for example:

   Require user bunbury jack ernest

   See also the Apache documentation on runtime configuration directives, particularly Allow, Deny, Order, Require, and Satisfy, in the Directive Index for your version of Apache.

You should now be able to authenticate to protected areas of the site using your IU Network ID. Check your Apache error log if it doesn't work. The following error may mean your krb5.keytab file is not in the right place:

reason: krb5_rd_req(): No such file or directory

If the file is not readable by the web server user, you may see the following error:

reason: krb5_rd_req(): Permission denied

Syntax errors relating to the SSLRequireSSL directive may mean you have not built an SSL-capable version of Apache. For more, see Apache Module mod_ssl.

If you're still having problems at this point, contact your campus Support Center.