Windows Azure - AppFabric Access Control Service Portal

As part of the Access Control Service Portal awareness we are performing the following.

• Create new Namespace
• Create new Identity Provider
• Create new Rule Group

This article is a continuation of the Introduction of AppFabric Access Control Service.

Creating the Namespace

For creating the namespace, sign into the Windows Azure Management Portal.  Open the Service Bus, Access Control & Caching item as shown below.  (You can also use the previous namespace if it exists)

In the appearing window select the Access Control item from the left pane.

In the appearing dialog enter the required details.  Please ensure the namespace is unique.



After entering the details click on the Create Namespace button to create the namespace.  Wait for a few minutes and you will be ready with the new namespace Active as shown below.

The namespace accesscontrol2011 can be used in our next Access Control article involving programming.

Using the Access Control Service Portal

You can open the Access Control Service Portal by selecting the namespace and clicking on the Access Control Service button from the header panel as shown below.

(You can also access it using the url https://namespace.accesscontrol.windows.net)

On clicking the button we will get the window shown below:

We can configure the Identity Providers  using the link on left.  There is a default created Windows Live ID item inside it.

Create a new Identity Provider

Now we can add a new identity provider Google.  Click on the Add button to continue.  The following page appears.

Select the option Google and click Next to continue.

Leave the default options and click Save to create the provider.

We can configure the Relying party applications using the link on left.  There are no default entries inside it.

Now you can see the new identity provider in the list as shown below.

Create a new Rule Group

Now we have to create a new rule group for our application.  At least one rule group is needed for getting a valid token from ACS.

Click on the Rule Groups item from the left pane and you will see the following screen.

Click on the Add button from the above screen.

In the above screen enter a name for the rule group and click the Save button and you will be getting the following screen.

Click on the Generate button to generate the rules automatically.  The following screen will appear.

Select (check) the items Google and Windows Live ID and click the Generate button.  You will get the following screen.

Check all the items as shown above and click the Save button.  Your rule group will be created in the list as shown below.

Summary

In this article we have seen creation of namespace, adding identity providers and rule groups using the Access Control Service Portal.  In the next article we can create a web role and test the providers.