Authenticating users with User-ID
Frequently neglected but very powerful when set up properly is a standard feature called User-ID. Through several mechanisms, the firewall can learn who is initiating which sessions, regardless of their device, operating system, or source IP. Additionally, security policies can be set so users are granted access or restricted in their capabilities based on their individual ID or group membership.
User-ID expands functionality with granular control of who is accessing certain resources and provides customizable reporting capabilities for forensic or managerial reporting.
Users can be identified through several different methods:
- Server monitoring:
--Microsoft Active Directory security log reading for log-on events
--Microsoft Exchange Server log-on events
--Novell eDirectory log-on events
- The interception of X-Forward-For (XFF) headers, forwarded by a downstream proxy server
- Client probing using Netbios and WMI probes
- Direct user authentication
-- The Captive Portal to intercept web requests and serve a user authentication form or transparently authenticate using Kerberos
-- GlobalProtect VPN client integration
- Port mapping on a multiuser platform such as Citrix or Microsoft Terminal Server where multiple users will originate from the same source IP
- The XML API
- A syslog listener to receive forwarded logs from external authentication systems
