UMA Release Notes

Abstract

This document contains non-normative release notes produced by the User-Managed Access Work Group for various versions of the UMA specifications.

Status

This document is currently under active development.

Editor

Eve Maler

Intellectual Property Notice

The User-Managed Access Work Group operates under Kantara IPR Policy - Option Patent & Copyright: Reciprocal Royalty Free with Opt-Out to Reasonable And Non discriminatory (RAND) (HTML version) and the publication of this document is governed by the policies outlined in this option.

Introduction

This document contains non-normative release notes produced by the User-Managed Access Work Group for various versions of the UMA specifications.

The Work Group uses Semantic Versioning for its specification version numbers:

Given a version number MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH, increment the:

MAJOR version when you make incompatible API changes,
MINOR version when you add functionality in a backwards-compatible manner, and
PATCH version when you make backwards-compatible bug fixes.

Additional labels for pre-release and build metadata are available as extensions to the MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH format.

From V1.0 to V1.0.1 (draft)

The UMA V1.0 specifications (Core, RSR) were approved in March 2015. The UMA V1.0.1 specifications (Core, RSR) are currently (September 2015) in draft form; the Work Group's goal is to see their finalization by the end of 2015. The following release notes are therefore also in draft form. They are catalogued according to their impact on software implementations (where impact on client software in addition to authorization server or resource server software is denoted with (+Client) in the section title). Links to relevant GitHub issues and specific section numbers are provided where possible, enabling old-to-new text comparisons and tracking of discussions and rationales.

The following themes animated the V1.0.1 release process:

Account for V1.0 lessons learned out of the gate
Achieve timeline predictability and minimization of disruption for V1.0 implementers
Achieve efficiency, speed, and accuracy in specification revisions
Achieve issue solution consistency with OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect where possible
Within the allotted time, prioritize first blocking and critical bug fixes, then low-impact specification and implementation changes

Changes Affecting Authorization Server (+Client) Implementations

Following are specification changes in V1.0.1 that affect authorization servers, and possibly clients that interact with them as well.

AS Now Has Unique Redirect URI Endpoint for Claims Gathering (+Client)

Previously, the client was instructed to present the ordinary OAuth redirect_uri endpoint to which the AS should redirect requesting parties back after claims gathering, but this was ambiguously specified and incorrect. Now the client has a unique endpoint, claims_redirect_uri, that it needs to register. (144)

Permission Ticket Lifecycle Management (+Client)

Previously, little guidance was offered on how to manage permission tickets. Now some implications are explored, particularly as they relate to client interaction. (172) (Core Sec 3.2.2)

Requested Permission and Permission Ticket Matching

Previously, the matching of the "extents of access" of the requested permission registered by the RS and the permission ticket issued by the AS was implicit. Now it is spelled out. (175) (Core Sec 3.2)

Permission Ticket on Redirect Back to Client (+Client)

Previously, the AS was required to repeat the client’s permission ticket back to it in a ticket property when offering a redirect_user hint in error_details. Now this is optional and the client is encouraged to ignore the property's value, preparatory to removing the property entirely in a future UMA version. The reason is that the value can't be guaranteed good; repeating the value was in order to save the client work; and having the client check the value would ultimately have caused both sides work for no gain. (205) (Core Sec 3.5.4.2)

PUT Means Complete Replacement

Previously, the requirement for an Update method in resource set registration to completely replace the previous resource set description was implicit. Now it is spelled out. (177) (RSR Sec 2.2.3)

Default-Deny for Authorization Data Issuance

Previously, a naive implementation could have resulted in accidental default-permit authorization data issuance in some cases. Now a default-deny authorization assessment model has been made explicit, with an example given of how implementations could get into trouble. (194) (Core Sec 3.5.2)

base64url-Encoded Claims (+Client)

Previously, the wording about base64url-encoding pushed claims was ambiguous about whether double-encoding was necessary in the case of claim formats that were already base64url-encoded. Now it has been clarified that double-encoding should not be performed. (206) (Core Sec 3.6.2)

Enhanced Security Considerations

Previously, the security considerations around accepting policy-setting context information from an incompletely trusted RS only covered "bad icon URIs". Now they cover all such policy-setting context information, following roughly the OAuth example. (151) (RSR Sec 4)

Previously, the security considerations around client-pushed claims were explored only in a very cursory fashion in the body of the text. Now they are treated at length in a new subsection. (160) (Core Sec 7.4.1)

Enhanced Privacy Considerations

Previously, little was said about privacy implications of requesting party claims being transmitted to the AS. Now this section has been greatly expanded. (211) (Core Sec 8.2)

Changes Affecting Resource Server (+Client) Implementations

Following are specification changes in V1.0.1 that affect resource servers, and possibly clients that interact with them as well.

Caveat About Protected Resource API Constraint

Previously, the specification was missing an important caveat: Based on a client's initial RPT-free resource request, the RS needs to know the correct AS, PAT, and resource set ID to include in its follow-on call to the permission request endpoint at the AS. Thus, the API of the RS needs be structured so that it can derive this information from the client's request. Now this caveat appears in several locations. (161, 162, 225)

Adjustment of Other Protected Resource API Constraints (+Client)

Previously, the specification wording was inconsistent and problematic regarding how the RS responds to a client request accompanied by no RPT or an RPT with insufficient authorization data (assuming permission request success). Now the ability not to respond at all is more fully acknowledged; all responses intended to be interpreted in an UMA fashion are required to be accompanied by a WWW-Authenticate: UMA header; the permission ticket is required to be returned in a new ticket parameter in that header; complete freedom is given regarding the RS's choice of HTTP status code; and only in the case of a 403 choice is a ticket in a JSON-encoded body suggested, preparatory to removing the body option in a future UMA version. The rationale for this somewhat dramatic set of changes is that the original prescription to return HTTP status code 403 was incorrect; the specification gave too little guidance about responses other than 403 responses to be useful for client interoperability; and its requirement to return the permission ticket in a JSON-encoded body regardless of expected content type was an issue. (163, 164, 168) (Core Sec 3.3.1)

Solution for Permission Registration Failure (+Client)

Previously, the specification gave no guidance on how the RS should respond to the client in case of permission registration failure at the AS. Now, if the RS responds at all, it is required to substitute a Warning: 199 - "UMA Authorization Server Unreachable" header for WWW-Authenticate: UMA. (176) (Core Sec 3.3.2)

Authorization Server URI to Return to Client (+Client)

Previously, the value of the as_uri property that the RS returns to the client was described somewhat vaguely as the authorization server's URI. Now it has been clarified to be the issuer URI as it appears in the AS configuration data of the AS. (199) (Core Sec 3.3.1)

New Security Considerations

Previously, the security considerations around accepting policy-setting context information from an incompletely trusted AS were not covered. Now they cover the user_access_policy_uri property, which is the only policy-setting context information passed from AS to RS. (185) (RSR Sec 4)

Specification Reorganizations

The specifications, particularly Core Sec 3, were reorganized in the fashion of OpenID Connect, with the goal of giving a subsection to every request and response message. Other notable changes include:

Several “commentary” subsections were added, such as Core Sec 3.2.2 discussing permission ticket creation and management, and RSR Sec 2.1.2 discussing scope interpretation.
A new section, Core Sec 9.2, registers the permissions property in the new OAuth token introspection IANA registry (this is in addition to its registration in the JWT claims registry).
Core Sec 7.4.1 breaks out the new, more extensive security considerations discussion of pushed claims.
Core Sec 8 now has subsections to make privacy considerations easier to find and understand.

Sections are presented in original V1.0 (black) Table of Contents order, mapped to their corresponding draft V1.0.1 sections (green). Where a V1.0.1 section or block of sections is repeated, it redistributes material previously appearing in the V1.0 sections under which the mentions appear.

Core Specification Reorganization

Found in Core V1.0 (go)
Find in Core draft V1.0.1 (go)

1. Introduction (go)
1.1. Notational Conventions
1.2. Terminology
1.3. Achieving Distributed Access Control
1.3.1. Protection API
1.3.2. Authorization API
1.3.3. Protected Resource Interface
1.3.4. Time-to-Live Considerations
1.4. Authorization Server Configuration Data
1. Introduction (go)
1.1 Notational Conventions
1.2 Terminology
1.3 Achieving Distributed Access Control
1.3.1 Protection API and Protection API Token
1.3.2 Authorization API and Authorization API Token
1.3.3 Protected Resource Interface and Requesting Party Token
1.3.4 Time-to-Live Considerations
1.4 Authorization Server Configuration Data

2. Protecting a Resource (go)
2. Protecting a Resource (go)

3. Getting Authorization and Accessing a Resource (go)
3.1 Client Attempts Access to Protected Resource

3.1.1. Client Request to Resource Server With No RPT (go)
3.1.1 Client Request to Resource Server With No RPT (go)
3.3 Resource Server Responds to Client (go)
3.3.1 Resource Server Response to Client on Permission Registration Success
3.3.2 Resource Server Response to Client on Permission Registration Failure

3.1.2. Client Presents RPT (go)
3.1.2 Client Request to Resource Server With RPT (go)
3.3 Resource Server Responds to Client (go)
3.3.1 Resource Server Response to Client on Permission Registration Success
3.3.2 Resource Server Response to Client on Permission Registration Failure
3.3.3 Resource Server Response to Client on Sufficiency of Authorization

3.2. Resource Server Registers Requested Permission With Authorization Server (go)
3.2 Resource Server Registers Requested Permission With Authorization Server (go)
3.2.1 Resource Server Request to Permission Registration Endpoint
3.2.2 Permission Ticket Creation and Management
3.2.3 Authorization Server Response to Resource Server on Permission Registration Success
3.2.4 Authorization Server Response to Resource Server on Permission Registration Failure

3.3. Resource Server Determines RPT's Status (go)
3.3.1. Token Introspection
3.3.2. RPT Profile: Bearer
3.4 Resource Server Determines RPT Status (go)
3.4.1 Token Introspection Process
3.4.2 RPT Profile: Bearer

3.4. Client Seeks Authorization for Access (go)
3.5 Client Seeks Authorization for Access (go)

3.4.1. Client Requests Authorization Data (go)
3.5.1 Client Request to Authorization Server for Authorization Data (go)
3.5.2 Authorization Assessment Process
3.5.3 Authorization Server Response to Client on Authorization Success
3.5.4 Authorization Server Response to Client on Authorization Failure

3.4.1.1. Authentication Context Flows (go)
3.6 Client Responds to Authorization Server's Request for Additional Information (go)
3.6.1 Client Redirects Requesting Party to Authorization Server for Authentication

3.4.1.2. Claims-Gathering Flows (go)
3.6 Client Responds to Authorization Server's Request for Additional Information (go)
3.6.2 Client Pushes Claim Tokens to Authorization Server (go)
3.6.3 Client Redirects Requesting Party to Authorization Server for Claims-Gathering

4. Error Messages (go)
4.1. OAuth Error Responses
4.2. UMA Error Responses
4. Error Messages (go)
4.1 OAuth Error Responses
4.2 UMA Error Responses

5. Profiles for API Extensibility (go)
5.1. Protection API Extensibility Profile
5.2. Authorization API Extensibility Profile
5.3. Resource Interface Extensibility Profile
5. Profiles for API Extensibility (go)
5.1 Protection API Extensibility Profile
5.2 Authorization API Extensibility Profile
5.3 Resource Interface Extensibility Profile

6. Specifying Additional Profiles (go)
6.1. Specifying Profiles of UMA
6.2. Specifying RPT Profiles
6.3. Specifying Claim Token Format Profiles
6. Specifying Additional Profiles (go)
6.1 Specifying Profiles of UMA
6.2 Specifying RPT Profiles
6.3 Specifying Claim Token Format Profiles

7. Compatibility Notes (go)
n/a

8. Security Considerations (go)
7. Security Considerations (go)

8.1. Redirection and Impersonation Threats (go)
7.1 Requesting Party Redirection and Impersonation Threats (go)

8.2. Client Authentication (go)
7.2 Client Authentication (go)

8.3. JSON Usage (go)
7.3 JSON Usage (go)

8.4. Profiles, Binding Obligations, and Trust Establishment (go)
7.4 Profiles and Trust Establishment (go)

n/a
7.4.1 Requirements for Trust When Clients Push Claim Tokens (go)

9. Privacy Considerations (go)
8. Privacy Considerations (go)
8.1 Resource Set Information at the Authorization Server
8.2 Requesting Party Information at the Authorization Server
8.3 Profiles and Trust Establishment

10. IANA Considerations (go)
9. IANA Considerations (go)

10.1. JSON Web Token Claims Registration (go)
10.1.1. Registry Contents
9.1 JSON Web Token Claims Registration (go)
9.1.1 Registry Contents

n/a
9.2 OAuth Token Introspection Response Registration (go)
9.2.1 Registry Contents

10.2. Well-Known URI Registration (go)
10.2.1. Registry Contents
9.3 Well-Known URI Registration (go)
9.3.1 Registry Contents

11. Acknowledgments (go)
10. Acknowledgments (go)

12. References (go)
12.1. Normative References
12.2. Informative References
11. References (go)
11.1 Normative References
11.2 Informative References

RSR Specification Reorganization

Found in RSR V1.0 (go)
Find in RSR draft V1.0.1 (go)

1. Introduction (go)
1.1. Notational Conventions
1.2. Terminology
1.3. Authorization Server Configuration Data
1. Introduction (go)
1.1 Notational Conventions
1.2 Terminology
1.3 Authorization Server Configuration Data

2. Resource Set Registration (go)
2. Resource Set Registration (go)

2.1. Scope Descriptions (go)
2.1.1 Scope Descriptions (go)

n/a
2.1.2 Scope Interpretation (go)

2.2. Resource Set Descriptions (go)
2.1 Resource Set Descriptions (go)

2.3. Resource Set Registration API (go)
2.3.1. Create Resource Set Description
2.3.2. Read Resource Set Description
2.3.3. Update Resource Set Description
2.3.4. Delete Resource Set Description
2.3.5. List Resource Set Descriptions
2.2 Resource Set Registration API (go)
2.2.1 Create Resource Set Description
2.2.2 Read Resource Set Description
2.2.3 Update Resource Set Description
2.2.4 Delete Resource Set Description
2.2.5 List Resource Set Descriptions

3. Error Messages (go)
4. Security Considerations
5. Privacy Considerations
6. IANA Considerations
7. Example of Registering Resource Sets
8. Acknowledgments
9. References
9.1. Normative References
9.2. Informative References
3. Error Messages (go)
4. Security Considerations
5. Privacy Considerations
6. IANA Considerations
7. Example of Registering Resource Sets
8. Acknowledgments
9. References
9.1 Normative References
9.2 Informative References

Pre-V1.0 Changes

Following is a catalog of notable changes to the specifications in the pre-V1.0 timeframe.

Core Changes

Internet-Draft Rev 11 to Rev 12

From I-D rev 11 to rev 12:

Notable changes:
- Enhanced the Security Considerations section.

Internet-Draft Rev 10 to Rev 11

From I-D rev 10 to rev 11:

Breaking changes:
- Section 3.4: not_authorized_permission error code: Changed to not_authorized.
- RPT handling: Changed extensively to remove the RPT issuance endpoint and enable the authorization data request endpoint to do all RPT issuance duties. Permission ticket issuance is now handled on an "eager" basis, when a client either without an RPT or with an invalid or insufficient-authorization-data RPT approaches the RS seeking access. This affects several sections:
  - Section 1.4: configuration data
  - Section 3: introduction
  - Section 3.1.1 and 3.1.2: client approaching RS
  - Section 3.2: RS registering permission
  - Section 3.4: RPT issuance and authorization data addition
  - Section 5.2: Extensibility profile implications
- Section 1.4:
  - Changed the claim_profiles_supported property in the configuration data to claim_token_profiles_supported
  - Changed the user_endpoint property in the configuration data to authorization_endpoint, to match the final IETF RFC 6749 name in OAuth 2.0
  - Changed the authorization_request_endpoint property in the configuration data to rpt_endpoint, to distinguish it more fully from the OAuth endpoint and to shorten it
  - (Also affects Section 5) Changed how uma_profiles_supported works, so that the API extensibility profiles don't have reserved keywords but rather use the regular URI mechanism for indicating profiles
- Section 3.3.2:
  - Names of several properties in the permissions structure for the RPT "Bearer" token introspection response have changed to align them with JWT names: expires_at to exp, issued_by to iat
  - The JWT "scope" property at the top level is now disallowed in favor of "scopes" at the permissions level.
- PAT and AAT OAuth scopes:
  - Renamed from URIs to simple strings: "uma_protection" and "uma_authorization"; the JSON scope description documents provided to enable the old URIs to resolve no longer have any relation to the UMA Core spec
Other changes of note:
- Section 3.1.1 and Section 3.1.2: Extraneous host_id removed from example of RS's response to client.
- Enabled explicit use of OAuth-based authentication protocols such as OpenID Connect for OAuth protection driving PAT and AAT issuance.
- Identifiers for spec-defined profiles now use https instead of http
- Migrated the claim profiling spec's requesting party claims endpoint configuration data to the core spec, and made it optional to supply.
- Migrated the claim profiling spec's "need_claims" extensions to the core spec, broadened it to "need_info", and gave it "error_details" hints in the core spec.
- Section 3.1.1: Requirement for RS to return 403 to a tokenless client has been softened to a SHOULD.
- Section 3.3.2: The token introspection response has been aligned with the latest token introspection spec. nbf has been added at the permissions level, exp is now optional, and all permissions-level properties that duplicate JWT-level claims in intent now get overridden by any JWT-level claims present in the response. Finally, the "permissions" JWT claim has been registered with IANA.
- Extensive new redirect-pattern claims gathering support added
- Extensive new security and privacy considerations added
- Section 1.4:
  - issuer property: Now required to match the actual published location of the config data.
  - Dynamic client configuration: When OIDC dynamic client configuration is used, this is now more intelligently handled through a reserved keyword "openid" that indicates that the OIDC configuration data should be consulted for the relevant endpoint.
  - pat_grant_types_supported and aat_grant_types_supported: Broadened to allow them to be strings even when not based on the OAuth grant type strings, similarly to token profiles.
  - issuer property: Now required to match the actual published location of the config data.
  - Dynamic client configuration: When OIDC dynamic client configuration is used, this is now more intelligently handled through a reserved keyword "openid" that indicates that the OIDC configuration data should be consulted for the relevant endpoint.
  - pat_grant_types_supported and aat_grant_types_supported: Broadened to allow them to be strings even when not based on the OAuth grant type strings, similarly to token profiles.

Internet-Draft Rev 08 to Rev 09

From I-D rev 08 to 09:

Breaking changes:
- (Technically breaking but not expected to have huge impact:) TLS/HTTPS is now mandatory for the AS to implement in its protection and authorization APIs.
Other changes of note:
- It is no longer required for the client to redirect a human requesting party to the AS for the claims-gathering process.
- A new claims profiling framework (now in a separate spec) describes how to leverage one of several common patterns for claims-gathering: client redirects the requesting party to AS, client pushes claims to the AS.
- A new framework for API extensibility, and a matching series of extensibility profiles, appears in the core spec. It enables tighter coupling between the AS and RS, AS and client, and RS and client, respectively, but only in a controlled manner to foster greater interoperability in such circumstances.
- The SHOULD for the usage of the SAML bearer token profile for PAT issuance is now just a MAY.
- In Section 4.2, the example was corrected to remove a wayward "status" : "error" property.
- Clarified that no request message body is expected when the client uses the RPT endpoint at the AS.
- Added a success example in Section 3.4.2 showing how authorization data is added and the RPT is simultaneously refreshed, a new capability.

Internet-Draft Rev 07 to Rev 08

From I-D rev 07 to 08:

Breaking changes:
- Section 1.3: TLS as defined and (mostly) required in OAuth (RFC 6749) is now a MUST in UMA for AS endpoints.

From I-D rev 06 to 07:

Breaking changes:
- Section 1.5: Some properties in the the authorization server configuration data have been renamed, and others broken out into multiple properties with different names. The wording around reserved keywords vs. URIs as string values was also cleaned up.
  - oauth_token_profiles_supported: broken out into two, pat_profiles_supported and aat_profiles_supported.
  - uma_token_profiles_supported: renamed to rpt_profiles_supported.
  - oauth_grant_types_suppored: broken out into two, pat_grant_types_supported and aat_grant_types_supported.
- Section 3.4.2: Error code names were cleaned up.
  - expired_requester_ticket: renamed to expired_ticket.
  - invalid_requester_ticket: renamed to invalid_ticket.
- Other changes of note:
  - Updated the token introspection spec citation and details.
  - Updated the OAuth threat model citation.
  - Enhanced the security considerations section.
  - Broaden from defining successful access as 200 OK to defining it as 2xx Success.
  - Explain that the PAT implicitly gives the "subject" of a requested permission.
  - Fix resource_set_registration_endpoint keyword mention. (It was missing the last work.)

Internet-Draft Rev 05 to Rev 06

From I-D rev 05 to 06:

Breaking changes:
- Section 1.5: The authorization server configuration data now allows for providing a dynamic client registration endpoint (now defined by the official OAuth dynamic client registration spec), rather than just serving as a flag for whether the generic feature is supported. The name changed to dynamic_client_endpoint.
- Sections 3.1.1 and 3.1.2: The am_uri header has been renamed to as_uri due to terminology changes (see below).
- Section 3.1.2: The OAuth error "insufficient_scope" is now a central part of the authorization server's response to a client with a valid RPT and insufficient scope. This aligns UMA more closely with OAuth as a profile thereof (stay tuned for more possible tweaks in this general area, e.g. in WWW-Authenticate).
Other changes of note:
- Terminology has been changed wholesale from UMA-specific terms to OAuth-generic terms.
  - Authorization manager (AM) is now authorization server.
  - Host is now resource server.
  - Authorizing user is now resource owner.
  - Requester is now client.
- Some additional terms and concepts have been tweaked, enhanced and clarified.
  - Scope is now scope type (likely to change back due to feedback).
  - Authorization data is now defined as a generic category, of which permissions are an instance.
  - RPT now stands for requesting party token instead of requester permission token.
  - UMA is more explicitly defined as a profile of OAuth.
- References have been added to the OAuth token introspection spec proposal, though it is not fully used yet (stay tuned for breaking changes here).
- The resource set registration process (phase 1) has been moved to a separate modular spec that is designed to be usable by other OAuth-based technologies along with UMA.

RSR changes

Internet-Draft Rev 04 to Rev 05

From I-D rev 04 to rev 05:

Breaking changes:
- Changed the PUT method for the purpose of resource set creation at the authorization server, to POST. This had other rippling changes, such as removing the usage of If-Match, the precondition_failed error, ETag usage, and the privacy considerations warning about mapping real resource set names to obscured names that remove personally identifiable information.
- Changed the name of the policy_uri property to user_access_policy_uri to differentiate it from the OAuth property of (formerly) the same name
Other changes of note:
- Clarified that user_access_policy_uri is allowed on Create, Read, and Update, and also now allow it on Delete and List too.
- Enhanced the Security Considerations section.

Internet-Draft Rev 03 to Rev 04

From I-D rev 03 to rev 04:

Breaking changes:
- Removed the "status: xxx" property from all the AS responses in the RSR API.
Other changes of note:
- ("04" to "05") Added a new optional resource_uri parameter to the resource set description, to support resource discovery at an authorization server.
- Scopes bound to resource set descriptions can now be strings rather than being required to be URIs that resolve to scope description documents.
- The _rev property has been removed from the resource set registration API. It can be added back as an extension for those who want it.

Claim Profiles changes

Claim Profiles Rev 00

Claim Profiles 00:

We decided not to progress this specification in its current form, so we will let it expire and will not reference it from Core.