Clarify n-factor auth and add the diagram back in as an example

pull/977/head
David Baker 10 years ago
parent e7d334c5cd
commit 3343b7f84d

@ -48,14 +48,15 @@ Authentication works by client and server exchanging dictionaries. This
specification covers how this is done over JSON HTTP POST.
For each endpoint, a server offers one of more 'flows' that the client can use
to authenticate itself. Each flow comprises one or more 'stages'. When all
stages are complete, authentication is complete and the API call succeeds. To
establish what flows a server supports for an endpoint, a client sends the
request with no authentication. A request to an endpoint that uses
User-Interactive Authentication never succeeds without auth. Home Servers may
allow requests that don't require auth by offering a stage with only the
``m.login.dummy`` auth type. The home server returns a response with HTTP status
401 and a JSON object as folows::
to authenticate itself. Each flow comprises one or more 'stages'. Flows may have
more than one stage to implement n-factor auth. When all stages are complete,
authentication is complete and the API call succeeds. To establish what flows a
server supports for an endpoint, a client sends the request with no
authentication. A request to an endpoint that uses User-Interactive
Authentication never succeeds without auth. Home Servers may allow requests that
don't require auth by offering a stage with only the ``m.login.dummy`` auth
type. The home server returns a response with HTTP status 401 and a JSON object
as folows::
{
"flows": [
@ -138,6 +139,10 @@ message in the standard format::
"error": "Something was wrong"
}
Individual stages may require more than one request to complete, in which case
the response will be as if the request was unauthenticated with the addition of
any other keys as defined by the login type.
If the client has completed all stages of a flow, the home server performs the
API call and returns the result as normal.
@ -150,6 +155,40 @@ ie. the request will either complete or request auth, with the presence or
absence of that login stage type in the 'completed' array indicating whether
that stage is complete.
Example
~~~~~~~
At a high level, the requests made for an API call completing an auth flow with
three stages will resemble the following diagram::
_______________________
| Stage 1 |
| type: "<stage type1>" |
| ___________________ |
| |_Request_1_________| | <-- Returns "session" key which is used throughout.
| ___________________ |
| |_Request_2_________| |
|_______________________|
|
|
_________V_____________
| Stage 2 |
| type: "<stage type2>" |
| ___________________ |
| |_Request_1_________| |
| ___________________ |
| |_Request_2_________| |
| ___________________ |
| |_Request_3_________| |
|_______________________|
|
|
_________V_____________
| Stage 3 |
| type: "<stage type3>" |
| ___________________ |
| |_Request_1_________| | <-- Returns API response
|_______________________|
This specification defines the following login types:
- ``m.login.password``
- ``m.login.recaptcha``

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