The
AIS Sentinel
Service
If
you are a member of an MSU unit who is developing web applications, the
AIS
Sentinel Service may be helpful to you. Sentinel provides a
secure,
reliable web authentication service for your web applications.
The AIS Sentinel
Service allows members of the MSU University
community to
use their existing MSU NetIDs as the
login.
Here are some additional details about this service:
AIS
Sentinel Features
- The AIS Sentinel Service
consists of two products: AIS Sentinel Server and Sentinel Client
software. The AIS Sentinel Server validates the user login,
stores the identity of the user and redirects the browser back to the
Sentinel Client software. The Sentinel Client software validates
that Sentinel authenticated the user, requests any identity data,
stores the data session variables and redirects the browser to the
Client application. For
more details review the Sentinel Process Flow.
- Complete Sentinel
installation kit and guide is provided. Assistance during
installation is provided.
- Provides customer-developed
applications running on the Client's server with an encrypted sign-on
that uses MSU NetID and password against MSU’s Kerberos server to
authenticate users (MSUNetID and ‘Community ID’).
- Access to the application can be granted to defined
groups of well known users as well as customized groups.
- Provides authorized web
applications with other identity information about logged-in users
(like SSN, APID, ZPID and UUID).
- Provides Single Sign-On
capability with other Sentinel applications.
- Client can customize login
page.
- Automatic version
updates: The Sentinel Server is updated as new releases are
released. The Client can upgrade their Sentinel Client software
if they want to apply the new release features. In some cases,
the new release may require the Client to upgrade their Sentinel Client
software. In either case, the Client will be notified of new
releases.
AIS
Sentinel Environment
- Sentinel is available to
all University units.
- The Sentinel Server
software runs on a server in AIS Computer Room.
- AIS provides a Sentinel
development/testing environment to test your application login
authentication.
- AIS provides a Sentinel production
environment to authenticate your customers against your application in
your production environment.
- The Development and
Production environments are available 24x7 except for:
 |
Planned system outages that
will be coordinated with application owners. |
 |
Campus network service
outages outside our control. |
 |
Unexpected hardware or
software failures. |
 |
Service Alerts for these
types of outages as well as campus-wide network outages are generally
posted at http://servicestatus.msu.edu/ |
 |
NOTE: AIS will not pay
damages if there is a system outage. |
- The AIS Sentinel server is
monitored 24x7 for continuous operation.
- Sentinel Client software
must be installed and run on the Client web server.
- Access to the Sentinel
Server is secured via AIS’s D6501 Web Security Application. AIS
will setup the necessary security for your application to access
Sentinel.
- Restricted so that Sentinel
only communicates to the Client specified IP addresses.
Supported
Hardware/Software
- AIS maintains the Sentinel Server
hardware and software.
- The AIS Sentinel service
supports most industry standard web servers (ASP, ASP.Net, ColdFusion,
JAVA/J2EE, PHP and Apache HTTP Server).
Non-Supported
Services
The
following services will not be supported or provided by
AIS:
- Application programming.
- Testing of client
applications.
Cost
- There is no cost to the
Client for the AIS Sentinel service.
Problem
Reporting / Help Desk Services
- To schedule a Sentinel
kickoff meeting or for Installation/Technical questions, contact the
Sentinel Support staff at sentinel@ais.msu.edu
or the AIS Help Desk at ais311@msu.edu
- For general questions,
contact the AIS Help Desk at 353-4420, ext. 311 or e-mail ais311@msu.edu
 |
Normal
business hours are Monday – Friday 7:45am – 5:00pm. |
 |
Assistance
for calls received outside normal business hours is covered by AIS
Computer
Operations staff after 5:00pm Monday – Friday and Saturday until 3:30pm
by
phone at (517) 353-4420, x311. |
 |
AIS
is
unattended from
3:30pm Saturday until 8:00pm Sunday and on University holidays.
During
unattended hours, contact AIS by phone at (517) 353-4420, x311 and the
AIS
voice mail system will pickup and provide further instructions,
including
emergency contact information. |
Storage
and Backup
- AIS
administers backup and recovery
services for the AIS Sentinel Server.
Sentinel
Server Administration
- Sentinel Server-side administration is provided by
AIS.
- AIS is responsible for operating
system installation, configuration and subsequent upgrades, including
the timely application of critical and non-critical service packs and
patches for supported platforms.
- AIS is responsible for
installation, maintenance, and administration of server anti-virus and
backup application software.
- AIS is responsible for
server-side system rebuilds due to hardware failure or security
breach.
- Service Alerts for all
Sentinel server environment changes including critical service packs,
non-critical service packs and patches described above will be posted
at http://servicestatus.msu.edu/.
Assumptions
- In the event of a Sentinel
Service failure. AIS will complete the
necessary actions in order to make the service available as soon as
possible.
- Operating System (OS)
patches are anticipated. These patches, particularly security
related patches, may have to be applied immediately upon their
availability to protect the Client and AIS infrastructure. Such
patches are not anticipated to impact the Client applications, but this
cannot be guaranteed.
- AIS will periodically
upgrade the releases of the OS for the various servers it
supports. AIS will apply upgrades to the development environment
first, allowing clients to test their applications. Since OS
upgrades may cause significant changes in functionality, it is
important that application testing occur prior to an OS upgrade in the
production environment. Details of any such OS upgrade and needed
application testing will be distributed to the Application Owner.
It is expected that the Application Owner will conclude such testing in
a timely fashion. If there are
issues encountered with the application after the upgrade, it is the
Application Owner’s responsibility to determine problem resolution.
- Application development and
application problem resolution remains the Client responsibility.
To
schedule a
Sentinel kickoff meeting or for Installation/Technical questions,
contact the
Sentinel Support staff at sentinel@ais.msu.edu
or the AIS Help Desk at ais311@msu.edu