The project
The Spanish Ministry of the Environment (Ministerio de Medio Ambiente) was looking for single sign-on for its Windows and SAP platforms, and for encryption capabilities for exchanging sensitive data. It contracted REALTECH Spain to develop and implement a solution to meet its needs.
Thanks to add-on functionality implemented by REALTECH, users can now be assigned to different SAP profiles and systems via the active-directory user-maintenance tool.
As a result, all SAP users at the Ministry are now managed directly within the corporate LDAP directory (Windows 2000 ADS). Management tasks have been simplified by synchronizing LDAP users with the various SAP systems via the central user administration (CUA) system on SAP Web Application Server.
The solution implemented by REALTECH has enabled the Ministry of the Environment to streamline the sign-on process, eliminating the need for additional user names and passwords when logging on to its SAP systems. In other words, when employees log on to Windows, they are automatically signed into the SAP systems they are authorized to access, without the need to repeatedly enter their user names and passwords. This has contributed to high acceptance among users and IT professionals alike.
Single sign-on is based on Kerberos 5, the authentication system used by Windows 2000. The REALTECH team installed and configured MIT Kerberos, an open-source software package running on HP-UX servers. Kerberos permits data encryption, which allows the Ministry to manage and exchange sensitive information easily, cost effectively and in full compliance with data privacy laws.
About the Spanish Ministry of the Environment
The Spanish Ministry of the Environment (Ministerio de Medio Ambiente) aims to protect Spain's natural environment and to promote the rational use of natural resources. It is also responsible for increasing public awareness of ecological issues. The Ministry has a workforce of around 10,000 – half of whom are based at remote locations.