Concepts

Network authentication service supports Kerberos protocols and Generic Security Service (GSS) APIs that provide user authentication in a network.

Information regarding Kerberos protocols and GSS APIs exist in multiple sources, so this topic will only explain the basics as they specifically apply to your iSeries™ server. For general definitions of Kerberos-related terms that are used in this information, see Network authentication service terminology.

Read the following topics to learn more about network authentication service concepts.

• Network authentication service terminology
  Use the following information to understand Network authentication service terminology.
• How does network authentication service work?
  Use the following information to understand how network authentication service works.
• Network authentication service protocols
  Network authentication service uses the Kerberos protocol in conjunction with Generic Security Services (GSS) APIs for authentication to provide authentication and security services.
• Network authentication service environment variables
  You can use environment variables with network authentication service to affect how Generic Security Services (GSS) APIs and the Kerberos protocol APIs perform.