JISC

Federating the Next Generation

Abstract

eduGain: towards Pan-European federated identity

The GEANT consortium of thirty-six National Research and Education Networks recently began the third term ("GEANT3") of the major Pan-European project.

In contrast to previous iterations of the project, GEANT3 will place more emphasis on developing a portfolio of service activities that will compliment the project's mature network connectivity services.

These services will include three 'multi-domain end-user services' that are intended to serve the needs of Europes mobile, distributed and highly collaborative research and education community.  These are eduPKI, eduroam and eduGAIN.

This talk will focus on eduGAIN, an ambitious service that will 'interconnect' the participating research and education federations, extending the application of federated identity across Europe.

Presenters

Mark Cross

Mark's fascination for computers like many people of a certain era began, when he managed to persuade his parents to buy him a Sinclair ZX81 for Christmas!  To cut a long story short, he left Plymouth University using the the last mainframe in academic circulation, a Prime running Prime OS.  Where mixed langauge programming could be achieved by taking the manuals from out of the library and going for a coffee.

Back in days where documentation was king and users received systems that "worked", even if they didn't work quite to their liking.

Gainful employment and apprenticeship was obtained at Grey Matter in Ashburton to Mr Iain Rangely, Grey Matter was a software retailer, compilers and libraries et al.  Only specialising in Software Development Tools, that is, software that is used to write other software...

Since leaving Grey Matter Mark has been involved in many dot com start-ups, but now, finally his own in the guise of OpenID Ltd.

With regards to conference this week, Mark is passionate about individual freedoms and liberties, data breaches are becoming a weekly occurence and as time goes by, increasingly individuals with become savvier on this.  User data belongs to them and nobody else.

Josh Howlett

Josh Howlett is the technical lead on JANET(UK)'s Middleware programme.  He joined JANET(UK) in 2006 after working at the University of Bristol on authentication and authorisation services, where he graduated with a poor degree in Biology and Geography.

He is the Activity Leader of GN3 SA3, 'End-User Services in a Federated Environment' and responsible for the development  and operation of the eduPKI, eduroam and eduGAIN services.

Josh also particpates within a variety of other international Research and Education middleware activities, including TERENA's Mobility and EMC2 task-forces, TERENA ECAM and Internet2 MACE.  He also contributes towards the development of technical standards within OASIS and the Trusted Computing Group.