Federation Security Services Guide › Federation Security Services Overview › SiteMinder Administrative User Interfaces

SiteMinder Administrative User Interfaces

Beginning with SiteMinder r12 SP1, there are two graphical user interfaces (UIs) that configure SiteMinder policy objects, as follows:

Administrative UI

The Administrative UI is a web-based administration console that is installed independent of the Policy Server. Use the Administrative UI to view, modify, and delete all Policy Server objects except those related to Federation Security Services. All federation-related configuration tasks should be handled using the FSS Administrative UI.

Federation Security Services Administrative UI (FSS Administrative UI)

The FSS Administrative UI is an applet-based application that is installed with the Policy Server. The federation-specific UI objects consist of affiliates (consumers, service providers, resource partners) and SAML authentication schemes that you configure to support federated communication between two partners.

The intent of the FSS Administrative UI is to let you manage SiteMinder Federation Security Services. If you are familiar with previous versions of the SiteMinder Policy Server User Interface, you will notice that all SiteMinder objects appear in the FSS Administrative UI. The only objects that do not appear are objects related to Enterprise Policy Management (EPM) and reports. You can use the FSS Administrative UI to manage the SiteMinder objects. If you need information while using the FSS Administrative UI, consult the FSS Administrative UI online help system.

Important! You must register each UI with the Policy Server. Registering the FSS Administrative UI with the Policy Server ensures that the communication between both components is FIPS-encrypted (AES encryption). For more information about registering a UI, see the Policy Server Installation Guide.