Keycloak Integration for Website Authentication

Keycloak Integration for Website Authentication

Keycloak is open-source Identity and Access Management from Red Hat. Self-hosted alternative to Auth0/Okta, supports OpenID Connect, OAuth 2.0, SAML 2.0. Deployed on own infrastructure — user data doesn't leave the perimeter.

When to Choose Keycloak

• Requirement to store data on own infrastructure
• Need SSO for multiple internal applications
• Enterprise: integration with Active Directory/LDAP
• Compliance: GDPR, regulatory requirements for data localization
• No budget for IDaaS subscription

Deployment

Deploy Keycloak using Docker or Kubernetes. Needs PostgreSQL or MySQL backend.

Realm and Client Configuration

1. Create Realm (logically isolated authentication area)
2. Create Client for web application:
   • Client type: OpenID Connect
   • Client authentication: On (confidential)
   • Valid redirect URIs: (your app callback URL)
   • Valid post logout redirect URIs: (your app logout URL)
3. Save Client ID and Client Secret (Credentials tab)

Laravel Integration via Socialite

Use Laravel Socialite with custom provider configuration. Set up OAuth callback to exchange code for tokens and create session.

Direct JWT Verification (for API)

Keycloak publishes JWKS at standard URL. API can verify JWT directly without calling Keycloak:

// Node.js example
import jwt from 'jsonwebtoken';
import jwksClient from 'jwks-rsa';

const client = jwksClient({
  jwksUri: 'https://keycloak.example.com/auth/realms/myrealm/.well-known/openid-configuration'
});

async function verifyToken(token: string) {
  const decoded = jwt.decode(token, { complete: true });
  const key = await client.getSigningKey(decoded.header.kid);

  return jwt.verify(token, key.getPublicKey(), {
    algorithms: ['RS256'],
    issuer: 'https://keycloak.example.com/auth/realms/myrealm'
  });
}

LDAP / Active Directory Integration

In Keycloak Admin Console:

• User Federation → Add provider → LDAP
• Set Connection URL, Bind DN, Users DN
• Configure attribute mapping: CN → username, mail → email

After setup, employees log in with corporate credentials directly via Keycloak.

Logout

Keycloak supports front-channel and back-channel logout (RP-Initiated Logout):

GET /auth/realms/{realm}/protocol/openid-connect/logout?redirect_uri={url}&post_logout_redirect_uri={url}

Implementation Timeline

Total: 5–7 working days.