Secure API with JWT access token - asp.net-core

Question

I am playing around with the openiddict Authorization code flow sample and all is working well.
https://github.com/openiddict/openiddict-samples/tree/dev/samples/CodeFlow
However, I want to make certain changes and I am struggling to do this. I would like to configure to use JWT tokens instead of the default opaque tokens, and also separate into an authorization server and a resource server. I also have an MCV web app that will communicate with the resource server via a httpClient.
Auth Server.Startup
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
services.AddMvc();
services.AddDbContext<ApplicationDbContext>(options =>
{
options.UseSqlServer(Configuration.GetConnectionString("DefaultConnection"));
options.UseOpenIddict();
});
// Register the Identity services.
services.AddIdentity<ApplicationUser, IdentityRole>()
.AddEntityFrameworkStores<ApplicationDbContext>()
.AddDefaultTokenProviders();
services.Configure<IdentityOptions>(options =>
{
options.ClaimsIdentity.UserNameClaimType = OpenIdConnectConstants.Claims.Name;
options.ClaimsIdentity.UserIdClaimType = OpenIdConnectConstants.Claims.Subject;
options.ClaimsIdentity.RoleClaimType = OpenIdConnectConstants.Claims.Role;
});
services.AddOpenIddict()
.AddCore(options =>
options.UseEntityFrameworkCore()
.UseDbContext<ApplicationDbContext>();
})
// Register the OpenIddict server handler.
.AddServer(options =>
{
options.UseMvc();
options.EnableAuthorizationEndpoint("/connect/authorize")
.EnableLogoutEndpoint("/connect/logout")
.EnableTokenEndpoint("/connect/token")
.EnableUserinfoEndpoint("/api/userinfo");
options.RegisterScopes(OpenIdConnectConstants.Scopes.Email,
OpenIdConnectConstants.Scopes.Profile,
OpenIddictConstants.Scopes.Roles);
options.AllowAuthorizationCodeFlow();
options.EnableRequestCaching();
options.DisableHttpsRequirement();
options.UseJsonWebTokens();
options.AddEphemeralSigningKey();
});
}
As this is no longer a resource server I have removed the validation parts as I don't think this is required. And as I want to use JWT I have un-commented the following lines:
options.UseJsonWebTokens();
options.AddEphemeralSigningKey();
The authorization endpoint returns a SignIn result exactly like the sample, which redirects to the MVC app which then issues an authentication cookie. I can now access protected resources on my MVC APP.
MVC APP startup
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
services.Configure<PortalDetails>(options => Configuration.GetSection("PortalDetails").Bind(options));
JwtSecurityTokenHandler.DefaultInboundClaimTypeMap.Clear();
JwtSecurityTokenHandler.DefaultOutboundClaimTypeMap.Clear();
services.AddAuthentication(CookieAuthenticationDefaults.AuthenticationScheme).AddCookie(opts =>
{
opts.LoginPath = "/login";
opts.LogoutPath = "/logout";
})
.AddJwtBearer(options =>
{
//Authority must be a url. It does not have a default value.
options.Authority = "http://localhost:54540/";
options.Audience = "mvc"; //This must be included in ticket creation
options.RequireHttpsMetadata = false;
options.IncludeErrorDetails = true; //
options.TokenValidationParameters = new TokenValidationParameters()
{
NameClaimType = "sub",
RoleClaimType = "role"
};
})
.AddOpenIdConnect(options =>
{
// Note: these settings must match the application details
// inserted in the database at the server level.
options.ClientId = "mvc";
options.ClientSecret = "901564A5-E7FE-42CB-B10D-61EF6A8F3654";
options.RequireHttpsMetadata = false;
options.GetClaimsFromUserInfoEndpoint = false; // TODO: If this if true then it doesnt work??
options.SaveTokens = true;
// Use the authorization code flow.
options.ResponseType = OpenIdConnectResponseType.Code;
options.AuthenticationMethod = OpenIdConnectRedirectBehavior.RedirectGet;
// Note: setting the Authority allows the OIDC client middleware to automatically
// retrieve the identity provider's configuration and spare you from setting
// the different endpoints URIs or the token validation parameters explicitly.
options.Authority = "http://localhost:54540/";
options.Scope.Add("email");
options.Scope.Add("roles");
options.SecurityTokenValidator = new JwtSecurityTokenHandler
{
// Disable the built-in JWT claims mapping feature.,
InboundClaimTypeMap = new Dictionary<string, string>()
};
options.TokenValidationParameters.NameClaimType = "name";
options.TokenValidationParameters.RoleClaimType = "role";
});
services.AddMvc().SetCompatibilityVersion(CompatibilityVersion.Version_2_1);
services.AddHttpClient<IApiGatewayClient, ApiGatewayClient>();
services.AddSingleton<ITokenProvider, TokenProvider>();
}
When calling the resource server I use:
string accessToken = await HttpContext.GetTokenAsync("access_token");
and I can see an access token, I attach that to my http request:
_httpClient.DefaultRequestHeaders.Authorization = new AuthenticationHeaderValue("Bearer", token);
but the result is forbidden.
Finally, I have a protected resource server:
Resource.Startup
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
JwtSecurityTokenHandler.DefaultInboundClaimTypeMap.Clear();
JwtSecurityTokenHandler.DefaultOutboundClaimTypeMap.Clear();
//Add authentication and set default authentication scheme
services.AddAuthentication(JwtBearerDefaults.AuthenticationScheme) //same as "Bearer"
.AddJwtBearer(options =>
{
//Authority must be a url. It does not have a default value.
options.Authority = "http://localhost:54540";
options.Audience = "mvc"; //This must be included in ticket creation
options.RequireHttpsMetadata = false;
options.IncludeErrorDetails = true; //
options.TokenValidationParameters = new TokenValidationParameters()
{
NameClaimType = OpenIdConnectConstants.Claims.Subject,
RoleClaimType = OpenIdConnectConstants.Claims.Role,
};
});
services.AddMvc();
}
I would like to know if this is the correct setup for my scenario, as I am getting a forbidden result from my resource server.
Thanks

Answer 1

Here is a package which
Makes integrating JWT Bearer Token Security in your Asp Net Core 2.0+ app a breeze!
Azure Active Directory auth integration.
Facebook auth integration.
Twitter auth integration.
Google auth integration.
Also, Swagger UI integration!
It is called AspNetCore.Security.Jwt
GitHub:
https://github.com/VeritasSoftware/AspNetCore.Security.Jwt
The package integrates JWT bearer token into your app as below:
1. Implement IAuthentication interface in your app
using AspNetCore.Security.Jwt;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
namespace XXX.API
{
public class Authenticator : IAuthentication
{
public async Task<bool> IsValidUser(string id, string password)
{
//Put your id authenication here.
return true;
}
}
}
2. In your Startup.cs
using AspNetCore.Security.Jwt;
using Swashbuckle.AspNetCore.Swagger;
.
.
public void ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
{
.
.
services.AddSwaggerGen(c =>
{
c.SwaggerDoc("v1", new Info { Title = "XXX API", Version = "v1" });
});
services.AddSecurity<Authenticator>(this.Configuration, true);
services.AddMvc().AddSecurity();
}
public void Configure(IApplicationBuilder app, IHostingEnvironment env)
{
.
.
.
// Enable middleware to serve swagger-ui (HTML, JS, CSS, etc.),
// specifying the Swagger JSON endpoint.
app.UseSwaggerUI(c =>
{
c.SwaggerEndpoint("/swagger/v1/swagger.json", "XXX API V1");
});
app.UseSecurity(true);
app.UseMvc();
}
3. In your appsettings.json
Note:- You can put these settings in Secret Manager by using Manage User Secrets menu (right-click your Project).
{
"SecuritySettings": {
"Secret": "a secret that needs to be at least 16 characters long",
"Issuer": "your app",
"Audience": "the client of your app",
"IdType": "Name",
"TokenExpiryInHours" : 2
},
.
.
.
}
Then you will get endpoints automatically:
/token
/facebook
When you call these endpoints and are successfully authenticated, you will get back a JWT Bearer Token.
In your Controller that you want to secure
You must mark the Controller or Action that you want to secure with Authorize attribute like:
using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc;
.
.
.
namespace XXX.API.Controllers
{
using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Authorization;
[Authorize]
[Route("api/[controller]")]
public class XXXController : Controller
{
.
.
.
}
}
In Swagger UI, you will automatically see these endpoints.