The technology is currently available in the form of Sun’s Java System Access Manager product but will be made freely available via its Open Source Web Single Sign-On project.
The company said the plan will help Java developers to make use of freely available basic authentication and SSO technologies, but can also be seen as a way to drive more interest in the company’s Java Enterprise System software.
Santa Clara, California-based Sun will also release the source code for agents to connect the authentication and SSO technologies with its Java System Web Server and Java System Application Server products.
Sun has set up an OpenSSO community web site to house the project and intends to begin making source code available in the fourth quarter, with a full release under the Common Development and Distribution License scheduled for April 2006.
Sun created the CDDL in late 2004 to license its open source version of the Solaris operating system, and it was later approved by the Open Source Initiative in early 2005 ahead of the OpenSolaris launch in June.
It has also been adopted for the forthcoming open source release of the company’s Java System Application Server Platform Edition 9.0 and the Java System Enterprise Server Bus technologies.
The initial OpenSSL delivery will be a high-level architecture document in August 2005, to be followed by read-only buildable sources for Session Module, providing the ability to implement basic single sign-on solutions, in October 2005.
December will see the delivery of read-only buildable sources for Authentication Module, providing the ability to implement full-scale SSO, while February 2006 will see read-only buildable source code for early access and the Web and Application Server agents. Finally, complete open source availability for all sources is scheduled for April 2006.
