Add a SAML Configuration

Required User Role: Administrator

You can manually enter the details for your SAML configuration or you can upload a metadata.xml file that you download from your identity provider (IdP).

Important: Because Tenable MSSP cannot accept private keys to decrypt SAML assertions, Tenable MSSP does not support SAML assertion encryption. If you want to configure SAML authentication in Tenable MSSP, choose an identity provider that does not require assertion encryption and confirm that assertion encryption is not enabled.

Before you begin:

Review the Tenable SAML Configuration Quick-Reference guide for a step-by-step guide of how to configure SAML for use with Tenable MSSP. This includes the following high-level steps:

  • Follow the steps described in your IdP's documentation to set up a SAML application for Tenable MSSP on your IdP account. Your IdP requires an entity ID and a reply URL for Tenable MSSP to set up the SAML application:

    • Entity ID/Audience URI— TENABLE_IO_PLACEHOLDER.

    • ACS/SSO URL/Login URL/Reply URL— https://fedcloud.tenable.com/SAML/login/placeholder.com.

  • In your IdP account, download your metadata.xml file.

Note: Tenable does not currently support a SP-Initiated SAML flow. Because it must be initiated from the Identity Provider side, navigating directly to https://fedcloud.tenable.com does not allow SSO.

Important! All users must have an account configured in Tenable MSSP that matches their SSO login. You must ensure the SSO login matches the FULL Tenable account name (i.e., [email protected]).

To add a new SAML configuration:

  1. In the upper-left corner, click the Menu button.

    The left navigation plane appears.

  2. In the left navigation plane, click Settings.

    The Settings page appears.

  3. Click the SAML tile.

    The SAML page appears.

  4. In the action bar, click Create.

    The SAML Settings page appears.

  5. Do one of the following:

    1. In the first drop-down box, select Import XML.

      Note: Import XML is selected by default.

    2. The Type drop-down box specifies the type of identity provider you are using. Tenable MSSP supports SAML 2.0 (for example, Okta, OneLogin, etc.).
      This option is read-only.

    3. Under Import, click Add File.

      A file manager window appears.

    4. Select the metadata.xml file.

      The metadata.xml file is uploaded.

    1. In the first drop-down box, select Manual Entry.

      A SAML configuration form appears.

    2. Configure the settings described in the following table:

      Settings Description
      Enabled toggle

      A toggle in the upper-right corner that indicates whether the SAML configuration is enabled or disabled.

      By default, the Enable setting is set to Enabled. Click the toggle to disable SAML configuration.
      Type Specifies the type of identity provider you are using. Tenable MSSP supports SAML 2.0 (for example, Okta, OneLogin, etc.).
      This option is read-only.
      Description A description for the SAML configuration.
      IdP Entity ID

      The unique entity ID that your IdP provides.

      Note: If you want to configure multiple IdPs for a user account, create a new configuration for each identity provider with separate identity provider URLs, entity IDs, and signing certificates.
      IdP URL The SAML URL for your IdP.
      Certificate

      Your IdP security certificate or certificates.

      Note: Security certificates are found in a metadata.xml file that your identity provider provides. You can copy the content of the file and paste it in the Certificate box.
      Authentication Request Signing Enabled

      A toggle that indicates whether authentication request signing is enabled.

      When this toggle is enabled, if:

      • a user is logged in via SAML and their session expires

      • a user logs out and tries to log back in directly via the Tenable MSSP interface rather than their IdP

      Tenable MSSP automatically signs the SAML authentication request that is sent to the IdP to log the user back in.

      Note: The authentication request can only be validated if the IdP is also configured to accept this setting. For more information, see the following resources:
      User Auto Provisioning Enabled

      A toggle that indicates whether automatic user account creation is enabled or disabled.

      IdP Assigns User Role at Provisioning To assign a user role during provisioning, enable this toggle. In your SAML identity provider, add an attribute statement with userRoleUuid as the attribute name and the user role UUID as the attribute value.
      IdP Resets User Role at Each Login

      To assign a role each time a user logs in, overwriting the current role with the one chosen in your IdP, enable this toggle. In your SAML identity provider, add an attribute statement with userRoleUuid as the attribute name and the user role UUID as the attribute value.

  6. Click Save.

    Tenable MSSP saves your SAML configuration.

What to do next:

  • Download the metadata.xml from Tenable MSSP using the Download SP Metadata option in the SAML Configurations table.

  • Upload this file to the SAML application you created for Tenable MSSP with your SAML provider.

Tip: If you are having trouble configuring SAML, Tenable recommends trying one of the various third-party SAML debugging tools available online. You can also reach out to Tenable Support for further troubleshooting assistance.