Creating a custom authentication provider for SharePoint 2010

Question

I am trying to implement the "best" solution for a custom authentication mechanism in a SharePoint 2010 Extranet site.

Here is how I would define "best":

• Does not require purchasing additional certs/domains/etc. we are already operating on SSL
• Allows for completely custom implementation, I have a service to authenticate against and I don't need the SQL Membership DB or anything like that.
• Can be deployed using a feature to avoid manual configuration on all the servers

To be clear, I want to create the solution, but I am looking for guidance that leads me to a solution that keeps the requirements above in mind.

I started by creating a custom STS service but got to a point where a certificate would be needed. I moved on to creating a :MembershipProvider and :RoleProvider implementation but read about how these are not enough in SharePoint 2010.

Are there any solutions that meet these requirements, or at least most of them?

Answer 1

I would recommend going the MembershipProvider/RoleProvider route. I have done this before to create a custom authentication mechanism for SharePoint 2010, in order to authenticate against a Salesforce user list. It was fairly easy to do - just implementing the membership provider functions - and no SharePoint specific knowledge was needed to create it. Not to mention, this same membership provider can now also be used with other .Net apps in your organization. I believe it should also meet all of the requirements you list.