Authenticating Applications to a Network Service

Abstract

Authenticating applications to a network service includes authenticating an application with a certificate to access a service provider over a logical connection between the application and the service provider and confirming that the application is using an authorized port of the service provider.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method, comprising:
 authenticating an application with a certificate to access a service provider over a logical connection between said application and said service provider; and   confirming that said application is using an authorized port of said service provider.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising confirming that packets sent from said application comprise a key from said service provider. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein said key has a time expiration. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising sending to said application updated key information in response to said key becoming outdated. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising receiving a request from said application to obtain said certificate from said service provider. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising generating said certificate for said application in response to gaining approval from said network administrator. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said application is authorized to use a subset of ports belonging to said service provider. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said logical connection is encrypted. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising maintaining a table of which of multiple ports belonging to said service provider are authorized for use to said application and other applications requesting services of said service provider. 
     
     
         10 . A system; comprising:
 a certificate generation engine to generate a certificate for an application;   a certificate signing engine to sign the certificate;   an application authentication engine to authenticate said application to use said service provider;   a port engine to confirm that said application is authorized to use a port of said service provider; and   a packet authorization engine to authorize packets at said service provider from said application.   
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein said certificate generation engine seeks approval from a network administrator before generating said certificate. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 10 , further comprising a key updating engine to update said application with updated keys as older keys from said service provider to be embedded into packets from said application become outdated. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 10 , further comprising a tracking engine to track which of multiple applications are authorized to use which of multiple ports belonging to said service provider. 
     
     
         14 . A computer program product, comprising:
 a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, said non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising computer readable program code embodied therewith, said computer readable program code comprising program instructions that, when executed, causes a processor to:
 confirm that an application has a certificate to access a service provider over a logical connection between said application and said service provider; 
 confirm that said application is using an authorized port of said service provider; and 
 confirm that packets sent from said application comprise a key from said service provider. 
   
     
     
         15 . The computer program product of  claim 14 , further comprising computer readable program code comprising program instructions that, when executed, causes said processor to send an update for said key to said application in response to said key becoming outdated.