Microsoft Entra integration with Central Desktop
In this article, you learn how to integrate Central Desktop with Microsoft Entra ID. When you integrate Central Desktop with Microsoft Entra ID, you can:
- Control in Microsoft Entra ID who has access to Central Desktop.
- Enable your users to be automatically signed-in to Central Desktop with their Microsoft Entra accounts.
- Manage your accounts in one central location.
Prerequisites
The scenario outlined in this article assumes that you already have the following prerequisites:
- A Microsoft Entra user account with an active subscription. If you don't already have one, you can Create an account for free.
- One of the following roles:
- Central Desktop single sign-on (SSO) enabled subscription.
Scenario description
In this article, you configure and test Microsoft Entra single sign-on in a test environment.
- Central Desktop supports SP initiated SSO.
Add Central Desktop from the gallery
To configure the integration of Central Desktop into Microsoft Entra ID, you need to add Central Desktop from the gallery to your list of managed SaaS apps.
- Sign in to the Microsoft Entra admin center as at least a Cloud Application Administrator.
- Browse to Identity > Applications > Enterprise applications > New application.
- In the Add from the gallery section, type Central Desktop in the search box.
- Select Central Desktop from results panel and then add the app. Wait a few seconds while the app is added to your tenant.
Alternatively, you can also use the Enterprise App Configuration Wizard. In this wizard, you can add an application to your tenant, add users/groups to the app, assign roles, and walk through the SSO configuration as well. Learn more about Microsoft 365 wizards.
Configure and test Microsoft Entra SSO for Central Desktop
Configure and test Microsoft Entra SSO with Central Desktop using a test user called B.Simon. For SSO to work, you need to establish a link relationship between a Microsoft Entra user and the related user in Central Desktop.
To configure and test Microsoft Entra SSO with Central Desktop, perform the following steps:
- Configure Microsoft Entra SSO - to enable your users to use this feature.
- Create a Microsoft Entra test user - to test Microsoft Entra single sign-on with B.Simon.
- Assign the Microsoft Entra test user - to enable B.Simon to use Microsoft Entra single sign-on.
- Configure Central Desktop SSO - to configure the single sign-on settings on application side.
- Create Central Desktop test user - to have a counterpart of B.Simon in Central Desktop that's linked to the Microsoft Entra representation of user.
- Test SSO - to verify whether the configuration works.
Configure Microsoft Entra SSO
Follow these steps to enable Microsoft Entra SSO.
Sign in to the Microsoft Entra admin center as at least a Cloud Application Administrator.
Browse to Identity > Applications > Enterprise applications > Central Desktop > Single sign-on.
On the Select a single sign-on method page, select SAML.
On the Set up single sign-on with SAML page, select the pencil icon for Basic SAML Configuration to edit the settings.
On the Basic SAML Configuration section, perform the following steps:
a. In the Identifier box, type a URL using one of the following patterns:
Identifier https://<companyname>.centraldesktop.com/saml2-metadata.php
https://<companyname>.imeetcentral.com/saml2-metadata.php
b. In the Reply URL text box, type a URL using the following pattern:
https://<companyname>.centraldesktop.com/saml2-assertion.php
c. In the Sign-on URL text box, type a URL using the following pattern:
https://<companyname>.centraldesktop.com
Note
These values aren't real. Update these values with the actual Identifier,Reply URL and Sign on URL. Contact Central Desktop support team to get these values. You can also refer to the patterns shown in the Basic SAML Configuration section.
On the Set up Single Sign-On with SAML page, in the SAML Signing Certificate section, select Download to download the Certificate (Raw) from the given options as per your requirement and save it on your computer.
On the Set up Central Desktop section, copy the appropriate URL(s) as per your requirement.
Create and assign Microsoft Entra test user
Follow the guidelines in the create and assign a user account quickstart to create a test user account called B.Simon.
Configure Central Desktop SSO
Sign in to your Central Desktop tenant.
Go to Settings. Select Advanced, and then select Single Sign On.
On the Single Sign On Settings page, perform the following steps:
a. Select Enable SAML v2 Single Sign On.
b. In the SSO URL box, paste the Microsoft Entra Identifier value that you copied.
c. In the SSO Login URL box, paste the Login URL value that you copied.
d. In the SSO Logout URL box, paste the Logout URL value that you copied.
In the Message Signature Verification Method section, perform the following steps:
a. Select Certificate.
b. In the SSO Certificate list, select RSH SHA256.
c. Open your downloaded certificate in Notepad. Then copy the content of certificate and paste it into the SSO Certificate field.
d. Select Display a link to your SAMLv2 login page.
e. Select Update.
Create Central Desktop test user
For Microsoft Entra users to be able to sign in, they must be provisioned in the Central Desktop application. This section describes how to create Microsoft Entra user accounts in Central Desktop.
Note
To provision Microsoft Entra user accounts, you can use any other Central Desktop user account creation tools or APIs that are provided by Central Desktop.
To provision user accounts to Central Desktop:
Sign in to your Central Desktop tenant.
Select People and then select Add Internal Members.
In the Email Address of New Members box, type a Microsoft Entra account that you want to provision, and then select Next.
Select Add Internal member(s).
Note
The users that you add receive an email that includes a confirmation link for activating their accounts.
Test SSO
In this section, you test your Microsoft Entra single sign-on configuration with following options.
Select Test this application, this option redirects to Central Desktop Sign-on URL where you can initiate the login flow.
Go to Central Desktop Sign-on URL directly and initiate the login flow from there.
You can use Microsoft My Apps. When you select the Central Desktop tile in the My Apps, this option redirects to Central Desktop Sign-on URL. For more information about the My Apps, see Introduction to the My Apps.
Related content
Once you configure Central Desktop you can enforce session control, which protects exfiltration and infiltration of your organization’s sensitive data in real time. Session control extends from Conditional Access. Learn how to enforce session control with Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps.