Unified authentication

[Martin]

Warning! "Not-A-Programmer" Alert!!!

Following on from my thread about Typo3 (http://forums.iwdn.net/viewtopic.php?t=846), I'd like to find out from those more knowledgeable than I just how easy or difficult it may be to integrate two different types of CMS together. Specifically, a forum product (in our case, the superlative and highly recommended PunBB (http://www.punbb.org/)) and whichever fully-fledged CMS we decide to go with.

Basically I'd like to have a form of unified authentication, where the visitor can log in either at the site, or at the forum, and be logged in simultaneously in both systems.

So, I suppose what I'm asking is, any volunteers? I'll gladly lend a hand in return whenever you need a tableless site designed. :)

[BigBison]

You are on a quest for the Holy Grail, aka "Single Sign-On".

There was a WHT thread on this last month; my comments there still apply. There's a custom solution or two for specific CMS/forum combos, but nothing in general that I know of for less than $20K (Critical Path).

http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=351319

[Martin]

ok, so I should forget it then? Like I say, I'm no programmer...

[BigBison]

Sorry. My primary reason for being in the midst of writing my own CMS right now, despite having desired to avoid doing so at all costs, is this very issue. I couldn't find a CMS with an adequate "forum" module despite spending quite a bit of time searching for an integrated solution.

It could, perhaps, be done quite simply with clever application of IFRAMES, but I didn't pursue that possibility very far.

Look into TikiWiki. If you think Typo3 is big, you ain't seen nothin' yet!

[Jamie]

I will point out that Postnuke has its own phpbb module, called PNPHPBB. Like I said in the other thread though, PN is the monster of all CMS in terms of amount of content.

[websterworld]

That is such a headache, I had to skin a forum that was integrated with an auction software and they ran into all kinds of trouble. (The client actually blamed my skin on braking the DB integration. Bah.)

The problem is that different scripts and systems handle their user data differently. Maybe if there was some sort of standard for this...

[Martin]

Maybe if there was some sort of standard for this...

Well it seems LDAP would fit the bill perfectly, if only more pieces of software supported it. Or so it seems from what I've read.

Thanks guys. Bison, I'll check into the iframes possibility. Jamie, I'll give PostNuke a try, but it's integration with PunBB that I'm after.