Configure LDAP with the configuration file

As an alternative to using Splunk Web to configure LDAP, you can directly edit the authentication.conf file.

This example steps you through the process of setting up authentication.conf. If you prefer to configure LDAP with Splunk Web, see Configure LDAP with Splunk Web.

Note: If you configure LDAP authentication and decide later to return to using the default Splunk authentication, the simplest way is to move the existing authentication.conf file out of the way (for example, by renaming it to authentication.conf.disabled) and restart Splunk Enterprise.

You can see some more examples at the end of the authentication.conf spec file.

Edit authentication.conf in $SPLUNK_HOME/etc/system/local/. For information on configuration files in general, see About configuration files In the Admin Manual.

Set authentication type and strategy name(s)

By default, Splunk Enterprise uses Splunk authentication. Change the type to LDAP in the [authentication] stanza:

[authentication]
authType = LDAP
authSettings = ldaphost1,ldaphost2

Note the following:

• Turn on LDAP by setting authType = LDAP.
• The authSettings attribute identifies one or more LDAP strategies. Each strategy has its own stanza.

Configure LDAP strategy stanzas

Each LDAP strategy needs its own stanza. Map the LDAP values to attribute/value pairs in the strategy's stanza.

Note: Splunk Enterprise does not support IPv6 address formats for Windows.

Here's an example stanza for the "ldaphost1" strategy, specified earlier in the authSettings attribute:

[ldaphost1]
host = ldaphost1.domain.com
port = 389
SSLEnabled = 0
bindDN = cn=bind_user
bindDNpassword = bind_user_password
groupBaseDN = ou=Groups,dc=splunk,dc=com
groupBaseFilter = (objectclass=*)
groupMappingAttribute = dn
groupMemberAttribute = uniqueMember
groupNameAttribute = cn
realNameAttribute = displayName
userBaseDN = ou=People,dc=splunk,dc=com
userBaseFilter = (objectclass=*)
userNameAttribute = uid

Note: For best results when integrating Active Directory, place your Group Base DN in a separate hierarchy than the User Base DN.

SSL

If you have enabled SSL for your LDAP strategy, make sure the following minimum settings are present in ldap.conf

 
TLS_REQCERT demand 
TLS_CACERT <path to cert, for example: /opt/splunk/etc/auth/LDAProotcert.crt> 
TLS_CIPHER_SUITE <your cipher suite>

Configure multiple LDAP strategies

Splunk Enterprise can search across multiple LDAP servers, as described in How Splunk works with multiple LDAP servers. To configure this, set the authSettings attribute to a comma-separated list of all strategies, in the order in which you want Splunk Enterprise to query them. Then, specify separate stanzas for each strategy.

Map groups to roles

To map Splunk roles to a strategy's LDAP groups, you need to set up a roleMap stanza for that strategy. Each strategy requires its own roleMap stanza. This example maps roles for groups in the "ldaphost1" strategy. The syntax is <Splunk RoleName> = <LDAP group string>:

[roleMap_ldaphost1]
admin = SplunkAdmins
itusers = ITAdmins

Map users directly to roles

If you need to map users directly to Splunk roles, you can do so by setting the groupBaseDN to the value of userBaseDN. Also, set the attributes for groupMappingAttribute, groupMemberAttribute, and groupNameAttribute to the same attribute as userNameAttribute. For example:

[supportLDAP]
SSLEnabled = 0
bindDN = cn=Directory Manager
bindDNpassword = #########
groupBaseDN = ou=People,dc=splunksupport,dc=com
groupBaseFilter = (objectclass=*)
groupMappingAttribute = uid
groupMemberAttribute = uid
groupNameAttribute = uid
host = supportldap.splunksupport.com
port = 389
realNameAttribute = cn
userBaseDN = ou=People,dc=splunksupport,dc=com
userBaseFilter = (objectclass=*)
userNameAttribute = uid

[roleMap_supportLDAP]
admin = rlee;bsmith