SAML SSO for GitLab.com Groups [SILVER ONLY]

Introduced in GitLab.com Silver 11.0.

NOTE: Note: This topic is for SAML on GitLab.com Silver tier and above. For SAML on self-managed GitLab instances, see SAML OmniAuth Provider.

Currently SAML on GitLab.com can be used to automatically add users to a group, and does not yet sign users into GitLab.com. Users should already have an account on the GitLab instance, or can create one when logging in for the first time.

User synchronization for GitLab.com is partially supported using SCIM.

NOTE: Note: SAML SSO for groups is used only as a convenient way to add users and does not sync users between providers without using SCIM. If a group is not using SCIM, group Owners will still need to manage user accounts, such as removing users when necessary.

Configuring your Identity Provider

Navigate to the group and click Settings > SAML SSO.
Configure your SAML server using the Assertion consumer service URL and Issuer. See your identity provider's documentation for more details.
Configure the SAML response to include a NameID that uniquely identifies each user.
Configure required assertions using the table below.
Once the identity provider is set up, move on to configuring GitLab.

SSO enforcement

SSO enforcement was:

With this option enabled, users must use your group's GitLab single sign on URL to be added to the group or be added via SCIM. Users cannot be added manually, and may only access project/group resources via the UI by signing in through the SSO URL.

We intend to add a similar SSO requirement for Git and API activity in the future.

NameID

GitLab.com uses the SAML NameID to identify users. The NameID element:

Is a required field in the SAML response.
Must be unique to each user.
Must be a persistent value that will never change, such as a unique ID or username. Email could also be used as the NameID, but only if it can be guaranteed to never change.

Assertions

Field	Supported keys	Notes
Email	`email`, `mail`	(required)
Full Name	`name`
First Name	`first_name`, `firstname`, `firstName`
Last Name	`last_name`, `lastname`, `lastName`

Configuring GitLab

Once you've set up your identity provider to work with GitLab, you'll need to configure GitLab to use it for authentication:

Navigate to the group's Settings > SAML SSO.
Find the SSO URL from your Identity Provider and enter it the Identity provider single sign on URL field.
Find and enter the fingerprint for the SAML token signing certificate in the Certificate field.
Check the Enable SAML authentication for this group checkbox.
Click the Save changes button.

Providers

Provider	Documentation
ADFS (Active Directory Federation Services)	Create a Relying Party Trust
Azure	Configuring single sign-on to applications
Auth0	Auth0 as Identity Provider
G Suite	Set up your own custom SAML application
JumpCloud	Single Sign On (SSO) with GitLab
Okta	Setting up a SAML application in Okta
OneLogin	Use the OneLogin SAML Test Connector
Ping Identity	Add and configure a new SAML application

Unlinking accounts

Users can unlink SAML for a group from their profile page. This can be helpful if:

You no longer want a group to be able to sign you in to GitLab.com.
Your SAML NameID has changed and so GitLab can no longer find your user.

For example, to unlink the MyOrg account, the following Disconnect button will be available under Profile > Accounts:

Glossary

Term	Description
Identity Provider	The service which manages your user identities such as ADFS, Okta, Onelogin or Ping Identity.
Service Provider	SAML considers GitLab to be a service provider.
Assertion	A piece of information about a user's identity, such as their name or role. Also know as claims or attributes.
SSO	Single Sign On.
Assertion consumer service URL	The callback on GitLab where users will be redirected after successfully authenticating with the identity provider.
Issuer	How GitLab identifies itself to the identity provider. Also known as a "Relying party trust identifier".
Certificate fingerprint	Used to confirm that communications over SAML are secure by checking that the server is signing communications with the correct certificate. Also known as a certificate thumbprint.

5.8 KiB Raw Blame History