What is Single Sign-On (SSO)?
Many services which you can access with your Falcon Account make use of a single sign-on (SSO) service hosted at falconidp.uwrf.edu. When you visit these services, the service directs your web browser (or other client software) to the SSO service for the information it needs to identify you. If you've not signed in recently in your browser session, the SSO service prompts you to log in to authenticate you, otherwise the service provides information back to the browser to give to the service you're trying to access. In either case, if you're successfully logged in, the browser provides the information requested to the service so you can make use of it.
Why does UWRF utilize SSO?
Utilizing SSO generally reduces the number of times you need to enter your username and password in a given day as well as reducing the entry of those credentials into third-party websites. It also provides a single point where UWRF can enhance your security profile by requiring multi-factor authentication or provide useful information like password expiration warnings instead of having to set that up with many different services which may not even support those features.
Why doesn't my bookmark / shortcut work?
Since SSO relies on security token information retrieved from the service you're trying to access prior to asking you for your credentials, a bookmark to that page will not work since it cannot provide that token to the SSO service.
If you wish to bookmark a login to an SSO service,
- Locate the address for the web link you selected (or typed in manually). The easiest way to do that is to find a link to the service you're trying to access (such as the Resources for Students or the Resources for Employees pages). When you find the link, what you do next will depend on what browser you're using.
- Firefox or Safari: Right-click (or control-click on MacOS) on the link and use the option to bookmark the link. You're done!
- Chrome or Internet Explorer: Right-click (or control-click on MacOS) on the link and use the option to copy the link. Follow the link and and log in as you normally would. Once logged in, bookmark the page and then use your browser's options to edit the bookmark and replace the URL/address with the one you copied.