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What is authentication server ?

In the field of networking related to computer technology, there are different type of servers are used for the sake of the management pf the users on the network. One of the important types of the server is the authentication server. Generally authentication of the server that has been designed to give the authentication services to the clients to authenticate the network with the help of networking devices either wired or wireless is called as the authentication server. The main purpose or the function of the authentication server is that to provide the opportunity of access to the remote users and grant them permission to access the network. The main algorithms that are related to the authentication are the password, encryption, Kerberos etc.

How Authentication Server Works?
Working of the authentication server does not similar as the other servers of the computer networking but some of the working related to the clients can be related to the old circumstances. The whole working of the authentication servers depends upon different type of main algorithms which are used to provide the authentication to the user over network but important of them are listed as follows

Password Authentication:
The easy and the primary algorithm of the authentication server that are used by the users for protection are the password authentication. In this method authentication server design a list of number of clients and give them a specific user name and the password. So only those users or the clients can use the network for their work that is authenticated by the server. It not a strong authentication method by the authentication server because some time hackers can break such security.

Kerberos Authentication Server:
Another type of authentication method that has been adopted by the authentication servers to work on the network is the Kerberos protocol. It is strong type of authentication that only takes part in server but also provide the secure online working. In this case authentication servers can provide security to the three main components with the help of Kerberos i.e. it authenticated the identity of the client, provide authentication to user’s name and also provide the opportunity to the clients to do the save data transmission form one location to another.

Another important type of server that is called as the proxy server can also play a vital role as authentication server sometimes because it has more security features as compared to the authentication server so it also full fill the demands of the clients.

How to Setup Authentication Server?
Authentication server is setting by using a server computer, different type of softwares and the number of protocols. First of all install the recommended operating systems fro the servers such as LINUX and then try to install the updates and the required patches of the OS. Following the OS installation install the strong antivirus softwares for its security from the spywares and the malwares. After such steps provide authentication to the clients by using the number of methods such as username or password method and also Kerberos protocol with the help of such authentication server and the clients can be protected from the illegal use and clients can only perform the networking that has been assigned by the server. So with the help of such authenticated servers we can secure the identity of the clients, their usernames and their data transmission also.

Disadvantages of Authenticated Servers:
Some of the common disadvantages of the authenticated servers are as follows