When a user signs in to WCM with LDAP enabled, the system checks if they are an LDAP user and authenticates against your LDAP Directory — auto-creating an account if they exist in LDAP but not yet in WCM.
💡Quick answers
- How does authentication work for an existing LDAP-flagged user? WCM sends credentials to the LDAP Directory — if the username and password match, the sign-in succeeds.
- What happens when a new user signs in who is in LDAP but not WCM? WCM auto-creates an account pulling First Name, Last Name, Email, Sign In Name, and Groups from LDAP.
- What if a WCM user is not marked as an LDAP user? They are authenticated against the WCM user database — standard WCM login applies.
- Does WCM support unencrypted LDAP? No — WCM only supports secure LDAP (LDAPS) connections.
When a user attempts to sign in to Web Community Manager, that user is authenticated.
- If the user is found in Web Community Manager and flagged as an LDAP user, the user is authenticated against your LDAP Directory.
- If that user is found on the LDAP Directory and the sign in name and password match, the sign in is successful.
- If that user is not found in your LDAP Directory server or the sign in name and password do not match, the sign in fails.
- If that user is not found in your Web Community Manager website, but is found in your LDAP Directory, the user is added as an LDAP user within your Web Community Manager website. Additional information is passed from the LDAP Directory and saved in the user’s Web Community Manager user account.
- First Name
- Last Name
- Email Address
- Sign In Name
- Groups
* Groups can be created within your LDAP Directory and users assigned to them. During the implementation of LDAP, set up cross references between the groups in the LDAP directory to groups in your Web Community Manager website. If a user is assigned to a group on the LDAP Directory, then the user is assigned to the associated group in your Web Community Manager website.
- If that user is found in your Web Community Manager website and not marked as an LDAP user, the user is authenticated against the user database in Web Community Manager. If the sign in name and password match, the sign in is successful.
- If that user is not found in your Web Community Manager website or your LDAP Director server, or the sign in name and password do not match, the sign in fails.
* Web Community Manager only supports secure LDAP connection protocol.