What question did this study set out to answer?

The aim is to enhance authentication methods in high energy physics by transitioning to JWTs.

February 5, 2026

Fermilab’s Transition to Token Authentication

Key Points

The aim is to enhance authentication methods in high energy physics by transitioning to JWTs.
Transition from X.509 user certificates to token-based authentication.
Implementation of JSON Web Tokens (JWT) for grid jobs in experiments.
Updates and creation of related software components.
Successful implementation of JWTs across all experiments at Fermilab.
General improvement in system performance despite initial glitches.
Software developed for the transition is available as open source.

Abstract

Fermilab is the first High Energy Physics institution to transition from X.509 user certificates to authentication tokens in production systems. All the experiments that Fermilab hosts are now using JSON Web Token (JWT) access tokens in their grid jobs. The tokens are defined using the WLCG Common JWT Profile. Many software components have been either created or updated for this transition, and the changes to those components are described. Most of the software is available to others as open source. There have been some glitches and learning curve issues but in general the system has been performing well and is being improved as operational problems are addressed.

Ask AI

Helpful

Bookmark