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IAA Authentication Hub Frequently Asked Questions and Error Messages

Frequently Asked Questions about the IAA Authentication Hub and error message definitions

If you are having problems logging in

Check the UW-Madison Help Desk website and Outages page to see if there is a known problem. If there is not, please contact the UW-Madison Help Desk at 608-264-HELP (4357).

Authentication Hub Overview

The IAA Authentication Hub works its magic by routing authentication requests to each campus on behalf of the application. If the campus authentication succeeds, the user is looked-up in the IAA Registry so that an Application Specific Identifier (ASID) can be returned to the application, so that the application doesn't need to know all local usernames and instead can use institutional data provided by IAA.

Error Messages

ASID could not be found

Whatever institutional attribute the application is looking for could not be found. This could mean that there is no data for the person in IAA or that the data element the application is looking for does not exist (for example, looking for employee data on a student). You will have to contact your local campus Help Desk and data custodians to make sure that your information is correct. If you were very recently added or changed your role, you may have to wait up to a day for your data to flow through the system.

Login Failed

User name or password is wrong for the campus selected. Make sure that the correct campus is selected. If you are certain the correct campus, username and password are entered, contact your local campus Help Desk.

Backend Connection Failure

Authentication server for the campus selected could not be contacted. It or the network is likely down.

Database Connect Error

Connecting to the IAA Database failed. Without database connectivity, logins cannot occur. Check the DoIT Help Desk website and Outages page to see if there is a known problem. If there is not, please contact the UW-Madison Help Desk at 608-264-HELP (4357).

The application could not verify your credentials

The back-channel verification between the application server and the IAA Authentication Hub failed. Potential causes:

1. Slow turn-around between the Authentication Hub login and the application's verification. Magic numbers are good only once and are good for a maximum of 30 seconds. Retrying the login will likely cause a successful login.
2. Re-loading a page that does a verification using an old "magic number". Magic numbers are good only once and are good for a maximum of 30 seconds. Retrying the login will likely cause a successful login.
3. Network connectivity problems between the application and the Authentication Hub due to outages or misconfiguration (highly unlikely, of course)

Seamless login error

Seamless login from your campus portal or authentication server failed due to a configuration error on the seamless login server. Contact your local campus Help Desk and report the problem.

Unknown Application

Seamless login from your campus portal or authentication server specified an unknown application.

See Also:

• UW System IT Help Desks Contact Information
• IAA - UW System Campuses Login Credentials Information