/Traefik OIDC

Traefik OIDC

93
v0.8.9

Traefik OIDC Middleware

This middleware replaces the need for forward-auth and oauth2-proxy when using Traefik as a reverse proxy to support OpenID Connect (OIDC) authentication.

Overview

The Traefik OIDC middleware provides a complete OIDC authentication solution with these key features:

  • Universal provider support: Works with 9+ OIDC providers including Google, Azure AD, Auth0, Okta, Keycloak, AWS Cognito, GitLab, and more
  • Automatic provider detection: Automatically detects and configures provider-specific settings
  • Dynamic Client Registration (RFC 7591): Automatic client registration with OIDC providers without manual pre-registration
  • Automatic scope filtering: Intelligently filters OAuth scopes based on provider capabilities declared in OIDC discovery documents, preventing authentication failures with unsupported scopes
  • Security headers: Comprehensive security headers with CORS, CSP, HSTS, and custom profiles
  • Domain restrictions: Limit access to specific email domains or individual users
  • Role-based access control: Restrict access based on roles and groups from OIDC claims
  • Session management: Secure session handling with automatic token refresh
  • Rate limiting: Protection against brute force attacks
  • Excluded paths: Configure public URLs that bypass authentication
  • Custom headers: Template-based headers using OIDC claims and tokens
  • Comprehensive logging: Configurable log levels for debugging and monitoring

Supported OIDC Providers

ProviderSupport LevelRefresh TokensAuto-DetectionKey Features
Google✅ Full OIDC✅ Yesaccounts.google.comAuto-config, Workspace support
Azure AD✅ Full OIDC✅ Yeslogin.microsoftonline.comMulti-tenant, group claims
Auth0✅ Full OIDC✅ Yes*.auth0.comCustom claims, flexible rules
Okta✅ Full OIDC✅ Yes*.okta.comEnterprise SSO, MFA support
Keycloak✅ Full OIDC✅ Yes/auth/realms/ pathSelf-hosted, full customization
AWS Cognito✅ Full OIDC✅ Yescognito-idp.*.amazonaws.comManaged service, regional
GitLab✅ Full OIDC✅ Yesgitlab.comSelf-hosted support
GitHub⚠️ OAuth 2.0 Only❌ Nogithub.comAPI access only, no claims
Generic OIDC✅ Full OIDC✅ Yes✅ Any endpointRFC-compliant providers

Provider Capabilities Matrix

FeatureGoogleAzure ADAuth0OktaKeycloakCognitoGitLabGitHubGeneric
ID Tokens
Refresh Tokens
Auto-Configuration
Custom ClaimsLimitedLimitedVaries
Group/Role ClaimsLimitedLimitedVaries
Domain Restriction✅ (hd claim)Varies
Self-Hosted
Enterprise FeaturesVaries

Important: GitHub uses OAuth 2.0 (not OpenID Connect) and only provides access tokens. Use it for API access only, not for user authentication with claims. All other providers support full OIDC with ID tokens and user claims.

Important Note on Token Validation: This middleware performs authentication and claim extraction based on the ID Token provided by the OIDC provider. It does not primarily use the Access Token for these purposes (though the Access Token is available for templated headers if needed). Therefore, ensure that all necessary claims (e.g., email, roles, custom attributes) are included in the ID Token by your OIDC provider's configuration.

The middleware has been tested with Google, Azure AD, Auth0, Okta, Keycloak, AWS Cognito, GitLab, GitHub (OAuth 2.0), and other standard OIDC providers. It includes automatic provider detection and special handling for provider-specific requirements.

Performance and Memory Management

This middleware includes advanced memory management features to ensure stable operation under high load:

  • Bounded caches: All internal caches (metadata, sessions, tokens) have configurable size limits with LRU eviction
  • Automatic cleanup: Background goroutines periodically clean up expired sessions and tokens
  • Memory monitoring: Built-in memory leak detection and prevention
  • Graceful degradation: Continues operating safely even under memory pressure
  • Zero goroutine leaks: All background tasks are properly managed and terminated on shutdown

Traefik Version Compatibility

This middleware follows closely the current Traefik helm chart versions. If the plugin fails to load, it's time to update to the latest version of the Traefik helm chart.

Installation

As a Traefik Plugin

  1. Enable the plugin in your Traefik static configuration:
# traefik.yml
experimental:
plugins:
traefikoidc:
moduleName: github.com/lukaszraczylo/traefikoidc
version: v0.7.10 # Use the latest version
  1. Configure the middleware in your dynamic configuration (see examples below).

Local Development with Docker Compose

For local development or testing, you can use the provided Docker Compose setup:

cd docker
docker-compose up -d

This will start Traefik with the OIDC middleware and two test services.

Configuration Options

The middleware supports the following configuration options:

Required Parameters

ParameterDescriptionExample
providerURLThe base URL of the OIDC providerhttps://accounts.google.com
clientIDThe OAuth 2.0 client identifier1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecretThe OAuth 2.0 client secretyour-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKeyKey used to encrypt session data (must be at least 32 bytes long)potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURLThe path where the OIDC provider will redirect after authentication/oauth2/callback

Optional Parameters

ParameterDescriptionDefaultExample
logoutURLThe path for handling logout requestscallbackURL + "/logout"/oauth2/logout
postLogoutRedirectURIThe URL to redirect to after logout//logged-out-page
scopesOAuth 2.0 scopes to use for authentication["openid", "profile", "email"] (always included by default)["roles", "custom_scope"] (appended to defaults)
overrideScopesWhen true, replaces default scopes with provided scopes instead of appendingfalsetrue (use only the scopes explicitly provided)
logLevelSets the logging verbosityinfodebug, info, error
forceHTTPSForces HTTPS scheme for redirect URIs (REQUIRED for TLS termination at load balancer like AWS ALB)false (when not specified)true, false
rateLimitSets the maximum number of requests per second100500
excludedURLsLists paths that bypass authenticationnone["/health", "/metrics", "/public"]
allowedUserDomainsRestricts access to specific email domainsnone["company.com", "subsidiary.com"]
allowedUsersA list of specific email addresses that are allowed accessnone["user1@example.com", "user2@another.org"]
allowedRolesAndGroupsRestricts access to users with specific roles or groupsnone["admin", "developer"]
roleClaimNameJWT claim name for extracting user roles (supports namespaced claims for Auth0)"roles""https://myapp.com/roles", "user_roles"
groupClaimNameJWT claim name for extracting user groups (supports namespaced claims for Auth0)"groups""https://myapp.com/groups", "user_groups"
userIdentifierClaimJWT claim to use as user identifier (for users without email, e.g., Azure AD service accounts)"email""sub", "oid", "upn", "preferred_username"
revocationURLThe endpoint for revoking tokensauto-discoveredhttps://accounts.google.com/revoke
oidcEndSessionURLThe provider's end session endpointauto-discoveredhttps://accounts.google.com/logout
enablePKCEEnables PKCE (Proof Key for Code Exchange) for authorization code flowfalsetrue, false
refreshGracePeriodSecondsSeconds before token expiry to attempt proactive refresh60120
cookieDomainExplicit domain for session cookies (important for multi-subdomain setups)auto-detected.example.com, app.example.com
cookiePrefixCustom prefix for session cookie names (for isolating multiple middleware instances)_oidc_raczylo__oidc_userauth_, _oidc_admin_
sessionMaxAgeMaximum session age in seconds before requiring re-authentication86400 (24 hours)3600 (1 hour), 604800 (7 days)
audienceCustom audience for access token validation (for Auth0 custom APIs, etc.)clientIDhttps://my-api.example.com
strictAudienceValidationReject sessions with access token audience mismatch (prevents token confusion attacks)falsetrue
allowOpaqueTokensEnable opaque (non-JWT) access token support via RFC 7662 introspectionfalsetrue
requireTokenIntrospectionRequire introspection for opaque tokens (force validation, no fallback)falsetrue
headersCustom HTTP headers with templates that can access OIDC claims and tokensnoneSee "Templated Headers" section
securityHeadersConfigure security headers including CSP, HSTS, CORS, and custom headersenabled with default profileSee "Security Headers Configuration" section
disableReplayDetectionDisable JTI-based replay attack detection for multi-replica deploymentsfalsetrue
allowPrivateIPAddressesAllow private IP addresses in provider URLs (for internal networks with Keycloak, etc.)falsetrue
minimalHeadersReduce forwarded headers to prevent "431 Request Header Fields Too Large" errorsfalsetrue
redisRedis cache configuration for distributed deploymentsdisabledSee "Redis Cache" section

⚠️ IMPORTANT - TLS Termination at Load Balancer:

If you're running Traefik behind a load balancer (AWS ALB, Google Cloud Load Balancer, Azure Application Gateway, etc.) that terminates TLS:

  • You MUST set forceHTTPS: true in your configuration
  • Without this setting, redirect URIs will use http:// instead of https://, causing OAuth callback failures
  • This is especially critical for AWS ALB which may overwrite the X-Forwarded-Proto header

Default behavior:

  • When forceHTTPS is not specified in your config → defaults to false (Go zero value)
  • When forceHTTPS: true is explicitly set → always uses https:// for redirect URIs
  • When forceHTTPS: false is explicitly set → scheme detection based on headers/TLS

See GitHub Issue #82 for details.

Scope Configuration

Scope Behavior

The middleware supports two modes for handling OAuth 2.0 scopes, controlled by the overrideScopes parameter:

Default Append Mode (overrideScopes: false)

By default, the middleware uses an append behavior for OAuth 2.0 scopes:

  • Default scopes are always included: ["openid", "profile", "email"]
  • User-provided scopes are appended to the defaults with automatic deduplication
  • The final scope list maintains the order: defaults first, then user scopes

Override Mode (overrideScopes: true)

When overrideScopes is set to true, the middleware uses replacement behavior:

  • Default scopes are not automatically included
  • Only the scopes explicitly provided in the scopes field are used
  • You must include all required scopes explicitly, including openid if needed

Examples:

Default behavior (no custom scopes):

# No scopes field specified
# Result: ["openid", "profile", "email"]

Default append behavior:

scopes:
- roles
- custom_scope
# Result: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles", "custom_scope"]

Overlapping scopes with append (automatic deduplication):

scopes:
- openid # Duplicate - will be deduplicated
- roles
- profile # Duplicate - will be deduplicated
- permissions
# Result: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles", "permissions"]

Using override mode:

overrideScopes: true
scopes:
- openid
- profile
- custom_scope
# Result: ["openid", "profile", "custom_scope"]

Empty scopes list with default behavior:

scopes: []
# Result: ["openid", "profile", "email"]

Empty scopes list with override mode:

overrideScopes: true
scopes: []
# Result: [] (Warning: empty scopes may cause authentication to fail)

The default append behavior ensures essential OIDC scopes are always present, while the override mode gives you complete control over the exact scopes requested from the provider.

Auth0 Audience Validation & Security

The middleware provides comprehensive support for Auth0 audience validation to prevent token confusion attacks. Auth0 can issue tokens in three different scenarios, each requiring specific configuration.

Understanding Token Audiences

Per OAuth 2.0 and OIDC specifications:

  • ID Tokens: MUST have aud = client_id (OIDC Core 1.0 spec)
  • Access Tokens: Can have custom audiences (e.g., API identifiers)

Proper audience validation prevents token confusion attacks where a token intended for one API is used to access another API.

Auth0 Scenarios

Configuration:

audience: "https://my-api.example.com" # Your API identifier from Auth0
strictAudienceValidation: true # Enforce strict validation

Result: Fully secure, OIDC compliant with proper access token audience validation.

Scenario 2: Default Audience ⚠️ (USE WITH CAUTION)

Configuration:

# audience not specified (defaults to client_id)
strictAudienceValidation: true # Recommended: reject mismatched tokens

Behavior: Access tokens may not contain client_id in audience, triggering security warnings. Set strictAudienceValidation: true to reject such sessions.

Scenario 3: Opaque Access Tokens ✅ (SUPPORTED)

Configuration:

allowOpaqueTokens: true # Enable opaque token support
requireTokenIntrospection: true # Require introspection (recommended)

Result: Secure with OAuth 2.0 Token Introspection (RFC 7662).

Security Configuration Options

OptionPurposeRecommended Value
audienceExpected audience for access tokensYour API identifier or leave empty
strictAudienceValidationReject sessions with audience mismatchtrue for production
allowOpaqueTokensAccept non-JWT access tokenstrue if provider issues opaque tokens
requireTokenIntrospectionForce introspection for opaque tokenstrue when allowOpaqueTokens=true

Complete Auth0 Configuration Examples

Production Configuration (Scenario 1):

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-auth0-secure
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://your-auth0-domain.auth0.com
clientID: your-auth0-client-id
clientSecret: your-auth0-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
audience: "https://my-api.example.com"
strictAudienceValidation: true
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- "https://your-app.com/roles:admin"
- editor

Opaque Token Configuration (Scenario 3):

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-auth0-opaque
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://your-auth0-domain.auth0.com
clientID: your-auth0-client-id
clientSecret: your-auth0-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
allowOpaqueTokens: true
requireTokenIntrospection: true
strictAudienceValidation: true

For detailed Auth0 configuration including all three scenarios, troubleshooting, and security best practices, see AUTH0_AUDIENCE_GUIDE.md.

Security Headers Configuration

The middleware includes comprehensive security headers support to protect your applications against common web vulnerabilities. Security headers are applied to all authenticated responses.

Security Features

  • Content Security Policy (CSP) - Prevents XSS and code injection
  • HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) - Forces HTTPS connections
  • Frame Options - Protects against clickjacking attacks
  • XSS Protection - Browser-level XSS filtering
  • Content Type Options - Prevents MIME type sniffing
  • Referrer Policy - Controls referrer information sharing
  • CORS Headers - Complete Cross-Origin Resource Sharing support
  • Custom Headers - Add any additional security headers

Security Profiles

Choose from predefined security profiles or create custom configurations:

ProfileUse CaseSecurity LevelCORS Enabled
defaultStandard web applicationsHighDisabled
strictMaximum security applicationsVery HighDisabled
developmentLocal developmentMediumEnabled (localhost)
apiAPI endpointsHighConfigurable
customCustom requirementsConfigurableConfigurable

Configuration Examples

securityHeaders:
enabled: true
profile: "default"

Strict Security

securityHeaders:
enabled: true
profile: "strict"

API with CORS

securityHeaders:
enabled: true
profile: "api"
corsEnabled: true
corsAllowedOrigins:
- "https://your-frontend.com"
- "https://*.example.com"
corsAllowCredentials: true

Custom Configuration

securityHeaders:
enabled: true
profile: "custom"
# Content Security Policy
contentSecurityPolicy: "default-src 'self'; script-src 'self' 'unsafe-inline'"
# HSTS Settings
strictTransportSecurity: true
strictTransportSecurityMaxAge: 31536000 # 1 year
strictTransportSecuritySubdomains: true
strictTransportSecurityPreload: true
# Frame and Content Protection
frameOptions: "DENY"
contentTypeOptions: "nosniff"
xssProtection: "1; mode=block"
referrerPolicy: "strict-origin-when-cross-origin"
# CORS Configuration
corsEnabled: true
corsAllowedOrigins: ["https://app.example.com"]
corsAllowedMethods: ["GET", "POST", "PUT", "DELETE", "OPTIONS"]
corsAllowedHeaders: ["Authorization", "Content-Type", "X-Requested-With"]
corsAllowCredentials: true
corsMaxAge: 86400
# Custom Headers
customHeaders:
X-Custom-Header: "custom-value"
X-API-Version: "v1"
# Server Identification
disableServerHeader: true
disablePoweredByHeader: true

Security Headers Parameters

ParameterDescriptionDefaultExample
enabledEnable/disable security headerstruetrue, false
profileSecurity profile to usedefaultdefault, strict, development, api, custom
contentSecurityPolicyCSP header valueProfile-based"default-src 'self'"
strictTransportSecurityEnable HSTStruetrue, false
strictTransportSecurityMaxAgeHSTS max age in seconds3153600086400
strictTransportSecuritySubdomainsInclude subdomains in HSTStruetrue, false
strictTransportSecurityPreloadEnable HSTS preloadtruetrue, false
frameOptionsX-Frame-Options headerDENYDENY, SAMEORIGIN, ALLOW-FROM uri
contentTypeOptionsX-Content-Type-Options headernosniffnosniff
xssProtectionX-XSS-Protection header1; mode=block1; mode=block
referrerPolicyReferrer-Policy headerstrict-origin-when-cross-originno-referrer
corsEnabledEnable CORS headersfalsetrue, false
corsAllowedOriginsAllowed CORS origins[]["https://app.com", "https://*.example.com"]
corsAllowedMethodsAllowed CORS methods["GET", "POST", "OPTIONS"]["GET", "POST", "PUT", "DELETE"]
corsAllowedHeadersAllowed CORS headers["Authorization", "Content-Type"]["X-Custom-Header"]
corsAllowCredentialsAllow credentials in CORSfalsetrue, false
corsMaxAgeCORS preflight cache time864003600
customHeadersAdditional custom headers{}{"X-Custom": "value"}
disableServerHeaderRemove Server headertruetrue, false
disablePoweredByHeaderRemove X-Powered-By headertruetrue, false
permissionsPolicyPermissions-Policy header``"geolocation=(), camera=(), microphone=()"
crossOriginEmbedderPolicyCross-Origin-Embedder-Policy header``"require-corp", "credentialless", "unsafe-none"
crossOriginOpenerPolicyCross-Origin-Opener-Policy header``"same-origin", "same-origin-allow-popups", "unsafe-none"
crossOriginResourcePolicyCross-Origin-Resource-Policy header``"same-origin", "same-site", "cross-origin"

CORS Wildcard Support

The middleware supports flexible CORS origin patterns:

corsAllowedOrigins:
- "https://example.com" # Exact match
- "https://*.example.com" # Subdomain wildcard
- "http://localhost:*" # Port wildcard (development)
- "*" # Allow all (not recommended)

Advanced Configuration

The middleware provides several advanced configuration options for production environments.

Provider-Specific Optimizations

The middleware automatically optimizes for each OIDC provider:

  • Google: Automatically configures access_type=offline and prompt=consent for refresh tokens
  • Azure AD: Optimized multi-tenant support and group claim handling
  • Auth0: Enhanced custom claim processing and namespace support
  • Keycloak: Self-hosted deployment optimizations
  • AWS Cognito: Regional endpoint handling and user pool integration

Token Management

  • Automatic token refresh: Proactively refreshes tokens before expiration
  • Token validation: Comprehensive JWT validation with security checks
  • Grace period: Configurable time window for token refresh
  • Session handling: Secure session management with encrypted storage

Configuration Examples

High-Throughput Configuration

# Optimized for high-traffic environments
rateLimit: 1000
refreshGracePeriodSeconds: 300
securityHeaders:
enabled: true
profile: "api"
corsEnabled: true
corsMaxAge: 86400

High-Security Configuration

# Maximum security for sensitive environments
rateLimit: 50
allowedUserDomains: ["company.com"]
allowedRolesAndGroups: ["admin", "developer"]
securityHeaders:
enabled: true
profile: "strict"
corsEnabled: false

Development Configuration

# Development-friendly settings
logLevel: "debug"
forceHTTPS: false
securityHeaders:
enabled: true
profile: "development"
corsEnabled: true
corsAllowedOrigins: ["http://localhost:*"]

Multi-Replica Deployment Configuration

When running multiple Traefik replicas with the OIDC plugin, you may encounter false positive replay detection errors. Each replica maintains its own in-memory JTI (JWT Token ID) cache, causing legitimate token reuse to be flagged as replay attacks.

Problem: When the same valid token hits different replicas:

  • Request → Replica A → JTI added to Replica A's cache ✓
  • Request → Replica B → JTI NOT in Replica B's cache ✓
  • Request → Replica A → ❌ FALSE POSITIVE: "token replay detected"

Solution 1 (Simple): Disable replay detection for distributed deployments:

disableReplayDetection: true # Disable JTI replay detection for multi-replica setups

Solution 2 (Recommended): Use Redis cache backend for shared state (see Redis Cache section)

Security Note: When disableReplayDetection: true:

  • ✅ Token signatures still validated
  • ✅ Expiration still checked
  • ✅ All other claims still verified
  • ❌ JTI replay check skipped

Example Configuration:

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-multi-replica
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: your-client-id
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
disableReplayDetection: true # Required for multi-replica deployments without Redis

Recommendation: For single-instance deployments, leave this setting at false (default) to maintain replay attack protection. For multi-replica deployments, use the Redis cache backend for proper replay detection across all instances.

Redis Cache (Optional)

The plugin supports optional Redis caching for multi-replica deployments. This solves issues with JTI replay detection and session management when running multiple Traefik instances behind a load balancer.

✨ Yaegi Compatible: Redis support is implemented using a pure-Go RESP protocol client that works seamlessly with Traefik's Yaegi interpreter (no unsafe package). Full Redis functionality is available for both dynamic plugin loading and pre-compiled deployments.

Why Use Redis Cache?

When running multiple Traefik replicas, each instance maintains its own in-memory cache for:

  • JTI (JWT Token ID) replay detection
  • Session data
  • Token metadata

Without a shared cache, you may experience:

  • False positive replay detection errors
  • Session inconsistencies between replicas
  • Users needing to re-authenticate when hitting different instances

Basic Configuration

Redis is configured through Traefik's dynamic configuration (YAML, labels, etc.):

# Enable Redis cache in your middleware configuration
redis:
enabled: true
address: "localhost:6379"
password: "your-password" # Optional
db: 0
keyPrefix: "traefikoidc:"

Configuration Priority

The plugin uses the following priority for Redis configuration:

  1. Traefik Dynamic Configuration (PRIMARY) - Configure via YAML files or Docker/Kubernetes labels
  2. Environment Variables (FALLBACK) - Used only when not set in Traefik config

This approach allows you to manage all settings through Traefik's configuration system while maintaining backward compatibility with environment variables.

Configuration Options

ParameterDescriptionDefaultExample
enabledEnable Redis cachingfalsetrue
addressRedis server address-redis:6379
passwordRedis password-YOUR_PASSWORD
dbDatabase number01
keyPrefixKey prefix for namespacingtraefikoidc:myapp:
cacheModeCache mode: redis, hybrid, memoryredishybrid
poolSizeConnection pool size1020
connectTimeoutConnection timeout (seconds)510
readTimeoutRead timeout (seconds)35
writeTimeoutWrite timeout (seconds)35
enableTLSEnable TLSfalsetrue
tlsSkipVerifySkip TLS verificationfalsetrue
enableCircuitBreakerCircuit breaker for failurestruetrue
circuitBreakerThresholdFailures before circuit opens510
circuitBreakerTimeoutCircuit reset timeout (seconds)6030
enableHealthCheckPeriodic health checkstruetrue
healthCheckIntervalHealth check interval (seconds)3060

Environment Variables (Fallback)

If not configured through Traefik, these environment variables can be used as fallback:

  • REDIS_ENABLED - Enable Redis cache
  • REDIS_ADDRESS - Redis server address
  • REDIS_PASSWORD - Redis password
  • REDIS_DB - Database number
  • REDIS_KEY_PREFIX - Key prefix
  • REDIS_CACHE_MODE - Cache mode
  • REDIS_POOL_SIZE - Connection pool size
  • REDIS_CONNECT_TIMEOUT - Connection timeout
  • REDIS_READ_TIMEOUT - Read timeout
  • REDIS_WRITE_TIMEOUT - Write timeout
  • REDIS_ENABLE_TLS - Enable TLS
  • REDIS_TLS_SKIP_VERIFY - Skip TLS verification

Cache Modes

The plugin supports three cache modes:

  • memory (default): In-memory cache only, suitable for single-instance deployments
  • redis: Redis-only cache, all data stored in Redis
  • hybrid: Two-tier caching with local memory cache + Redis backend for optimal performance

Example Configurations

Docker Compose with Redis

services:
redis:
image: redis:alpine
command: redis-server --requirepass yourpassword
traefik:
image: traefik:v3.2
# ... rest of your Traefik configuration
labels:
# Configure the OIDC middleware with Redis
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.clientID=your-client-id"
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.clientSecret=your-secret"
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.providerURL=https://auth.example.com"
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.callbackURL=/oauth2/callback"
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.sessionEncryptionKey=your-64-char-key"
# Redis configuration via labels
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.redis.enabled=true"
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.redis.address=redis:6379"
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.redis.password=yourpassword"
- "traefik.http.middlewares.oidc.plugin.traefikoidc.redis.cacheMode=hybrid"

Kubernetes with Redis

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-with-redis
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: your-client-id
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-encryption-key
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
redis:
enabled: true
address: "redis-service.redis-namespace:6379"
password: "urn:k8s:secret:redis-secret:password"
db: 0
keyPrefix: "traefikoidc"
cacheMode: "hybrid"

Advanced Redis Configuration

See Redis Cache Documentation for:

  • Detailed architecture overview
  • High availability setup with Redis Sentinel
  • Redis Cluster configuration
  • Performance tuning guidelines
  • Monitoring and observability
  • Troubleshooting guide
  • Migration from memory-only cache

Dynamic Client Registration (RFC 7591)

The middleware supports OIDC Dynamic Client Registration (RFC 7591), allowing automatic client registration with OIDC providers without manual pre-registration. This is useful for:

  • Multi-tenant deployments: Automatically register clients per tenant
  • Development environments: Quick setup without manual OAuth app creation
  • Self-service integrations: Allow applications to self-register

How It Works

  1. When enabled, the middleware discovers the registration_endpoint from the provider's .well-known/openid-configuration
  2. If no clientID is configured, it automatically registers a new client with the provider
  3. The registered client_id and client_secret are cached and optionally persisted to a file
  4. Subsequent requests use the registered credentials

Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-dynamic-registration
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://your-oidc-provider.com
# clientID and clientSecret are NOT required when using DCR
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
dynamicClientRegistration:
enabled: true
# Optional: Initial access token for protected registration endpoints
initialAccessToken: "your-initial-access-token"
# Optional: Override the registration endpoint (auto-discovered by default)
registrationEndpoint: "https://your-provider.com/register"
# Optional: Persist credentials to file for reuse across restarts
persistCredentials: true
credentialsFile: "/tmp/oidc-client-credentials.json"
# Client metadata for registration
clientMetadata:
redirect_uris:
- "https://your-app.com/oauth2/callback"
client_name: "My Application"
application_type: "web"
grant_types:
- "authorization_code"
- "refresh_token"
response_types:
- "code"
token_endpoint_auth_method: "client_secret_basic"
contacts:
- "admin@your-app.com"

DCR Configuration Parameters

ParameterDescriptionRequiredDefault
enabledEnable dynamic client registrationYesfalse
initialAccessTokenBearer token for protected registration endpointsNo-
registrationEndpointOverride auto-discovered registration endpointNoFrom discovery
persistCredentialsSave registered credentials to fileNofalse
credentialsFilePath to store/load credentialsNo/tmp/oidc-client-credentials.json
clientMetadata.redirect_urisREQUIRED - Redirect URIs for OAuth flowYes-
clientMetadata.client_nameHuman-readable client nameNo-
clientMetadata.application_typeweb or nativeNoweb
clientMetadata.grant_typesOAuth grant typesNo["authorization_code", "refresh_token"]
clientMetadata.response_typesOAuth response typesNo["code"]
clientMetadata.token_endpoint_auth_methodAuthentication methodNoclient_secret_basic
clientMetadata.contactsContact email addressesNo-
clientMetadata.logo_uriURL to client logoNo-
clientMetadata.client_uriURL to client homepageNo-
clientMetadata.policy_uriURL to privacy policyNo-
clientMetadata.tos_uriURL to terms of serviceNo-
clientMetadata.scopeSpace-separated scopesNo-

Provider Support

DCR support varies by provider:

ProviderDCR SupportNotes
Keycloak✅ FullEnable in realm settings
Auth0✅ FullRequires Management API token
Okta✅ FullEnable Dynamic Client Registration
Azure AD⚠️ LimitedApp Registration API instead
Google❌ NoManual registration required
AWS Cognito❌ NoManual registration required

Security Considerations

  1. HTTPS Required: Registration endpoints must use HTTPS (except localhost for development)
  2. Initial Access Token: Recommended for production to prevent unauthorized registrations
  3. Credential Persistence: If enabled, ensure the credentials file has appropriate permissions (0600)
  4. Secret Expiration: Monitor client_secret_expires_at and handle rotation if needed

Example: Keycloak with DCR

dynamicClientRegistration:
enabled: true
clientMetadata:
redirect_uris:
- "https://myapp.example.com/oauth2/callback"
client_name: "My App - Production"
application_type: "web"
grant_types:
- "authorization_code"
- "refresh_token"

Usage Examples

Basic Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-basic
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]

With Excluded URLs (Public Access Paths)

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-with-open-urls
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
excludedURLs:
- /login # covers /login, /login/me, /login/reminder etc.
- /public-data
- /health
- /metrics

With Email Domain Restrictions

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-domain-restricted
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
allowedUserDomains:
- company.com
- subsidiary.com

With Specific User Access

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-specific-users
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
allowedUsers:
- user1@example.com
- user2@another.org

With Both Domain and Specific User Access

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-domain-and-users
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
allowedUserDomains:
- company.com
allowedUsers:
- special-user@gmail.com
- contractor@external.org

When configuring access control:

  • If only allowedUsers is set, only the specified email addresses will be granted access
  • If only allowedUserDomains is set, only users with email addresses from those domains will be granted access
  • If both are set, access is granted if the user's email is in allowedUsers OR their email's domain is in allowedUserDomains
  • If neither is set, any authenticated user will be granted access
  • Email matching is case-insensitive

With Role-Based Access Control

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-rbac
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- admin
- developer
apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-multi-subdomain
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
cookieDomain: .example.com # Allows cookies to be shared across all subdomains
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]

Important: The cookieDomain parameter is crucial when running behind a reverse proxy or when your application serves multiple subdomains. Without it, cookies may be created with inconsistent domains, leading to authentication issues like "CSRF token missing in session" errors.

With Multiple Middleware Instances (Session Isolation)

When running multiple middleware instances with different authorization requirements (e.g., one for general users and one for admins), you must use different cookiePrefix values to prevent session sharing between instances:

# Middleware for general user authentication
apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-userauth
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://auth.example.com
clientID: your-client-id
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: user-key-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
cookiePrefix: "_oidc_userauth_" # Unique prefix for this instance
---
# Middleware for admin authentication with stricter requirements
apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-adminauth
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://auth.example.com
clientID: your-client-id
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: admin-key-at-least-32-bytes-long # Different encryption key
callbackURL: /oauth2/admin/callback # Different callback URL
cookiePrefix: "_oidc_adminauth_" # Different prefix for isolation
allowedUsers: # Restricted to specific admin users
- admin@example.com
- superadmin@example.com

Security Note: When running multiple instances, ensure you use:

  1. Different cookiePrefix values to prevent cookie name collisions
  2. Different sessionEncryptionKey values for complete session isolation
  3. Different callbackURL paths to avoid routing conflicts

This configuration prevents authorization bypass issues where a user authenticated via the general middleware could access admin-protected routes. See issue #87 for more details.

With Extended Session Duration

For applications that users access infrequently (weekly or monthly), you can extend the session duration beyond the default 24 hours to reduce authentication friction:

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-long-session
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://auth.example.com
clientID: your-client-id
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-key-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
sessionMaxAge: 604800 # 7 days (in seconds)
# Other common values:
# 259200 - 3 days
# 604800 - 7 days
# 1209600 - 14 days
# 2592000 - 30 days

Security Note: Longer session durations improve user experience but increase security risk. Consider your application's security requirements:

  • High-security apps: Use shorter sessions (3600 = 1 hour)
  • Standard apps: Default 24 hours balances security and UX
  • Low-frequency access apps: Extend to 7-30 days for better UX

See issue #91 for more details.

With Custom Logging and Rate Limiting

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-custom-settings
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
logLevel: debug # Options: debug, info, error (default: info)
rateLimit: 500 # Requests per second (default: 100)
forceHTTPS: false # Default is true for security
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]

With Custom Post-Logout Redirect

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-custom-logout
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
postLogoutRedirectURI: /logged-out-page # Where to redirect after logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]

With Templated Headers

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-with-headers
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
headers:
# Using double curly braces to escape template expressions
- name: "X-User-Email"
value: "{{{{.Claims.email}}}}"
- name: "X-User-ID"
value: "{{{{.Claims.sub}}}}"
- name: "Authorization"
value: "Bearer {{{{.AccessToken}}}}"
- name: "X-User-Roles"
value: "{{{{range $i, $e := .Claims.roles}}}}{{{{if $i}}}},{{{{end}}}}{{{{$e}}}}{{{{end}}}}"
- name: "X-Is-Admin"
value: "{{{{if eq .Claims.role \"admin\"}}}}true{{{{else}}}}false{{{{end}}}}"

With PKCE Enabled

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-with-pkce
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
enablePKCE: true # Enables PKCE for added security
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]

Provider-Specific Configuration Examples

Google OIDC Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-google
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: your-google-client-id.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-google-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
# Note: DO NOT manually add offline_access scope for Google
# The middleware automatically handles Google-specific requirements
refreshGracePeriodSeconds: 300 # Optional: Start refresh 5 min before expiry
allowedUserDomains:
- your-gsuite-domain.com # Optional: Restrict to workspace users

Azure AD Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-azure
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://login.microsoftonline.com/your-tenant-id/v2.0
clientID: your-azure-ad-client-id
clientSecret: your-azure-ad-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # For group/role claims, configure in Azure AD Token Configuration
allowedUserDomains:
- yourcompany.com
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- "group-object-id-1" # Azure AD group Object IDs
- "AppRoleName" # Application role names

Azure AD Configuration (Users Without Email)

For Azure AD users without email addresses (service accounts, organizational accounts without mail attributes):

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-azure-no-email
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://login.microsoftonline.com/your-tenant-id/v2.0
clientID: your-azure-ad-client-id
clientSecret: your-azure-ad-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
# Use 'sub' instead of 'email' for user identification
userIdentifierClaim: sub # Can also use: "oid", "upn", "preferred_username"
overrideScopes: true # Optional: Don't request email scope if not needed
scopes:
- openid
- profile
- groups
# When using non-email identifiers, allowedUsers matches against the claim value
allowedUsers:
- "abc12345-6789-0abc-def0-123456789abc" # Azure AD user object ID
- "def67890-1234-5678-90ab-cdef12345678"
# NOTE: allowedUserDomains is ignored when userIdentifierClaim is not "email"

Note: When userIdentifierClaim is set to a non-email claim (like sub, oid, or upn), the allowedUserDomains configuration is ignored since domain-based validation only applies to email addresses. Use allowedUsers with the actual claim values instead.

Auth0 Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-auth0
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://your-auth0-domain.auth0.com
clientID: your-auth0-client-id
clientSecret: your-auth0-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
# Audience configuration for custom APIs
audience: "https://my-api.example.com" # Your API identifier from Auth0
strictAudienceValidation: true # Enforce proper audience validation
scopes:
- read:custom_data # Custom scopes as needed
# Custom claim names for Auth0 namespaced claims
roleClaimName: "https://your-app.com/roles" # Auth0 requires namespaced custom claims
groupClaimName: "https://your-app.com/groups" # Must match claims added in Auth0 Actions
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- admin # Will match "admin" in https://your-app.com/roles claim
- editor
postLogoutRedirectURI: /logged-out-page # Must be in Auth0 Allowed Logout URLs

Note: For detailed Auth0 audience configuration including opaque tokens and all security scenarios, see AUTH0_AUDIENCE_GUIDE.md.

Okta Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-okta
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://your-tenant.okta.com/oauth2/default
clientID: your-okta-client-id
clientSecret: your-okta-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- groups # Include groups in token claims
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- admin
- developer
- "Everyone" # Default Okta group

Keycloak Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-keycloak
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://your-keycloak-domain/auth/realms/your-realm
clientID: your-keycloak-client-id
clientSecret: your-keycloak-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles
- groups
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- admin
- editor
# Ensure Keycloak client mappers add necessary claims to ID Token
# For internal Keycloak deployments with private IPs (e.g., Docker network):
# allowPrivateIPAddresses: true

Internal Network Deployment: If your Keycloak runs on an internal network with private IP addresses (e.g., 192.168.x.x, 10.x.x.x, 172.16-31.x.x) and you don't have DNS resolution available, set allowPrivateIPAddresses: true to allow the plugin to connect to your Keycloak instance. See Issue #97 for details.

AWS Cognito Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-cognito
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://cognito-idp.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/us-east-1_YourUserPool
clientID: your-cognito-client-id
clientSecret: your-cognito-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- aws.cognito.signin.user.admin # Cognito-specific scope
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- admin
- user

GitLab Configuration

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-gitlab
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://gitlab.com
clientID: your-gitlab-client-id
clientSecret: your-gitlab-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- read_user
- read_api
allowedUserDomains:
- yourcompany.com

GitHub OAuth Configuration ⚠️

Warning: GitHub uses OAuth 2.0, not OpenID Connect. Use only for API access, not user authentication.

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oauth-github
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://github.com/login/oauth
clientID: your-github-client-id
clientSecret: your-github-client-secret
sessionEncryptionKey: your-secure-encryption-key-min-32-chars
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- user:email
- read:user
# Note: No ID tokens available, only access tokens for GitHub API
# No refresh tokens - users must re-authenticate when tokens expire

The middleware automatically detects each provider and applies the necessary adjustments to ensure proper authentication and token refresh.

Keeping Secrets Secret in Kubernetes

For Kubernetes environments, you can reference secrets instead of hardcoding sensitive values:

apiVersion: traefik.io/v1alpha1
kind: Middleware
metadata:
name: oidc-with-secrets
namespace: traefik
spec:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: urn:k8s:secret:traefik-middleware-oidc:ISSUER
clientID: urn:k8s:secret:traefik-middleware-oidc:CLIENT_ID
clientSecret: urn:k8s:secret:traefik-middleware-oidc:SECRET
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]

Don't forget to create the secret:

kubectl create secret generic traefik-middleware-oidc \
--from-literal=ISSUER=https://accounts.google.com \
--from-literal=CLIENT_ID=1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com \
--from-literal=SECRET=your-client-secret \
-n traefik

Complete Docker Compose Example

Here's a complete example of using the middleware with Docker Compose:

version: "3.7"
services:
traefik:
image: traefik:v3.2.1
command:
- "--experimental.plugins.traefikoidc.modulename=github.com/lukaszraczylo/traefikoidc"
- "--experimental.plugins.traefikoidc.version=v0.7.10"
volumes:
- /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
- ./traefik-config/traefik.yml:/etc/traefik/traefik.yml
- ./traefik-config/dynamic-configuration.yml:/etc/traefik/dynamic-configuration.yml
labels:
- "traefik.http.routers.dash.rule=Host(`dash.localhost`)"
- "traefik.http.routers.dash.service=api@internal"
ports:
- "80:80"
hello:
image: containous/whoami
labels:
- traefik.enable=true
- traefik.http.routers.hello.entrypoints=http
- traefik.http.routers.hello.rule=Host(`hello.localhost`)
- traefik.http.services.hello.loadbalancer.server.port=80
- traefik.http.routers.hello.middlewares=my-plugin@file
whoami:
image: jwilder/whoami
labels:
- traefik.enable=true
- traefik.http.routers.whoami.entrypoints=http
- traefik.http.routers.whoami.rule=Host(`whoami.localhost`)
- traefik.http.services.whoami.loadbalancer.server.port=8000
- traefik.http.routers.whoami.middlewares=my-plugin@file

traefik-config/traefik.yml:

log:
level: INFO
experimental:
localPlugins:
traefikoidc:
moduleName: github.com/lukaszraczylo/traefikoidc
# API and dashboard configuration
api:
dashboard: true
insecure: true
entryPoints:
http:
address: ":80"
forwardedHeaders:
insecure: true
providers:
docker:
endpoint: "unix:///var/run/docker.sock"
exposedByDefault: false
file:
filename: /etc/traefik/dynamic-configuration.yml

traefik-config/dynamic-configuration.yml:

http:
middlewares:
my-plugin:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
providerURL: https://accounts.google.com
clientID: 1234567890.apps.googleusercontent.com
clientSecret: your-client-secret
callbackURL: /oauth2/callback
logoutURL: /oauth2/logout
postLogoutRedirectURI: /logged-out-page
sessionEncryptionKey: potato-secret-is-at-least-32-bytes-long
scopes:
- roles # Appended to defaults: ["openid", "profile", "email", "roles"]
allowedUserDomains:
- company.com
allowedUsers:
- special-user@gmail.com
- contractor@external.org
allowedRolesAndGroups:
- admin
- developer
forceHTTPS: false
logLevel: debug
rateLimit: 100
excludedURLs:
- /login
- /public
- /health
- /metrics
headers:
# Using YAML literal style to prevent Traefik from pre-evaluating templates
- name: "X-User-Email"
value: |
{{.Claims.email}}
- name: "X-User-ID"
value: |
{{.Claims.sub}}
- name: "Authorization"
value: |
Bearer {{.AccessToken}}
- name: "X-User-Roles"
value: |
{{range $i, $e := .Claims.roles}}{{if $i}},{{end}}{{$e}}{{end}}

Templated Headers

The middleware supports setting custom HTTP headers with values templated from OIDC claims and tokens. This allows you to pass authentication information to downstream services in a flexible, customized format.

Templates can access the following variables:

  • {{.Claims.field}} - Access individual claims from the ID token (e.g., {{.Claims.email}}, {{.Claims.sub}})
  • {{.AccessToken}} - The raw access token string
  • {{.IdToken}} - The raw ID token string (same as AccessToken in most configurations)
  • {{.RefreshToken}} - The raw refresh token string

⚠️ Important: Template Escaping

If you encounter the error can't evaluate field AccessToken in type bool when starting Traefik, this indicates that Traefik is attempting to evaluate the template expressions before passing them to the plugin. This is a known issue when using template syntax in Traefik plugin configurations.

Solution: You must escape the template expressions using double curly braces:

headers:
- name: "Authorization"
value: "Bearer {{{{.AccessToken}}}}"

This is the only reliable method that works consistently. Here's why:

  • Double curly braces ({{{{.AccessToken}}}})

    • The YAML parser converts {{{{{{ and }}}}}}
    • Result: Bearer {{.AccessToken}} reaches the Go template engine correctly
  • Other methods (YAML literal style, single quotes) do NOT work

    • These methods don't prevent Traefik's YAML parser from interpreting the curly braces
    • The template syntax gets processed incorrectly before reaching the plugin

Working example configuration:

headers:
- name: "X-User-Email"
value: "{{{{.Claims.email}}}}"
- name: "X-User-ID"
value: "{{{{.Claims.sub}}}}"
- name: "Authorization"
value: "Bearer {{{{.AccessToken}}}}"
- name: "X-User-Name"
value: "{{{{.Claims.given_name}}}} {{{{.Claims.family_name}}}}"

Advanced template examples:

Conditional logic:

headers:
- name: "X-Is-Admin"
value: "{{{{if eq .Claims.role \"admin\"}}}}true{{{{else}}}}false{{{{end}}}}"

Array handling:

headers:
- name: "X-User-Roles"
value: "{{{{range $i, $e := .Claims.roles}}}}{{{{if $i}}}},{{{{end}}}}{{{{$e}}}}{{{{end}}}}"

Notes:

  • Variable names are case-sensitive (use .Claims, not .claims)
  • Missing claims will result in <no value> in the header value
  • The middleware validates templates during startup and logs errors for invalid templates
  • Always use double curly braces ({{{{ and }}}}) to escape template expressions in YAML configuration files

Default Headers Set for Downstream Services

When a user is authenticated, the middleware sets the following headers for downstream services:

  • X-Forwarded-User: The user's email address (always set)
  • X-User-Groups: Comma-separated list of user groups (if available)
  • X-User-Roles: Comma-separated list of user roles (if available)
  • X-Auth-Request-Redirect: The original request URI
  • X-Auth-Request-User: The user's email address
  • X-Auth-Request-Token: The user's ID token (can be large)

Minimal Headers Mode

If your downstream services return "431 Request Header Fields Too Large" errors, you can enable minimal headers mode to reduce header overhead:

http:
middlewares:
my-auth:
plugin:
traefikoidc:
minimalHeaders: true
# ... other config

When minimalHeaders: true is set:

  • Only forwards: X-Forwarded-User
  • Skips: X-Auth-Request-Token (the full ID token - often the largest header), X-Auth-Request-User, X-Auth-Request-Redirect
  • Still forwards: X-User-Groups and X-User-Roles (if configured)
  • Still processes: Custom templated headers

This is particularly useful when:

  • Your ID tokens are large (many claims, long group lists)
  • Downstream services have limited header buffer sizes (default 8KB in many servers)
  • You don't need the full token forwarded to backend services

See GitHub Issue #64 for details.

Security Headers

The middleware also sets the following security headers:

  • X-Frame-Options: DENY
  • X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff
  • X-XSS-Protection: 1; mode=block
  • Referrer-Policy: strict-origin-when-cross-origin

Provider Configuration Recommendations

Important: ID Token Validation

This Traefik OIDC plugin performs authentication and extracts user claims (like email, roles, groups) exclusively from the ID Token provided by your OIDC provider. It does not primarily use the Access Token for these critical functions. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that all necessary claims are included in the ID Token itself. A common issue is that some OIDC providers might, by default, place certain claims only in the Access Token or UserInfo endpoint.

This section provides guidance on configuring popular OIDC providers to work optimally with this plugin.

Google Workspace / Google Cloud Identity

Google's OIDC implementation is well-supported with automatic configuration.

  • Automatic Configuration: The middleware automatically detects Google and applies required settings:
    • Uses access_type=offline and prompt=consent for refresh tokens
    • Filters out unsupported offline_access scope
    • Handles Google-specific token refresh
  • Setup Requirements:
    • Create OAuth 2.0 credentials in Google Cloud Console
    • Configure OAuth consent screen (must be "Published" for production)
    • Add authorized redirect URIs
  • ID Token Claims: Google includes standard claims like email, sub, name, given_name, family_name, picture
  • Hosted Domain: For Google Workspace, the hd claim contains the organization domain
  • Best Practices: Use providerURL: https://accounts.google.com

Azure AD (Microsoft Entra ID)

Azure AD provides comprehensive enterprise OIDC support.

  • Tenant Configuration: Use tenant-specific endpoint: https://login.microsoftonline.com/{tenant-id}/v2.0
  • Group Claims: Configure in App Registration → Token Configuration → Add groups claim
  • ID Token Claims: Includes email, name, preferred_username, oid by default
  • Group Handling: Be aware of group "overage" - too many groups results in a groups claim link instead of embedded groups
  • Optional Claims: Add custom claims via Token Configuration section
  • Multi-tenant: Supports both single-tenant and multi-tenant applications

Auth0

Auth0 provides flexible OIDC with custom claims support.

  • Custom Claims: Use Auth0 Actions (recommended) or Rules to add claims to ID Token:
    // Auth0 Action example
    exports.onExecutePostLogin = async (event, api) => {
    const namespace = 'https://your-app.com/';
    if (event.authorization) {
    api.idToken.setCustomClaim(namespace + 'roles', event.authorization.roles);
    api.idToken.setCustomClaim('email', event.user.email);
    }
    };
  • Logout Configuration: Ensure postLogoutRedirectURI is in "Allowed Logout URLs"
  • Application Type: Set to "Regular Web Application" for server-side flows
  • Refresh Tokens: Automatically handled with offline_access scope

Okta

Okta provides enterprise-grade OIDC with extensive customization.

  • Application Setup: Create OIDC Web Application in Okta Admin Console
  • Authorization Server: Use default (/oauth2/default) or custom authorization server
  • Group Claims: Configure Groups claim in authorization server to include user groups
  • Scopes: Default scopes sufficient; add groups scope for group information
  • Sign-On Policy: Configure authentication policies and MFA requirements
  • Custom Claims: Add custom attributes via user profiles and authorization server claims

Keycloak

Keycloak is highly configurable, requiring proper client mapper setup.

  • Client Mappers: Essential for including claims in ID Token:
    • Email: User Property mapper for email with "Add to ID token" enabled
    • Roles: User Client Role or User Realm Role mappers with "Add to ID token" enabled
    • Groups: Group Membership mapper with "Add to ID token" enabled
  • Token Claim Names: Use mapper "Token Claim Name" in allowedRolesAndGroups configuration
  • Realm Configuration: Ensure proper realm settings and client configuration
  • Issuer URL Format: https://your-keycloak/auth/realms/your-realm
  • Troubleshooting: Verify mappers in Clients → Your Client → Mappers tab

AWS Cognito

AWS Cognito provides managed OIDC with regional deployment.

  • User Pool Setup: Create User Pool with proper app client configuration
  • App Client: Enable "Authorization code grant" and configure callback URLs
  • Regional Endpoints: Auto-detected from issuer URL format
  • Custom Attributes: Configure custom attributes and map to claims
  • Groups: Use Cognito Groups for role-based access control
  • Federation: Supports federated identity providers (SAML, social providers)

GitLab

GitLab supports OIDC for both GitLab.com and self-hosted instances.

  • Application Registration: Create in GitLab Admin Area → Applications
  • Scopes: Use openid, profile, email for basic claims
  • Self-hosted: Use your GitLab instance URL as providerURL
  • GitLab.com: Use https://gitlab.com as providerURL
  • Group Claims: May require custom configuration for group information
  • API Access: Include read_api scope for GitLab API access via access token

GitHub (OAuth 2.0 Only) ⚠️

Important: GitHub uses OAuth 2.0, not OpenID Connect.

  • OAuth App Setup: Register OAuth App in GitHub Settings → Developer settings
  • Limitations:
    • No ID tokens (access tokens only)
    • No refresh tokens (tokens expire, requiring re-authentication)
    • No standard OIDC claims
  • Use Cases: API access only, not suitable for user authentication with claims
  • Scopes: Use user:email, read:user for basic profile access
  • Detection: Auto-detected from github.com in issuer URL

Auth0

Auth0 is generally OIDC compliant and works well.

  • ID Token Claims:
    • To add custom claims or standard claims not included by default (like roles or permissions) to the ID Token, you'll need to use Auth0 Rules or Actions.
    • Using Actions (Recommended): Create a custom Action that runs after login to add claims to the ID Token. Example:
      // Auth0 Action to add email and roles to ID Token
      exports.onExecutePostLogin = async (event, api) => {
      const namespace = 'https://your-app.com/'; // Or your custom namespace
      if (event.authorization) {
      api.idToken.setCustomClaim(namespace + 'roles', event.authorization.roles);
      api.idToken.setCustomClaim('email', event.user.email); // Standard claim, ensure it's there
      // Add other claims as needed
      }
      };
    • Ensure the claims you add (e.g., https://your-app.com/roles) are then used in the plugin's allowedRolesAndGroups or headers configuration.
  • Scopes: Request appropriate scopes. You might need custom scopes if your Actions/Rules depend on them to add specific claims.
  • Endpoints: Your providerURL will be https://your-auth0-domain.auth0.com.
  • Logout: Ensure postLogoutRedirectURI is registered in your Auth0 application settings under "Allowed Logout URLs".

Generic OIDC Providers

For other OIDC providers (e.g., Okta, Zitadel, self-hosted solutions):

  • ID Token is Key: The primary requirement is that all claims needed for authentication decisions (email, roles, groups, custom attributes for headers) must be included in the ID Token.
  • Check Provider Documentation: Consult your OIDC provider's documentation on how to:
    • Configure client applications.
    • Map user attributes, roles, or group memberships to claims in the ID Token.
    • Define custom scopes if they are necessary to include certain claims.
  • Standard Endpoints: Ensure your provider exposes a standard OIDC discovery document (.well-known/openid-configuration) at the providerURL. The plugin uses this to find authorization, token, JWKS, and end_session endpoints.
  • Scopes: Always include openid in your scopes. profile and email are generally recommended. Add other scopes as required by your provider to release specific claims to the ID Token.
  • Troubleshooting: If the plugin isn't working as expected (e.g., access denied, claims missing), the first step is to decode the ID Token received from your provider (e.g., using jwt.io) to verify its contents. This will show you exactly what claims the plugin is seeing.

For common issues and general troubleshooting, please refer to the Troubleshooting section.

Troubleshooting

Logging

Set the logLevel to debug to get more detailed logs:

logLevel: debug

Common Issues

  1. Token verification failed: Check that your providerURL is correct and accessible.
  2. Session encryption key too short: Ensure your sessionEncryptionKey is at least 32 bytes long.
  3. No matching public key found: The JWKS endpoint might be unavailable or the token's key ID (kid) doesn't match any key in the JWKS.
  4. Access denied: Your email domain is not allowed: The user's email domain is not in the allowedUserDomains list.
  5. Access denied: You do not have any of the allowed roles or groups: The user doesn't have any of the roles or groups specified in allowedRolesAndGroups.
  6. "can't evaluate field AccessToken in type bool" error: This error occurs when Traefik attempts to evaluate template expressions in the headers configuration before passing them to the plugin. To fix this:
    • Use double curly braces to escape template expressions: value: "Bearer {{{{.AccessToken}}}}"
    • This is the only reliable method that works with Traefik's YAML parsing
    • See the Templated Headers section for complete examples

Provider-Specific Issues

  1. Google sessions expire after ~1 hour: If using Google as the OIDC provider and sessions expire prematurely:

    • Do NOT manually add the offline_access scope. Google rejects this scope as invalid.
    • The middleware automatically applies Google parameters (access_type=offline and prompt=consent).
    • Ensure your Google Cloud OAuth consent screen is "Published" for production.
    • "Testing" mode limits refresh token validity.
  2. Keycloak: Claims Missing from ID Token:

    • Configure client mappers to add email, roles, groups to ID Token
    • Check "Add to ID token" is enabled for all required mappers
    • Verify "Token Claim Name" matches your configuration
  3. Azure AD: Group overage issues:

    • Users with many groups may receive a groups link instead of embedded groups
    • Consider using app roles instead of groups for many-group scenarios
    • Configure group claims in App Registration → Token Configuration
  4. Auth0: Custom claims not appearing:

    • Use Auth0 Actions (not Rules) to add custom claims to ID Token
    • Ensure namespaced claims follow format: https://your-app.com/claim
    • Add claims to ID token specifically, not just access token
  5. Okta: Authorization server issues:

    • Verify using correct authorization server endpoint (/oauth2/default or custom)
    • Ensure Groups claim is configured in authorization server
    • Check application assignment and user group membership
  6. AWS Cognito: Regional endpoint errors:

    • Use correct regional endpoint format: cognito-idp.{region}.amazonaws.com
    • Verify User Pool ID is correct in issuer URL
    • Check app client has authorization code grant enabled
  7. GitLab: Self-hosted instance issues:

    • Ensure issuer URL points to your GitLab instance root
    • Verify application is created in Admin Area → Applications
    • Check redirect URI configuration matches exactly
  8. GitHub: Limited functionality warnings:

    • Remember GitHub is OAuth 2.0 only, not OIDC
    • No ID tokens available (access tokens only)
    • No refresh tokens (re-authentication required on expiry)
    • Use only for GitHub API access, not user authentication
  9. Environment variable names containing "API" cause plugin failure (Issue #98):

    • When using environment variable syntax like ${OIDC_ENCRYPTION_SECRET_API} in Traefik configuration, the plugin fails with "invalid handler type: <nil>" error
    • This is a Traefik-side issue, not a plugin bug. Traefik uses reserved environment variables starting with TRAEFIK_API_* for its internal API configuration, and the "API" substring in user-defined variable names may interfere with Traefik's environment variable processing
    • Workaround: Avoid using "API" as a substring in environment variable names. Use alternatives like:
      • ${OIDC_ENCRYPTION_SECRET_SVC} instead of ${OIDC_ENCRYPTION_SECRET_API}
      • ${OIDC_ENCRYPTION_SECRET_SERVICE}
      • ${OIDC_ENCRYPTION_SECRET_BACKEND}
      • Any name that doesn't contain the literal substring "API"

Provider Warnings and Recommendations

The middleware includes built-in warnings for provider-specific limitations. Check your logs for important notices about:

  • GitHub OAuth 2.0 limitations (no OIDC support)
  • Auth0 offline_access scope requirements
  • Keycloak URL pattern requirements
  • AWS Cognito regional endpoint requirements
  • Provider-specific setup recommendations

For detailed provider-specific guidance, see the Provider-Specific Configuration Examples section.

Recent Improvements

Security Features (v0.4.0+)

  • Security Headers: Complete security headers system with CSP, HSTS, CORS, and XSS protection
  • Multiple Security Profiles: Choose from default, strict, development, API, or custom security configurations
  • Enhanced Token Validation: Improved JWT validation with comprehensive security checks
  • Advanced Rate Limiting: Configurable rate limiting to prevent abuse

User Experience (v0.4.0+)

  • Automatic Provider Detection: Seamless configuration for major OIDC providers
  • Improved Error Handling: Better error messages and graceful degradation
  • Enhanced Session Management: More reliable session handling with automatic cleanup
  • Flexible Configuration: Expanded configuration options for different deployment scenarios

Reliability (v0.4.0+)

  • Automatic Token Refresh: Proactive token refresh to prevent authentication interruptions
  • Memory Management: Improved memory efficiency and automatic resource cleanup
  • Better Provider Support: Enhanced compatibility with provider-specific features
  • Comprehensive Testing: Extensive test coverage ensures reliability in production

Architecture Overview

Design Principles

The middleware is designed with the following principles:

  • Reliability: Automatic error recovery and graceful degradation
  • Security: Comprehensive security measures and validation
  • Performance: Efficient resource usage and caching
  • Flexibility: Extensive configuration options for different use cases
  • Compatibility: Support for all major OIDC providers with automatic detection

Key Features

  • Automatic Session Management: Handles session lifecycle, cleanup, and security
  • Provider Integration: Seamless integration with OIDC providers including auto-discovery
  • Security Integration: Built-in security headers and protection mechanisms
  • Resource Management: Efficient memory usage and automatic cleanup
  • Error Handling: Comprehensive error recovery and user-friendly error messages

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Development Guidelines

  1. Memory Management: Ensure all goroutines can be cancelled and resources are bounded
  2. Testing: Add tests for new features, including memory leak tests where appropriate
  3. Race Conditions: Run tests with -race flag to detect race conditions
  4. Documentation: Update README and .traefik.yml for any new configuration options