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Two-Factor Authentication (2FA/MFA) for Cisco AnyConnect

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Cisco AnyConnect is a uniform security endpoint agent which delivers multiple security services to protect the enterprise. Also, it provides visibility along with the control which is required you to identify who and which devices are accessing the extended enterprise. You can enable Two-Factor Authentication(2FA) for your Cisco AnyConnect Managed AD directory to increase security level. When you enable 2FA, your users enter their username and password (first factor) as usual, and they have to enter an authentication code (the second factor) which will be shared on your virtual or hardware 2FA solution to get access to Cisco AnyConnect VPN.

Types of 2FA Authentication with RADIUS

The 2-factor authentication can be of two types depending on the VPN clients.

• VPN Clients that support RADIUS Challenge.
• VPN Clients that do not support RADIUS Challenge.

miniOrange 2FA authentication for Cisco AnyConnect VPN Login

miniOrange accomplishes this by acting as a RADIUS server that accepts the username/password of the user entered as a RADIUS request and validates the user against the user store as Active Directory (AD). After the first level of authentication, miniOrange prompts the user with 2-factor authentication and either grants/revokes access based on the input by the user.

1. Primary authentication initiates with the user submitting his Username and Password for Cisco AnyConnect VPN.
2. User request acts as an authentication request to RADIUS Server(miniOrange).
3. miniOrange RADIUS server passes user credentials to validate against the credentials stored in AD (Active Directory) / Database.
4. Once the user's first level of authentication gets validated AD sends the confirmation to RADIUS Server.
5. Now miniOrange RADIUS Server asks for a 2-factor authentication challenge to the user.
6. Here user submits the response/code which he receives on his hardware/phone.
7. User response is checked at miniOrange’s RADIUS Server side.
8. On successful 2nd factor authentication the user is granted access to login.

What are different 2FA/MFA methods for Cisco AnyConnect VPN supported by miniOrange?

miniOrange provides 15+ 2FA/MFA authentication methods for Cisco AnyConnect VPN: OTP over SMS-Email, Push Notification, Software Token, Google / Microsoft Authenticator etc. You can opt for any of the 2FA methods to secure your Cisco AnyConnect VPN. To integrate 2FA, you can enable RADIUS authentication in Cisco AnyConnect VPN and configure policies in miniOrange to enable or disable 2FA for users.

Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)/MFA for Cisco AnyConnect VPN Client to extend security level.

1. Add the Radius Client in miniOrange

• Login into miniOrange Admin Console.
• Go to Apps >> Manage Apps. Click on Add Application button.



• Choose RADIUS as Application type and click on Create App button.



• Click on Cisco AnyConnect VPN application tab. If you don't find your application click on Radius Client application tab.



• Configure the below details to add Radius Client.

Client Name:	Any name for your reference.
Client IP:	IP address of VPN server which will send Radius authentication request.
Shared Secret:	Security key. For Eg. "sharedsecret" (Keep this with you, you will need to configure same on VPN Server).
Include Password & OTP in same Request	Check this option for clients which takes password and the OTP in same request. Otherwise keep it unchecked.
Send Groups in Response	Enable this to send user groups as Vendor-Specific Group Attributes.

• Configure the following Policy details for the Radius Client.

Group Name:	Group for which the policy will apply.
Policy Name:	Any Identifier that specifies policy name.
Login Method	Login Method for the users associated with this policy.
Enable 2-Factor Authentication	Enables Second Factor during Login for users associated with this policy.
Enable Adaptive Authentication	Enables Adaptive Authentication for Login of users associated with this policy.

• After configuring the given above details, Click on Save button.




NOTE: For On-Premise version follow the below steps before testing the connectivity.



Only For On-Premise Version

Step 1: Open Firewall Ports.

• In order to receive the RADIUS request, it is necessary to open UDP traffic on ports 1812 and 1813 for the machine where On-Premise IdP is deployed.
• If the hosting machine is a Windows Machine then you can follow this document.
• If the hosting machine is a Linux Machine then you can follow this document.

NOTE: If your machine is hosted on AWS, then enable the ports from the AWS panel.

2. Configure Cisco AnyConnect VPN

• Login to Cisco ASA via ASDM.
• Navigate to Configuration >>> Remote Access VPN
• In the Remote Access VPN navigation tree, under AAA/Local Users click AAA Server Groups >>> Add.



• The Add AAA Server Group dialog box opens.



• Enter a name for the AAA server group and set the Protocol to RADIUS.

Property	Explanation
Accounting Mode	Indicates how accounting messages are sent. Recommended single mode.
Reactivation Mode	Specifies the method by which failed servers are reactivated.
Dead Time	Time for which a RADIUS server is skipped over by transaction requests
Max Failed Attempts	Maximum number of retransmission attempts. Recommended 1.

• In the AAA Server Groups pane, select the server group that you just created.
• In the Servers in the Selected Group pane, click Add.



• The Add AAA Server dialog box opens




Property	Explanation	Example
Interface Name	Name of protected Cisco interface.	inside
Server IP	For on-premise version: IP of server where IDP(miniOrange) is installed For cloud version: Contact us at info@xecurify.com to get the IP
Timeout	Authentication timeout.	60
Server Authentication Port	RADIUS authentication port.	It should be 1812
Server Accounting Port	RADIUS accounting port	It should be 1813
Retry Interval	Length of time between retries	30
Server Secret Key	It shared between the miniOrange RADIUS Connector and its client	"sharedsecret"
Microsoft CHAPv2 Capable	Whether or not the RADIUS server uses CHAPv2.	It should be unchecked

• Navigate to Configuration >> Clientless SSL VPN Access >> Connection Profiles.
• From Connection Profiles, click Add or Edit.
• The Add Clientless SSL VPN Connection Profile dialog box opens.



• Add a relevant server name and choose Authnetication method to be "AAA".
• For the AAA Server Group select group made in the earlier steps.
• Click on Ok .

3. Configure VPN Network Client Profile

• Navigate to Configuration >>> Remote Access VPN
• In the Remote Access VPN navigation tree, under Network (Client) Access click on AnyConnect Client Profile.
• Click to Add a new or Edit an existing Client Profile.





• Configure the profile as preferred




• In the sidebar, click on Preferences(Cont)/Preferences(Part 2) and scroll down then enter 60 for Authentication Timeout Values (or 10 seconds longer than the AAA RADIUS server timeout and 20 seconds longer than the LoginTC RADIUS Connector Request Timeout)
.



• Click on Ok .
• In the sidebar, click on Server List >> Add to add a server.




• Enter the FQDN of your Cisco ASA VPN exposed end-point in the Hostname and a hostname or IP Address in the Host Address then click on ok .



• Click on Apply.

4. Configure Your User Directory

• Setup AD as User Directory
• Setup miniOrange as Identity Provider

• Log in to miniOrange Admin Console.
• From the left side menu, click on User Stores >> Add User Store.



• Select User Store type as AD/LDAP.



1. STORE LDAP CONFIGURATION IN MINIORANGE: Choose this option if you want to keep your configuration in miniOrange. If active directory is behind a firewall, you will need to open the firewall to allow incoming requests to your AD.
2. STORE LDAP CONFIGURATION ON PREMISE: Choose this option if you want to keep your configuration in your premise and only allow access to AD inside premises. You will have to download and install miniOrange gateway in your premise.




• Enter LDAP Display Name and LDAP Identifier name.
• Select Directory Type as Active Directory.
• Enter the LDAP Server URL or IP Address against LDAP Server URL field.
• Click on Test Connection button to verify if you have made a successful connection with your LDAP server.



• In Active Directory, go to the properties of user containers/OU's and search for Distinguished Name attribute.



• Enter the valid Bind account Password.
• Click on Test Bind Account Credentials button to verify your LDAP Bind credentials for LDAP connection.



• Search Base is the location in the directory where the search for a user begins. You will get this from the same place you got your Distinguished name.



• Select a suitable Search filter from the drop down menu. To use custom Search Filter select "Custom Search Filter" option and customize it accordingly.



• You can also configure following options while setting up AD. Enable Activate LDAP in order to authenticate users from AD/LDAP. Click on the Save button to add user store.




Here's the list of the attributes and what it does when we enable it. You can enable/disable accordingly.

Attribute	Description
Activate LDAP	All user authentications will be done with LDAP credentials if you Activate it
Sync users in miniOrange	Users will be created in miniOrange after authentication with LDAP
Backup Authentication	If LDAP credentials fail then user will be authenticated through miniOrange
Allow users to change password	This allows your users to change their password. It updates the new credentials in your LDAP server
Enable administrator login	On enabling this, your miniOrange Administrator login authenticates using your LDAP server
Show IdP to users	If you enable this option, this IdP will be visible to users
Send Configured Attributes	If you enable this option, then only the attributes configured below will be sent in attributes at the time of login



• Click on Save. After this, it will show you the list of User stores. Click on Test Configuration to check whether you have enter valid details. For that, it will ask for username and password.



• On Successful connection with LDAP Server, a success message is shown.
• Click on Test Attribute Mapping.



• Enter a valid Username. Then, click on Test. Mapped Attributes corresponding to the user are fetched.



• After successful Attribute Mapping Configuration, go back to the ldap configuration and enable Activate LDAP in order to authenticate users from AD/LDAP.

Refer our guide to setup LDAPS on windows server.

• Log in to miniOrange Admin Console.
• Go to Userstore >> Add Userstore.



• Select Userstore type as miniOrange and click on Add miniOrange Identity Source.



• Once done with adding Identity Source, make it default by clicking on Select against the recently added miniOrange Identity Source.
  
  
  
• There are 3 ways to add users in miniOrange:

1. Create User in miniOrange

2. Bulk Upload Users

3. Self User Registration

1. Create User in miniOrange

• Click on Users >> Add User.



• Here, fill the user details without the password and then click on the Create User button.



• After successful user creation a notification message "An end user is added successfully" will be displayed at the top of the dashboard.



• Click on On Boarding Status tab. Check the email, with the registered e-mail id and select action Send Activation Mail with Password Reset Link from Select Action dropdown list and then click on Apply button.



• Now, Open your email id. Open the mail you get from miniOrange and then click on the link to set your account password.
• On the next screen, enter the password and confirm password and then click on the Single Sign-On (SSO) reset password button.



• Now, you can log in into miniOrange account by entering your credentials.

2. Bulk Upload Users in miniOrange via Uploading CSV File.

• Navigate to Users >> User List. Click on Add User button.



• In Bulk User Registration Download sample csv format from our console and edit this csv file according to the instructions.



• To bulk upload users, choose the file make sure it is in comma separated .csv file format then click on Upload.



• After uploading the csv file successfully, you will see a success message with a link.
• Click on that link you will see list of users to send activation mail. Select users to send activation mail and click on Send Activation Mail. An activation mail will be sent to the selected users.

3. Self User Registration

• miniOrange self user registration allows end users to register themselves using customized registration form. miniOrange admin users can customize the registration form by adding more custom fields according to their choice. Follow the miniOrange guide to customize user self registration page.

5. User Import and Provisioning

• Go to Settings in the Customer Admin Account.



• Enable the "Enable User Auto Registration" option and click Save.



• (Optional) To send a welcome email to all the end users that will be imported, enable the "Enable sending Welcome Emails after user registration" option and click Save.



• From the Left-Side menu of the dashboard select Provisioning.



• In Setup Provisioning tab select Active Directory in the Select Application Drop Down.
• Toggle the Import Users tab, click on Save button.



• On the same section, switch to Import Users section.
• Select Active Directory from the dropdown and click on the Import Users tab, to import all the users from Active Directory to miniOrange.



• You can view all the Users you have imports by selecting Users >> User List from Left Panel.



• All the imported users will be auto registered.
• These groups will be helpful in adding multiple 2FA policies on the applications.

6. Creating User Groups (Recommended)

• AD user group
• miniOrage user group

• This step involves Importing the user group from the Active Directory and Provisioning them.
• Go to Provisioning. Switch to Setup Provisioning tab and select Active Directory from Dropdown menu.



• Select Group Provisioning/Deprovisioning tab, and toggle on Import Group option.
• If you want to dynamically allocate users to the groups present in the miniOrange, then enable "Assign Users to groups"
• Enter the Base DN for group sync and click Save.



• Now switch to Import Groups option and select Active Directory from which you want to import your users.
• Finally, click on Import button. Your group will be imported.




(The Active Directory Group Provisioning (Sync) setup is done. Now, whenever a user is created or modified in LDAP server and if the Assign Users to groups is enabled, then user group attribute from the LDAP server will be automatically synced and the user group will be assigned or changed accordingly in miniOrange.)

• Select Groups >> Manage Groups from left panel.
• Click on the Create Group button on the top.



• Enter an appropriate Group Name and click on Create Group.



• In this guide we have created a Group by name VPN_Group.
• Assign various members to the group using the Assign User option associated with the group in the groups list.



• Select the Users that are required to be assigned to this group. Then Select Assign to Group in Select Action Dropdown and click on Apply button.



• These groups will be helpful in adding multiple 2FA policies on the applications.

7. Configure 2FA/MFA for End-Users

• To enable 2FA/MFA for Cisco AnyConnect VPN endusers, go to 2-Factor Authentication >> 2FA for end users.
• Select default Two-Factor authentication method for end users. You can select particular 2FA methods, which you want to show on the end users dashboard.
• Once Done with the settings, click on Save to configure your 2FA settings.



• Login into your End-User Dashboard using end user login URL.
• For Cloud Version: The Login URL for end users will be available after setting up Organisation name.

(You can follow these steps and use the login URL present in the Branding section.)




• For On-Premise version: The Login URL will be the same as of Admin Login URL.
• Select Configure 2FA from left panel.
• Browse through the Second factor options and choose an appropriate method to be used by the particular End-User during login.
• For now, we have selected the "OTP OVER SMS"as our 2FA method. You can explore the guide to setup other 2FA methods here.
• Click on Configure/Reconfigure "OTP OVER SMS".



• Enter you Phone Number along with the necessary country code and click on the SAVE below.



• After the Phone details are saved successfully, click on the Save button on the top bar to set this as your 2FA method.
• Currently used method is represented by green color.



• To use a particular method of 2FA, we configure that method first and then select the method and click on SAVE.
• Admin can change the second factor of the End user from the User List.



• Under Action Click on Select and then select Reset Second Factor.

8. Add Another Policy (Optional)

• Here, we will configure a policy for the User Group that we created in the Step 6 and associate it with the Cisco AnyConnect VPN VPN Application.
• Click on Policies tab >> App Login Policy.



• Click on Add Policy tab.
• In Application section, select the RADIUS App that we configured earlier in Step 1.
• Select the required User Group in Group Name and enter the Policy name.
• In this guide, we will configure a Password Only policy for "VPN_Group", so that only the VPN_Group members can access VPN Services without a Second Factor.
• Once done with the policy settings, click on Save to Add Policy.

9. Test 2FA for Cisco AnyConnect Login

• Connect to Cisco Cisco AnyConnect.
• Enter Username, Password and 2FA code.

With the help of this guide you will be able to configure Two-Factor Authentication(2FA) for Cisco AnyConnect VPN Client Login.

Further References

• Multi-Factor authentication
• Configure Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client
• Adaptive Multi-Factor authentication