Chapter 3. Configuring authentication
Basic Authentication has been deprecated. If you are using Basic Authentication, you must change to one of the currently supported authenticated methods. For more information about changing from Basic Authentication to certificate-based authentication for user access, refer to How to switch from Basic Auth to Certificate Authentication for Red Hat Insights.
3.1. Authentication methods
Depending on how you use Red Hat Insights for Red Hat Enterprise Linux, you must use one of the following authentication methods:
Certificate-based authentication (CERT)
Certificate-based authentication is the default authentication method. Certificates are generated when you register a system with Red Hat Subscription Manager (RHSM), or when your system is managed by Red Hat Satellite system management. The client configuration file includes
authmethod=CERTby default. No additional configuration changes are required.Activation keys
The preferred authentication method uses activation keys, along with the Organization ID, to register a system with Red Hat hosted services such as RHSM or remote host configuration (RHC).
The activation keys for your organization are listed on the Activation Keys page in the Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console. You can use an activation key as an authentication token to register a system with Red Hat hosted services, such as Red Hat Subscription Manager (RHSM) or remote host configuration (RHC). Administrators can create, edit, and delete activation keys for your organization.
Additional resources
- Creating and managing activation keys in the Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console.
- Getting started with activation keys on the Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console
- How to switch from Basic Auth to Certificate Authentication for Red Hat Insights
- Transition of Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console APIs from basic authentication to token-based authentication via service accounts
- Creating and Managing Service Accounts
3.2. Using activation keys for authentication
An activation key is a preshared authentication token that enables authorized users to register and configure systems. It eliminates the need to store, use, and share a personal username and password combination, which increases security and facilitates automation.
You can use an activation key and a numeric organization identifier (organization ID) to register a system with Red Hat hosted services, such as Red Hat Subscription Manager (RHSM) or remote host configuration (rhc). Your organization’s activation keys and organization ID are displayed on the Activation Keys page in the Hybrid Cloud Console.
For more information about how to create and manage activation keys for your systems, see Creating and managing activation keys in the Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console.
3.3. Registering systems with Red Hat Hosted Services
After you install the Insights client, you need to register your system. This requires two steps:
- Registering with Red Hat hosted services, such as Red Hat Subscription Manager (RHSM) or remote host configuration (rhc).
- Registering the system with the Insights client
For more information about registering the system with Insights client, refer to Configuring insights-client.
Prerequisites
- Admin login access to each system
- Activation key
- Organization ID
Procedure
RHEL 7 and 8
To register a system running Red Hat Enterprise Linux version 7 or 8, use an activation key and your Organization ID to register with RHSM.
# subscription-manager register --activationkey=_activation_key_name_ --org=_organization_ID_
RHEL 9
To register a system running RHEL 9 or later, use an activation key to register with the rhc client. If you do not want to run rhc management services on your system, use the same commands for RHEL 9 systems as you would for RHEL 7 or RHEL 8.
# rhc connect --activation-key example_key --organization
Additional resources
- For more information about installing Insights, refer to Getting Started with Red Hat Insights
- For more information about the rhc client, refer to Remote Host Configuration and Management
- Getting started with activation keys on the Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console
- Creating and managing activation keys in the Red Hat Hybrid Cloud Console.
- Getting Started with RHEL System Registration
- For more information about registering the system with Insights client, refer to Configuring insights-client.
