Using Passports with Web-Based Applications

.NET Passport is not just about providing authentication to Web sites. Because it's an integral part of Windows .NET and the Windows Server 2003 operating system, one of the purposes of .NET Passport is to integrate with other computers, devices, and services to deliver a much richer solution for users. This integration allows .NET Passport to seamlessly work with other Web-based services and applications.

An example of .NET Passport integrating with Web-based services and applications is using .NET Passport with Outlook Web Access (OWA). OWA is a feature of Microsoft Exchange that operates as an HTTP virtual server to provide feature-rich Outlook mail client functionality through the Web. Because OWA relies on IIS, simply changing the authentication mechanism to .NET Passport allows .NET Passport to be used instead of Basic Authentication.