Authentication Types

The authentication type determines how the system validates account credentials. Alloy Discovery supports both Windows and standard SQL Server authentication types.

• Windows authentication — With Windows authentication, users do not need to type in their user name and password to log on to Alloy Discovery because the system authenticates users with their current Windows credentials. This authentication method can be used in Windows domain-based networks only.

• Standard authentication — With standard SQL Server authentication, each user needs to type in a user name and password to log on to Alloy Discovery. In this case, authentication occurs by matching supplied credentials against accounts residing on the SQL server. Standard SQL Server authentication can be used in any network; the SQL Server must be configured to operate in Mixed Mode.

  NOTE: Your Microsoft SQL Server can be installed either in Mixed Mode, which supports both Windows and standard SQL Server authentication, or in Windows Authentication Mode, which supports Windows authentication only. You can always switch the authentication mode for an already installed instance of SQL Server. For details, see Installation Guide: Authentication Types.