Linking user accounts to employees
The main feature of One Identity Manager is to map employees together with the master data and permissions available to them in different target systems. To achieve this, information about user accounts and permissions can be read from the target system into the One Identity Manager database and linked to employees. This provides an overview of the permissions for each employee in all of the connected target systems. One Identity Manager offers the option of managing user accounts and their permissions. You can provision modifications in the target systems. Employees are supplied with the necessary permissions in the connected target systems according to their function in the company. Regular synchronization keeps data consistent between target systems and the One Identity Manager database.
Because requirements vary between companies, One Identity Manager offers different methods for supplying user accounts to employees. One Identity Manager supports the following methods for linking employees and their user accounts:
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Employees can automatically obtain their account definitions using user account resources. If an employee does not yet have a user account in an Active Directory domain, a new user account is created. This is done by assigning account definitions to an employee using the integrated inheritance mechanism and subsequent process handling.
When you manage account definitions through user accounts, you can specify the way user accounts behave when employees are enabled or deleted.
- When user accounts are inserted, they can be automatically assigned to an existing employee or a new employee can be created if necessary. In the process, the employee master data is created on the basis of existing user account master data. This mechanism can be implemented if a new user account is created manually or by synchronization. However, this is not the One Identity Manager default method. You must define criteria for finding employees for automatic employee assignment.
- Employees and user accounts can be entered manually and assigned to each other.
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Supported user account types
Different types of user accounts, such as default user accounts, administrative user accounts, service accounts, or privileged user accounts, can be mapped in One Identity Manager.
The following properties are used for mapping different user account types.
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Identity
The Identity property (IdentityType column) is used to describe the type of user account.
Table 32: Identities of user accounts
| Primary identity |
Employee's default user account. |
Primary |
| Organizational identity |
Secondary user account used for different roles in the organization, for example for subcontracts with other functional areas. |
Organizational |
| Personalized admin identity |
User account with administrative permissions, used by one employee. |
Admin |
| Sponsored identity |
User account that is used for a specific purpose, such as training. |
Sponsored |
| Shared identity |
User account with administrative permissions, used by several employees. |
Shared |
| Service identity |
Service account. |
Service |
NOTE: To enable working with identities for user accounts, the employees also need identities. You can only link user accounts to which an identity is assigned with employees who have this same identity.
The primary identity, the organizational identity, and the personalized admin identity are used for different user accounts, which can be used by the same actual employee to perform their different tasks within the company.
To provide user accounts with a personalized admin identity or an organizational identity for an employee, you create subidentities for the employee. These subidentities are then linked to user accounts, enabling you to assign the required permissions to the different user accounts.
User accounts with a sponsored identity, group identity, or service identity are linked to dummy employees that do not refer to a real person. These dummy employees are needed so that permissions can be inherited by the user accounts. When evaluating reports, attestations, or compliance checks, check whether dummy employees need to be considered separately.
For detailed information about mapping employee identities, see the One Identity Manager Identity Management Base Module Administration Guide.
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Privileged user account
Privileged user accounts are used to provide employees with additional privileges. This includes administrative user accounts or service accounts, for example. The user accounts are labeled with the Privileged user account property (IsPrivilegedAccount column).
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Default user accounts
Normally, each employee obtains a default user account, which has the permissions they require for their regular work. The user accounts are linked to the employee. The effect of the link and the scope of the employee’s inherited properties on the user accounts can be configured through an account definition and its manage levels.
To create default user accounts through account definitions
- Create an account definition and assign the Unmanaged and Full managed manage levels.
- Specify the effect of temporarily or permanently disabling, deleting, or the security risk of an employee on its user accounts and group memberships for each manage level.
- Create a formatting rule for IT operating data.
You use the mapping rule to define which rules are used to map the IT operating data for the user accounts, and which default values are used if no IT operating data can be determined through a person's primary roles.
Which IT operating data is required depends on the target system. The following setting are recommended for default user accounts:
- In the mapping rule for the IsGroupAccount column, use the default value 1 and enable the Always use default value option.
- In the mapping rule for the IdentityType column, use the default value Primary and enable Always use default value.
- Enter the effective IT operating data for the target system. Select the concrete target system under Effects on.
Specify in the departments, cost centers, locations, or business roles that IT operating data should apply when you set up a user account.
- Assign the account definition to employees.
When the account definition is assigned to an employee, a new user account is created through the inheritance mechanism and subsequent processing.
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Administrative user accounts
An administrative user account must be used for certain administrative tasks. Administrative user accounts are usually predefined by the target system and have fixed names and login names, such as Administrator.
Administrative user accounts are imported into One Identity Manager during synchronization.
NOTE: Some administrative user accounts can be automatically identified as privileged user accounts. To do this, in the Designer, enable the Mark selected user accounts as privileged schedule.
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