Method and system of federated authentication service for interacting between agent and client and communicating with other components of the system to choose an appropriate mechanism for the subject from among the plurality of authentication mechanisms wherein the subject is selected from humans, client applications and applets

A method for authenticating a subject residing in a subject domain on a network to a server application residing in a server domain on the network, wherein a plurality of authentication mechanisms are present in an authentication domain on the network to affect the service provided by the server application, the method comprising the steps:

• (a) gathering subject credentials for the subject and communicating said subject credentials to a protocol proxy;
• (b) authenticating the subject to said protocol proxy with a client integrated into the subject by providing subject credentials on behalf of the subject, wherein the subject is selected from humans, client applications and applets;
• (c) interacting between said client and an agent to chose an appropriate authentication mechanism for the subject from among the plurality of authentication mechanisms, wherein said agent resides in an agent domain on the network;
• (d) obtaining a name assertion from said protocol proxy via said appropriate authentication mechanism which will allow said client to access the server application, thereby mediating between said protocol proxy and said appropriate authentication mechanism to permit the subject to access the server application via said client;
• (e) creating an authentication name assertion with said protocol proxy based on said subject credentials which will allow said client to access the server application;
• (f) communicating said authentication name assertion to said client;
• and
• (e) communicating said authentication name assertion to the server application.