These instructions explain how to configure your Award Force account for SAML single sign-on (SSO) using Ping Identity as the identity provider. You’ll need an active Ping Identity account as well as an Award Force account.
Step 1: create a new application in Ping Identity
- Log in to your Ping Identity account
- In the main menu, go to Applications > Applications
- Click the + icon at the top to create a new application
- Enter a Name for the application
- Select SAML Application from the list of application types, then click Save
Step 2: enter application metadata
- Select Manually enter for the application metadata
- Complete the input fields as follows, replacing {YOUR AWARD FORCE URL} with your program’s Award Force URL:
- ACS URLs: https://{YOUR AWARD FORCE URL}/saml/callback
-
Entity ID: https://{YOUR AWARD FORCE URL}/saml/metadata
- Click Save
Step 3: copy SSO details to Award Force
In the 'Overview' section of Ping Identity, download the certificate and locate the Issuer and Single sign-on URL values. You’ll need these for Award Force.
- Log in to Award Force
- In the Manage workspace, go to Settings > Users > Registration
- Copy the following details from Ping Identity into the corresponding fields in Award Force:
- Issuer
- SSO service URL
- Certificate
Step 4: configure NameID settings
- Return to Ping Identity:
- Go to Configuration and click the edit icon.
- Under Subject NameID format, select urn:oasis:names:tc:SAML:2.0:nameid-format:persistent
- Select the persistent NameID option
- Click Save
Step 5: add attribute mappings
- In Ping Identity, go to Attribute mappings
- Add the following mappings exactly as shown:
| Attribute name | Mapped to |
| Email address | |
| firstName | Given name |
| lastName | Family name |
The attribute names—email, firstName, and lastName—must match exactly, including capitalisation. These values are sent to Award Force to validate each user’s identity.
Step 6: enable the application
Finally, switch the toggle on in Ping Identity to enable your SAML application.
Good to know
- Only one SAML SSO provider can be active in Award Force at a time.
- Ensure that your certificate in Award Force remains current—expired certificates will prevent user authentication.
- Test your SSO setup with a single user before rolling it out to all users.