This article contains the following:
1. Overview
2. How does SSO authentication work?
3. Single sign-on (SSO) Requirements
4. Additional SSO options
Overview
Clever single sign-on (SSO) enables users to be securely authenticated into connected applications via their Clever portals. Users log in to Clever just once with one set of credentials, or using a Clever Badge, and then click on the various app icons to be logged in automatically via SSO. Clever application partners rely on Clever's verification system of determining that a user is, indeed, who they say they are. Without Clever SSO, each application would need to maintain its own database of users and their credentials.
How does SSO authentication work?
This is what happens when a user logs in to Clever via SSO to access their connected applications:
- The user logs in to Clever via the district's Identity Provider (IDP) (e.g. Active Directory, Google, etc.) from the Clever login page.
- Clever authenticates the user through the district's IDP.
- If the user is verified, Clever creates a "token" (i.e. a piece of data) that identifies the user, and then logs them in successfully.
- The user then clicks on the appropriate application icon to open an app, and Clever provides the user's token to the app which authenticates them. This means, the user does not need to enter login credentials again.
- The user is logged into the app successfully!
The great benefit of Clever SSO is that district staff, teachers and students do not need to manage and remember multiple usernames and passwords!
Clever Tip: The Clever Portal also supports universal single sign-on for non-integrated Clever applications via SSO (Saved Passwords) authentication. Read more about this here!
Who can use single sign-on (SSO)?
The following users can access applications through Clever single sign-on (SSO):
- Students
- Teachers
- Staff
- District admins
Please note that each individual learning application determines which of the user types listed above they support. Some apps only support two or three user types.
To find out which user types are supported by an application, navigate to your district dashboard > Home page, and click on the application name to open the app overview page. If a user type is not listed under 'SSO Supported User Types', users of that type will not be able to access the application through Clever.
Single sign-on (SSO) Requirements
There are certain requirements that should be met in order to ensure a seamless Clever single sign-on (SSO) experience for users:
1. Users must have a record in Clever (via Secure Sync)
- In order for users to be able to log in, they must have an existing record in Clever. For more information on syncing rostering data to Clever, please see What is Secure Sync?
Please note: For best results, make sure that there is only one record for each user in Clever. If there are multiple records in Clever for the same user, users may not be able to log in. The only caveats to this are teachers who are also considered staff and have both a teacher and staff account in Clever, or district admins who are also teachers or staff.
2. District Portal URL
- Each district has the ability to customize a unique Clever login page URL to share with district users. This URL is a direct way for users to log in rather than navigating to Clever.com and selecting their school. Custom URLs are in the format of
https://clever.com/in/<YOUR CUSTOM SHORTNAME>(e.g. https://clever.com/in/northernschooldistrict) - Your district's Portal URL can be customized from the district dashboard > Portal > Portal Settings page in Clever. Visit this article for additional instructions.
3. Configure your Clever SSO login method (Identity Provider)
- For help determining which Identity Provider (IDP) your district should use and how to set it up, please see these articles:
4. Tech Support Contact
- To abide by Clever's stringent security and data policies, Clever support will never provide user login credentials through any of our communications channels if a district user reaches out to us direct.
- For this reason, each district should have a Tech Support contact for users to contact in the event of Clever login issues. This information can be updated from your district dashboard > Portal > SSO Settings page.
- The Tech Support contact information will be displayed in your district's 'Get help logging in' page. Please visit these articles for help troubleshooting user login issues.
Additional SSO options
Here are two additional options for utilizing Clever SSO at your district:
Allowing users to access Clever applications via your existing district portal, website or Learning Management System (LMS)
- Single sign-on (SSO) is designed to work with your existing district portal or website. You can allow users to authenticate into applications without using the Clever Portal by embedding single sign-on URLs (i.e. Instant Login Links) into your portal, website, or Learning Management System (LMS).
- For information on Instant Login Links, please visit: Single Sign-On (SSO): Instant Login links
Using the 'Log in with Clever' option
- Some applications provide a ‘Log in with Clever’ option from their website login pages and mobile apps. This option allows your users to log in to the application from the app website using their Clever credentials!
If you have any questions about Clever SSO, please reach out to Clever support! We are happy to help!