SAP Enterprise Portal
Enterprise Portal 6.0 SP2 Security Guide
Authentication provides a way of verifying the users identity before he or she is granted access to the portal. Once the user has been authenticated, he or she is issued a SAP logon ticket that allows him or her to access all the applications, information and services in SAP Enterprise Portal using Single Sign-On. Since many of these applications may contain sensitive data, it is imperative that the user in question can be identified and this identity authenticated.