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| 1 | +# MSI v2 mTLS End-to-End in Python — Summary |
| 2 | + |
| 3 | +## Problem |
| 4 | + |
| 5 | +MSAL Python's MSI v2 flow acquires an `mtls_pop` token bound to a KeyGuard-protected certificate. After token acquisition, the calling app needs to present the **same certificate** over mTLS when calling the resource (e.g., Azure Key Vault). |
| 6 | + |
| 7 | +In .NET, this is transparent — `X509Certificate2` wraps both the cert and the CNG key reference, and `HttpClient` + SChannel handles mTLS natively. The caller just does: |
| 8 | + |
| 9 | +```csharp |
| 10 | +var handler = new HttpClientHandler { |
| 11 | + ClientCertificates = { result.BindingCertificate } |
| 12 | +}; |
| 13 | +var client = new HttpClient(handler); |
| 14 | +``` |
| 15 | + |
| 16 | +**Python cannot do this.** Python's HTTP libraries (`requests`, `httpx`, `urllib3`) all use **OpenSSL** for TLS, which requires the private key as exportable bytes. A KeyGuard key is **non-exportable by design** — OpenSSL cannot access it. |
| 17 | + |
| 18 | +## Solution |
| 19 | + |
| 20 | +MSAL Python provides `mtls_http_request()` — a helper that uses **WinHTTP/SChannel** (the Windows-native TLS stack) via ctypes to make mTLS resource calls. SChannel can access the non-exportable KeyGuard key natively, just like .NET does. |
| 21 | + |
| 22 | +```python |
| 23 | +from msal.msi_v2 import mtls_http_request |
| 24 | + |
| 25 | +result = client.acquire_token_for_client( |
| 26 | + resource="https://vault.azure.net", |
| 27 | + mtls_proof_of_possession=True, |
| 28 | + with_attestation_support=True, |
| 29 | +) |
| 30 | + |
| 31 | +cert_der = base64.b64decode(result["cert_der_b64"]) |
| 32 | +resp = mtls_http_request( |
| 33 | + "GET", |
| 34 | + "https://tokenbinding.vault.azure.net/secrets/boundsecret/?api-version=2015-06-01", |
| 35 | + cert_der, |
| 36 | + headers={ |
| 37 | + "Authorization": f"{result['token_type']} {result['access_token']}", |
| 38 | + "Accept": "application/json", |
| 39 | + "x-ms-tokenboundauth": "true", |
| 40 | + }, |
| 41 | +) |
| 42 | +``` |
| 43 | + |
| 44 | +## Why Python Needs a Helper (and .NET Doesn't) |
| 45 | + |
| 46 | +| | .NET | Python | |
| 47 | +|---|---|---| |
| 48 | +| TLS stack | SChannel (Windows native) | OpenSSL | |
| 49 | +| Can access non-exportable CNG keys | ✅ via `X509Certificate2` | ❌ Not possible | |
| 50 | +| Standard HTTP client works for mTLS | ✅ `HttpClient` + `ClientCertificates` | ❌ `requests`/`httpx` cannot use KeyGuard keys | |
| 51 | +| Solution | Platform gives it for free | `mtls_http_request()` bridges the gap via WinHTTP/SChannel | |
| 52 | + |
| 53 | +## Key Technical Findings |
| 54 | + |
| 55 | +During development, three requirements were discovered for mTLS resource calls: |
| 56 | + |
| 57 | +1. **`x-ms-tokenboundauth: true` header** — Required by Azure Key Vault. This header triggers the server to request the client certificate via TLS renegotiation. Without it, the server never asks for the cert. Discovered from the [.NET E2E test](https://github.com/AzureAD/microsoft-authentication-library-for-dotnet/blob/main/tests/Microsoft.Identity.Test.E2e/ManagedIdentityImdsV2Tests.cs). |
| 58 | + |
| 59 | +2. **HTTP/1.1 (not HTTP/2)** — TLS renegotiation (needed for the server to request the client cert after seeing the header) is forbidden in HTTP/2. HTTP/1.1 must be used for the resource call. |
| 60 | + |
| 61 | +3. **TLS 1.2** — TLS renegotiation for client certificates works reliably in TLS 1.2. TLS 1.3 uses post-handshake authentication which WinHTTP may not fully support. |
| 62 | + |
| 63 | +## Auth Result Fields |
| 64 | + |
| 65 | +```python |
| 66 | +{ |
| 67 | + "access_token": "eyJ...", |
| 68 | + "token_type": "mtls_pop", |
| 69 | + "expires_in": 86399, |
| 70 | + "cert_pem": "-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----\n...", |
| 71 | + "cert_der_b64": "MIID...", |
| 72 | + "cert_thumbprint_sha256": "abc123...", |
| 73 | + "key_name": "MsalMsiV2Key_caf87a12-..." |
| 74 | +} |
| 75 | +``` |
| 76 | + |
| 77 | +## Architecture Comparison |
| 78 | + |
| 79 | +``` |
| 80 | +.NET E2E Flow: |
| 81 | + MSAL.NET → mtls_pop token + X509Certificate2 (wraps CNG key) |
| 82 | + ↓ |
| 83 | + HttpClient + SChannel → mTLS to Key Vault ← platform-native, no helper needed |
| 84 | +
|
| 85 | +Python E2E Flow: |
| 86 | + MSAL Python → mtls_pop token + cert PEM/DER (no private key access) |
| 87 | + ↓ |
| 88 | + mtls_http_request() → WinHTTP/SChannel via ctypes → mTLS to Key Vault |
| 89 | + (helper needed because OpenSSL cannot access non-exportable KeyGuard keys) |
| 90 | +``` |
| 91 | + |
| 92 | +## Status |
| 93 | + |
| 94 | +- ✅ Token acquisition works (mtls_pop token with KeyGuard attestation) |
| 95 | +- ✅ Certificate binding verified (cnf.x5t#S256 matches) |
| 96 | +- ✅ mTLS resource call presents certificate (confirmed by matching .NET's error) |
| 97 | +- ⏳ AKV end-to-end blocked on service-side issue ("Certificate import or verification failed" — same error in both .NET and Python) |
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