The SAML2 Authentication extension provides comprehensive SAML 2.0 single sign-on integration for CKAN, enabling seamless authentication through enterprise identity providers like Active Directory, Okta, Auth0, and other SAML-compliant services. This enterprise-grade extension eliminates the need for separate CKAN credentials by leveraging existing organizational identity infrastructure through secure, standardized authentication protocols. The system supports both Service Provider (SP) and Identity Provider (IdP) initiated authentication flows with automatic user provisioning, attribute mapping, and role synchronization based on SAML assertions. Advanced features include multi-tenancy support for organizations with multiple identity providers, flexible attribute mapping configurations, and integration with CKAN’s authorization system for automated permission assignment. Security enhancements provide encrypted SAML assertions, digital signature verification, and comprehensive audit logging for compliance requirements. The extension supports SAML metadata exchange, automatic certificate rotation, and federation trust management for complex multi-organization deployments. Administrative tools include IdP configuration management, user mapping diagnostics, and authentication analytics with detailed session tracking. Integration capabilities extend to external systems through SAML attribute forwarding and API authentication token generation. Essential for enterprise CKAN deployments requiring centralized identity management, government portals with federated authentication requirements, academic institutions using institutional SSO systems, and organizations where security compliance, user experience simplification, and administrative overhead reduction are critical for large-scale data portal adoption.