Identity and Access Management Designer is about how people and systems prove who they are before they reach Salesforce. It is one of the more technical designer certifications, and the most common difficulty is keeping the protocols and flows straight.
What to learn
Identity fundamentals
Authentication (who you are) versus authorisation (what you may do). Identity providers and service providers, and which role Salesforce plays in a given design: it can be either.
The protocols
- SAML: the long-standing standard for single sign-on in the enterprise.
- OAuth 2.0: delegated access for apps and integrations. Learn the main flows and when each fits, such as the web server flow for apps with a server, the JWT bearer flow for server-to-server access, and the client credentials flow.
- OpenID Connect: an identity layer on top of OAuth, used for sign-in with external providers.
Salesforce identity
Single sign-on into Salesforce and from Salesforce into other apps, connected apps, multi-factor authentication, and creating users automatically at first sign-in with just-in-time provisioning.
Access management
Session security, login policies, and managing access across many apps and users.
Customers and partners
External identity for Experience Cloud sites: self-registration, social sign-on and a smooth sign-in experience for people who are not employees.
How to study it
- Draw each flow. Sketch the browser, the identity provider and the service provider, and number every redirect and token.
- Match flows to scenarios. For each OAuth flow, write one situation it fits and one it does not.
- Set up single sign-on once. Configuring it between two free orgs makes the concepts stick.
Check the official guide
Salesforce sets the exam format, passing score and price, and updates the topics over time. Read the current exam guide on Trailhead before you book.
How Arkton helps
The Identity and Access Management Designer course has 16 lessons with hands-on labs and exam preparation, about 14 hours of material, alongside the other designer certifications on the path to architect.