docs: Reject service account tokens as OAuth authentication pattern

Service account tokens (client_credentials grant) violate OAuth "act on-behalf-of"
principles and have been moved to ADR-002's "Will Not Implement" section.

## Problem Discovery

Testing revealed that service account tokens create Nextcloud user accounts
(e.g., `service-account-nextcloud-mcp-server`) due to user_oidc's bearer
provisioning feature. This violates core OAuth principles:

-  Creates stateful server identity in Nextcloud
-  All actions attributed to service account, not real user
-  Breaks audit trail and user attribution
-  Service account becomes "admin by another name"

## Changes

### Documentation (ADR-002)
- Moved service account (old Tier 1) to "Will Not Implement" section
- Added "OAuth Act On-Behalf-Of Principle" section
- Renumbered tiers:
  - Tier 1: Impersonation (NOT IMPLEMENTED)
  - Tier 2: Delegation via token exchange (IMPLEMENTED)
- Updated status to reflect rejection of service accounts

### Code Warnings
- Added comprehensive warning to KeycloakOAuthClient.get_service_account_token()
- Clarified VALID use: only as subject_token for RFC 8693 token exchange
- Clarified INVALID use: direct API access with service account token

### Supporting Documentation
- CLAUDE.md: Removed outdated "Tier 1" references, added rejection note
- oauth-impersonation-findings.md: Added prominent update banner
- audience-validation-setup.md: Updated tier numbers, added rejection note
- tests/manual/test_token_exchange.py: Added warning comment

## Valid Patterns (ADR-002)

 Foreground operations: User's access token from MCP request
 Background operations: Token exchange (impersonation/delegation)
 Offline access: Refresh tokens with user consent
 Service accounts: Creates independent server identity (REJECTED)

## Alternative

If service account pattern is truly needed, use BasicAuth mode instead of
OAuth mode. OAuth mode MUST maintain "act on-behalf-of" semantics.

Related: c12df98 (revert of service account test)

🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)

Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>
This commit is contained in:
Chris Coutinho
2025-11-02 22:03:22 +01:00
co-authored by Claude
parent ed813af45c
commit e26c5128b7
6 changed files with 102 additions and 75 deletions
+5 -3
View File
@@ -389,9 +389,11 @@ Security: Refresh tokens stored encrypted, rotated on use
## Authentication Strategies for Background Jobs
### Current Approach: Offline Access with Refresh Tokens (Tier 1)
> **Note on Service Account Tokens**: Service account tokens (`client_credentials` grant) were evaluated but **rejected** as they create Nextcloud user accounts (e.g., `service-account-{client_id}`) which violates OAuth "act on-behalf-of" principles. See ADR-002 "Will Not Implement" section for details.
The MCP server currently uses **offline_access** scope to enable background operations:
### Current Approach: Offline Access with Refresh Tokens
The MCP server uses **offline_access** scope to enable background operations:
**How it works:**
1. User grants `offline_access` scope during OAuth consent
@@ -412,7 +414,7 @@ The MCP server currently uses **offline_access** scope to enable background oper
- ⚠️ Weak audit trail - API requests appear to come from user directly
- ⚠️ No visibility that MCP Server is the actual actor
### Future Enhancement: Token Exchange with Delegation (Tier 2)
### Token Exchange with Delegation (ADR-002 Tier 2 - Implemented)
**RFC 8693 Delegation** would provide better audit trail and security: