Python-GSSAPI provides both low-level and high level wrappers around the GSSAPI C libraries. While it focuses on the Kerberos mechanism, it should also be useable with other GSSAPI mechanisms.

• A working implementation of GSSAPI (such as from MIT Kerberos) which includes header files
• a C compiler (such as GCC)
• either the enum34 Python package or Python 3.4+

To compile from scratch, you will need Cython >= 0.21.1.

• the nose package (for tests)
• the shouldbe package (for tests)

$ pip install gssapi

$ git clone https://github.com/DirectXMan12/python-gssapi.git
$ python setup.py build
$ python setup.py install

The tests for for Python-GSSAPI live in gssapi.tests. In order to run the tests, you must have an MIT Kerberos installation (including the KDC). The tests create a self-contained Kerberos setup, so running the tests will not interfere with any existing Kerberos installations.

Python-GSSAPI is composed of two parts: a low-level C-style API which thinly wraps the underlying RFC 2744 methods, and a high-level, Pythonic API (which is itself a wrapper around the low-level API). Examples may be found in the examples directory.

The low-level API lives in gssapi.raw. The methods contained therein are designed to match closely with the original GSSAPI C methods. All relevant methods and classes may be imported directly from gssapi.raw. Extension methods will only be imported if they are present. The low-level API follows the given format:

• Names match the RFC 2744 specification, with the gssapi_ prefix removed
• Parameters which use C int constants as enums have enum.IntEnum classes defined, and thus may be passed either the enum members or integers
• In cases where a specific constant is passed in the C API to represent a default value, None should be passed instead
• In cases where non-integer constants would be used in the API (i.e. OIDs), enum-like objects have been defined containing named references to values specified in RFC 2744.
• Major and minor error codes are returned by raising gssapi.raw.GSSError. The major error codes have exceptions defined in in gssapi.raw.exceptions to make it easier to catch specific errors or categories of errors.
• All other relevant output values are returned via named tuples.

The high-level API lives directly under gssapi. The classes contained in each file are designed to provide a more Pythonic, Object-Oriented view of GSSAPI. The exceptions from the low-level API, plus several additional exceptions, live in gssapi.exceptions. The rest of the classes may be imported directly from gssapi. Only classes are exported by gssapi -- all functions are methods of classes in the high-level API.

Please note that QoP is not supported in the high-level API, since it has been deprecated.

In addition to RFC 2743/2744, Python-GSSAPI also has support for:

• RFC 5588 (GSS-API Extension for Storing Delegated Credentials)
• (Additional) Credential Store Extension
• Services4User
• Credentials import-export

(GitHub usernames in parentheses)

• Solly Ross (@directxman12)
• Robbie Harwood (@frozencemetery)
• Simo Sorce (@simo5)
• Hugh Cole-Baker (@sigmaris)