Primarily written in the Go programming language, Authd is an authentication service for Ubuntu 24.04 LTS that has been introduced to simplify the needs of organizations and individuals looking to use identity management services.

At launch, Authd supports OIDC, with Microsoft’s Entra ID being the first supported identity provider. As demonstrated by the screenshot above, Ubuntu was showing an authentication prompt to log in to a service equipped with Entra ID.

Authd can be used to log in through the GNOME Display Manager (GDM), or via Secure Shell (SSH). It has a modular design that makes it effortless to integrate with cloud services.

Canonical also intends to introduce more identity providers in the near future, with plans to also have a white-label OIDC provider (allows wider customization) in the mix.