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How to set up employee and Admin SSO via OIDC
How to set up employee and Admin SSO via OIDC

Step-by-step instructions for setting up SSO as a login for both employees and Admins

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Written by Cocoon Support
Updated yesterday

Important note

If you currently have Admin-only SSO enabled via Okta, you will need to update your configuration to enable SSO for employees ➡️ See here for instructions

How does SSO work with Cocoon?

Cocoon currently supports employee SSO via OpenID Connect (OIDC), and employer Admin SSO either via OIDC or Okta (instructions here for setting up Admin SSO via Okta).

Cocoon does not currently support SAML, auto-provisioning via SCIM, or auto-assignment of permissions for Employer Admin accounts.

Employee login experience with SSO

  • To register, employees will access Cocoon via your company’s unique Cocoon signup link (app.cocoon.com/COMPANY). We will verify who they are with their work email address, then prompt them to add their personal email and create a password.

    • Employees do not need to be provisioned an account

  • For all subsequent logins after registration, employees will be able to log in to Cocoon via SSO or with their personal email address and password

Admin login experience with SSO

  • Employer Admins must be invited to set up their account

  • To register, Admins will sign up with their work email and create a password

  • For all subsequent logins, Admins will be able to log in to Cocoon via SSO or via their work email address and password

Note: At this time, Admins cannot log in as both an Admin and an employee using the same email address or via SSO. We recommend Admins use SSO for their employee account and using an aliased email to create your Employer Admin account (eg: [email protected]). Cocoon is working to solve this limitation in the near future.

How to configure SSO via OIDC

Do you want to enable SSO via ADP Workforce Now® or Okta?

For generic OIDC instructions, refer to the instructions below.

Cocoon has validated OIDC SSO via these providers:

  • Okta

  • Cloudflare Access

  • OneLogin

  • Microsoft Entra ID

💡 Tip: You’ll need to copy values between Cocoon and your SSO Provider, so we recommend opening two side-by-side windows here.

Part I: Configure your SSO Provider

  1. Create a new OIDC application in your SSO provider

  2. Fill in the following information:

    1. (If available) Signout URL: https://app.cocoon.com/logout

    2. IdP-initiated login URL, which is the same as the Redirect URL. This may be in another section or tab. Format: https://app.cocoon.com/login/callback/{SSO_PROVIDER}?tenantId={ORG_NAME}

  3. Copy the Client ID, Client Secret, and Issuer URL into Cocoon as described in the section below

Part II: Configure SSO in Cocoon

Important note

If you don't see SSO available on your Cocoon Settings page, please reach out to your Customer Success Manager or [email protected].

  1. Go to the SSO Setup page:

    1. If you are an existing Cocoon customer: Click on "Settings" in the bottom of the side navbar in your Cocoon Dashboard, then choose "SSO"

    2. If you are currently onboarding: You'll see an optional task labeled "Set up SSO" in your onboarding dashboard. Click the "Start" button to see this page.

  2. Enter the SSO provider’s name or alias in the corresponding field, e.g. “OneLogin”

  3. Next, copy the “Client ID” from your SSO provider and paste it into the corresponding field in the SSO settings screen

  4. Then, copy the “Client Secret” from your SSO provider and paste it into the corresponding field in the SSO settings screen. If your provider has both a “Secret ID” and “Secret Value”, please use the “Secret Value” here.

  5. Finally, copy the “Issuer URL” from your SSO provider and paste it into the corresponding field in the SSO setting screen


How to configure OIDC SSO using Okta

  1. Log in to Okta as an administrator and select “Applications” in the navigation bar.

  2. Create a new application by selecting the "Create App Integration" button.

  3. Choose "OIDC - OpenID Connect" application:

4. On the next page, fill out the following fields:

  • For Logo, you can download the below image or see here to download as a .png

Information that needs to be configured in Cocoon

Please see Part II: Configure SSO in Cocoon above for how to input this information in Cocoon.

To find each piece of information in Okta:

  • "Client ID" and "Client Secret" are under the General tab

  • "Issuer URL" is labeled "Issuer" under the "Sign On" tab.

    • It is commonly MYCOMPANY.okta.com or a custom domain such as sso.MYCOMPANY.com.

  • SSO Provider name: Okta

NOTE: If you were previously using Admin-only SSO via Okta 👉 Once you have successfully switched your configuration, please be sure to email [email protected] to let our team know so we can turn it on for employees.

[Optional but recommended] Enable Okta-initiated logins to add Cocoon to employees' Okta login portal

  1. Edit "Login initiated by" field under "General" tab

  2. Initiate login URI: You should've received an "IdP-initiated Login URL" by Cocoon with the format of https://app.cocoon.com/login/callback/{SSO_PROVIDER}?tenantId={ORG_NAME}


Cocoon's logo (.png format)

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