Devise vs Keycloak: What are the differences?
Introduction
In the world of web development, user authentication and authorization are crucial aspects. Devise and Keycloak are two popular tools that provide authentication and authorization solutions, but they have some key differences. In this article, we will explore 6 major differences between Devise and Keycloak.
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Technology Stack: Devise is a Ruby gem that provides authentication solutions specifically for Ruby on Rails applications. It leverages the power of Ruby and integrates seamlessly with Rails frameworks. On the other hand, Keycloak is a standalone open-source Identity and Access Management system built on Java and maintained by Red Hat. It is designed to work with a variety of programming languages and platforms, offering a more broad and flexible solution.
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Architecture and Complexity: Devise is a lightweight library that can be easily integrated into an existing Ruby on Rails application. It follows a more monolithic architecture where the authentication logic is tightly coupled with the application code. In contrast, Keycloak is a standalone service with its own server, database, and APIs. It follows a more microservices-oriented architecture where the authentication and authorization capabilities are decoupled from the application, allowing for greater scalability and modularity.
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Integration and Ecosystem: Devise has a strong integration with Ruby on Rails and benefits from the vast ecosystem of Ruby gems and plugins. It provides easy-to-use features like email confirmation, password resetting, and remember me functionality out of the box. Keycloak, on the other hand, offers integration with various programming languages and frameworks through its RESTful APIs. It comes with a rich set of features for authentication, authorization, and user management, making it suitable for enterprise-level applications.
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Single Sign-On (SSO) and Social Logins: Devise does not provide built-in support for Single Sign-On (SSO) or social logins. If you want to enable such functionality, you would need to use additional gems or implement custom solutions. Keycloak, on the other hand, offers seamless integration with various SSO protocols like OpenID Connect and SAML, allowing users to authenticate once and access multiple applications. It also supports social logins with popular identity providers like Google, Facebook, and GitHub.
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Scalability and High Availability: Devise relies on the Rails framework for scalability and high availability. It can be horizontally scaled by adding more servers to handle increased traffic. Keycloak, on the other hand, is built to be highly scalable and can be clustered for horizontal scalability. It supports running multiple instances in a cluster, allowing for a distributed and fault-tolerant setup.
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Administration and User Management: Devise mainly focuses on the authentication aspect, offering basic user management functionality. It does not provide a dedicated user management interface or advanced administrative features out of the box. Keycloak, on the other hand, provides a web-based administration console where administrators can manage users, roles, permissions, and other aspects of the system. It offers fine-grained access control and allows for delegation of administration tasks.
In summary, Devise and Keycloak differ in their technology stack, architecture, integration, support for SSO and social logins, scalability, and administration capabilities. While Devise is more specific to Ruby on Rails applications and offers simplicity and ease of integration, Keycloak provides a broader solution with extensive features and flexibility for various programming languages and platforms.
