ASP.NET Forms Authentication - How to Know if User Has Previously Been Authenticated

[David Krussow]

The 2nd parameter of the
[System.Web.Secu rity.FormsAuthe ntication.Redir ectFromLoginPag e(string,
bool)] method controls whether a persistent cookie is created - so that
ASP.NET can "know" if the current user has been previously authenticated
(during previous browser sessions).

My question: How can code I write elsewhere in the application retrieve that
cookie - or otherwise "know" if the current user has been authenticated? My
intent is to have some pages in the application that do not require
authentication in order to be viewed, but do display additional content only
for users who have been authenticated (during the curren session or a
previous browser session). That logic would need to somehow look for the
cookie that was created during authentication or verify that no such cookie
exists. How do I do that?

Thanks

[John Saunders]

"David Krussow" <sc******@schmu ks-r-us.com> wrote in message
news:%2******** *******@TK2MSFT NGP12.phx.gbl.. .

The 2nd parameter of the
[System.Web.Secu rity.FormsAuthe ntication.Redir ectFromLoginPag e(string,
bool)] method controls whether a persistent cookie is created - so that
ASP.NET can "know" if the current user has been previously authenticated
(during previous browser sessions).

My question: How can code I write elsewhere in the application retrieve that cookie - or otherwise "know" if the current user has been authenticated? My intent is to have some pages in the application that do not require
authentication in order to be viewed, but do display additional content only for users who have been authenticated (during the curren session or a
previous browser session). That logic would need to somehow look for the
cookie that was created during authentication or verify that no such cookie exists. How do I do that?

You don't need to do anything with the cookie.

Request.IsAuthe nticated will tell you if the current request is
authenticated.

--
John Saunders
John.Saunders at SurfControl.com

[Richard]

I'm having the same problem as stated in the start of the thread and
Request.IsAuthe nticated does not work because no methods for
authentication have been called.

My index page allows access to anonymous users via the web.config file,
but I would also like to use user-specific information on that page if
they've been there before How do I access previous presistent cookies
or tickets on a anonymous page?

For example: first, the user logs on to my site and checks "Remember my
ID" (persistent cookie). Then, they close the browser, thus ending the
session. Finally, the user comes back to the index page that users
don't have to be logged in to see, but the this user does see "you are
logged in" because their FormsAuthentica tion ticket was set to
persistent when they first logged in. In this scenario,
Request.IsAuthe nticated = false when they open the new session. If they
go to a protected page, they don't have to log in and now
Request.IsAuthe nticated = true.