RE: [saml-dev] Quick question about AttributeValue

[Hal Lockhart <hal.lockhart@oracle.com>]

I have seen deployments where the mere existence of an Attribute with no values was used to indicate something about the Subject.

Hal

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Cantor, Scott [mailto:cantor.2@osu.edu]
> Sent: Wednesday, June 04, 2014 3:13 PM
> To: Nate Klingenstein; saml-dev@lists.oasis-open.org
> Subject: Re: [saml-dev] Quick question about AttributeValue
> 
> On 6/4/14, 3:02 PM, "Nate Klingenstein" <ndk@internet2.edu> wrote:
> 
> >Hi all,
> >
> >It looks like the specification explicitly goes out of its way to
> >permit attributes with zero values, e.g. an <AttributeValue/> element
> >(core, 2.7.3.1/2.7.3.1.1).  What was the rationale for this?
> 
> That's not zero values, that's an empty value. And an xsi:nil is an
> explicitly null value. Neither is the same as saying "no values", which
> is just the absence of any elements.
> 
> The rationale was simply that people wouldn't agree to restrict it. I
> personally would have barred empty or null because there's no case I've
> ever encountered where it does anything but create work for a
> recipient.
> 
> -- Scott
> 
> 
> 
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