Duo SSO, DAG, GCC, GCC High – What’s the Difference?
In today’s world, organizations must balance ease of access with robust protection for their users. Duo Security offers a suite of solutions designed to provide secure authentication and single sign-on (SSO) for applications. But with various products available, it can be confusing to understand the differences between all the aspects of Duo – especially those that impact public sector organizations and federal entities. It’s like entering an ice cream shop for the first time and being asked to make a binding choice – what flavor of ice cream are you going to commit to? You’re hearing the names of all the flavors for the first time, and as good as it sounds to ingest all 31 flavors, realistically you’re walking out with a combination of one or two.
The flavors in question on this visit are Duo SSO, Duo Access Gateway, GCC, and GCC High. This post will explore each of these offerings and highlight the key distinctions, particularly with respect to availability across Duo’s Commercial and Federal product editions.
Duo SSO (Single Sign-On)
What it is:
Duo SSO is an Identity Provider (IdP) solution hosted by Duo. It allows users to log into applications once and gain access to a variety of cloud and on-premises apps (as long as they support SAML or OIDC protocols) with seamless multi-factor authentication (MFA).
Essentially, Duo SSO is an IdP solution hosted in the cloud, which simplifies access and security management for your organization. It’s ideal if you need to protect SAML-based apps (internal or external, if they support the protocol), and it eliminates the need for on-premises infrastructure—making it a great choice if you don’t want to manage servers.
Key Features:
Single sign-on for a variety of applications, both cloud-based and on-premises.
MFA enforcement for all apps.
Integrates with SAML and OIDC-based apps (unlike the Duo Access Gateway (DAG), which is limited to SAML).
Available in all Commercial Editions of Duo (including Duo Free, Essentials, Advantage, and Premier).
When to use: If you want a cloud-hosted solution that provides SSO + MFA for a wide range of applications and prefer not to maintain on-premises servers for identity management.
Duo Access Gateway (DAG)
What it is:
Duo Access Gateway (DAG) is a secure, on-premises solution that acts as an identity provider (IdP) for SAML-based applications and provides more control over your identity infrastructure compared to Duo SSO. With DAG, you host the IdP yourself, which gives you flexibility when it comes to things like firewall placement, custom hostname configurations, and other advanced settings.
When to use DAG:
DAG is best suited for organizations that need more control over their IdP infrastructure—for example, those that want to host it behind firewalls, change the hostname, or maintain full control over authentication policies.
Key Features:
Allows hosting of the IdP on-premises, behind firewalls.
Advanced customization options (hostnames, firewall configurations, etc.).
Supports only SAML-based applications (Duo SSO supports both SAML and OIDC).
Exclusive to all Federal Editions of Duo, designed for organizations with strict compliance and security needs.
With Duo SSO available across all Commercial Editions and Duo Access Gateway available in Federal Editions, Duo provides flexible, scalable security solutions to meet the needs of both the private and public sectors.
For commercial entities, Duo SSO delivers cloud-hosted convenience, while DAG provides more control for those requiring on-premises customization. Meanwhile, for government organizations, our GCC and GCC High environments offer the compliance and security needed to protect sensitive data across varying levels of risk.
GCC (Government Community Cloud)
What it is:
GCC refers to Duo's environment tailored for the public sector and designed to meet the security and compliance requirements of government organizations at the state and local levels. It’s a cloud-based environment that offers security solutions that meet standards like FedRAMP Moderate and FIPS 140-2 for government systems.
Key Features:
Provides compliance with FedRAMP Moderate and other government security standards.
Ideal for state and local government agencies that don’t handle highly classified information but still need to comply with stringent regulations.
Duo SSO and other key features are available in GCC environments for secure, simplified access to cloud and on-prem applications.
When to use: Perfect for government agencies or contractors that require cloud-based security but don’t handle the most sensitive or classified government data.
GCC High
What it is:
GCC High is an even more specialized version of Duo’s government environment, designed for organizations that handle Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), and for those that require compliance with stricter federal standards such as FedRAMP High, CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification), and other high-security regulations.
Key Features:
Meets FedRAMP High and CMMC requirements, providing the highest levels of security and compliance for sensitive government data.
Supports access to highly classified government systems.
Duo Access Gateway (DAG) is often used in GCC High environments for organizations that need additional control over their IdP infrastructure.
Secure, compliant infrastructure to meet DoD and other high-security requirements.
When to use: Ideal for government agencies and contractors that need to comply with the highest levels of government security and handle CUI or classified data.
Quick Comparison of GCC vs GCC High:
GCC (Government Community Cloud): Designed for government organizations with standard compliance needs, GCC provides cloud-based security solutions that meet FedRAMP Moderate and other government regulations. It’s a solid choice for state, local, and federal agencies that don't deal with highly sensitive information like Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI).
GCC High: A more secure, specialized version of GCC, GCC High is for organizations that handle highly sensitive government data or work in environments governed by the DoD or similar agencies. It meets FedRAMP High and CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification) requirements, ensuring even more stringent controls around CUI and other classified materials.
Understanding the differences between GCC and GCC High helps ensure your organization stays compliant with government regulations while maintaining top-notch security for all users.
When evaluating Duo’s solutions, it’s essential to consider both your security and compliance requirements, alongside the security posture of any third-party systems you intend to integrate.
Duo's role as a cloud service provider (CSP) means that it can only integrate with other systems that meet a similar security level. For example: If you have an environment that fits the description FedRAMP Moderate, it can only integrate with another application that is also FedRAMP Moderate.
This relationship also extends to GCC High to GCC High— ensuring that your integrations align with the required security standards within the appropriate context.
Ultimately, Duo’s flexibility across its commercial and federal offerings ensures that your organization has the right combination of tools to safeguard your users’ access while meeting the unique security needs/levels of your industry.
It can be intimidating to enter the metaphorical ice cream shop for the first time; once you know the right combination of flavors that work well together, things only get more exciting from here!