Twitter/X SSO | Axero Documentation

Axero supports single sign-on (SSO) through Twitter/X out of the box, so people can join and sign in with their X account. This page covers creating an X developer account and app, enabling Twitter/X integration, and the Twitter/X login process.

Twitter/X SSO setup takes an estimated 1-2 hours. Once you complete the guide, Twitter/X SSO will be active on your intranet. For more information or assistance from the Axero team, submit a private case.

Features

• Join the intranet using a Twitter/X account
• Sign in to your intranet with a Twitter/X account
• Link Twitter/X and existing Axero accounts, when the account's email address is available

Create Your X Developer Account and App

X no longer runs an application and review process for developer access. You sign up, create an app, and get your credentials in one sitting.

1. Visit the X Developer Console and sign in with the X account that should own the app.
2. Click Create App and enter a name for your app. This name is shown to your members on the authorization screen, so use something they will recognize as your organization.
3. Copy the API Key and Secret that X generates, and save them somewhere safe. X displays these only once. If you lose them, you will need to regenerate the pair and update Axero with the new values.
4. Open your app's User authentication settings and click Set up.
5. Turn on sign-in for the app. X presents this as Allow this app to be used to Sign in with X?
6. Choose OAuth 1.0a. This choice is required: Axero's Twitter/X integration uses the OAuth 1.0a three-legged flow and does not support OAuth 2.0 for this provider.
7. For app permissions, choose Read. Axero only reads the account's public profile to fill in the new member's details. It never posts, follows, or changes anything on the person's X account, so granting write access gives away more than the integration needs.
8. In the callback field, labeled Callback URI / Redirect URL, enter your site address followed by /login (for example, https://myintranet.com/login). This value has to match exactly, including whether it uses http or https.
9. In Website URL, enter your site address.
10. Decide whether the app should be allowed to release each person's email address to your intranet. This choice matters more than any other on this page, so read the next section before you make it.
11. If you allow email addresses, X requires you to supply links to your organization's privacy policy and terms of service.
12. Save your changes.

X changes the Developer Console periodically. If a control on screen does not match the wording above, look for the option that performs the same job rather than assuming the setting is gone.

Why the Email Address Setting Matters

Axero uses the email address from a person's X account for two things: filling in their Axero profile, and matching them to an account they already have.

When someone signs in with X and Axero receives an email address, Axero looks for an existing member with that same address. If it finds one, that person is signed in to their existing account and nothing is duplicated. This is how an existing member links their Twitter/X account to the account they already use.

When Axero does not receive an email address, that matching step cannot happen. Every sign-in from an X account that Axero has not already linked creates a brand new account. The new account gets a placeholder address built from the person's X username, in the form theirname_no_email@temp.com. An existing member who signs in through X ends up with a second, separate account.

Because of this, allow email addresses unless you have a specific reason not to. If you choose not to, tell your members to sign in with their Axero username and password rather than the Twitter/X button, so they do not create duplicate accounts for themselves.

Enable Twitter/X Login in Axero

1. In Axero, click the gear icon > Control Panel > System > General Settings.
2. Expand the Social Integration Settings section.
3. Enter the API Key from X in the Twitter integration API key field.
4. Enter the Secret from X in the Twitter integration Secret field.
5. Check Integrate with Twitter. This checkbox stays greyed out until both the key and the secret are filled in, so enter those first.
6. Check Enable 3rd party login. Without this, no social login buttons appear at all.
7. Click Save System Settings.
8. If you chose not to allow email addresses in your X app, click System > System Properties.
9. Search for TwitterSSOGetEmails and edit it.
10. Set the value to false and click Save. This setting only accepts true or false. Any other value, including a numeric 1, is read as false, so the setting turns off.

The Axero settings screen still says "Twitter" throughout, and the login button still uses the Twitter icon. Those labels and icons have not been renamed in the product yet.

Login via Twitter/X

When someone joins with their Twitter/X account, Axero copies their profile photo, name, and (if you allowed it) email address from Twitter/X into their Axero profile.

The button sits in the Social logins section of your login page.

Sign in to X if you are not already, then authorize the app. X lists what the app can and cannot do before you approve it.

Set your username.

If your site marks any profile fields as required, the new member lands on Edit Profile and has to fill those in before continuing.

If Auto approve members is unchecked in Control Panel > System > General Settings > Site Settings, the new account is created but left inactive until an administrator approves it. The person will see a message that their account is pending approval rather than reaching the intranet.

Related pages

• Single Sign-On (SSO) (the other sign-in providers)
• General Settings (the Social Integration Settings section in full)
• System Properties (where TwitterSSOGetEmails is set)
• Share (share content on social networks)
• LinkedIn Share Button (add a LinkedIn share button)