Question

I have an app that contains configuration settings that should be changed only by a user that is part of the MyAdvancedUsers Active Directory group. This application is a C# .NET 4.0 desktop application (not a web application)

When the app is running with regular user permissions, is it possible to allow access to the configuration settings form by a member of the MyAdvancedUsers by having the advanced user enter his/her windows username and password combination?

Answer 1

It’s fairly simple to do this. Create a PrincipalContext and call ValidateCredentials() on it, thusly:

bool ValidateCredentials(String domain, String user, String password) {
  using (PrincipalContext principal = new PrincipalContext(ContextType.Domain, "THE DOMAIN GOES HERE")   
  {
    return principal.ValidateCredentials(user, password);
  }
}

Try this site for a good way to capture the credentials from the user.

@Kitsune: you do not need to elevate privledges just to validate a user’s credentials.