# Authentication with Pluggable Authentication Modules (PAM)

- [Authentication Plugin - PAM](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/plugins/authentication-plugins/authentication-with-pluggable-authentication-modules-pam/authentication-plugin-pam.md): The PAM authentication plugin delegates password validation to the operating system's PAM framework, enabling integration with LDAP, Kerberos, and other services.
- [Configuring PAM Authentication and User Mapping with LDAP Authentication](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/plugins/authentication-plugins/authentication-with-pluggable-authentication-modules-pam/configuring-pam-authentication-and-user-mapping-with-ldap-authentication.md): Learn to configure the PAM plugin to authenticate users via LDAP and map LDAP groups to MariaDB accounts using the pam\_user\_map module.
- [Configuring PAM Authentication and User Mapping with Unix Authentication](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/plugins/authentication-plugins/authentication-with-pluggable-authentication-modules-pam/configuring-pam-authentication-and-user-mapping-with-unix-authentication.md): This guide shows how to authenticate database users using local Unix accounts and map Unix groups to MariaDB users with the PAM plugin.
- [User and Group Mapping with PAM](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/plugins/authentication-plugins/authentication-with-pluggable-authentication-modules-pam/user-and-group-mapping-with-pam.md): The pam\_user\_map PAM module allows administrators to map external PAM users and groups to specific MariaDB accounts for flexible authorization management.


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