An OAuth2 Resource Server protects APIs by validating JWT tokens issued by an external Authorization Server such as Keycloak, Auth0, or Okta. Unlike custom JWT authentication where the application generates its own tokens, the Resource Server delegates identity management entirely to a dedicated Identity Provider (IdP).

Resource Server vs Custom JWT

A Resource Server never generates tokens. It only validates them. This separation of concerns strengthens security and simplifies architecture by centralizing identity management.

OAuth2 Resource Server Architecture

The OAuth2 flow involves three main actors. The client (frontend or mobile application) obtains an access token from the Authorization Server. It then includes this token in every request to the Resource Server. The Resource Server validates the token by verifying its signature using the Authorization Server's public key.

This architecture offers several advantages. The Resource Server remains stateless since all necessary information is contained within the JWT token. Validation occurs without network calls to the IdP thanks to asymmetric signature verification. Multiple APIs can share the same Authorization Server, simplifying user management.

text

┌──────────────┐     1. Login      ┌─────────────────────┐
│   Client     │ ───────────────►  │  Authorization      │
│   (SPA/App)  │                   │  Server (Keycloak)  │
│              │ ◄─────────────────│                     │
└──────────────┘   2. JWT Token    └─────────────────────┘
       │                                    │
       │ 3. Request + Bearer Token          │
       ▼                                    ▼
┌──────────────────────┐           ┌─────────────────────┐
│   Resource Server    │ ◄─────── │   JWKS Endpoint     │
│   (Spring Boot API)  │  4. Public Keys (cached)       │
└──────────────────────┘           └─────────────────────┘

The Resource Server downloads public keys at startup and caches them, avoiding network calls for each request.

Maven Dependencies for OAuth2 Resource Server

Configuring a Resource Server requires two specific dependencies. The oauth2-resource-server starter provides the base infrastructure, while oauth2-jose contains classes for decoding and validating JWTs.

xml

<!-- pom.xml -->
<dependencies>
    <!-- OAuth2 Resource Server support -->
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
        <artifactId>spring-boot-starter-oauth2-resource-server</artifactId>
    </dependency>

    <!-- Spring Web for REST endpoints -->
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
        <artifactId>spring-boot-starter-web</artifactId>
    </dependency>

    <!-- DTO validation -->
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
        <artifactId>spring-boot-starter-validation</artifactId>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>

No additional dependencies like JJWT are required. Spring Security uses the Nimbus JOSE+JWT library included in spring-security-oauth2-jose for token handling.

Basic Configuration with issuer-uri

The minimal Resource Server configuration requires just two lines. Spring Security automatically discovers IdP endpoints via the OpenID Connect Discovery protocol.

yaml

# application.yml
spring:
  security:
    oauth2:
      resourceserver:
        jwt:
          # Authorization Server URI
          # Spring automatically retrieves public keys via /.well-known/openid-configuration
          issuer-uri: https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm

From the issuer-uri, Spring Security makes a request to {issuer-uri}/.well-known/openid-configuration to obtain the Authorization Server's metadata. It then extracts the JWKS (JSON Web Key Set) URL containing the public keys used to validate token signatures.

SecurityConfig.javajava

@Configuration
@EnableWebSecurity
@EnableMethodSecurity
public class SecurityConfig {

    @Bean
    public SecurityFilterChain securityFilterChain(HttpSecurity http) throws Exception {
        return http
            // Disable CSRF for stateless APIs
            .csrf(csrf -> csrf.disable())

            // Authorization rules
            .authorizeHttpRequests(auth -> auth
                // Public endpoints
                .requestMatchers("/api/public/**").permitAll()
                .requestMatchers("/actuator/health").permitAll()
                // All other requests require a valid token
                .anyRequest().authenticated()
            )

            // Enable OAuth2 JWT validation
            .oauth2ResourceServer(oauth2 -> oauth2
                .jwt(Customizer.withDefaults())
            )

            // Stateless mode required for Resource Servers
            .sessionManagement(session -> session
                .sessionCreationPolicy(SessionCreationPolicy.STATELESS)
            )

            .build();
    }
}

This configuration is sufficient to protect an API. Spring Security automatically validates the token signature, verifies timestamps (exp, nbf, iat), and ensures the iss claim matches the configured issuer-uri.

Startup Without IdP

By default, the application fails to start if the Authorization Server is unreachable. To allow independent startup, configure jwk-set-uri explicitly instead of issuer-uri.

Advanced Configuration with jwk-set-uri

When the Authorization Server does not support OpenID Connect Discovery or the application must start without network dependency on the IdP, explicit JWKS configuration is preferable.

yaml

# application.yml
spring:
  security:
    oauth2:
      resourceserver:
        jwt:
          # Direct URL to JWKS (public keys)
          jwk-set-uri: https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm/protocol/openid-connect/certs
          # Expected value of the "iss" claim in tokens
          issuer-uri: https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm
          # Allowed audiences ("aud" claim)
          audiences:
            - my-api
            - account

This approach provides more control. Audience validation prevents the use of tokens intended for other services. A token issued for the frontend-app application will be rejected if the API only accepts my-api and account audiences.

SecurityConfig.javajava

@Configuration
@EnableWebSecurity
public class SecurityConfig {

    @Value("${spring.security.oauth2.resourceserver.jwt.issuer-uri}")
    private String issuerUri;

    @Bean
    public SecurityFilterChain securityFilterChain(HttpSecurity http) throws Exception {
        return http
            .csrf(csrf -> csrf.disable())

            .authorizeHttpRequests(auth -> auth
                .requestMatchers("/api/public/**").permitAll()
                .anyRequest().authenticated()
            )

            // Custom JWT configuration
            .oauth2ResourceServer(oauth2 -> oauth2
                .jwt(jwt -> jwt
                    .jwtAuthenticationConverter(jwtAuthenticationConverter())
                )
            )

            .sessionManagement(session -> session
                .sessionCreationPolicy(SessionCreationPolicy.STATELESS)
            )

            .build();
    }

    // Custom converter to extract authorities from the token
    @Bean
    public JwtAuthenticationConverter jwtAuthenticationConverter() {
        JwtGrantedAuthoritiesConverter grantedAuthoritiesConverter =
            new JwtGrantedAuthoritiesConverter();
        // SCOPE_ prefix for authorities (e.g., SCOPE_read, SCOPE_write)
        grantedAuthoritiesConverter.setAuthorityPrefix("SCOPE_");
        // Claim containing scopes (OAuth2 standard)
        grantedAuthoritiesConverter.setAuthoritiesClaimName("scope");

        JwtAuthenticationConverter jwtAuthenticationConverter =
            new JwtAuthenticationConverter();
        jwtAuthenticationConverter.setJwtGrantedAuthoritiesConverter(
            grantedAuthoritiesConverter
        );

        return jwtAuthenticationConverter;
    }
}

The JwtAuthenticationConverter transforms token claims into GrantedAuthority objects usable in security expressions.

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Extracting Keycloak Roles

Keycloak structures roles differently from the OAuth2 standard. Roles can be found in realm_access.roles (realm roles) or resource_access.{client}.roles (client-specific roles). A custom converter extracts this information.

KeycloakJwtAuthenticationConverter.javajava

@Component
public class KeycloakJwtAuthenticationConverter
    implements Converter<Jwt, AbstractAuthenticationToken> {

    private static final String REALM_ACCESS_CLAIM = "realm_access";
    private static final String RESOURCE_ACCESS_CLAIM = "resource_access";
    private static final String ROLES_CLAIM = "roles";

    @Value("${keycloak.client-id}")
    private String clientId;

    @Override
    public AbstractAuthenticationToken convert(Jwt jwt) {
        // Combine realm and client roles
        Collection<GrantedAuthority> authorities = Stream.concat(
            extractRealmRoles(jwt).stream(),
            extractClientRoles(jwt).stream()
        ).collect(Collectors.toSet());

        // Return authentication token with extracted authorities
        return new JwtAuthenticationToken(jwt, authorities, extractUsername(jwt));
    }

    // Extract realm-level roles
    private Collection<GrantedAuthority> extractRealmRoles(Jwt jwt) {
        Map<String, Object> realmAccess = jwt.getClaim(REALM_ACCESS_CLAIM);
        if (realmAccess == null) {
            return Collections.emptyList();
        }

        @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
        List<String> roles = (List<String>) realmAccess.get(ROLES_CLAIM);
        if (roles == null) {
            return Collections.emptyList();
        }

        // ROLE_ prefix for compatibility with hasRole()
        return roles.stream()
            .map(role -> new SimpleGrantedAuthority("ROLE_" + role.toUpperCase()))
            .collect(Collectors.toList());
    }

    // Extract client-specific roles
    private Collection<GrantedAuthority> extractClientRoles(Jwt jwt) {
        Map<String, Object> resourceAccess = jwt.getClaim(RESOURCE_ACCESS_CLAIM);
        if (resourceAccess == null) {
            return Collections.emptyList();
        }

        @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
        Map<String, Object> clientAccess =
            (Map<String, Object>) resourceAccess.get(clientId);
        if (clientAccess == null) {
            return Collections.emptyList();
        }

        @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
        List<String> roles = (List<String>) clientAccess.get(ROLES_CLAIM);
        if (roles == null) {
            return Collections.emptyList();
        }

        return roles.stream()
            .map(role -> new SimpleGrantedAuthority("ROLE_" + role.toUpperCase()))
            .collect(Collectors.toList());
    }

    // Extract username from token
    private String extractUsername(Jwt jwt) {
        // Keycloak uses "preferred_username" by default
        String username = jwt.getClaimAsString("preferred_username");
        if (username != null) {
            return username;
        }
        // Fallback to subject (usually the user UUID)
        return jwt.getSubject();
    }
}

Integration into the security configuration is done via the jwtAuthenticationConverter parameter.

SecurityConfig.javajava

@Configuration
@EnableWebSecurity
@EnableMethodSecurity
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class SecurityConfig {

    private final KeycloakJwtAuthenticationConverter keycloakConverter;

    @Bean
    public SecurityFilterChain securityFilterChain(HttpSecurity http) throws Exception {
        return http
            .csrf(csrf -> csrf.disable())

            .authorizeHttpRequests(auth -> auth
                .requestMatchers("/api/public/**").permitAll()
                // Protection by Keycloak role
                .requestMatchers("/api/admin/**").hasRole("ADMIN")
                .anyRequest().authenticated()
            )

            .oauth2ResourceServer(oauth2 -> oauth2
                .jwt(jwt -> jwt
                    // Use Keycloak converter
                    .jwtAuthenticationConverter(keycloakConverter)
                )
            )

            .sessionManagement(session -> session
                .sessionCreationPolicy(SessionCreationPolicy.STATELESS)
            )

            .build();
    }
}

Extracted roles are now usable with @PreAuthorize("hasRole('ADMIN')") annotations or in requestMatchers().hasRole() expressions.

Custom Token Validation

Additional validations may be required depending on business needs: custom claim verification, audience validation, or maximum lifetime control.

CustomJwtValidator.javajava

@Component
public class CustomJwtValidator implements OAuth2TokenValidator<Jwt> {

    private static final OAuth2Error AUDIENCE_ERROR =
        new OAuth2Error("invalid_token", "Token audience is not valid", null);

    private static final OAuth2Error CUSTOM_CLAIM_ERROR =
        new OAuth2Error("invalid_token", "Required custom claim missing", null);

    @Value("${app.jwt.required-audience}")
    private String requiredAudience;

    @Value("${app.jwt.required-tenant-claim:tenant_id}")
    private String tenantClaimName;

    @Override
    public OAuth2TokenValidatorResult validate(Jwt jwt) {
        List<OAuth2Error> errors = new ArrayList<>();

        // Audience validation
        if (!validateAudience(jwt)) {
            errors.add(AUDIENCE_ERROR);
        }

        // Custom business claim validation
        if (!validateTenantClaim(jwt)) {
            errors.add(CUSTOM_CLAIM_ERROR);
        }

        if (!errors.isEmpty()) {
            return OAuth2TokenValidatorResult.failure(errors);
        }

        return OAuth2TokenValidatorResult.success();
    }

    private boolean validateAudience(Jwt jwt) {
        List<String> audiences = jwt.getAudience();
        return audiences != null && audiences.contains(requiredAudience);
    }

    private boolean validateTenantClaim(Jwt jwt) {
        // Check for required business claim
        String tenantId = jwt.getClaimAsString(tenantClaimName);
        return tenantId != null && !tenantId.isBlank();
    }
}

The custom validator integrates into the JwtDecoder configuration.

JwtConfig.javajava

@Configuration
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class JwtConfig {

    private final CustomJwtValidator customValidator;

    @Value("${spring.security.oauth2.resourceserver.jwt.issuer-uri}")
    private String issuerUri;

    @Value("${spring.security.oauth2.resourceserver.jwt.jwk-set-uri}")
    private String jwkSetUri;

    @Bean
    public JwtDecoder jwtDecoder() {
        // Create decoder with JWKS URL
        NimbusJwtDecoder jwtDecoder = NimbusJwtDecoder
            .withJwkSetUri(jwkSetUri)
            .build();

        // Combine default validators with custom validator
        OAuth2TokenValidator<Jwt> defaultValidators =
            JwtValidators.createDefaultWithIssuer(issuerUri);

        OAuth2TokenValidator<Jwt> combinedValidator =
            new DelegatingOAuth2TokenValidator<>(defaultValidators, customValidator);

        jwtDecoder.setJwtValidator(combinedValidator);

        return jwtDecoder;
    }
}

Validation Performance

Synchronous validations block the processing thread. For validations requiring external calls (database, third-party services), prefer an asynchronous filter or downstream verification.

Accessing Token Information in Controllers

Spring Security provides several methods to access JWT token information in controllers.

UserController.javajava

@RestController
@RequestMapping("/api/users")
public class UserController {

    // Direct JWT injection via @AuthenticationPrincipal
    @GetMapping("/me")
    public ResponseEntity<UserInfoResponse> getCurrentUser(
        @AuthenticationPrincipal Jwt jwt
    ) {
        String userId = jwt.getSubject();
        String email = jwt.getClaimAsString("email");
        String username = jwt.getClaimAsString("preferred_username");
        List<String> roles = extractRoles(jwt);

        return ResponseEntity.ok(new UserInfoResponse(
            userId, email, username, roles
        ));
    }

    // Alternative with JwtAuthenticationToken to access authorities
    @GetMapping("/profile")
    public ResponseEntity<ProfileResponse> getProfile(
        JwtAuthenticationToken authentication
    ) {
        Jwt jwt = authentication.getToken();
        Collection<String> authorities = authentication.getAuthorities()
            .stream()
            .map(GrantedAuthority::getAuthority)
            .toList();

        return ResponseEntity.ok(new ProfileResponse(
            jwt.getSubject(),
            jwt.getClaimAsString("name"),
            authorities
        ));
    }

    // Access scopes for conditional business logic
    @GetMapping("/data")
    @PreAuthorize("hasAuthority('SCOPE_read')")
    public ResponseEntity<DataResponse> getData(
        @AuthenticationPrincipal Jwt jwt
    ) {
        boolean canWrite = hasScope(jwt, "write");

        // Business logic adapted according to permissions
        DataResponse response = buildDataResponse(jwt.getSubject(), canWrite);
        return ResponseEntity.ok(response);
    }

    private List<String> extractRoles(Jwt jwt) {
        Map<String, Object> realmAccess = jwt.getClaim("realm_access");
        if (realmAccess == null) {
            return Collections.emptyList();
        }
        @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
        List<String> roles = (List<String>) realmAccess.get("roles");
        return roles != null ? roles : Collections.emptyList();
    }

    private boolean hasScope(Jwt jwt, String scope) {
        String scopes = jwt.getClaimAsString("scope");
        return scopes != null && scopes.contains(scope);
    }
}

UserInfoResponse.javajava

public record UserInfoResponse(
    String userId,
    String email,
    String username,
    List<String> roles
) {}

// ProfileResponse.java
public record ProfileResponse(
    String userId,
    String name,
    Collection<String> authorities
) {}

The @AuthenticationPrincipal annotation avoids manually retrieving authentication from the SecurityContextHolder.

OAuth2 Authentication Error Handling

Specific error handling improves the developer experience for API consumers.

OAuth2SecurityExceptionHandler.javajava

@RestControllerAdvice
public class OAuth2SecurityExceptionHandler {

    private static final Logger log =
        LoggerFactory.getLogger(OAuth2SecurityExceptionHandler.class);

    // Missing token or invalid format
    @ExceptionHandler(AuthenticationException.class)
    @ResponseStatus(HttpStatus.UNAUTHORIZED)
    public ErrorResponse handleAuthenticationException(AuthenticationException ex) {
        log.warn("Authentication failed: {}", ex.getMessage());

        return new ErrorResponse(
            "UNAUTHORIZED",
            "Authentication required. Provide a valid Bearer token.",
            Map.of("error", ex.getMessage())
        );
    }

    // Access denied despite valid token
    @ExceptionHandler(AccessDeniedException.class)
    @ResponseStatus(HttpStatus.FORBIDDEN)
    public ErrorResponse handleAccessDeniedException(AccessDeniedException ex) {
        log.warn("Access denied: {}", ex.getMessage());

        return new ErrorResponse(
            "FORBIDDEN",
            "Insufficient permissions for this resource",
            null
        );
    }

    // OAuth2-specific error (expired token, invalid signature, etc.)
    @ExceptionHandler(OAuth2AuthenticationException.class)
    @ResponseStatus(HttpStatus.UNAUTHORIZED)
    public ErrorResponse handleOAuth2Exception(OAuth2AuthenticationException ex) {
        OAuth2Error error = ex.getError();
        log.warn("OAuth2 authentication error: {} - {}",
            error.getErrorCode(), error.getDescription());

        String message = switch (error.getErrorCode()) {
            case "invalid_token" -> "Token is invalid or expired";
            case "insufficient_scope" -> "Token does not have required scopes";
            default -> "Authentication failed";
        };

        return new ErrorResponse(
            error.getErrorCode().toUpperCase(),
            message,
            Map.of("details", error.getDescription())
        );
    }
}

// ErrorResponse.java
public record ErrorResponse(
    String code,
    String message,
    Map<String, String> details
) {}

Standardized OAuth2 error codes (invalid_token, insufficient_scope) facilitate client-side processing.

Multi-Environment Configuration

Configuration varies by environment. In development, a local Keycloak server can be used, while in production, a managed IdP like Auth0 takes over.

yaml

# application.yml (common configuration)
app:
  jwt:
    required-audience: my-api

---
# application-dev.yml
spring:
  config:
    activate:
      on-profile: dev
  security:
    oauth2:
      resourceserver:
        jwt:
          issuer-uri: http://localhost:8180/realms/dev-realm

keycloak:
  client-id: my-api-dev

logging:
  level:
    org.springframework.security: DEBUG

---
# application-prod.yml
spring:
  config:
    activate:
      on-profile: prod
  security:
    oauth2:
      resourceserver:
        jwt:
          issuer-uri: ${OAUTH2_ISSUER_URI}
          audiences: ${OAUTH2_AUDIENCES:my-api}

keycloak:
  client-id: ${KEYCLOAK_CLIENT_ID}

logging:
  level:
    org.springframework.security: WARN

In production, sensitive values come from environment variables or a secrets manager.

Integration Tests with Mocked JWTs

Integration tests use Spring Security Test utilities to simulate valid JWT tokens.

ResourceServerIntegrationTest.javajava

@SpringBootTest(webEnvironment = WebEnvironment.RANDOM_PORT)
@AutoConfigureMockMvc
class ResourceServerIntegrationTest {

    @Autowired
    private MockMvc mockMvc;

    @Test
    void shouldRejectRequestWithoutToken() throws Exception {
        mockMvc.perform(get("/api/users/me"))
            .andExpect(status().isUnauthorized());
    }

    @Test
    @WithMockJwtAuth(
        claims = @OpenIdClaims(sub = "user-123", preferredUsername = "john.doe"),
        authorities = {"ROLE_USER"}
    )
    void shouldAllowAuthenticatedUser() throws Exception {
        mockMvc.perform(get("/api/users/me"))
            .andExpect(status().isOk())
            .andExpect(jsonPath("$.userId").value("user-123"))
            .andExpect(jsonPath("$.username").value("john.doe"));
    }

    @Test
    void shouldAllowAccessWithValidJwt() throws Exception {
        mockMvc.perform(get("/api/users/me")
                .with(jwt()
                    .jwt(jwt -> jwt
                        .subject("user-456")
                        .claim("preferred_username", "jane.doe")
                        .claim("email", "jane@example.com")
                    )
                    .authorities(new SimpleGrantedAuthority("ROLE_USER"))
                ))
            .andExpect(status().isOk())
            .andExpect(jsonPath("$.email").value("jane@example.com"));
    }

    @Test
    void shouldDenyAccessWithoutAdminRole() throws Exception {
        mockMvc.perform(get("/api/admin/users")
                .with(jwt()
                    .authorities(new SimpleGrantedAuthority("ROLE_USER"))
                ))
            .andExpect(status().isForbidden());
    }

    @Test
    void shouldAllowAdminAccess() throws Exception {
        mockMvc.perform(get("/api/admin/users")
                .with(jwt()
                    .authorities(new SimpleGrantedAuthority("ROLE_ADMIN"))
                ))
            .andExpect(status().isOk());
    }
}

The jwt() utility from spring-security-test creates mocked tokens without requiring an Authorization Server.

SecurityTestConfig.javajava

@TestConfiguration
public class SecurityTestConfig {

    // Mocked JwtDecoder for tests
    @Bean
    @Primary
    public JwtDecoder jwtDecoder() {
        return token -> {
            // Return a mocked JWT for tests
            return Jwt.withTokenValue(token)
                .header("alg", "RS256")
                .subject("test-user")
                .claim("scope", "read write")
                .build();
        };
    }
}

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Conclusion

Configuring an OAuth2 Resource Server with Spring Security 6 centralizes token validation and simplifies API security. The Authorization Server handles authentication and token issuance, while the API focuses on validation and identity information extraction.

Deployment Checklist:

✅ Configure issuer-uri or jwk-set-uri according to requirements
✅ Validate audience to prevent misuse of tokens from other services
✅ Custom converter to extract Keycloak roles
✅ OAuth2 error handling with standardized codes
✅ Integration tests with mocked tokens
✅ HTTPS mandatory between client and Resource Server
✅ Environment-specific configuration
✅ Logging of failed authentication attempts

This architecture naturally integrates into a microservices ecosystem where multiple APIs share the same Identity Provider.

Spring Security 6: OAuth2 Resource Server Setup

OAuth2 Resource Server Architecture

Maven Dependencies for OAuth2 Resource Server

Basic Configuration with issuer-uri

Advanced Configuration with jwk-set-uri

Ready to ace your Spring Boot interviews?

Extracting Keycloak Roles

Custom Token Validation

Accessing Token Information in Controllers

OAuth2 Authentication Error Handling

Multi-Environment Configuration

Integration Tests with Mocked JWTs

Start practicing!

Conclusion

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