Storing the FederationMetadata.xml file locally on the server when using ADFS

Question

My .NET web application is authenticated using ADFS. I am using the WsFederationAuthentication component in my OWIN middleware. As part of the process, my understanding is that in order to redirect a user to the appropriate STS, my server will make a call to the MetadataAddress specified in configuration to get the FederationMetadata.xml file and then issue a redirect based on the information in that file.

Here are some questions I had :

1. This is a more general question. How do I find out what port my application is using to talk to the server that holds the metadata file? (MetadataAddress is of the form : https://sts.xxxx.com/federationmetadata/2007-06/federationmetadata.xml)
2. If there are firewall policies blocking outbound traffic to that STS server, is there a way I could store that xml file locally on my server? Is this even recommended? If so, how would I go about accessing it?
3. Even if I store it within my server, access happens over https to self (127.0.0.1) and I guess I will have the same firewall issues.

Any direction on any of the above queries will be helpful. I will add details add needed.

Answer 1

This is standard https - port 443.

It shouldn't be blocked.

Navigating to that URL in a browser will download the file allowing you to view the XML and save it if required.