Box 1: Azure AD -
The Azure AD server issues tokens (access & refresh token). See step 5 below in graphic.
OAuth 2.0 authentication with Azure Active Directory.
The OAuth 2.0 is the industry protocol for authorization. It allows a user to grant limited access to its protected resources. Designed to work specifically with
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), OAuth separates the role of the client from the resource owner. The client requests access to the resources controlled by the resource owner and hosted by the resource server (here the Azure AD server). The resource server issues access tokens with the approval of the resource owner. The client uses the access tokens to access the protected resources hosted by the resource server.
Box 2: A web API -
Delegated access is used.
The bearer token sent to the web API contains the user identity.
The web API makes authorization decisions based on the user identity.
Reference:
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/fundamentals/auth-oauth2
https://docs.microsoft.com/lb-lu/azure/architecture/multitenant-identity/web-api