xternal Authorization Architecture"><img class=element-to-stretch src=/v1.9/blog/2021/better-external-authz/external_authz.svg alt="External Authorization Architecture"></a></div><figcaption>External Authorization Architecture</figcaption></figure><p>At configuration time, the mesh admin configures an authorization policy with a <code>CUSTOM</code> action to enable the
external authorization on a proxy (either gateway or sidecar). The admin should verify the external auth service is up
and running.</p><p>At