client (slave)-server with authentication

Hi guys,

I could do with some pointers on where to start. I'm trying to create
a system with a server on a network and "slave" clients which connect
to the server, publish a few methods and then sit and wait until the
server calls one of the methods (on an individual basis, not
necessarily broadcasting to all clients). So far, I've written a
server and client using POE::IKC::Client and POE::IKC::Server, and it
works ok. However, I also need:

Server authentication - I want the client to be sure they've connected
to the right server.
Client authentication - I want the server to know who's connecting
(login/password), and treat them differently depending on who they
are.

I'm not sure POE::IKC is the way to go, but it seems pretty easy so I
started there. Any suggestions as to which modules to use would be
very welcome. I've looked at POE::Component::SSLify but can't see how
to combine that with POE::IKC, and it looks like it only uses SSL as a
transport layer, rather than for authentication etc.

Thanks in advance.