What is Azure Active Directory Premium?

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AzureActiveDirectoryPremium

Microsoft’s push to the cloud has created a great opportunity for IT professionals. Providing the ability to further enable people with secure access to information from a plethora of devices is one of the newer abilities provided through cloud and is enabled through Azure Active Directory Sync, formally DirSync. Microsoft is also taking this synchronization ability to the next level via the recently announced Enterprise Mobility Suite which includes Azure Active Directory Premium.

Capitalizing on the capabilities made available in the free offering, Azure Active Directory Premium includes additional features to further empower businesses in offering secure access to data. Lets take a look as to what is included.

  • Multi-factor authentication –Enabling seamless secure access to Azure, Office 365, Dynamics CRM Online and 1200+ non-Microsoft services which are pre-integrated with Azure AD. Users are prompted to setup additional verification when signing in once Multi-Factor Authentication for Azure AD identities is enabled
     
  • Group-based app access – Groups can be created to provision users and bulk assign access to 1200+ SaaS apps. Groups can be created just for cloud enablement or existing groups synced from an on premise AD implementation can also be used
     
  • Advanced security reports and alerts – Protect and monitor access to cloud apps via detailed logs highlighting inconsistent access more advanced anomaly reports. Said reports can also provide insight to effectively respond to potential threats and improve secure access
     
  • Self-service Enablement – The ability for employees to reset their password using the same sign in experience they have for Office 365, create & request access to other groups, delegate group ownership and maintain their group’s memberships
     
  • Forefront Identity Manager (FIM) – Granting rights to use both the FIM server and CALs in on-premise networks supporting a combination of Hybrid Identity solutions. Also provides a variation of on-premises directories and databases enabled to sync directly to Azure AD. There is no limit on the number of FIM servers utilized though FIM CALs are granted based on the allocation of an Azure AD premium user license
     
  • Enterprise SLA – A guarantee of 99.9% availability at minimum in using Azure Active Directory Premium service
     

Be sure to visit Microsoft Virtual Academy to further your understanding as to what Microsoft Azure Active Directory Sync Premium has to offer. Courses such as the Azure for IT Pros Jump Start can further empower you to enable said solutions amidst your organization.