When working across many domains and channels, Document Management can be a challenging undertaking for businesses. Folderit is quickly becoming the Document Management System of choice for a variety of application scenarios.
Among them is our ever-expanding library of integrations and application support features. As such Folderit is proud to announce we now have support for Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Active Directory), as well as an easy setup tutorial for users.
What is Entra ID (AD)?
Entra ID is a well-known cloud-based directory and identity management service, it is a part of Microsoft Entra. While Entra ID is fundamentally based on Active Directory, Microsoft’s on-premises identity management solution. Entra ID also enables organizations to access internal resources, such as apps on your intranet network and any custom-built cloud applications for your firm. This is especially great for document management systems as it allows you to manage users in larger organizations and enterprises.
It offers a number of extra features and benefits that help users manage digital operations and access control in enterprises.
Benefits of Entra ID
High Data Availability
Microsoft claims a 99.9% uptime. All data is written to the Active Primary partition, replicated to the Passive Primary partition, and then read from the Secondary Replica partitions. Microsoft operates a total of 28 data centers across several geographic zones.
Great Security
Microsoft takes security very seriously, as expected. Entra ID’s security features include, among others, Multi-Factor Authentication, Conditional Access, and Privileged Identity Management (PIM).
Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) in MS Entra ID adds an additional layer of account protection by requiring a second form of verification. Microsoft Entra ID offers the following MFA verification methods:
- Microsoft Authenticator app
- OATH Hardware token
- OATH Software token
- SMS
- Voice call
- Conditional Access
You can configure Conditional Access policies to restrict user access to only the data they need to accomplish their assigned duties. These policies are essentially if-then statements that can check for a variety of signals, such as user or group membership, IP location, used devices and applications, and more. Admins can also create a ‘Dynamic Group,’ in which group membership changes dynamically based on certain parameters, such as employee type, location, department, and more.
Privileged Identity Management (PIM) in Entra ID
Entra ID PIM permits granular management over privileged accounts and the resources to which they have access. This feature also provides an audit trail that managers can use to discover questionable behavior from privileged accounts.
Simple Integration
Entra ID supports a variety of identity providers, allowing users to log in with their Microsoft, Google, Facebook, or GitHub credentials. Additionally, Entra ID may be connected with several applications, like Salesforce, Office 365, and others. The Azure AD API can be readily incorporated into applications written in a variety of programming languages, including .NET, Java, Python, and Ruby. It is also compatible with mobile operating systems like Android and iOS.
Single Sign-on (SSO)
The SSO functionality of Entra ID enables users to log in to numerous apps, including SaaS and on-premises applications, via a single window. Administrators can add new users and services without configuring credentials or security groups for each application or service.
Administrate with Application Proxy
Application Proxy makes it simple for administrators to publish on-premise applications to Entra ID. Once published, users can remotely and securely access these applications without a VPN.
Access Panel
Entra ID’s MyApps site (access panel) gives a list of all applications to which the logged-in user has access. Additionally, you may access tools like account/group management, password management, and more straight from the MyApps portal. The MyApps portal is accessible by web browser and mobile application.
Self Service Features
Entra ID allows customers greater authority over some account tasks, which can save time and money by reducing the need for administrators and other specialist staff. Self-service password reset (SSPR) is the most notable self-service function, allowing users to reset their passwords if/when necessary. If MFA is enabled, the user must react to security challenges or give an additional verification method in order to reset their password. The user can also create and administer groups, as well as manage who has access to the group and what tasks they are permitted to execute.
Microsoft Entra ID Collaboration
Entra ID facilitates information sharing with partners and customers outside of a business. There are two primary external collaboration features: Entra ID B2B (business-to-business) and Entra ID B2C (business-to-consumer). The B2B functionality permits you to invite business partners to your application or service, where they can sign in using their current Azure account. Similar to the B2B feature, the B2C feature allows your consumers to choose their own identity provider (Facebook, Google, GitHub, etc.) when signing in to your application or service. In both instances, the administrator can manage access to resources using MFA and Conditional Access policies.
Entra ID Reporting
Entra ID now offers an abundance of security and activity reports. These reports provide administrators with an overview of how and by whom their accounts, data, and applications are accessed and utilized. Additionally, administrators will have visibility into any unlawful cloud applications utilized within the ecosystem.
You can easily integrate a third-party real-time Entra ID auditing solution that uses machine learning models to detect and respond to anomalous activity if you believe the native Entra ID auditing features are not sophisticated enough for your needs or if you are using a hybrid/multi-cloud environment. A third-party solution will also provide data discovery and classification, administration of dormant user accounts, and real-time alerts to your inbox or mobile device.
Conclusion
To recap, Entra ID is inexpensive, simple to use, and can be linked to a variety of platforms and applications, both on-premise and on the cloud. It features multi-factor authentication and self-service password management in its Single Sign-On (SSO) functionality. It is great for large organizations and enterprises to manage users. It also has a variety of extra security capabilities, such as security monitoring and alerting, and may be configured to identify unusual login attempts.
And most importantly, Folderit has Entra ID support!
