Implementing Hybrid Azure Active Directory for a Large Enterprise

Implementing Hybrid Azure Active Directory for a Large Enterprise

Introduction: The company is a large enterprise with a global presence and a diverse set of employees and contractors. As the company grew, it became clear that the existing on-premises Active Directory (AD) was no longer meeting the company's needs in terms of scalability and security. As a result, the company decided to implement a Hybrid Azure AD solution to improve scalability and security while also maintaining existing on-premises AD infrastructure. This case study will detail the steps taken to ensure a successful implementation and the benefits that were achieved as a result.

Hybrid Azure

Background: The company had a large number of employees and contractors, spread across multiple locations worldwide. The company also had a diverse set of IT systems and applications, each with their own specific needs and requirements. In order to ensure a smooth implementation, a plan was developed to implement the Hybrid Azure AD solution in phases, starting with the most critical systems and applications and moving on to less critical systems and applications as the implementation progressed.

Pre-Implementation Preparation:

• The first step in the implementation process was to determine which systems and applications needed to be integrated with Hybrid Azure AD. This involved working with stakeholders from the company to identify which systems and applications were critical to the business and which could be phased out or consolidated.

• Next, a plan was developed to implement the Hybrid Azure AD solution in phases, starting with the most critical systems and applications and moving on to less critical systems and applications as the implementation progressed.

• In order to ensure a smooth implementation, a pilot implementation was performed to test the implementation process and identify any issues that needed to be addressed before the full implementation took place.

Implementation Process:

• The Hybrid Azure AD solution was implemented using the Azure AD Connect tool. The on-premises AD was synchronized with Azure AD to create a single identity for each user.

• During the implementation, the systems and applications were configured to use Hybrid Azure AD for authentication and authorization. This ensured that the systems and applications were integrated with the new solution and had the correct permissions within the new tenant.

• The implementation process was performed in phases, with the most critical systems and applications being integrated first. This allowed for any issues to be identified and addressed early in the implementation process.

Post-Implementation:

• After the implementation was completed, the systems and applications were tested to ensure that they were integrated with Hybrid Azure AD and had the correct permissions.

• The users were trained on the new authentication and authorization process within the Hybrid Azure AD solution.

• Ongoing monitoring was performed to ensure that the implementation was successful and that the systems and applications were being used as intended.

Results:

• The implementation was completed successfully, with minimal disruption to the business operations.

• The systems and applications were integrated with Hybrid Azure AD and had the correct permissions within the new tenant.

• The company was able to take advantage of the increased scalability and security provided by Hybrid Azure AD while also maintaining existing on-premises AD infrastructure.

Conclusion: Implementing a Hybrid Azure AD solution can be a complex process, but with the right planning and execution, it can be done successfully with minimal disruption to the business operations. By working with stakeholders from the company and using the Azure AD Connect tool, the company was able to achieve a successful implementation that helped to improve scalability and security within the organization.