Azure Synchronization Setup and Configuration Guide

Let's dive into setting up Azure Synchronization. To start, you'll need to create an Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) tenant, which is a prerequisite for Azure Synchronization.

Azure Synchronization requires a directory to synchronize with, so you'll need to create a new directory or connect to an existing one.

To connect to an existing directory, you'll need to have an Azure AD account with the necessary permissions.

Once you have your Azure AD tenant set up, you can begin the Azure Synchronization setup process.

The first step is to create a new Azure Synchronization service, which will be used to manage your synchronization settings.

This service will act as the central hub for all your synchronization activities.

To set up Azure synchronization, you'll need a few prerequisites in place. First, you'll need a designated Azure admin service account to use for authorizing the sync, which should have the Azure Global Administrator role during Sift setup, but can be reduced later.

This account will be used to manage the sync process, so it's essential to have the right permissions. You'll also need Azure AD groups populated with users to sync.

In addition to these, you'll need administrator access to the Sift Admin Dashboard. This will give you the ability to set up and manage your Azure synchronization.

To get started, you'll need to create a Directory in the Sift Admin Dashboard for your Azure Active Directory Sync. This will be the hub for your sync process, so make sure you have it set up correctly.

Here are the specific prerequisites you'll need:

Completing the setup process for Azure synchronization is a straightforward process once you've authorized Azure AD. You'll then go through the rest of the setup process to create your mappings and enable your sync.

To configure provisioning settings, access the "Provisioning" tab within the cross-tenant synchronization configuration. This can be accessed through the cross-tenant synchronization blade or the Enterprise applications blade.

Within the "Provisioning" tab, you can configure several options, including sending email notifications when a failure occurs, preventing accidental deletion, and defining the scope of the cross-tenant synchronization provisioning activity.

The scope setting defines who will be in scope for the cross-tenant synchronization provisioning activity, with options to sync either assigned users and groups or all users and groups.

After you've authorized Azure AD, you'll go through the rest of the setup process to create your mappings and enable your sync.

The setup process involves creating mappings, which are essentially the connections between your Azure AD and your on-premises directory.

To successfully complete the setup process, you'll need to create these mappings accurately to ensure a smooth sync.

Once the mappings are in place, you can enable your sync, which will start the process of updating your on-premises directory with your Azure AD data.

Express Settings is the default option for setting up Azure/Microsoft 365 with an on-premise Active Directory domain.

It deploys sync with the password hash sync option, allowing for authentication and authorization to resources based on Active Directory passwords.

This option is ideal for single-domain, single-forest on-premise Active Directory domains.

It's a straightforward setup process that gets you up and running quickly, with minimal configuration required.

The password hash sync option is a secure way to authenticate users, as it doesn't require sending passwords to Azure/Microsoft 365.

Custom settings offer administrators flexibility in connecting Active Directory domains and forests for authentication.

You can choose between password hash sync, pass-through authentication, and Active Directory Federation Services (AD FS).

Custom settings also allow administrators to select sync options like password reset write back and Exchange hybrid deployments.

The administrator can connect one or multiple Active Directory domains and forests.

Custom settings provide flexibility in choosing the right authentication method for your organization.

To ensure seamless integration, administrators can choose the sync options that best suit their needs.

Password reset write back and Exchange hybrid deployments are just a couple of the sync options available.

By selecting the right sync options, administrators can streamline their authentication processes.

The administrator can choose from multiple authentication methods, including password hash sync and pass-through authentication.

To use Azure AD with PowerShell, you need to import the Azure AD PowerShell module. This will give you granular control over synchronization behaviors.

The module must be imported to begin working with Azure AD PowerShell. This will allow you to manually run a synchronization with current configurations.

You can run a synchronization with the current configurations by using PowerShell. This will allow you to see how the current settings are working.

Azure AD Connect sync is still the preferred tool for syncing with Active Directory for large organizations. However, it requires more resources and has security concerns.

Azure AD Connect cloud sync is designed for smaller organizations and requires fewer resources. It's currently the newer sync platform and is anticipated to replace Azure AD Connect sync.

Group Management is crucial for Azure Synchronization. You can select which groups to sync from your Azure AD domain by typing the name of your Azure AD groups, and any matching groups will be displayed in the form autocomplete.

Multiple groups can be selected, making it easy to manage your Azure AD groups. Simply select the first group, then begin typing again to choose a second group.

If no groups are selected, all users on your Azure AD tenant will be imported. This means you need to ensure the groups listed in the Sift admin dashboard under Groups to Sync are current, especially if you restricted your sync to specific groups in Azure.

If no groups are selected, all users on your Azure AD tenant will be imported. This can be a good option if you want to import all your users at once, but it's not ideal if you only want to import specific groups.

You can select which groups you want to sync from your Azure AD domain by starting to type the name of your Azure AD groups and any groups that match your input will be displayed in the form autocomplete.

Multiple groups can be selected, simply select the first group then begin typing again to choose a second. This makes it easy to import multiple groups at once.

If you restricted your sync to specific groups in Azure, and one or more of those groups no longer exist, you may see issues with your sync. This is why it's so important to regularly check your Azure groups.

Active Directory is a crucial component of group management, and understanding how it works is essential for effective group management.

Azure Active Directory sync is a tool that ensures usernames and passwords match between on-premises servers and cloud services.

To configure Azure Active Directory sync, you need to ensure that the groups listed in the Sift admin dashboard under Groups to Sync are current, as mentioned in the Cross-tenant Synchronization capability.

You can check your Azure groups to see if any issues exist with your sync, especially if one or more groups no longer exist.

In the context of Exchange Online, provisioned users can be dynamically updated and included in the Global Address List, which is a notable improvement over static mail-contact entries.

This means that recipients will be automatically updated as their attributes change, eliminating the need for manual updates.

Cross-tenant access settings lay the foundations for the cross-tenant synchronization capability, allowing different tenants to collaborate with each other on both an inbound and outbound basis.

In Azure Active Directory, you can establish trusts between tenants to accommodate various conditional access conditions, such as MFA and device claims.

Azure Active Directory is not the same as Microsoft Entra ID, and understanding the distinction between the two is crucial for effective group management.

Cross-Tenant is a feature that enables collaboration between different tenants, allowing users to synchronize and provision from one tenant to another.

To configure Cross-Tenant access, you need to expand Identity, then External Identities, and select Cross-tenant access settings within the Microsoft Entra blade.

The ID of a tenant can be located within the Microsoft Entra blade, specifically within Identity - Overview. Once the organisation connection has been established, click the "Inherited from default" link under the inbound access column to configure the inbound settings.

Enabling the "Automatically redeem invitations" setting allows end-users to access the inbound tenant without accepting the usual consent prompt. This setting can be found within the Trust settings tab.

Cross-tenant synchronization is enabled and configured within the outbound tenant, which can be found within the Microsoft Entra blade, expanding Identity, then External Identities, and selecting Cross-tenant synchronization.

To establish the cross-tenant synchronization connection, specify a name for the connection and click "Create". Then, change the "Provisioning Mode" to Automatic and enter the inbound tenant's ID to verify the connection.

The cross-tenant synchronization capability can be monitored and reviewed through Provisioning Logs and Audit Logs, which track activities performed by the provisioning service and management activities concerned with the cross-tenant synchronization solution itself.

Here are some potential use cases for adopting the Cross-Tenant Synchronization capability:

In the Provisioning settings, you can configure several options to fine-tune your Azure synchronization experience.

You can set up an email notification to alert you when a failure occurs, which is a great way to stay on top of any issues that may arise.

The Prevent accidental deletion setting allows you to prevent users from being deleted or disabled in the inbound tenant, which is a great feature to ensure data integrity.

To enable this setting, you'll need to specify a deletion threshold, which will require an administrator to approve any deletions above that threshold.

The Scope setting defines who will be in scope for the cross-tenant synchronization provisioning activity, and you have two options to choose from: "Sync only assigned users and groups" or "Sync all users and groups".

Here's a quick rundown of the options:

By configuring these settings, you'll be able to tailor your Azure synchronization experience to meet your specific needs and ensure a smooth and efficient provisioning process.