Microsoft announced today that Azure AD is being rebranded as Microsoft Entra ID. The change is part of Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to simplify secure access experiences for everyone. The new name, Microsoft Entra ID, reflects the expanded capabilities of the product. In addition to traditional directory-based identity management, Microsoft Entra ID also provides secure access to cloud-based apps, devices, and digital workloads.
The rebranding will be a gradual process. The new name will start appearing in Microsoft product experiences in August 2023. All configurations and integrations will continue to work as they do today, without any action needed from you.
What does this mean for Azure AD customers?
If you are a current Azure AD customer, you will not need to take any action as a result of the name change. All of your configurations and integrations will continue to work as they do today. The only thing that will change is the name of the product. You will start seeing the new name in Microsoft product experiences in August 2023.
Licensing plans and pricing for Azure AD and Microsoft 365 plans that include Azure AD will remain the same, with only the display names for the licensing plans being updated. The mapping from the current Azure AD SKU names to the new SKU names under Microsoft Entra ID will be provided for easy reference. Service plan display names will change on October 1, 2023.
Why Is Microsoft changing the name?
Microsoft introduced the Microsoft Entra product family in 2022. The family includes Azure AD, Microsoft Entra Permissions Management, Microsoft Entra Verified ID, Microsoft Entra ID Governance, Microsoft Entra Workload ID, Microsoft Entra Internet Access, and Microsoft Entra Private Access.
The name change to Microsoft Entra ID reflects the fact that Azure AD is now just one product in the Microsoft Entra family. The new name also makes it easier to understand the scope of the product and its capabilities.
What are the benefits of the new name?
The new name has several benefits, including:
- It makes it easier to navigate and use all products and capabilities in the Microsoft Entra portfolio.
- It ensures that you have the strongest protections for any access point.
- It standardizes the use of the term “ID” for all Microsoft identity products.
Microsoft recognizes the importance of its users in this journey towards improved identity and access management. Feedback and insights from users have played a crucial role in shaping the evolution of identity security. The company invites content creators, authors of internal documentation for IT or identity security admins, developers of Azure AD-enabled apps, independent software vendors, and Microsoft partners to help spread the word about the name change and implement it within their own experiences.