Windows azure active directory demystified

This month Microsoft has released their new shining baby, called windows azure active directory. with this feature Microsoft has give totally new meaning to their existing ADDS – Active directory domain service.

There huge different between ADDS and WAAD.

There are many differences between these two, i will differentiate in one line here, as my goal to cover all the basic thing , what can be done by WAAD.

ADDS: It is something we deploy in our organization for user and rights management purpose, in you organization.

WAAD: It is something you are using your user and right management for any application out of your organization.

We will see all Windows azure active directory feature one by one.

Part-1 : Setting up windows azure active directory

Part-2: Setting up stand alone windows azure active directory federation for you asp.net application.

Part-3: Setting up windows azure active directory federation with ACS.

Part-4: Adding Roles and User in Windows azure active directory(WAAD).

Part-5:Getting user roles, and adding them as claim, Using GRAPH API.

Part-6:Adding Role based authentication in asp.net application,with windows azure active directory(WAAD) and ACS.

Windows Azure Active Directory Feature Overview

Microsoft has released one more new feature in the line on windows azure. This feature is called windows azure Active directory. By sweet name I called it as WAAD J

Someone can easily misinterpret it as cloud version of Active Directory. Though this is not true in the all senses, you can push your current active directory in WAAD.

What problems are solves:

Well, it depends on what you want to achieve. Some common features are:

• Same application can be used by two different organizations with their own active directory users.
• You can have single sign on functionality on all your application.
• If you are small organization and you don’t have active directory users, you can directly add used on WAAD. No need to invest in authentication/authorization infrastructure.
• Highly scalable, as it is hosted on Azure cloud.
• Very attractive for SAS developers.

Hello Developers!!!!

I am still a developer, as I like to be. Here are some things which can help you on development with WAAD.

1) Integration of WAAD is very much easy. If you have integrated ACS previously, this can be done with your left hand J

Pretty much same steps are ACS.

More help?? http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/library/windowsazure/dn151790.aspx

2) After you integrate you will only get certain claims, most important you will not get GROUP Claim. To get group Claim you have to do GRAPH API calls.

More help?? http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windowsazure/dn151791.aspx

3) If you want to create user, you can create it from Windows azure portal. It seems Microsoft forgot to develop we interface for some functionality.

Like Add Group, Add User To Group etc.

But, nothing to worry. We have always had powerful, PowerShell commands to achieve everything which is mission on UI.

More help ?? http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj151815.aspx