Entra ID and Intune: Users and Devices

Microsoft Entra ID (the new name for Azure Active Directory) and Microsoft Intune are the two cloud platforms that, together, let a business centrally manage who accesses what, and from which device. With hybrid work and the use of personal smartphones and laptops for work tasks now widespread, this combination has become one of the most practical tools for reducing the risk of unauthorised access without weighing down users' day-to-day work.

What Entra ID and Intune actually do

Entra ID is the identity platform: it manages users, groups, and above all the rules governing access to company resources. Its main functions are:

• Single Sign-On (SSO) — one login to reach every authorised business application, without re-entering credentials each time.
• Conditional access — rules that decide if, how and from where a user can access resources: for example, blocking access from unusual countries, or requiring MFA if the login comes from an unmanaged device.
• Multi-factor authentication (MFA) — drastically reduces the risk that a stolen password alone is enough for an attacker to get in.

Intune is the device management platform (MDM/UEM): it applies security policies to company or personal PCs, smartphones and tablets, regardless of operating system.

• Compliance policies — a device that doesn't meet minimum requirements (active encryption, up-to-date system, antivirus present) can be automatically blocked from accessing company data.
• App management (MAM) — on personal devices (BYOD), it's possible to protect just the business container (email, documents) without touching the user's personal data.
• Automatic provisioning — with tools like Windows Autopilot, a new PC can arrive already configured for the employee, with no manual IT intervention needed.

Why adopt them together

On their own, identity and device management each cover only half the problem. A user with the right password but on a compromised device is still a risk; a compliant device with unverified access is just as much of one. The Entra ID + Intune combination lets you condition access to company resources on both the user's identity and the device's security status — this is the principle behind the Zero Trust model, today's benchmark standard for access security.

For SMBs, the practical benefit is twofold: fewer passwords for users to manage (thanks to SSO and two-factor authentication), and centralised visibility for IT over who's accessing what, from where and on which device — without having to intervene manually on every single PC or smartphone.

How they integrate with Microsoft 365

Entra ID is the identity layer underneath the entire Microsoft 365 environment: the same identity governs access to Exchange, Teams, SharePoint and OneDrive. Intune, in turn, integrates with Office app protection policies to prevent, for example, a company document being copied into an unmanaged personal app.

For businesses starting from scratch or looking to review their setup, the trickiest part isn't technical but organisational: correctly defining groups, access levels and exceptions avoids both security gaps and blocks that frustrate users. It's the kind of work where targeted IT consulting makes a real difference compared to a configuration left at default settings. If you'd like an assessment of your current setup, get in touch for a chat.