Federating Apple Identities and Azure Active Directory

 

• Organizations can federate Azure Active Directory credentials into Apple’s iCloud identity infrastructure to be used with Managed Apple IDs.
• The option can streamline administrator sign-in for organizations that purchase Apple devices and manage personally owned Apple devices.
• Benefits are currently limited but are likely to expand in 2020.

In 2019, Apple enabled federation of Azure Active Directory (AAD) with their free Apple Business Manager service, which helps business customers onboard Apple devices. The feature will help secure and administer organization-issued iOS, iPadOS, and macOS devices, although the benefits will be limited initially. 

Federating AAD and Apple Business Manager

Federation enables administrators to sign in to Apple Business Manager (ABM) using their AAD credentials, the same credentials they use for other AAD management tasks, such as managing Office 365  and other Microsoft 365 services. ABM is a free online service offered by Apple, which helps organizations onboard Apple device management and assists in the management of applications and content that have been volume-licensed by the organization through Apple. ABM also assists with the creation and management of Managed Apple IDs, organization-controlled IDs that can help the organization manage Apple services and volume-licensed software and content.