Azure AD Pass-Through Authentication Generally Available

Azure Active Directory (AAD) pass-through authentication, which became generally available in Oct. 2017, is a new method to federate Active Directory on-premises with AAD. It allows users to log on to on-premises and hosted applications using the same set of credentials, and allows organizations to centrally create and revoke those credentials. It should simplify sign-on and access management for hosted services such as Office 365. However, organizations with complex on-premises directories must continue to plan and execute their AAD integrations carefully, even with pass-through authentication.

Previous AD DS and AAD Integration Options

Organizations can integrate existing on-premises Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) forests or other directories with AAD. Integration with AAD allows users to log on to on-premises and hosted applications using the same set of credentials. It also allows administrators to create and revoke user accounts in a single directory one time to manage both on-premises and online services, which helps secure systems and simplifies access management.