Microsoft Identity Manager: Start Considering Replacements Now

• Microsoft Identity Manager is set for retirement in 2029, with no formal replacement from Microsoft expected.
• MIM let organizations perform deep integration of third-party systems and devices into Active Directory; replacing it is complex.
• Existing customers can keep using MIM but should plan to retire the software before support ends because it will be dangerous to run unpatched.
• Microsoft alternatives to MIM lack its depth of features, and customers that need those capabilities will need to find third-party alternatives.

The Microsoft Identity Manager (MIM) 2016 on-premises software maintains and synchronizes user identity data, such as group memberships, across all applications and OS services that use the data, including Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS), third-party directories, and HR systems, as well as credential management including certificates and multifactor authentication (MFA). First shipped in the second half of 2015, the software will leave Extended support in 2029. Customers should not anticipate any extension of the support life cycle, and instead plan to gradually retire the product with the limited replacements available from Microsoft, or potentially third parties.