In many organizations, it’s important to securely work with people who are not part of your company. Microsoft Entra ID (previously known as Azure Active Directory) makes this possible through External Identities.
What are External Identities?
External Identities let people from outside your organization access your systems. This includes business partners, suppliers, vendors, and even customers.
There are three main options:
1. B2B Collaboration
This option allows you to invite guests into your Azure environment.
- Designed for partners who do not have Microsoft Entra ID.
- Guests get access to specific resources, such as apps.
- They can use Single Sign-On (SSO) for smoother access.
- Example: A supplier without Azure can still use your internal procurement app.
2. B2B Direct Connect
This is for external organizations that already use Microsoft Entra ID.
- Creates a trusted connection between your organization and theirs.
- Ideal for working with suppliers, partners, or vendors on shared projects.
- It enables SSO for Microsoft Teams shared channels.
- Example: A partner company can securely join your Teams channels without switching accounts.
3. Microsoft Entra ID B2C (Business-to-Consumer)
This is for your customers—not your business partners.
- Great for public-facing web and mobile apps.
- The users are managed in a separate Microsoft Entra B2C directory.
- Supports SSO into your app, but not into Microsoft services like Microsoft 365.
- You can let users sign in with:
- Social accounts like Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Apple ID
- Email address and password
- Business or Government IDs
For more, get started with our AZ-900 video course at https://idodata.com/az-900-microsoft-azure-fundamentals/, or go back to our AZ-900 List of requirements.
Please click here to find out more about Microsoft’s AZ-900 exam.
