All posts tagged ZTNA

Techmentor Conference at Microsoft HQ 2025

I’m very excited to announce that I will be attending the annual Techmentor Conference at the Microsoft HQ campus in Redmond, Washington, this year. The event takes place August 11-15, 2025. The Techmentor Conference is one of my favorite IT pro conferences because it offers unparalleled access to experts worldwide. I will deliver two presentations at this year’s event. I hope you’ll join me!

Entra Private Access

On Tuesday, August 12, 2025, I will be presenting a session on Zero Trust Network Access with Microsoft Entra Private Access. ZTNA is the future of remote access and provides many security and operational benefits over traditional client-based VPN technologies.

T11 – Zero Trust Network Access with Entra Private Access

Cloud PKI for Intune

On Wednesday, August 13, 2025, I’ll discuss Simplified Certificate Management with Microsoft Cloud PKI for Intune. As organizations integrate cloud-native devices in their environments, administrators must solve the problem of issuing and managing certificates for users and devices that are not domain-joined. Cloud PKI for Intune is an excellent solution that provides deployment flexibility to address these unique and specific requirements.

W10 – Simplified Certificate Management with Cloud PKI for Intune

Register Now

Registration for the event is open now. Use the promo code HICKS and receive $500.00 off the price of admission. Don’t miss this excellent opportunity to learn from the best. Register today!

Additional Information

Techmentor Conference at Microsoft HQ 2025

Techmentor Conference at Microsoft HQ 2025 – Session List

Microsoft Entra Private Access

Microsoft Cloud PKI for Intune

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by Richard M. Hicks on June 25, 2025  •  Permalink
Posted in Active Directory Certificate Services, AD CS, ADCS, administration, authentication, Azure, Azure AD, Azure Conditional Access, Certificate Authentication, Certificate Authority, Certificate Connector for Intune, Certificate Services, certificates, cloud, Cloud PKI, Cloud Service, Conditional Access, Conference, Endpoint Manager, Enterprise, enterprise mobility, Entra, Entra Conditional Access, Entra Global Secure Access, Entra ID, Entra Private Access, Entra Private Network Connector, Global Secure Access, GSA, InTune, Intune Certificate Connector, Intune PFX Connector, learning, Microsoft, Microsoft Endpoint Manager, Microsoft Entra, Microsoft Entra Global Secure Access, Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft Entra Private Access, Microsoft Intune, Mobile Device Management, Mobility, Multifactor Authentiction, PKI, public cloud, public key infrastructure, SASE, Secure Access Service Edge, Secure Service Edge, Security, Security Service Edge, Training, Windows 10, Windows 11, Zero Trust, Zero Trust Network Access
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Posted by Richard M. Hicks on June 25, 2025

https://directaccess.richardhicks.com/2025/06/25/techmentor-conference-at-microsoft-hq-2025/

Always On VPN and Entra Conditional Access

Microsoft recently introduced Entra Private Access, an identity-centric Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) solution to provide secure remote access to on-premises resources. With Entra Private Access, administrators can leverage Entra Conditional Access to enforce policy-based access control for network access. However, Entra Private Access isn’t for everyone. It does not provide full feature parity with Always On VPN, and there are also licensing considerations. However, for those organizations using Always On VPN, the good news is that you can integrate Entra Conditional Access with Always On VPN today to gain some of the security benefits it provides.

Conditional Access

Microsoft Entra Conditional Access is a security feature that enables administrators to create and enforce policies that specify how users can access resources. In the specific case of Always On VPN, conditional access is critical to ensuring legitimate access to authenticated users on authorized devices.

Signals

Conditional access policies use a wide variety of signals for policy enforcement, such as:

  • User Identity: Who is making this access request?
  • User Properties: Is this user a member of a specific group?
  • Location: Where is this access request originating?
  • Device Management: Is this device joined to Entra ID?
  • Device State: Is this device compliant with security policies?
  • Device Platform: Is this a Windows device?
  • Risk Level: Is this login considered risky?

Access Control

Based on these signals, administrators can design a conditional access policy to enforce granular access control, such as:

  • Grant access only from managed devices
  • Deny access from untrusted locations
  • Require additional context-based authentication (e.g., multifactor authentication)
  • Enforce specific authentication types (e.g., phishing-resistant credentials)
  • Allow access only from specific device platforms (e.g., Windows only)
  • Require Entra hybrid-joined device
  • Block access when a device is not compliant with security policies

Always On VPN

Entra Conditional Access works with Always On VPN by issuing a special, short-lived user authentication certificate once the user has been authorized. The Always On VPN infrastructure can be configured to use this certificate to grant access to the VPN. Integrating conditional access with Always On VPN can significantly improve the security posture of organizations using this feature.

Deployment Guide

I’ve published a detailed, step-by-step deployment guide to configure Entra conditional access for Always On VPN. In addition, I have posted a demonstration video for enabling Entra conditional access with Aways On VPN on YouTube.

Additional Information

Microsoft Entra Conditional Access Overview

Configure Entra Conditional Access for Always On VPN

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by Richard M. Hicks on February 10, 2025  •  Permalink
Posted in Active Directory, administration, Always On VPN, AOVPN, AovpnDPC, authentication, Azure Active Directory, Azure AD, Azure AD Join, Azure VPN, cloud, Cloud Service, Conditional Access, Device Management, Endpoint Manager, Enterprise, enterprise mobility, Entra, Entra Conditional Access, Entra Global Secure Access, Entra Private Access, Global Secure Access, GSA, Hybrid Azure AD Join, Hybrid Entra ID Join, Hybrid Entra Join, Infrastructure, InTune, MDM, MFA, Microsoft, Microsoft Entra, Microsoft Entra Global Secure Access, Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft Entra Private Access, Microsoft Intune, Mobile Device Management, Mobility, Multifactor Authentiction, Operational Support, public cloud, Remote Access, Security, user tunnel, VPN, Windows 10, Windows 11, Zero Trust, Zero Trust Network Access
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Posted by Richard M. Hicks on February 10, 2025

https://directaccess.richardhicks.com/2025/02/10/always-on-vpn-and-entra-conditional-access/

Microsoft Security Service Edge Now Generally Available

A few weeks ago, Microsoft announced the general availability of its Security Service Edge (SSE) offering, Global Secure Access (GSA). GSA encompasses Entra Internet Access, a cloud-based Secure Web Gateway, and Entra Private Access, a Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) solution for accessing private data and applications on-premises.

ZTNA vs. VPN

Entra Private Access will be a compelling alternative to traditional VPN solutions such as Windows Always On VPN. Where traditional VPNs grant the endpoint an IP address on the internal network, Entra Private Access provides more granular access and does not require the device to be directly connected to the network.

GSA Client

Administrators must install the GSA client on all endpoints using Entra Internet Access or Entra Private Access. Today, the client is available for Windows and Android devices. iOS and macOS clients are forthcoming.

Private Network Connector

The Entra Private Access solution relies on the Entra Private Network Connector. The Entra Private Network Connector is a software component installed on-premises that provides remote access connectivity. Previously, it was called the Azure AD Application Proxy. Essentially, it is the same technology extended to support TCP and UDP network access in addition to HTTP.

Limitations

Entra Private Access is the way of the future for secure remote access. However, today, there are still some important limitations associated with this technology.

Private DNS

Although Microsoft announced general availability for Entra Private Access, it still lacks the private DNS feature many organizations require to provide feature parity with their existing VPN. This feature is still in private preview at the time of this writing. Hopefully, Microsoft will release this feature soon.

Device Connection

Entra Private Access does not support device-based connections. This limits its capabilities for domain-joined devices. If your organization uses hybrid Entra join today, consider sticking with Always On VPN until you move to native Entra joined endpoints.

Licensing

Global Secure Access (Entra Private Access and Entra Internet Access) are included in the Microsoft Entra Suite license. More information about Entra licensing can be found here.

Additional Information

Microsoft Global Secure Access Now Generally Available

Microsoft Entra Global Secure Access (GSA) Overview

Microsoft Entra Security Service Edge (SSE) on the RunAs Radio Podcast

Microsoft Entra Plans & Pricing

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by Richard M. Hicks on August 6, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Always On VPN, AOVPN, authentication, Azure AD, Azure AD Join, Azure App Proxy, Azure Application Proxy, cloud, Cloud Service, Endpoint Manager, Enterprise, enterprise mobility, Entra, Entra Global Secure Access, Entra ID, Entra Internet Access, Entra Private Access, Entra Private Network Connector, GSA, HAADJ, Hybrid Azure AD Join, Hybrid Entra ID Join, Hybrid Entra Join, InTune, MDM, MEM, MFA, Microsoft, Microsoft Endpoint Manager, Microsoft Entra, Microsoft Entra Global Secure Access, Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft Entra Internet Access, Microsoft Entra Private Access, Microsoft Intune, Mobile Device Management, Mobility, Multifactor Authentiction, Private Network Connector, Remote Access, Secure Access Service Edge, Secure Service Edge, Secure Web Gateway, Security, Security Service Edge, Uncategorized, VPN, Windows 10, Windows 11, Zero Trust, Zero Trust Network Access, ZTNA
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Posted by Richard M. Hicks on August 6, 2024

https://directaccess.richardhicks.com/2024/08/06/microsoft-security-service-edge-now-generally-available/

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