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Microsoft Security Blog
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Microsoft and SAP collaborate to modernize identity for SAP customers

Irina_Nechaeva's avatar
Feb 15, 2024

Microsoft is pleased to announce that we’re collaborating with SAP – the market leader in enterprise application software to develop a solution that enables customers to migrate their identity management scenarios from SAP Identity Management (SAP IDM) to Microsoft Entra ID.

 

SAP recently confirmed the end of maintenance of their IDM solution by 2027 with extended maintenance until 2030. As noted in their blog published February 6, 2024, and stated by Juergen Mueller, CTO and member of the Executive Board, SAP SE, during the keynote at the yearly DSAG Technology Days 2024, SAP is partnering with Microsoft to deliver a successor identity solution for their IDM customers.  We are honored that SAP have chosen to recommend Microsoft Entra ID, our cloud-based identity and access management solution, as the service to facilitate a seamless migration and continue ongoing enterprise-wide identity and access management.

 

Why choose Microsoft Entra?

At Microsoft, we aim to create a unified experience for users, regardless of the devices used or applications accessed. Microsoft Entra, our product line of identity and access solutions, protects access to any app or resource for any user, from anywhere.  The products in the Entra family extend identity and access management capabilities with cloud infrastructure entitlement management, identity governance, identity verification and security service edge (network access) to holistically solve secure access needs across multifaceted, digital landscapes and the connected world.

 

With Microsoft Entra ID, you can take advantage of the latest innovations in cloud identity technology, such as generative AI, zero trust strategies, and decentralized identity. Microsoft Entra ID allows you to customize access policies based on your specific needs and requirements, ensuring that you have the optimal level of security and usability for your applications and services, regardless of where they are hosted or accessed. Users will enjoy a consistent identity experience across different platforms, improving productivity and overall user satisfaction. 

 

Microsoft Entra ID and SAP solutions are already well-integrated, which makes it a logical choice for SAP customers.  The collaboration enables the use of cloud-based services that help organizations efficiently integrate systems with consistent identities and access governance while also eliminating reliance on on-premises identity and access management components for identity management. Today, Microsoft supports organizations using Microsoft Entra ID for HR-driven provisioning from SAP SuccessFactors so that SAP SuccessFactors serves as a source of truth for managing access lifecycle to any application or resource. Microsoft Entra ID also makes it easy to provision users to SAP applications on-premises and the cloud.  Through this integration, customers can already leverage Microsoft Entra ID to deliver single sign-on (SSO), multi-factor authentication (MFA) and Conditional Access policies to all applications connected to other SAP Identity Authentication services as well as other applications.

 

Why modernize your identity infrastructure?

Modernizing identity technology by moving to a cloud-based solution, like Microsoft Entra ID, is the way forward-looking organizations are moving. While many organizations still rely on legacy identity infrastructures, such as Active Directory and Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS), that were designed for on-premises environments, those on-premises identity solutions do not meet the needs of today's cloud-based, mobile, and distributed workforce. More importantly, legacy identity infrastructures are often costly, complex, and vulnerable to security breaches. 

 

Identity modernization is a critical and essential step towards improving an organization’s security posture and protecting your users and resources from identity threats.  It is a strategic investment that can deliver substantial benefits beyond a stronger security posture, like improving user experience and optimizing operational efficiency. Microsoft Entra can help enhance your environment with new opportunities that are too alluring to ignore, whether your organization is new to the cloud, or you want to expand or streamline your existing cloud services.

 

We appreciate the partnership with SAP and the ongoing opportunity to support SAP customers with transforming their identity infrastructure. In the coming months, we’ll be providing more details about migration guidance, resources, partners, and programs that will help facilitate this transition for customers.

 

For more information, please read SAP’s blog Preparing for SAP Identity Management’s End-of-Maintenance in 2027.

Updated Feb 15, 2024
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