★★★★★ 5
More than just the most comprehensive book on AD
Format: Paperback
I have been working with Active Directory since it was released in 2000 and even before that if you count its predecessor Exchange's directory. I can confidently say that this is the most comprehensive book on Active Directory that I have ever read. Of course there are all of the basics like designing AD structures, migrations to AD 2022, management of objects and group policies but then all of the AD services are also covered in-depth like DNS, DS, LDS, FS, RMS and CS. Furthermore this book tackles trusts, database maintenance and backup and recovery.
While not a book about Azure AD, there is a ton of information about Azure AD. The author takes the time and effort to compare AD with Azure AD and there are hundreds of references to Azure AD in terms of building out hybrid AD environments, federated identity and notes about how things are done in Azure AD versus AD. The chapter on PowerShell demonstrates scripts for both AD and Azure AD.
Here is what I think makes this book special though, and it is how the entire context for the book is around security, identity and access management. Essentially this book can be viewed as a book on security, identity and access management that demonstrates how to practically implement those concepts in Active Directory and Azure AD. There is fantastic information that explains the concepts of identity and access management clearly and concisely and covers topics such as zero trust, privileged access management (PAM) and more. Then, these concepts are translated into how they are implemented in Active Directory. It's a great way to present the information as it provides real world context and clearly explains the purpose of Active Directory versus purely just describing technical features and functionality. This is the way all technical books should be written.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2021