Amazon Web Services (AWS) Inc. unveiled this week a new set of options to run Microsoft Active Directory (Microsoft AD) in managed service mode in the EC2 Cloud.
Three service options are available for the AWS Directory Service. Simple AD is the cheapest option and provides basic Active Directory compatibilities.
The second is the AWS Directory Service Microsoft Active Directory Enterprise Edition, which is based on Windows Server 2012 R2.
The AD Connector is the third option, which customers can use to link with AD domains on-premises.
AWS has created documentation to assist organizations in deciding which service is best for them. The company states that Simple AD is the best option for small organizations with fewer than 5,000 user accounts.
The new AWS Directory Service is better for organizations with more than 5,000 users or those who require trust relationships between the AWS version of Active Directory and the on-premises directories. It is available when an administrator selects it as a directory type. It is provisioned in a pair domain controllers that can run in multiple AWS availability zones available in any region connected with a customer’s virtual personal cloud (VPC).
AWS stated that the service includes host monitoring, recovery and replication as well as snapshots and software upgrades. The company configures and manages the service.
AWS describes AD Connector as a proxy that links on-premises Active Directory to AWS. This is useful for companies that don’t want AD Federation Services or other complex directory synchronization configurations. The connector is recommended for Active Directory users on premises that do not require replication to AWS-hosted directory.
Developers can link with Active Directory via the AWS Directory Service API. Refer to separate reference documentation for that API. It includes syntax and examples of various actions and data type within the service.