Category: Microsoft | Andy Kemp Consulting

28 Sept 2026 13 min read

Your Conditional Access Policy Says Require MFA. What Does That Actually Mean?

What does “Require MFA” in Conditional Access actually guarantee? A practical look at MFA, Authentication Strength, phishing-resistant authentication, passkeys, synced passkeys...

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Cyber Security

11 Sept 2026 14 min read

Mac or Windows? I Use Both — And That's Kind of the Point

Mac or Windows? I use both. From Surface Laptop 7 and MacBook Pro performance to battery life, Intune, passkeys and WebAuthn, here's where each works best.

Intune #Intune #Mac OS

9 Sept 2026 16 min read

Windows 365 Link Revisited: I Gave It Another Chance

Four months after audio redirection made me put the Windows 365 Link aside, I tested it again. YouTube, Spotify and Windows notifications now work.

Microsoft #Intune #Modern Work

31 Aug 2026 15 min read

EWS Retirement: The Exchange Deadline You Cannot Keep Ignoring

EWS retirement is about far more than rewriting an application. The 1 October 2026 Exchange Online disablement phase is almost here, and April 2027 will arrive quickly. Have you...

EWS #EWS #Exchange

18 Aug 2026 16 min read

Bringing Authentication Assurance Together

Bring Authentication Assurance together into a complete architecture, connecting Trust Levels, passkeys, FIDO2, Authentication Strengths, Conditional Access, TAP, privileged acc...

Authentication Assurance · Part 9

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

17 Aug 2026 13 min read

Building High-Assurance Administrative Accounts

Learn how to build high-assurance administrative identities by combining dedicated accounts, FIDO2 security keys, Authentication Strengths, Conditional Access, PAWs, PIM and sec...

Authentication Assurance · Part 8

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

13 Aug 2026 15 min read Updated 14 Aug 2026

Giving SaaS Applications a Fixed Egress IP with Microsoft Entra Private Access"

Use Microsoft Entra Private Access source IP anchoring to give IP-restricted SaaS applications a controlled and predictable public egress address.

Microsoft Global Secure Access · Part 1

Compliance & Governance #Cloud Security Strategy #Conditional Access

13 Aug 2026 21 min read

Temporary Access Pass and Secure Onboarding

Explore how Temporary Access Pass can securely bootstrap and recover passwordless authentication, and why single-use, multi-use, duration and identity verification all matter wh...

Authentication Assurance · Part 7

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

13 Aug 2026 11 min read

Authentication Strengths in Microsoft Entra

Learn how Microsoft Entra Authentication Strengths and Conditional Access can turn Authentication Assurance from an architectural principle into an enforceable security control.

Authentication Assurance · Part 6

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

13 Aug 2026 11 min read

Choosing the Right Authentication for Each Trust Level

Learn how to align authentication methods with identity Trust Levels, from dedicated FIDO2 security keys for critical administrators to device-bound and synced passkeys where ap...

Authentication Assurance · Part 5

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

11 Aug 2026 6 min read

Not All Passkeys Provide the Same Level of Assurance

Discover why phishing-resistant authentication doesn't automatically provide the same level of operational assurance, and how different passkey implementations influence privile...

Authentication Assurance · Part 4

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

11 Aug 2026 4 min read

Understanding Modern Passkeys

Learn what passkeys are, how they work and the differences between platform, roaming, synced and device-bound passkeys in modern authentication.

Authentication Assurance · Part 3

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

11 Aug 2026 4 min read

The Evolution of Authentication

Discover how authentication has evolved from passwords to phishing-resistant passkeys, and why understanding that journey is key to designing modern identity security.

Authentication Assurance · Part 2

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

11 Aug 2026 4 min read

Why Authentication Assurance Matters

Why modern identity security is about more than enabling MFA. Learn why authentication assurance should increase alongside the value and impact of the identities you're protecting.

Authentication Assurance · Part 1

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Consulting

8 Aug 2026 3 min read

Authentication Assurance – Introduction

An introduction to Authentication Assurance and why modern identity security is about more than simply enabling MFA or going passwordless.

Authentication Assurance

Cyber Security #Continuous Improvement #Entra ID

1 Jun 2026 7 min read

Windows Hello for Business Is More Than a Login Method

Explore Windows Hello for Business as a phishing-resistant authenticator, and why onboarding, recovery and lifecycle management matter as much as passkeys.

Consulting #Authentication Strategy #Entra ID

13 May 2026 21 min read

Windows 365 for Secure Work: The Device Experience Nobody Talks About

Introduction Windows 365 promises a simple idea: a consistent, secure Windows experience delivered from the cloud, accessible from almost anywhere. In practice, the quality of t...

Microsoft #Cloud PC #Conditional Access

8 Dec 2025 12 min read Updated 6 Jan 2026

Data – The Fourth Pillar of Zero Trust

Introduction In this Zero Trust blog series, we’ve already explored how Identity, Devices, and Applications form the foundation of a modern security strategy. Each pillar plays...

Compliance & Governance #Compliance #Continuous Improvement

21 Nov 2025 15 min read Updated 6 Jan 2026

Applications – The Third Pillar of Zero Trust

Introduction In the first two posts of this Zero Trust series, we established that identity is the new perimeter and devices are the frontline of defence. By verifying every user…

Cyber Security #Conditional Access #Entra ID

12 Nov 2025 20 min read Updated 6 Jan 2026

Devices – The Second Pillar of Zero Trust

Introduction In the first post of this series, we explored how identity has become the new perimeter in a world where users, apps, and data are no longer confined to…

Cyber Security #App Protection Policies #BYOD

31 Oct 2025 12 min read Updated 6 Jan 2026

Identity: The New Perimeter in Zero Trust

Welcome to the first deep dive in my Zero Trust blog series. If you’ve read the series introduction, you’ll know that Zero Trust isn’t a single product or a quick…

Azure #Entra ID #Microsoft

21 Oct 2025 14 min read Updated 6 Jan 2026

Zero Trust Blog Series: A Microsoft-Centric Approach

Introduction Over the past few years, I’ve seen a growing interest in Zero Trust but also a lot of confusion. Many still view it as a product you can buy…

Azure #Cloud Security Strategy #Cyber Security

8 Jun 2025 9 min read

Deploying Azure Virtual Desktop – A Modular, Automated Approach

Introduction Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) is Microsoft’s comprehensive Desktop-as-a-Service platform, enabling secure remote access to Windows desktops and apps from virtually an...

Automation #Azure Virtual Desktop #Azure

30 May 2025 7 min read

Windows Image Prep Tool for Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition

Introduction A while back I wrote a post about my experience with getting my Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition working with a clean install of Windows 11, you can see…

AI #GitHub #Microsoft

9 May 2025 5 min read

Using Cloud PKI with Always On VPN

Using Microsoft Cloud PKI With Always On VPN Introduction I have been playing around with Always On VPN recently. Using it with Domain, Hybrid and Entra Joined devices. As you…

Intune #Entra ID #Intune

6 May 2025 4 min read

Always On VPN Entra Join – Part 5 Deploy Always On VPN for Entra Joined Devices

This is part 5 of my Always On VPN series You can review the pervious posts if required: Introduction So we now have everything in place for Always On VPN….

Microsoft #Microsoft

6 May 2025 9 min read

Always On VPN Entra Join – Part 4 Configure Always On VPN for Entra Joined Devices

This is part 4 of my Always On VPN series You can review the pervious posts if required: Introduction The infrastructure you have in its current state is great if…

Microsoft #Microsoft

6 May 2025 11 min read

Always On VPN Entra Join – Part 3 Core Always On VPN Infrastructure

This is part 3 of my Always On VPN series You can review the pervious posts if required: Introduction Now we have the certificates available the next step is to…

Microsoft #Microsoft

6 May 2025 8 min read

Always On VPN Entra Join – Part 2 Certificate Templates

This is part 2 of my Always On VPN series You can review the pervious posts if required: Introduction Certificates are at the heart of Always On VPN as this…

Microsoft #Microsoft

6 May 2025 4 min read

Always On VPN Entra Join – Part 1 Whats needed

This is part 1 of my Always On VPN series You can review the pervious posts if required: Introduction Always on VPN is a technology thats been around for some…

Entra #Microsoft

15 Apr 2025 6 min read

Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition

Introduction I recently with picked up a Microsoft Surface Laptop with Copilot. I wanted to go throguh my frustrations with it to get a clean install of Windows 11 on…

Microsoft #Microsoft

4 Apr 2025 7 min read

Mac OS connecting to Windows 365 and AVD

Introduction You may have seen from some of my posts on here and also on my YouTube channel I have been doing a lot about Windows 365 and AVD. You…

Azure Virtual Desktop #Azure Virtual Desktop #Conditional Access

23 Mar 2025 6 min read

Virtual PAW – Part 4 – Completing the basic setup

So this is part 4 of my multi part series on my journey with Bicep and ARM Templates and deploying AVD as a PAW.. Introduction In this part I’ll go…

Azure #Azure #Entra ID

27 Feb 2025 7 min read

Virtual PAW – Part 3 – Deploying the session hosts

So this is the 3rd part of a multi part series on my journey with Bicep and ARM Templates and deploying AVD as a PAW.. Introduction Welcome to the 3rd…

Azure #Azure #Entra ID

18 Feb 2025 6 min read

Virtual PAW – Part 2 – Core Components

So this is the 2nd part of a multi part series on my journey with Bicep and ARM Templates and deploying AVD as a PAW. Part One was the high…

Azure #Azure #Microsoft

14 Feb 2025 7 min read Updated 18 Feb 2025

Virtual PAW – Part 1 – A high level overview

I have decided to create this as a multi part post to hopefully make it easier to understand. Introduction So Following on from my last post I thought I’d share…

Azure #Azure #Azure Virtual Desktop

5 Feb 2025 6 min read

Why use a PAW?

Introduction Following on from my previous post I have been asked why I use a PAW for my own tenant, and or why not just use a conditional access policy…

Azure #Entra ID #Microsoft

15 Jan 2025 3 min read

Securing my privileged access with AVD

I’m trying to “lead by example” (I use that term loosely), when it comes to privileged access. A bit of background For a long time my regular Microsoft 365 account…

Azure #Azure Virtual Desktop #Azure

2 Jul 2024 7 min read

Privileged Identity Management and Access Tiers

Introduction I’ve been working with a customer recently assisting with sorting out their privileged access and assisting them with their adoption of PIM (Privileged Identity Man...

Entra #Microsoft #Microsoft Entra

9 Jun 2024 11 min read Updated 10 Jun 2024

Cost effective IPSec Site to Site VPN with Azure and UDM

Introduction There are many ways to establish a VPN between my UDM and Azure andI’ve tried them all, but, for the best result I would still recommend using an Azure…

Azure #Azure #Microsoft

24 May 2024 3 min read

Creating Multiple Security Groups in Microsoft Entra

I was recently asked if there was a quick way to create 180 plus Security Groups in Microsoft Entra. I used to do a lot of PowerShell Scripting but not…

Microsoft #Entra ID #Microsoft