What role does Active Directory security play in overall IT security management?

In IT infrastructures powered by Microsoft's Windows Server operating system, Active Directory is the foundation of identity and access management, the focal point of administrative delegation in Windows, and the heart of security audit and compliance reporting. This is because all essential IT security components including organizational domain user accounts, domain computer accounts and domain security groups are all stored in and protected by the Active Directory.

As a result, Active Directory security management must be a vital aspect of an organization's overall IT security management strategy and all appropriate measures must be implemented to ensure its protection. Fortunately, with some basic planning and some basic Active Directory security essentials in place, such as the right security strategies, the right Active Directory reporting tools, the right Active Directory security auditing measures and management tools, organizations can greatly increase their ability to efficiently manage the security of their foundational Active Directory deployments.

With the right guidance, the right approach and the right emphasis, organizations can efficiently maintain Active Directory security. For example, with the organizational IT personnel can often benefit from learning how to generate audit reports in Active Directory and use this information to proactively assess, monitor and manage Active Directory security.

All security conscious organizations must seriously consider the security of their Active Directory deployments and make it an important aspect of their overall IT security strategy.