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AWS Directory Service vs Thales SafeNet Trusted Access comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 2, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

AWS Directory Service
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
18th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Thales SafeNet Trusted Access
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
25th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (21st), Access Management (22nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) category, the mindshare of AWS Directory Service is 1.6%, down from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Thales SafeNet Trusted Access is 1.1%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
AWS Directory Service1.6%
Thales SafeNet Trusted Access1.1%
Other97.3%
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
 

Featured Reviews

Basa Saiteja - PeerSpot reviewer
A valuable access management system with a user-friendly and straightforward setup
The solution is scalable, and we can scale according to our needs. I rate the scalability a nine out of ten. In our organization, our access to our AWS comes from IAM. We use AWS consoles using our credentials and don't have route access, so each person will log in through our IAM programmatic access, and everyone on our team can work on cloud. Over 10,000 people in our organization utilize the solution.
GauravMathur - PeerSpot reviewer
Simple to use, easy to set up, and performs well
I'm not saying that we want to switch the product, however, since the requirement has increased, we are looking at other options that may be better suited. The scalability may not there. We have a few specific use cases where we have to avoid the cloud. Especially in Europe, we're not allowed to carry their phone in factories. We need some sort of secure access solution. There's a dependency on Microsoft Azure. I am paying to SafeNet and in parallel, I also need to pay Microsoft to use the same service. That makes no sense, to pay double. If they could do something about it, that would be very good.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"AWS Directory Service is secure."
"Two-step authentication is very useful and important."
"I would rate AWS Directory Service nine out of ten."
"The most valuable feature of AWS Directory Service is cost-cutting features."
"I like the manageability. Activate Connect makes it easier to assign information and to manage the resources in the network."
"Provides good performance and availability."
"We like the fact that it's got such great redundancy."
"The pricing is very good because it is low and there is no management cost."
"The validation and integrity features of the endpoint are great."
"The interface is easy to use."
"The solution is simple to use."
 

Cons

"Accessing the data needs improvement."
"Currently, there is no option to integrate our on-premises Cisco AWS Directory Service, requiring some manual configuration."
"Some of the security protocols are difficult to understand."
"To get CloudWatch to monitor your memory and storage, you have to do some configuration within your server, which sometimes results in errors."
"The AWS Directory Service should be easier to integrate."
"Our only complaint is that you cannot integrate your Exchange server. Or, if you are planning to install an Exchange server on your Amazon EC2 instance, then you need to configure Active Directory on EC2 instance. We would like for this limitation to be lifted."
"AWS could improve the number of regions. Azure has passed them. The ned more consistency, as far as the Northeast is concerned."
"We had a problem with the schema uploading and setting up the directory when we are migrating our users from on-premises to cloud infrastructure."
"SafeNet's reporting and monitoring features could be improved."
"Lacks the ability to integrate network monitoring solutions and authenticate the app users."
"There's a dependency on Microsoft Azure."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing depends because with AWS there are two types of directory objects: 30,000 and 500,000. It varies. AWS provides the pricing calculators so we can get an estimate from there as per the company requirement of how many users and objects that we need to create. So we can go to that portal, put in the data, and get the quotation. There are no extra licensing fees. It's all included."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"We pay an annual subscription fee."
"AWS' pricing is fair, and costs can be cut if you look carefully at when you're using it."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Healthcare Company
11%
Performing Arts
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
11%
Performing Arts
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Legal Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise4
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about AWS Directory Service?
The most valuable feature of AWS Directory Service is cost-cutting features.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Directory Service?
The pricing is very good because it is low and there is no management cost. You do not need to hire any system administrator to manage your Active Directory.
What needs improvement with AWS Directory Service?
Accessing the data needs improvement. Additionally, integration and compatibility with other AWS ( /products/amazon-aws-reviews ) services, network open LDAP, support for on-premise and cloud envir...
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Also Known As

AWS Managed Microsoft AD
SafeNet Trusted Access, Gemalto SafeNet Trusted Access
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
IBM, Western Union, Vanderbilt University Medical Centre, Novartis, and AT&T.
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Directory Service vs. Thales SafeNet Trusted Access and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,513 professionals have used our research since 2012.