Microsoft Active Directory vs Ping Identity Platform comparison

Microsoft Active Directory vs. Ping Identity Platform

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Helped 787,763 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Active Directory

Ranking in Single Sign-On (SSO)

7th

Average Rating

8.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Active Directory Management (5th)

Ping Identity Platform

Ranking in Single Sign-On (SSO)

3rd

Average Rating

8.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Authentication Systems (5th), Data Governance (6th), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (5th), Access Management (3rd), Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (3rd), Directory Servers (1st)

Market share comparison

As of June 2024, in the Single Sign-On (SSO) category, the market share of Microsoft Active Directory is 2.9% and it increased by 134.5% compared to the previous year. The market share of Ping Identity Platform is 12.4% and it decreased by 44.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Single Sign-On (SSO)

Unique Categories:

Active Directory Management

0.4%

Authentication Systems

1.3%

Featured Reviews

Hussein Taha

IT Enterprise System Administrator at Misr Technology Services

Dec 13, 2022

We can delegate the administration of Active Directory objects and apply group policies, manage replication between sites, and is straightforward to set up

There is no room for improvement because Microsoft's solutions have moved from on-prem to the cloud. We won't see any improvement or enhancement in these on-prem solutions because, according to the Microsoft websites, all the information related to Active Directory and Windows Server has been retired and there is no more information about it. Microsoft has discontinued the solution and moved on. Microsoft has verified that all on-prem solutions will stop receiving support by 2030. The GUI has been the same from 2012 to 2016, and from 2019 to 2022. If Microsoft is going to add anything to the on-prem solution, it should be an updated GUI.

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Satish Shekhar Singh

IAM technical architect at Emprest Innovations Private Ltd

Apr 17, 2024

Offers multi-factor authentication (MFA), good customizations features, very flexible

PingFederate is very flexible. We can do many customizations, and it also provides an SDK to tailor it to our specific requirements. There are also numerous plugins available. I've worked with tools like ForgeRock and Okta, but I find PingFederate to be the most customizable. It provides basic SSO functionality, but we can easily extend it. For instance, if a client requires multi-factor authentication (MFA) beyond username and password, such as OTPs or knowledge-based answers, we can integrate those. Ultimately, we tailor the solution based on client needs. In fact, I've also worked in presales, demonstrating the capabilities of PingFederate through POCs (Proof of Concepts).

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is a scalable solution."

"The scalability of the solution is high...The initial setup of the solution is easy, and I would rate it an eight or nine out of ten on a scale of one to ten, where one being difficult and ten being easy."

"Stability and performance are good. So far, we have not observed any major downtime or performance issues since we deployed it."

"The solution is user-friendly, and I like using Microsoft products. I think there is no other choice for Active Directory. Microsoft Windows Server Active Directory is the best."

"The Solution's most important feature is that it can merge with a cloud-based active directory via Azure AD Connect."

"We can also have separate domain controllers in different Active Directory sites based on their location."

"It's quite easy to integrate into other directories."

"We use the tool for FSMO, policies, and customized user registrations."

More Microsoft Active Directory pros

"I find the auto-discovery feature the most valuable. It helps us automate a lot of things using a single password across applications."

"It provides ease of connecting all our devices."

"It is a stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"It is a scalable solution...It is a stable solution."

"The mobile biometric authentication option improved user experience. It's always about security because, with two-factor authentication, it's always a separate device verifying the actual user logging in."

"We use the product to run different reports."

"PingFederate gives you granular control over the settings. There are many options for fine-tuning policies."

"PingFederate is very flexible. We can do many customizations, and it also provides an SDK to tailor it to our specific requirements. There are also numerous plugins available. I've worked with tools like ForgeRock and Okta, but I find PingFederate to be the most customizable."

More Ping Identity Platform pros

Cons

"The solution should maintain the infrastructure according to the period you are in and the security changes."

"The solution's price could be better."

"If Microsoft is going to add anything to the on-prem solution, it should be an updated GUI."

"The DNS services could improve in Microsoft Active Directory."

"The product's premium support services could be less expensive."

"The product must provide remote password reset features."

"I would like to see the integration with Mac and IOS products improved."

"Could use more structure in the cloud version."

More Microsoft Active Directory cons

"PingID classifies the type of environment into internal and external, which is an area for improvement because you need to take additional steps to trust internal and external users."

"The product is not customizable."

"Currently, the main integration is SAML-based, but other integration methodologies need to be supported."

"PingID's device management portal should be more easily accessible via a link. They provide no link to the portal like they do for the service. The passwordless functionality could be more comprehensive. You can't filter based on hardware devices. Having that filtering option would be great. Device authentication would be a great feature."

"PingID would benefit from a better user interface for integration."

"The timing of the token validity, if it could be extended, would be great. I'm not sure if there is even an option to configure these types of settings."

"We have encountered instances where it is not easy to do authentication."

"In the beginning, the initial setup was very complex."

More Ping Identity Platform cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Active Directory is built-in into Microsoft Windows 10. I'm not an administrator and would not be involved in purchasing decisions for new versions of the software. I have only used the client portion of it, I do not know if there is a cost to using the solution."

"The product's premium support services are expensive."

"The price of Microsoft Active Directory could improve. We pay annually for the solution."

"Its price is reasonable."

"We have to purchase a license for the solution."

"Microsoft Active Directory is not an expensive solution."

"I rate the product’s pricing a five out of ten."

"We purchase the license for the solution on a yearly basis."

More Microsoft Active Directory pricing and cost advice

"The pricing is neither too expensive nor too cheap."

"PingID pricing is a ten out of ten because it's a little bit cheaper than other tools, such as Okta and ForgeRock, and supports multiple tools."

"Ping offers flexible pricing that's not standardized."

"The product is costly."

"PingID's pricing is pretty competitive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

22%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Government

10%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

26%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Active Directory?

The solution is easy to install and has good reliability.

What needs improvement with Microsoft Active Directory?

The solution could be made more safe by using authentication mechanisms. We often have to deal with security issues.

What is your primary use case for Microsoft Active Directory?

I use Microsoft Active Directory as the first line in the LDAP directory. You can use the solution to manage computer accounts, user accounts, and other objects. You can also use Microsoft Active D...

What do you like most about PingID?

The mobile biometric authentication option improved user experience. It's always about security because, with two-factor authentication, it's always a separate device verifying the actual user logg...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for PingID?

The pricing is neither too expensive nor too cheap.

What needs improvement with PingID?

The management console needs to be improved. PingID should revise it.

Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs Microsoft Active Directory

Comparisons

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Microsoft Entra ID vs Microsoft Active Directory

Compared 17% of the time

ManageEngine ADManager Plus vs Microsoft Active Directory

Compared 17% of the time

Auth0 vs Microsoft Active Directory

Compared 8% of the time

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Microsoft Entra ID vs Ping Identity Platform

Compared 29% of the time

Symantec Siteminder vs Ping Identity Platform

Compared 12% of the time

ForgeRock vs Ping Identity Platform

Compared 11% of the time

SailPoint Identity Security Cloud vs Ping Identity Platform

Compared 5% of the time

RSA SecurID vs Ping Identity Platform

Compared 4% of the time

More Ping Identity Platform Competitors

Product Reports

Microsoft Active Directory

Download Microsoft Active Directory product report

Ping Identity Platform

Download Ping Identity Platform product report

Also Known As

No data available

Ping Identity (ID), PingFederate, PingAccess, PingOne, PingDataGovernance, PingDirectory, OpenDJ

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Microsoft

Ping Identity

Overview

Active Directory stores information about objects on the network and makes this information easy for administrators and users to find and use. Active Directory uses a structured data store as the basis for a logical, hierarchical organization of directory information.

This data store, also known as the directory, contains information about Active Directory objects. These objects typically include shared resources such as servers, volumes, printers, and the network user and computer accounts.

Security is integrated with Active Directory through logon authentication and access control to objects in the directory. With a single network logon, administrators can manage directory data and organization throughout their network, and authorized network users can access resources anywhere on the network. Policy-based administration eases the management of even the most complex network.

IDENTITY DEFINED SECURITY PLATFORM delivers a unified, standards-based platform that can be deployed as SaaS, software or both and can scale to handle millions of identities. From multi-factor authentication and single sign-on to access security, directory and data governance, our capabilities work together to give employees, partners and customers secure access to cloud, mobile and enterprise applications, securing and streamlined everything from sign-on to sign-off and everywhere in between.

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Equinix, Land O'Lakes, CDPHP, Box, International SOS, Opower, VSP, Chevron, Truist, Academy of Art University, Northern Air Cargo, Repsol

Microsoft Active Directory vs. Ping Identity Platform