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Microsoft Active Directory vs Tenable Identity Exposure comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Microsoft Active Directory
Ranking in Active Directory Management
4th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
45
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (7th)
Tenable Identity Exposure
Ranking in Active Directory Management
6th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
8.0
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) (10th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Active Directory Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Active Directory is 6.5%, up from 2.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tenable Identity Exposure is 6.0%, down from 7.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Active Directory Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Active Directory6.5%
Tenable Identity Exposure6.0%
Other87.5%
Active Directory Management
 

Featured Reviews

Magdy Ali - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables seamless integration and reliable authentication for enhanced IT operations
I am an end-user of Microsoft Active Directory solutions The features of Microsoft Active Directory that I find most valuable are the normal features, such as LDAP, authentication, roaming profiles, and file server. I have utilized Microsoft Active Directory Group Policies for administrative…
Alexandru Cioruta - PeerSpot reviewer
An easy-to-implement solution that provides good reporting features and protects users’ AD infrastructure
We use Tenable Identity Exposure for our customers who have legacy AD still in use to see any exposure and protect their AD infrastructure as much as possible The solution is easy to implement, and its reporting is great. From the start, you get to see the exposure of your AD. So, it doesn't need…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Stability and performance are good. So far, we have not observed any major downtime or performance issues since we deployed it."
"I advise consideration of this solution. The overall product rating is ten out of ten."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is authentication."
"Active Directory is more flexible and feature-rich than Apache."
"Audit, authentication and authorization are the best features."
"These Group Policies provide enhancement, helping to reduce administrative overhead and enhance productivity."
"It is an all-in-one solution for cybersecurity and is available at a very low price."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Active Directory is the ability to search for computers and users. While I do not have administrative privileges to reset passwords, I can view user information such as department, and communicate with someone who can make the changes."
"The solution is easy to implement, and its reporting is great."
 

Cons

"They should improve the solution's old computer cleanup tool."
"The challenges everyone now has in mind is how to really migrate fully to the cloud. Many companies face both technical and cost-related challenges when moving from on-premise Active Directory to Microsoft Intra."
"Microsoft Active Directory restricts most of the features our company's employees want to use since they are involved in research and development activities."
"I have encountered a few stability issues."
"Microsoft Active Directory Federation Services is very difficult for on-premises solutions, while for the cloud solution, it's very easy."
"I expect additional features like maximizing user flow, improving the branding of the UI, and enabling non-interactive login. Customizing the login page is limited to changing the background and logo, and adding terms and conditions during registration requires JavaScript."
"There has been a change in the layout of the user information. Previously, I had to go to properties to view the information, but now it is displayed directly below the search results. It takes some time to get used to."
"Perhaps the synchronization could be simpler and more controllable."
"Tenable Identity Exposure is more expensive than Defender for Identity."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Its price is reasonable."
"The price of Microsoft Active Directory could improve. We pay annually for the solution."
"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a four out of ten."
"The license per user can probably be reduced."
"The version of Microsoft Active Directory I was using was expensive because it was used for large companies."
"Active Directory is an expensive solution, primarily due to Microsoft's licensing model. This licensing approach includes paying for server licenses as well as for each computer that connects to it. However, when working with the Azure cloud, there is no cost for the server. This is profitable and one of the main reasons why Azure Cloud and other cloud-based solutions are being used more."
"We have to purchase a license for the solution."
"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."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Retailer
6%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise20
No data available
 

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?
There are a few areas that could be improved with Microsoft Active Directory, along similar lines as Intune. Not too much on the support side, but on the Group Policy side, it doesn't always functi...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Active Directory?
The use cases for Microsoft Active Directory are managing all users on-premises. We have over 200 employees and multiple computers, approximately over 200 computers. We have shared computers and sh...
What do you like most about Tenable Identity Exposure?
The solution is easy to implement, and its reporting is great.
What needs improvement with Tenable Identity Exposure?
Tenable Identity Exposure is more expensive than Defender for Identity.
What is your primary use case for Tenable Identity Exposure?
We use Tenable Identity Exposure for our customers who have legacy AD still in use to see any exposure and protect their AD infrastructure as much as possible.
 

Also Known As

No data available
Teanble.ad
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about One Identity, Netwrix, ManageEngine and others in Active Directory Management. Updated: August 2025.
865,985 professionals have used our research since 2012.