Web interface for Active Directory
One of the defining Adaxes features is the Web interface. It grants you complete visibility over your on-prem AD, Azure AD, Exchange, and Microsoft 365 environment without the need to switch between different tools. All from the comfort of your web browser.
Not only do you get visibility, but also control. Creating users, adding group members, assigning Microsoft 365 licenses, configuring Exchange mailboxes... any operation you can imagine can be performed from the Web interface.
It does not matter how your environment is set up. On-premises domains, hybrid deployments, and pure Azure AD organizations – Adaxes can handle every scenario. Even if you have multiple unrelated domains, you can plug them into Adaxes and manage everything from the same place.
Having a separate admin account for each domain you manage also becomes redundant. Adaxes uses its own role-based access model that enables you to sign in to the Web interface with a single account and have your entire directory ecosystem at your fingertips.
And, when we say at your fingertips, we mean it literally. The Web interface is fully responsive and easy to use on any device. Urgent administrative tasks can be handily resolved by pulling your phone out of your pocket during a boring meeting.
Versatility
The Web interface is so versatile that it can be used by anyone in your organization. Yes, one of its purposes is to simplify directory management for administrators, but it can be much more than that. A help desk tool, an HR tool, a user self-service portal... you don't have to choose one, you can choose everything.
Out-of-the-box, Adaxes comes with three pre-configured Web interface variants – Administrator, Help Desk, and Self-Service. As you might have guessed from their names, each has different intended users and different features enabled by default.
It is totally viable to use them as is, to get some quick wins. Your admins will get access to reports and a centralized point of management for the entire environment. Your help desk will get a convenient UI for typical actions like resetting passwords or updating user accounts. Finally, your users will greatly benefit from self-service password reset and the ability to manage their group membership.
But the point is, the built-in configurations are a canvas for you to paint on.
Customization
Everything in the Web interface can be customized, from hiding entire sections to the tiniest details like adding custom tooltips to specific fields. There are so many buttons you can push and levers you can pull to change the behavior of every element and every function exactly how you need. No code required.
More about Web interface customization
You can take it a step further and enhance every action available in the Web interface with automated workflows. For example, the Create user action doesn't have to stop at creating a user account in your directory. You can configure logic-based onboarding workflows that will trigger automatically after user creation.
This is where the hidden power of Adaxes Web interface lies. It is not just a pretty UI, but a pretty UI backed up by a powerful automation engine and mechanics that are simply non-existent in native tools, for example, approval requests. Everyone will find the tool they were missing.
Extensibility
If you feel that having only three built-in Web interfaces is not enough no matter how you customize them, you can add more. There is no limit on the number of configurations. Imagine you've given your help desk team a Web interface, they enjoyed it, somebody spilled the beans and now every department wants one. Totally possible.
Even if you rack up an impressive number of different Web interface configurations, your users will not get lost. You can establish redirection rules that automatically select the correct Web interface for a user once they sign in. For instance, users that belong to the Helpdesk or HR security groups will sign in from the same page but will be directed to different interfaces.
Custom on-demand workflows
The more diverse your user base grows, the more diverse tasks they will perform. There might not be a built-in action for every workflow you want to delegate. Adaxes solves this with custom commands.
You can configure custom workflows and launch them from the Web interface with a click of a button. It is even possible to request some input from the user who clicks the button, and Adaxes will alter the workflow based on that input.
Any task that involves doing a bunch of identical manual actions over and over again can become a custom command and save you huge amounts of time. Besides, you will be able to direct your precious attention elsewhere while performing these tasks quickly, consistently, and reliably.
No-code script execution
PowerShell can do so so much, but you cannot hand out a PowerShell script to a department supervisor and expect them to use it. Well, Adaxes and custom commands say that you can.
The only thing standing between a running PowerShell script and your users will be a button in the Web interface. They will be oblivious to the mechanics of that button and they will need to care only about its business function. Here, ignorance is bliss.
Secure delegation
Given that the Web interface will end up in the hands of your users, you want to ensure no one can do more than they are supposed to. After all, your company directory is at stake.
Adaxes dynamically evaluates the permissions of the signed-in user and calculates what is available to them on the fly. Users with different access levels will see (or not see) different actions and objects, even if they sign in to the same Web interface.
Rather than throwing Access denied errors everywhere and leaving users guessing, this solution is more elegant. It allows everyone to focus on their job instead of figuring out why they cannot use a certain feature.
Flexible authentication options
Nowadays, simple username/password login doesn't cut it anymore. It might work in closed environments where every actor who can access the system is a known and trustworthy employee. But everywhere else, you need a better solution. Adaxes offers a variety of those.
Two-factor authentication
Adaxes lets you add a second factor to Web interface sign-ins – a mobile authenticator app of your choice (e.g. Google Authenticator). Users will be prompted to register for MFA once they sign in, and all subsequent sign-ins will require a one-time password generated by the app on their mobile device.
Single sign-on
Adaxes supports SAML-based single sign-on, which means you can integrate it with your corporate identity provider. Users will be able to sign in to the Web interface through the same authentication mechanism they use everywhere else, without the need to provide their credentials every time.
Autologin
If you don't have an identity provider and don't want to bother with third-party 2FA apps, you can at least make Web interface sign-in seamless. Adaxes can use Integrated Windows Authentication to automatically sign in users with the same credentials they used to log in to their workstations.
Final words
There is much more to be said about the Web interface. Probably, the key point to take from this article is that Adaxes turns your Active Directory, Exchange, and Microsoft 365 environment into what it is supposed to be – a tightly interconnected ecosystem that you don't need to wrestle with to manage effectively. Everyone in your company can chip in and the words "administrative mess" will soon be forgotten like a bad dream.
