How to Setup Azure Multi-Factor Authentication

How to Setup Azure Multi-Factor Authentication

Multi-Factor Authentication helps safeguard access to your data and applications. Before access is granted users must authenticate by using a mobile app or by responding to an automated text message or phone call.

To set up Azure Multi-Factor Authentication, follow the following steps:

1. Sign in to the Office 365 Admin Centre with your organisational account. Select users and groups, and then click Set up for Set Multi-factor authentication requirements, as shown in below Figure.

2. On the multi-factor authentication page, you can select the types of users using the drop-down box, and then select the box of the user that you want to configure for multi-factor authentication.

Just so you know; multi-factor authentication can be activated for free administrators and for a specified fee for regular users. At the time of writing this document the pricing was as follows.

• 
  
  Pay-as-you-go Plan
  
  
  
  
  • 
    
    Per User - £1.28/month (unlimited authentication)
  
  
  • 
    
    Per Authentication - £1.28/10 authentications
  
  
  
  


• 
  
  6 or 12-month Plans
  
  
  
  
  • 
    
    Per User - £0.87 - £1.02/month (unlimited authentication)
  
  
  • 
    
    Per Authentication - £0.87 - £1.02/10 authentications
  
  
  
  

You can receive discount of 20-32% when you make a monthly commitment to Windows Azure for 6 or 12 months. Information on the pricing can be found from the following link. http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/pricing/details/multi-factor-authentication/

3. Let’s carry on with the configuration. When you select a user, you can see the user's name and two other items under quick steps on the right pane. Click Enable in the action items.

 4. On the Enable multi-factor authentication page, click enable multi-factor auth.

5. When the activation for the selected user(s) is done, a dialog box will inform that the updates are successful, as shown in below Figure. Multi-factor authentication is now enabled for the selected account(s). Click close.

There you go. You have successfully enabled Windows Azure Multi-factor Authentication.

In my next article I will show the First Time and Subsequent User Experience with Multi-factor Authentication with Mobile Phone and Mobile App.

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