Transitioning to modern management-Describe Microsoft 365 apps and services

Obviously, new organizations or divisions that choose Microsoft 365 as their initial IT solution can adopt Microsoft’s modern management tools and techniques from scratch. Microsoft calls this the “cloud first” option. Even if they have a previous history with traditional management tools, administrators can adapt to the new ones without any conflict between the two models. However, when an organization has an existing infrastructure based on the traditional model, it must decide whether to change to modern management and how it should do it.

A transition to the modern management model requires new tools and skills for administrators. Microsoft has designed three approaches to a transition from traditional to modern management, as follows:

• Big switch In the big switch transition, an organization abandons all the traditional management tools and modalities and begins using modern management tools exclusively. While this might be a feasible option for a relatively small organization, large enterprises will likely find a sudden transition impractical.
• Group-by-group In a group-by-group transition, an organization classifies its users by department, location, or workload and converts one group of users at a time to the modern management environment. In many cases, the transition process will be determined by the applications users require and whether they can readily be managed from the cloud.
• Co-management The co-management model calls for administrators to maintain both the traditional and modern management paradigms for an extended period. This makes it possible for the organization to transition gradually from traditional applications and procedures to those that support modern management.

Co-management has become a widely accepted solution for enterprises that are reluctant to give up their traditional management model or have applications and services that are not manageable using modern tools. From Microsoft’s standpoint, co-management aims to form a bridge from the traditional to the modern management model. Administrators can continue to use elements of their traditional, on-premises infrastructure, such as Active Directory Domain Services and System Center Configuration Manager, and gradually migrate to modern tools, such as Azure Active Directory and Microsoft Intune.

The steps involved in a co-management transition (not necessarily in order) are as follows:

• Begin using the Windows-as-a-Service model for Windows 10 or 11 and the Microsoft 365 productivity apps
• Move from an on-premises Windows update solution, such as Windows Server Update Services, to the cloud-based Windows Update for Business
• Transition from creating, maintaining, and deploying system images for Windows workstations to using Windows AutoPilot for cloud-based, zero-touch deployments
• Stop using Group Policy to configure workstation settings in favor of the Microsoft Intune tool included with some Microsoft 365 subscriptions

Although it is possible to undertake them separately, all these tasks are incorporated into a Microsoft 365 deployment.