12 Top Microsoft Intune Features in 2024

With remote and hybrid workforces becoming the norm, ensuring secure and efficient device management is paramount. Microsoft Intune, a cloud-based unified endpoint management (UEM) solution, has revolutionized how organizations manage mobile devices and applications while strengthening their cybersecurity. Intune simplifies user access to company resources and facilitates the administration of various devices, including mobile phones, desktop computers, IoT devices, and virtual endpoints. This article will explore some of the top features of Microsoft Intune.

1. Comprehensive Device Management

One of the standout features of Microsoft Intune is its robust device management capabilities. With Intune, administrators gain granular control over a diverse array of devices, ranging from company-owned assets to personal devices operating on various platforms such as Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. This comprehensive coverage ensures that every device accessing organizational resources adheres to predefined security protocols and configurations.

Enrollment and Configuration

Intune simplifies device enrollment, enabling administrators to seamlessly onboard new devices and apply preconfigured settings, apps, and policies. This streamlined process not only accelerates deployment but also ensures consistent security standards across the entire device ecosystem.

Remote Actions

Maintaining control over remote and distributed devices is crucial in today’s mobile workforce. Intune empowers administrators with a suite of remote actions, including device locking, data wiping, password resets, and remote reboots. These capabilities enable swift responses to potential security threats, minimizing the risk of data breaches and ensuring business continuity.

 

2. Application Management and Deployment

Effective application management is a critical component of any modern endpoint management strategy. Intune excels in this area, offering a range of features that simplify the deployment, configuration, and maintenance of both custom and store-bought applications.

Integrated App Management

Intune’s integration with the Microsoft Store for Business streamlines the process of deploying and updating applications. Administrators can effortlessly assign apps to specific users, groups, or devices, ensuring seamless distribution and consistent software versions across the organization.

Mobile Application Management (MAM)

Intune’s Mobile Application Management (MAM) capabilities empower organizations to enforce app-level security policies, ensuring sensitive data remains contained within managed applications. Administrators can restrict actions such as copying, pasting, or sharing data, mitigating the risk of unauthorized access or accidental data leaks.

3. Conditional Access and Compliance Policies

In today’s threat landscape, maintaining strict access controls and enforcing compliance policies is paramount. Intune’s integration with Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) enables organizations to implement conditional access policies, ensuring only compliant devices and authorized applications can access corporate resources.

Device Compliance

Intune’s device compliance policies allow administrators to define and enforce baseline security standards for all managed devices. These policies can include requirements such as minimum operating system versions, device encryption, and restrictions on jailbroken or rooted devices, ensuring a consistent security posture across the entire device ecosystem.

Conditional Access

By leveraging conditional access policies, organizations can restrict access to sensitive resources based on various factors, including device compliance, user location, and application risk. This granular control minimizes the risk of unauthorized access and data breaches, safeguarding organizational assets and intellectual property.

4. Autopilot: Streamlining Device Deployment

Microsoft Intune’s Autopilot feature revolutionizes device deployment, enabling organizations to preconfigure new devices directly from the cloud. This Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP) approach not only accelerates the deployment process but also enhances security by tying each device’s hardware ID to the organization’s Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) tenant, preventing unauthorized use.

Seamless Onboarding

With Autopilot, new devices can be seamlessly onboarded and configured with the organization’s desired settings, policies, and applications, ensuring a consistent and secure user experience from the moment the device is powered on.

Enhanced Security

Autopilot’s integration with Entra ID and hardware-level device identification mechanisms provide an additional layer of security, mitigating the risk of device misuse or unauthorized access.

 

5. Windows Update Rings: Simplified Patch Management

Keeping devices up-to-date with the latest security patches and software updates is crucial for maintaining a robust cybersecurity posture. Intune’s Windows Update Rings feature streamlines this process by leveraging Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure to deliver over-the-air updates to enrolled devices, eliminating the need for on-premises servers.

Efficient Update Delivery

With Windows Update Rings, administrators can define update policies and schedules, ensuring that updates are delivered promptly and consistently across the entire device ecosystem, regardless of the device’s location or network connectivity.

Reduced Administrative Overhead

By automating the update process and leveraging cloud-based distribution, Intune’s Windows Update Rings feature significantly reduces the administrative overhead associated with patch management, freeing up valuable IT resources for other critical tasks.

6. User Data Management and Integration

In today’s mobile workforce, ensuring seamless user experiences and data continuity across devices is essential. Intune’s integration with Microsoft’s cloud services, such as OneDrive, enables effortless user data management and synchronization, facilitating smooth transitions between devices without compromising data integrity.

Backup and Sync

Intune’s user data management configuration policies ensure that user data is regularly backed up and synced to the cloud, mitigating the risk of data loss and enabling seamless device transitions.

Consistent User Experience

By leveraging cloud-based data synchronization, Intune ensures that users can access their files, settings, and preferences consistently across all their devices, enhancing productivity and minimizing disruptions caused by device changes or replacements.

7. Configuration Management and Compliance Policies

Intune’s configuration management and compliance policies provide a modern alternative to traditional Group Policy Objects (GPOs), offering greater flexibility and control over device configurations. Administrators can define and enforce a wide range of settings, from BitLocker encryption to user preferences, ensuring consistent and secure configurations across the entire device ecosystem.

Centralized Management

With Intune’s cloud-based management console, administrators can centrally manage and deploy configuration policies, eliminating the need for on-premises infrastructure and simplifying the administrative process.

Compliance Reporting

Intune’s compliance reporting capabilities provide real-time insights into the compliance status of managed devices, enabling proactive identification and remediation of non-compliant devices, further strengthening the organization’s security posture.

8. Endpoint Analytics: Enabling Proactive Monitoring and Analysis

Intune’s endpoint analytics feature empowers organizations with valuable insights into their device ecosystem, enabling proactive monitoring and analysis. By continuously gathering data from enrolled devices, Intune’s endpoint analytics can identify anomalies, potential threats, and performance bottlenecks, enabling administrators to take proactive measures to enhance security and optimize user experiences.

Proactive Monitoring

Intune’s endpoint analytics continuously monitors enrolled devices, providing real-time visibility into device health, performance, and potential security risks, enabling administrators to address issues proactively before they escalate.

Actionable Insights

By analyzing the data gathered from enrolled devices, Intune’s endpoint analytics generates actionable insights, enabling administrators to make informed decisions regarding device configurations, software deployments, and security policies, ultimately enhancing the overall efficiency and security of the organization’s device ecosystem.

 

9. Mobile Threat Defense Integration

In today’s BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) culture, ensuring the security of personal devices accessing corporate resources is paramount. Intune’s integration with third-party Mobile Threat Defense (MTD) solutions enables the detection of potential malware infections on unenrolled devices, allowing organizations to implement appropriate access controls and mitigate risks associated with compromised devices.

Threat Detection

Intune’s MTD integration leverages advanced threat detection capabilities provided by leading security vendors, enabling real-time monitoring and identification of potential malware infections, even on devices not enrolled in Intune’s management platform.

Access Control

By integrating with MTD solutions, Intune empowers organizations to implement granular access controls, restricting access to corporate resources for devices flagged as potentially compromised, minimizing the risk of data breaches and unauthorized access.

 

10. Self-Service Capabilities and User Empowerment

Intune’s self-service capabilities empower end-users with greater autonomy and control over their devices, reducing the burden on IT support teams while fostering a more productive and efficient workforce.

Application Self-Service

Through Intune’s self-service portal, users can independently install pre-approved software and applications, streamlining the deployment process and minimizing downtime caused by IT requests.

Basic Troubleshooting

Intune enables users to perform basic troubleshooting tasks, such as resetting passwords or updating device settings, without the need for IT intervention, further enhancing productivity and reducing support overhead.

Customizable Policies

Administrators can customize the self-service portal and define policies that govern which applications and tools are available for self-service, ensuring alignment with organizational security and compliance standards.

11. Comprehensive Reporting and Auditing

Effective endpoint management requires comprehensive reporting and auditing capabilities. Intune delivers in this area, providing detailed reports and audit logs that enable administrators to gain insights into device inventories, software installations, and user activities, facilitating informed decision-making and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.

Software Inventory Reports

Intune’s software inventory reports provide granular details on the applications installed across managed devices, enabling administrators to identify potential security risks, ensure license compliance, and optimize software deployments.

Audit Logs

Intune’s audit logs maintain a comprehensive record of all activities and changes within the management platform, including device enrollments, policy assignments, and administrative actions, enabling effective monitoring and compliance auditing.

Customizable Reporting

Administrators can customize Intune’s reporting capabilities to generate reports tailored to their specific needs, ensuring they have access to the most relevant and actionable information for their organization.

12. Scalability and Flexibility

As organizations grow and evolve, their endpoint management needs may change. Intune’s cloud-based architecture ensures scalability and flexibility, enabling seamless adaptation to changing requirements without the need for significant infrastructure investments.

Cloud-Based Architecture

By leveraging the power of Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure, Intune can scale effortlessly to accommodate growing device populations and increasing management demands, ensuring consistent performance and reliability.

Integration with Microsoft Ecosystem

Intune’s deep integration with other Microsoft products and services, such as Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft 365, and Windows Virtual Desktop, enables organizations to leverage existing investments and seamlessly incorporate new technologies as they become available.

Hybrid Management

For organizations with existing on-premises infrastructure, Intune offers hybrid management capabilities, enabling co-management with solutions like Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, ensuring a smooth transition to cloud-based endpoint management without disrupting existing processes.

 

By leveraging the extensive features and capabilities of Microsoft Intune, organizations can streamline their endpoint management processes, enhance security, and empower their remote and hybrid workforces to operate efficiently and securely. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, Intune’s commitment to innovation and its seamless integration with the Microsoft ecosystem position it as a powerful ally for organizations seeking to thrive in the modern, mobile-centric business world.

As a Microsoft Solutions partner, Softlanding can assist you with implementing and optimizing Microsoft Intune. Contact us for a free discovery call.