What is a Microsoft 365 Tenant?

In a nutshell: What is a Microsoft 365 Tenant?

A Microsoft 365 tenant is a central instance under which all apps, licenses, users and access rights are managed by Microsoft. You can think of it as a large house with rented apartments, of which the tenant is one apartment.

 

Every organization that uses Microsoft 365 has a tenant. The optimal configuration of the tenant is crucial in order to use Microsoft's offerings optimally, securely and cost-effectively.

 

Tenant as the central unit for Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365)

The use of Microsoft apps and platforms(now Microsoft 365, formerly Office 365) simplifies digitalization in companies and organizations. When subscribing to Microsoft services, the decision for a tenant must be made. All users, subscriptions and data of an organization are managed under this tenant.

 

Let's assume for an example that a company has taken out several subscriptions for the use of M365:

 

• All licenses (e.g. Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise and Microsoft 365 E3) are managed under one client.
• The individual applications, such as the license to use Microsoft Power BI, are also managed under this client.
• The registered devices are also managed under the client.
• Each M365 tenant also contains a Microsoft Entra mandate, which is used to manage the synchronized user accounts and their access rights to data and apps.

 

With Microsoft 365, a tenant is therefore always a central unit to which all services offered in M365 are assigned. With M365, there is only ever one tenant, whereas several independent subscriptions can be created with Microsoft's Azure Cloud.

 

In order to make optimum use of M365 and exploit the maximum potential for your own organization, it is crucial to set up the tenant correctly.

 

An error-free setup of the M365 Tenant according to the individual requirements of an organization is essential for productivity, collaboration, data protection, compliance and cloud security. In the following, we will therefore first look at the characteristics of a well-configured tenant and best practices for setting it up.

 

Properties of a well-configured tenant for Microsoft 365

First of all, the correct name and region must be selected for a tenant. This choice must be made in coordination with your own organization. After this step, it is not only crucial for the tenant, but also for the overall work and efficiency of the processes in an organization to choose the right apps and licenses from Microsoft.

 

Choice of apps and licenses

Choosing the right services is a huge challenge when you consider how many different business plans (see article on O365) and apps are offered by Microsoft:

 

• Word
• Excel
• PowerPoint
• Outlook
• OneDrive
• SharePoint
• OneNote
• Microsoft Stream
• Microsoft Bookings
• Microsoft Publisher
• Microsoft Access
• Viva Engage
• Viva Insights
• Microsoft lists
• Microsoft Forms
• Visio
• Power Apps
• Power Automate
• Microsoft To Do
• Microsoft Defender
• Microsoft Editor
• Clipchamp
• Microsoft Teams

 

In addition, depending on the license purchased, some of the apps (e.g. Word) can only be used in the browser (e.g. with E1 or Business Basic). In some cases, the reverse is also true, e.g. Publisher and Access are only available as applications on PCs.

 

This is quite problematic in terms of a fully digital workplace. If, for example, companies and public authorities want to enable their employees to work completely independent of time and location, all apps relevant to employees must be accessible on mobile devices wherever possible.

 

Simply selecting the right apps and licenses is therefore a major challenge when configuring the tenant. Once the right apps and licenses have been selected, they must be made available to users in an adequate quantity.

 

Determining the need for apps and licenses requires a precise calculation of which users use which apps and licenses and also how intensively they use them. The scope of use also plays an important role in determining access authorizations.

 

Other notes on the configuration of a tenant

Other features of a well-configured tenant for Microsoft 365 are the registration and subsequent management of registered devices. We recommend using the Microsoft Intune service for this. The following aspects also play a role in the configuration of a tenant, as Microsoft itself explains in its article on tenant management:

 

• Configuration of the DNS domain name
• Optimization of network traffic for on-site users in the office and for remote users with VPN clients
• Ensuring security through measures such as multi-level user authentication and guidelines for accessing data and apps
• Migration of data from other apps and from local servers

 

By taking these and all other factors into account when configuring a tenant, organizations are able to provide a solidly managed digital app offering. This gives employees all the functions they need for collaboration and communication. This allows them to do their work efficiently and benefit from a positive employee experience.

 

Companies benefit from higher productivity and faster achievement of corporate goals.

 

Tips and best practices for setting up a tenant

Organizations are well advised to seek external support for the facility if no experience is available internally.

 

Try out different configurations of the M365 client in test environments

Large organizations often use a test tenant in addition to the productive one. Far-reaching configuration changes can thus be tested without risk. However, it should not be forgotten that a test tenant practically never corresponds 100% to the productive environment, if only for reasons of cost and effort. The benefits therefore do not extend to all use cases. First of all, it is important to clearly identify the test tenant as a test tenant, for example by adding the word "Test". If the test tenant is given the name that was intended for the correct tenant, the name is no longer available for the correct tenant in new environments. To rectify this error, a tenant-to-tenant migration must be carried out, which involves a great deal of effort.

 

The term of the licenses should also be taken into account: monthly subscriptions are usually possible for test purposes, while subscriptions for standard users are binding in the long term (1 to 3 years). If you buy a license that you don't need, you are stuck with the costs. If you buy a license that you don't need, you are stuck with the costs.

 

The use of a test tenant is particularly helpful for large organizations when customizing the tenant that will later be used permanently. It should be noted that the necessary licenses for a test tenant must also be purchased as normal.

 

Support for the entire Microsoft 365 offering from our company

As a service provider for digital transformation in companies , we at innobit provide comprehensive advice on Microsoft 365 clients. To this end, we have created a holistic offering with our M365 consulting. It includes the following services, for example:

 

• Conducting discovery and experience workshops, including in Azure, SharePoint and Office 365
• Technical consulting for Microsoft-based systems
• Conception of Microsoft architectures: on-premise and cloud
• Assessment of Microsoft environments (stabilization, corrections, etc.)
• Infrastructure setup: on-premise and cloud
• Introductions and training
• Maintenance and support
• Full-service offering for cloud solutions (cloud solution provider model)

 

If you want to play it completely safe when setting up your Microsoft 365 tenant, it's best to let us take care of it for you. Together, we will configure your tenant optimally for efficient use in your organization's network.

 

We can also advise you on specific topics, such as the discontinuation of Microsoft Cloud Germany, which poses new challenges for some industries.

 

 

Conclusion: Manage apps and users in the best possible way with the correct tenant configuration

The Microsoft 365 tenant is the admin user, so to speak, through which all other users, apps and other aspects associated with Microsoft 365 are managed. The correct configuration of the tenant plays a central role in the efficient use of the Microsoft offering. The IT and cloud strategy are also significantly influenced by the setup of the M365 tenant.

 

Organizations can test the correct configuration with a test tenant and configure the correct tenant later. You can also have a professional service provider do the work for you from the outset. We are happy to take on the task of configuring the tenant.