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This post provides a comprehensive overview of Microsoft Directory Services, which are crucial for providing authentication services. The three main services are Active Directory Domain Services, Microsoft Entra ID, and Microsoft Entra Domain Services. Active Directory Domain Services is a core service for user and group management for an Active Directory domain, offering features like network-based authentication protocols and a hierarchical object storage. Microsoft Entra ID, previously known as Azure Active Directory, is a cloud-based identity solution used to manage identity and access to Azure resources and Microsoft 365 services. Microsoft Entra Domain Services, formerly Azure Active Directory Domain Services, is a Platform as a Service (PaaS) offering that supports LDAP, Kerberos, and NTLM authentication. Understanding the differences and relationships between these services is key for effective identity and access management.