Many IT administrators would prefer to seamlessly add Macs to their AD environments like they do with Windows desktops. Note: IT can also manage the Macs separately and treat them as mobile devices via MDM, but this method does not involve Active Directory. Incorporate the Macs into the AD domain but use unique tools to manage them.Use existing tools to incorporate Macs into the AD domain as they would with Windows desktops.To ensure this, IT teams can take two primary approaches to manage Macs within AD. When IT administrators take the step to accommodate Macs, they have to ensure that corporate assets and control resources stay protected and the devices have the necessary management capabilities.

It comes down to the number of Macs that need support, what type of access they require and the tools and systems that IT administrators already have in place. However, incorporating Macs into a Windows-first desktop management infrastructure is no small task. Luckily for these organizations, Active Directory (AD) can account for both of these OSes, and it includes single sign-on (SSO) capabilities, Distributed File Systems shares support, packet encryption and signing, and other policies.

Mac remote management from windows