Traditional VPN gives users network-level access — too broad, and a major risk if credentials are compromised. Entra Private Access provides application-level Zero Trust Network Access. Here's how it works.
Key takeaways
- 1Users connect to specific applications, not to the network
- 2Every access request is authenticated against Entra ID — including Conditional Access policy evaluation
- 3No inbound firewall rules required on-premises — the connection is initiated outbound from a connector
- 4Full integration with Intune device compliance — non-compliant devices can't access private resources
- 5Session monitoring and logging for all private access activity
Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) have been the standard remote access solution for decades. But VPN has a fundamental flaw from a Zero Trust perspective: it grants network-level access. A user (or an attacker with compromised VPN credentials) can reach any system on the corporate network. Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) replaces this with application-level access — users connect only to specific applications, not to the network itself.
Microsoft Entra Private Access
Microsoft Entra Private Access is the ZTNA component of the Microsoft Entra product family. It's available as an add-on to Microsoft 365 Business Premium and enables secure access to on-premises or private cloud applications without a traditional VPN:
- Users connect to specific applications, not to the network
- Every access request is authenticated against Entra ID — including Conditional Access policy evaluation
- No inbound firewall rules required on-premises — the connection is initiated outbound from a connector
- Full integration with Intune device compliance — non-compliant devices can't access private resources
- Session monitoring and logging for all private access activity
The replacement story for legacy VPN
For businesses with on-premises servers (file servers, line-of-business applications, accounting software) accessed by remote staff, Entra Private Access provides a more secure and simpler alternative to VPN. Staff access the specific application they need — SharePoint for files, Entra Private Access for the on-premises accounting system — without having network-level access to everything else.
Current state for SMBs
Entra Private Access is still maturing for SMB deployment. Optimyze is evaluating it for clients with complex on-premises environments. For most clients with primarily cloud-based workloads on Microsoft 365, the VPN replacement value is lower — the priority remains ensuring Conditional Access and compliant device policies are correctly configured.
