Users and groups
Users are individual identities in Microsoft Entra ID, and groups are collections of users used to assign licenses, permissions, and policies at scale.
In Microsoft 365, every identity lives in Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory). A user object represents one person’s credentials, license assignments, and sign-in settings. Groups collect users so licenses, app permissions, and Conditional Access policies apply once to many people instead of one at a time. The exam-critical distinction is between group types: a security group controls access to resources and supports group-based licensing, while a Microsoft 365 group provisions a shared mailbox, calendar, SharePoint site, and Teams workspace together. Distribution groups are email-only and cannot grant license or resource access.
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