How to login to Windows with your own email address - manage Microsoft services yourself

Can I centrally manage my Microsoft services in the cloud myself?

Absolutely. A simple Azure Cloud setup allows you to centrally manage Windows passwords as well as product licences. Apart from a payment method you need:

Windows Pro
Access to DNS settings of your website that you wish to use for Windows logins following the pattern name@company.com
Mobile phone(s) for the Microsoft Authenticator app in order to use Multi Factor Authentication (MFA)
A Microsoft account as an administrator of Microsoft Azure
Entra ID set up as a free Azure resource to manage users
Within Azure you need to set up users (your employees perhaps) you wish to be able to login to Windows
A user set up within Azure that manages Microsoft 365 admin center with the following roles:
- Billing Administrator
- License Administrator
- Microsoft Entra Joined Device Local Administrator
- Office Apps Administrator

Sounds more complicated than it actually is. There are also local alternatives for central user management without using the cloud or Windows Server Active Directory. You may still have to buy Microsoft product licences though and the aspect of getting everything from a single vendor is lost.

Reducing your cloud footprint to the bare minimum

Even if you believe that you don't use the cloud anyway you probably do just that already. The reality is that whoever you are dealing with usually expects that you have access to certain cloud services or that you can use certain file formats. A bare minimum cloud setup for small businesses might look like this:

Windows Pro, perhaps running as a virtual machine within Linux, allowing central user management in the cloud using Microsoft Entra ID.
Microsoft 365 Business Basic for access to Microsoft Teams, satisfying your collaboration and video conferencing needs. The subscription also includes access to web-based Office products as well as the corresponding mobile apps. The licence includes Entra ID for central user management and allows you to reset Windows passwords via a dashboard or using your own website address for logins. A full licence to install Office on Windows the traditional way is not included though.
Avoid the included cloud storage or use it as you see fit.
Keeping the management of your domain name for your website and e-mail outside the cloud makes you less dependant. The bare minimum setup still allows you to login to Windows using name@company.com.

Can I avoid using a full version of Microsoft Office?

The bare minimum setup is designed to use alternative office suites whenever possible. This saves subscription costs and makes it less tempting to take your core business processes somewhere where everything is a monthly subscription. There is nothing wrong with getting a single just-in-case full office subscription or to get one temporarily. However, getting a certain number of licences just because you have that number of employees will likely result in subscription costs that can be easily avoided even if being lured with free trials happens quickly. Using Linux may be essential to reduce costs.

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