Important
Microsoft Defender for Business is now in preview, and will roll out gradually to customers and IT Partners who sign-up here to request it. We will onboard an initial set of customers and partners in the coming weeks and will expand the preview leading up to general availability. Note that preview will launch with an initial set of scenarios, and we will be adding capabilities regularly.
Some information in this article relates to prereleased products/services that might be substantially modified before they are commercially released. Microsoft makes no warranties, express or implied, for the information provided here.
This article describes the requirements for Microsoft Defender for Business (preview).
What to do
Review the requirements
The following table lists the basic requirements to configure and use Microsoft Defender for Business (preview).
| Requirement | Description |
|---|---|
| Subscription | Microsoft Defender for Business (currently in preview!). See How to get Microsoft Defender for Business (preview).
You’re not required to have another Microsoft 365 subscription to try Microsoft Defender for Business (preview). |
| Datacenter | One of the following datacenter locations: – European Union – United Kingdom – United States |
| User accounts | User accounts are created
Microsoft Defender for Business (preview) licenses are assigned To get help with this, see Add users and assign licenses. |
| Permissions | To sign up for Microsoft Defender for Business (preview), you must be a Global Admin.
To access the Microsoft 365 Defender portal, users must have one of the following roles in Azure AD assigned: To learn more, see Roles and permissions in Microsoft Defender for Business (preview). |
| Browser requirements | Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome |
| Operating system | To manage devices in Microsoft Defender for Business (preview), your devices must be running Windows 10 Professional/Enterprise or later (with KB5006738).
If you are already managing devices in Microsoft Intune (or Microsoft Endpoint Manager), or if you are using a non-Microsoft device management solution, your devices must be running one of the operating systems that are supported in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. |
| Integration with Microsoft Endpoint Manager | During preview, you can onboard devices using a local script, which does not require integration with Microsoft Endpoint Manager. But if you plan to onboard devices to Defender for Business (preview) manually by using downloadable packages for Microsoft Endpoint Manager, Group Policy, System Center Configuration Manager, or Mobile Device Management, then the following requirements must be met:
Devices must be running Windows 10 or 11 Professional/Enterprise (with KB5006738 applied). Prerequisites must be met for Security Management for Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. Devices must be able to connect to the following URLs: |
Note
Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) is used to manage user permissions and device groups. Azure AD is included in your Defender for Business (preview) subscription.
- If you do not have a Microsoft 365 subscription before you start your trial, Azure AD will be provisioned for you during the activation process.
- If you do have another Microsoft 365 subscription when you start your Defender for Business (preview) trial, you can use your existing Azure AD service.
- If you are using Microsoft 365 Business Premium when you start your Defender for Business (preview) trial, you will have the option to manage devices in Microsoft Intune.