Jamf Connect vs. Okta vs. System Locker

Jamf Connect works particularly well in our lab environments where the central "source of truth" for student accounts is our Okta IdP. As Apple has recommended moving away from Active Directory binding (which was our previous source of truth for authentication) we needed a new central way to manage this function. Okta worked well for other services on campus, and it was a smooth integration to make it work with Jamf Connect for virtually all use cases on campus (we still have a couple of NAS/SAN systems that require Active Directory).

Incentivized

Should be well-suited for a SaaS business organisation as they have a lot of internal applications and need a role-based authentication system between the various teams, improving security and audit log system to account for any breaches. It integrates well with internal applications such as Salesforce and Oracle. Best when need of SSO.

Incentivized

• password sync works very well
• regular updates to Jamf Connect with improvements
• small and simple tool
• Account creation is now on next level after we don't need AD Bind

• Centralized control of enterprise passwords
• Extensive customization of acceptable password criteria
• One system for Identity and Access Management to learn
• Scalable throughout the university for all central services
• Uniform login experience for students, faculty, and staff
• Single point of response to address termination of access
• Ability to use FastPass for lower priority systems
• Excellent support of multi-factor requirements

Incentivized

• More control over local access for non-cloud accounts
• Does not handle password changes made directly in Okta very smoothly
• Setting up configuration is a bit opaque to non-IdP personnel

Incentivized

• I do have to reset my password quite frequently. However, I don't think there is really a way to improve this, as it's a good security measure.
• It makes me re-sign in a couple of times a day, sometimes if I haven't used my laptop for a couple of hours, and sometimes just randomly throughout the day.
• It doesn't remember my devices, either my laptop or phone. so it always calls that out.

Incentivized

It is almost a certainty that we will continue to use Jamf Connect, even with Apple coming out with Platform Single Sign On. Jamf Connect provides several features that PSSO does not, such as "just in time" local account creation and automatic synchronization of enterprise credentials. It is unlikely that we would investigate other options at this time or in the near future.

Incentivized

Okta has a passion to provide secure and scalable identity solution. Their passion has come across as advocacy in a way that has deepened my knowledge of the field of authentication. I took identity for granted before but after seeing features such as external authentication I know that Okta can enable my business to reach new heights

Jamf Connect is quite easy to use and has the necessary options on the login screen (such as WiFi network connection) for getting connected and authenticated. It has a simple to use menulet that allows password changes and resets as well as temporary elevation, all with very clear workflows. It also allows us to assign field staff to their client users' computers so that they can provide support without having to resort to LAPS accounts.

Incentivized

Some of its features are great and some are slightly complex and not easy without vendor support.

Incentivized

The Okta Identity Cloud advertises 4 9's of reliability and I would go as far to say that it may even do better than that. As a true Global organization that operates in just about every region of the world, we have yet to have an issue with The Okta Identity Cloud that has impacted our business operations.

Incentivized

From my perspective, for the things that my group uses it for, Okta is very fast. It is as least as fast as the local password database methods that it replaces on our campus enterprise services. I do not believe that it slows anything down at all. In fact, not having to think too much about the login, because they all look the same, probably speeds things up somewhat.

Incentivized

We've had a few support cases over the years and every case has been handled by the Okta support team beautifully. We received clear answers to questions we had regarding setup and even were provided simple to follow guides on how to setup their product to use with custom applications.

Incentivized

The only other product we evaluated was Xcreds from TwoCanoes software, which is essentially a one person shop. We already were Jamf Pro customers, and Jamf Connect fulfilled all of the requirements for this function along with providing professional customer support. Since we already had a relationship with Jamf, it made perfect sense to add this product to our toolkit, and keep technical support contained within one organization.

Incentivized

Okta is far superior in terms of integrations, user interface, automation, and connectivity. Additionally, Okta offers better support and availability, and a more robust solution across every capacity Entra competes in. Okta simply works, whereas Microsoft Entra has a large overhead that is difficult to use when configuring things.

Incentivized

Being a cloud native application, The Okta Identity Cloud is extremely scalable and easy to setup. By integrating into existing directories and applications via standard techniques and protocols, it is very easy to both initially setup and add additional users as required. Once all the necessary integrations are setup, it's a simple rinse and repeat process to onboard additional users (which can be automated with imports as well)

Incentivized

• we need more time to understand how Jamf Connect and the configuration "really" works

• Increased user productivity - not fighting with IT all the time!
• Though there could be a bit more on the 'lost/broken phone' front, the self-service eliminates time that would typically be spent waiting for IT support/admins.
• An Okta account under a certain domain allows proper access from the get-go, and under certain apps (such as our HRIS), adding members is easy.
• Improved security - deactivating Okta removes all account access across multiple platforms instantly for leavers.

Incentivized