Onboard Microsoft Azure

Follow the Azure onboarding wizard, and Cortex creates a custom authentication template to be executed in Azure.

Use the cloud onboarding wizard to integrate a Microsoft Azure environment with Cortex Cloud. The onboarding wizard requires minimal configuration to set up the integration. To complete the minimum configuration, define the scope of the Microsoft Azure accounts and specify the scan mode. Alternatively, configure the advanced settings for full control of the onboarding process.

Cortex Cloud generates a Terraform or ARM authentication template based on the configuration settings. The authentication template establishes trust with Microsoft Azure. The authentication template also grants required permissions to Cortex Cloud. Execute the authentication template in Microsoft Azure to complete the onboarding process. Executing the authentication template notifies Cortex Cloud of the execution details. Cortex Cloud then creates a new cloud instance.

Onboard Microsoft Entra ID only

You can onboard Microsoft Entra ID independently of a full tenant-level onboarding. When you select the Onboard Microsoft Entra ID only option during onboarding with Tenant scope, Cortex Cloud connects to Entra ID to unlock identity-based capabilities, including Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM), identity posture assessment, and Entra ID sign-in log ingestion. This approach enables identity visibility without requiring Cortex Cloud to scan or manage the broader Azure tenant environment.

When you onboard Entra ID only, Cortex Cloud operates in collection-only mode. Scan mode selection and scope modification are not available for this configuration. Both Terraform and ARM authentication templates are supported, and manual onboarding is also available. Cortex Cloud generates the appropriate authentication template based on your selection, and you execute it in Microsoft Azure to complete the onboarding process.

If you enable audit log collection with Entra ID-only onboarding using automated collection, Cortex Cloud ingests sign-in and activity log categories including: SignInLogs, AuditLogs, NonInteractiveUserSignInLogs, ServicePrincipalSignInLogs, ManagedIdentitySignInLogs, ProvisioningLogs, ADFSSignInLogs, and MicrosoftGraphActivityLogs. Administrative category logs are excluded from automated collection. If you configure custom diagnostic settings, log ingestion follows your specified configuration.

You can later expand an Entra ID-only configuration to full tenant scope by editing the onboarding configuration. This approach lets you to begin with identity-focused onboarding and transition to comprehensive tenant coverage as requirements evolve.

About the Cortex Cloud service principal

A service principal is an identity that an application uses to authenticate and interact with Azure resources. When Cortex Cloud connects to your Azure tenant, Cortex Cloud uses a service principal as its runtime identity in that tenant.

Cortex Cloud uses the service principal to:

• Authenticate to your Azure tenant without requiring interactive user sign-in during ongoing operations.
• Perform the role assignments and resource provisioning defined in the authentication template you execute during onboarding.
• Operate within the custom roles and scoped permissions you grant, following the principle of least privilege.

When you onboard an Azure tenant for the first time, Cortex Cloud checks automatically whether the Cortex service principal already exists in your tenant when you enter your tenant ID in the onboarding wizard. If the Cortex service principal does not yet exist in your tenant, you must create it before you can proceed with onboarding. Cortex Cloud displays the Azure CLI command to run in the onboarding wizard. The user who runs this command must have the Application Administrator built-in Entra ID role. The Application Administrator role is required only to create the Cortex service principal. After the service principal exists in your tenant, you do not need this role to complete the rest of the onboarding process.