At this point, a lot of entities don’t need AD because their entire workflow runs in a web browser, and practically any SSO provider will work.
That said, accessing actual computer resources can be managed with groups and ACLs. Perhaps not as elegantly or as well-integrated as AD is, but that’s the price you pay.
What is the alternative to AD, and are there currently companies running that, big or small?
Red hat IDM, aka freeipa.
Depending on what youre doing you absolutely don’t need active directory.
Hell, a lot of orgs are just going entra anyway. If you’re using SSO like that or okta or keycloak you likely don’t need AD.
At this point, a lot of entities don’t need AD because their entire workflow runs in a web browser, and practically any SSO provider will work.
That said, accessing actual computer resources can be managed with groups and ACLs. Perhaps not as elegantly or as well-integrated as AD is, but that’s the price you pay.