The history of Microsoft Identity 2016

In 1999, Microsoft bought a company called Zoomit, which had a product called VIA, a directory synchronization product. Microsoft incorporated Zoomit VIA into the product known as Microsoft Metadirectory Services (MMS). MMS was only available as a Microsoft Consulting Services solution.

Microsoft released Microsoft Identity Integration Server (MIIS) in 2003, which was the first publicly available version of the synchronization engine we know today as MIM 2016 Synchronization Service.

In 2005, Microsoft bought a company called Alacris. Alacris had a product called IdNexus that managed certificates and smart cards, which Microsoft renamed Certificate Lifecycle Manager (CLM).

Microsoft took MIIS (now with Service Pack 2) and CLM and consolidated them into a new product in 2007 called Identity Lifecycle Manager 2007 (ILM 2007). ILM 2007 was a directory synchronization tool with the optional certificate management feature.

In 2010, Microsoft released Forefront Identity Manager 2010 (FIM 2010). FIM 2010 added the FIM Service component, which provides workflow capabilities, self-service capabilities, and a codeless provisioning option to the synchronization engine. Many identity management operations that used to require a lot of coding were suddenly available without a single line of code.

Microsoft announced the acquisition of some of the BHOLD suite in 2011, which is a product that provides identity and access governance functionality. A year later, in 2012, FIM 2010 R2 was released, reporting was added, BHOLD and additional browser support for Password Reset Portal were incorporated, performance was improved, and better troubleshooting capabilities were introduced. Support for Active Directory 2012, SQL Server 2012, and Exchange 2013 was added with FIM 2010 R2 Service Pack 1, which was released in 2013.

Components at a glance

Let's take a look at the major components of MIM in the following table:

Component	Description	Details
MIM Synchronization Service, Sync Engine, or MIM Sync	This is the Windows service that handles identity and password synchronization between systems.	The MIM component is required. It uses the SQL database to store its configuration and configured identity information.
MIM Portal	This is the IIS website that can be used for administrative management and user self-service.	It uses SQL database to store its schema, policies, and identity information. This is required for codeless provisioning.
MIM Service	This is the Windows service that provides MIM Portal with web APIs.	It is an optional MIM component. This is required if you want to deploy MIM Portal or the self-service password reset.
BHOLD	This is the suite of services and tools that integrates with MIM and enhances its offerings by adding RBAC, attestation, analytics, and role reporting.	This is an optional MIM component. It uses the SQL database and IIS and is a required component if you want RBAC.
Reporting	Adds new tables and the SQL agent job to allow SCSM to interact with MIM Service to produce historical reports.	This is an optional MIM component. It uses SQL Server Reporting Service, SCSM, and Data Warehouse.