Microsoft Endpoint Privilege Management: free in E5, but not free to run

Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I get this question in almost every Modern Workplace engagement, usually about twenty minutes after we agree that standing local admin rights have to go: “Don’t we already have something for that in our Microsoft licence?” For years the honest answer was “almost — it’s an add-on.” From July 2026, the answer changes, and it’s worth a blog post, because the gap between Microsoft’s Endpoint Privilege Management (EPM) and the established specialist tools is smaller than those vendors will tell you — and larger than Microsoft’s pre-sales decks suggest.

Endpoint Privilege Management on Phillip Büchler

Microsoft Endpoint Privilege Management: free in E5, but not free to run