If you’re evaluating Endpoint Privilege Management solutions, chances are Microsoft Intune EPM has come up in your research. It makes sense: you’re already using Intune, it’s integrated into your existing environment, and Microsoft is a name everyone knows.
But integration doesn’t automatically mean it’s the right fit for your organization.
Microsoft Intune EPM is a relatively new player in the privilege management space, and while it covers basic elevation needs, it lacks the depth and flexibility that enterprise IT teams actually need. Admin By Request EPM, on the other hand, was built specifically for privilege management and has been refined over more than a decade protecting millions of endpoints worldwide.
We’ll compare the two products and show you how they work in practice.
Platform Support: Windows-Only vs Multi-Platform
Microsoft Intune EPM works exclusively on Windows endpoints. No macOS or Linux support, and there’s nothing on the roadmap suggesting that will change anytime soon.
If your organization runs a mixed environment (and most do), you’re stuck managing privilege elevation through multiple tools. That means separate policies, different approval workflows, and fragmented audit logs.
Admin By Request EPM supports Windows, macOS, and Linux from a single platform. Same policies, same approval workflows, same centralized management portal. If you’re running ARM-based devices, we’ve got you covered there too.
Real-Time Operations vs Delayed Responses
Time matters when users need elevated access to do their jobs.
Here’s what you’re dealing with on Microsoft Intune EPM:
- Policy changes take 20-30 minutes to reach endpoints
- Activity reporting can take up to 24 hours before events appear in the portal
Admin By Request EPM delivers:
- Instant policy update syncing
- Real-time audit log population
The delays in policy syncing and reporting create gaps in your security monitoring and visibility. Approval speeds used to be another major issue with Microsoft Intune EPM (taking 10-60 minutes), but recent updates have improved this and approval times are now comparable between both products.
Deployment and Infrastructure
Microsoft Intune EPM requires a 20MB+ extension on top of your existing Intune infrastructure. If you need to roll back during testing, it can take up to 7 days to fully remove the components from your endpoints.
Our EPM agent is 2MB and requires no additional infrastructure beyond the agent itself. Deploy it silently through your existing tools (SCCM, Intune, Jamf), and it automatically configures on install. Removal is straightforward with no waiting period.
The smaller footprint also means lower resource consumption on endpoints and a reduced attack surface.
Security Features: Built-In Protection vs Basic Elevation
Microsoft Intune EPM handles basic privilege elevation without any malware scanning or reputation checking. If a user requests elevation for a malicious file, there’s no automated security layer to catch it before approval.
Intune EPM also requires careful policy design to avoid security gaps. If you allow elevation for CMD, PowerShell, or Windows Terminal, users could add themselves to the local administrators group and bypass your EPM policies. Microsoft’s reporting won’t show you what commands were executed, and with the 24-hour reporting delay, the damage is already done by the time you notice.
Admin By Request EPM integrates OPSWAT MetaDefender, which checks every elevation request against a database of over 20 antivirus vendors in real time. Suspicious or malicious files are automatically blocked or quarantined before elevation occurs, regardless of your policy configuration.
We also have anti-tampering features that prevent users from bypassing the product, even if they gain elevated access through it. Everything is auditable and traceable.
What’s Missing from Microsoft EPM
Microsoft Intune EPM provides application-level elevation through pre-approved rules or manual approval workflows. That’s useful for basic needs, but it’s missing functionality that enterprise IT teams rely on daily:
- No Support Assist feature: Helpdesk staff can’t temporarily escalate their privileges to troubleshoot user issues without logging in as a different account
- No Admin Sessions: Users can’t get time-limited system-wide elevation for tasks that require multiple elevated operations
- No Break Glass functionality: No emergency access when a device becomes disjoined from your directory
- No offline mode: If a device isn’t connected to the network, users can’t elevate anything (even if it was pre-approved)
- No malware scanning: Every elevation request goes through without security reputation checks
- Limited system elevation support: Struggles with Control Panel, Regedit, and other system-level tools
Admin By Request EPM includes all of these features. Our Support Assist mode lets helpdesk staff upgrade their permissions temporarily in a user’s profile, with both accounts logged for audit purposes. Admin Sessions provide time-limited system-wide elevation when needed. Break Glass generates one-time, time-limited local admin accounts for emergency situations. Offline PIN codes allow elevation without network connectivity.
Management at Scale: Sub-Settings vs Policy Sprawl
Microsoft Intune EPM requires you to create policies on a group basis. As your organization grows and you need different elevation rules for different departments, you’ll quickly end up with dozens (or hundreds) of policies that become difficult to manage and maintain.
Admin By Request EPM uses a Sub-Settings architecture. You set global defaults at the tenant level, then create unlimited override groups for specific departments, locations, or use cases. Policies are layered and matched on a first-setting, first-match basis, which means you can apply granular controls without creating management overhead.
Organizations with 100,000+ endpoints use our platform without needing additional administrators to manage policy sprawl.
Feature Comparison Table
| Feature | Admin By Request EPM | Microsoft Intune EPM |
| Platform Support | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows only |
| Agent Size | 2MB | 20MB+ extension |
| Approval Speed | < 1 second | A few seconds (recently improved from 10-60 minutes) |
| Activity Reporting | Real-time | Up to 24 hours |
| Policy Sync | Instant | 20-30 minutes |
| Rollback Time | Immediate | Up to 7 days |
| Offline Mode | PIN code support | Not available |
| Malware Scanning | OPSWAT integration | None |
| Admin Sessions | Time-limited system-wide elevation | Not available |
| Support Assist | Helpdesk escalation mode | Not available |
| Break Glass | Emergency admin accounts | Not available |
| Mobile App | Dedicated iOS/Android app | Portal access only |
| Machine Learning | Automated approval thresholds | Not available |
| Policy Management | Sub-Settings with layering | Group-based (policy sprawl) |
| Infrastructure Required | None (SaaS only) | Requires Intune Plan 1 or an E5 Subscription |
| Security Record | Zero CVEs in 5+ years | New product (version 1) |
| Multi-Session Support | Full support | Single-session AVD only |
Upcoming Licensing Changes
Microsoft announced in December 2025 that Intune EPM will be included in Microsoft 365 E5 subscriptions starting in July 2026 at no additional cost. This makes EPM more accessible for organizations already committed to the E5 tier.
Microsoft 365 E3 customers will still need to purchase EPM separately as an add-on. The pricing changes taking effect July 1, 2026 increase E3 from $36 to $39 per user monthly and E5 from $57 to $60 per user monthly.
Microsoft is also rolling out new EPM features including a readiness dashboard for deployment oversight, Security Copilot integration for risk assessment before approvals, and scope tag enforcement for role-based access control.
These additions improve Intune EPM’s management experience, but they don’t address the core technical limitations we’ve outlined in this comparison: multi-platform support, offline functionality, integrated malware scanning, and operational features like Support Assist, Admin Sessions, and Break Glass.
When Microsoft EPM Makes Sense
Microsoft Intune EPM isn’t the wrong choice for everyone. If your organization runs exclusively on Windows, is already committed to Microsoft 365 E5, and has straightforward privilege elevation needs, it might work for your requirements.
For organizations that need reliable, full-featured privilege management across multiple platforms with advanced security controls, Microsoft’s offering falls short.
Why Organizations Choose Admin By Request EPM
We’ve been building EPM solutions for over a decade. Our product has been security-tested by some of the largest organizations in the world, and we maintain a zero-CVE record over the past five years.
Organizations like Atlantic Technological University (with over 4,000 endpoints across 9 sites) chose our platform because it works reliably, deploys easily, and doesn’t get in the way of productivity. Our NPS score sits in the high 80s because we focus exclusively on making privilege management work well.
See the Difference Yourself
We offer a free plan for up to 25 endpoints with full functionality and no time limit. Deploy it in your environment alongside Microsoft Intune EPM and compare them directly.
The differences become obvious quickly: instant policy updates, multi-platform support, and features like Support Assist and Break Glass that Microsoft doesn’t offer. Download it today and put both products through their paces.
