Power Platform Clinic – Episode 4: Power Pages Authentication Options and Developer Accounts
Welcome to Episode 2 of the Power Platform Clinic with Duncan Boyne and Ian Tweedy.
In this episode, Duncan and Ian dive deep into:
🔐 Power Pages Authentication Options
Ian breaks down:
- The difference between public and private modes in Power Pages.
- How Entra ID, External Entra ID, and Azure B2C work for authenticating users.
- Why using Azure B2C or External Entra ID is often preferred, including centralised identity management, SIEM logging, and reducing password management headaches.
- How these options relate to OAuth and OIDC protocols for enabling social logins like LinkedIn or Google.
Key takeaway: Understanding authentication options is crucial for designing secure Power Pages implementations that fit your organisation’s user landscape, whether purely internal, external, or hybrid.
👨💻 Setting Up Your Own Developer Account
Duncan and Ian guide you through:
- Using the Microsoft 365 Developer Program to get a free developer tenant (noting tightened eligibility in recent years).
- Alternative approaches including:
- Using Visual Studio benefits if you have them.
- Starting with an Office 365 trial to activate Power Platform developer environments.
- Keeping your tenant active by buying a minimal license (e.g. Exchange Online Plan 1) to ensure continuity.
- Creating your Power Platform developer environment for experimenting with solutions, apps, and portals.
They demonstrate step-by-step how to set up a trial tenant, activate the developer license, and spin up your first environment for Power Platform learning and testing.
💡 Why This Matters
Whether you are:
- Building your first Power Pages portal.
- Testing authentication patterns for a client project.
- Exploring Power Platform features without risking production environments.
… having your own developer environment and understanding authentication is essential for safe, efficient experimentation.
🔗 Related Resources
🙌 Connect with us
If you have questions you’d like us to cover in a future clinic, submit them here.
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This blog post complements Power Platform Clinic Episode 2 and summarises the key insights for easy reference.