I've been asked to research the pricing and setup options for an Azure lab environment using Microsoft Entra, Microsoft Purview, and related services. The goal is to have a safe sandbox for testing configurations and functionality without affecting production.
Would it be better to create a completely separate Microsoft 365 and Azure tenant, or are there other practical approaches for building an isolated lab? I'd also appreciate recommendations for subscriptions, licensing, and cost-effective ways to test Entra, Purview, and Azure features. Are there any developer or evaluation benefits worth considering?
3 Answers
It’s worth investigating Microsoft’s developer or Visual Studio-related programs and official trial subscriptions before purchasing everything outright. These may provide a tenant, credits, or limited licenses for development and testing, but eligibility and included services vary. Treat them as a starting point and verify that the specific Entra and Purview features you need are supported under the current terms.
For a true sandbox, a separate tenant is usually the safest option. It keeps experimental Entra settings, Purview policies, identities, and data isolated from production, reducing the chance that a test change locks out users or affects real information. You can also keep the lab small by using a separate Azure subscription or management group structure within that tenant, applying spending limits and budgets, and shutting down resources when they aren’t needed.
A separate tenant is strongly recommended if you plan to test Purview policies or Entra Conditional Access. Testing in production can accidentally apply retention or compliance policies to real data, or create sign-in rules that lock out administrators. Keep test accounts and sample data completely separate, and maintain emergency admin access so you can recover from configuration mistakes.
Purview features can be especially license-dependent, so confirm the exact capabilities you want to test. Depending on the scenarios, you may need at least one appropriately licensed Microsoft 365 E5 or equivalent trial license rather than assuming every feature is available in a basic tenant.
The main downside is that there usually isn’t a blanket free-lab benefit just because an organization is an existing customer. You’ll need to check the specific trials, developer benefits, and licensing terms available to you.