2,093 questions
intune shared devices are not sync
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Yasha Kohut
20
Reputation points
We have about 200 shared devices, some enrolled using a provisioning package and others by a general IT user. All devices are compliant and configured with a shared device profile. We have a policy to sync them every hour.
However, we have noticed that some devices are not syncing for months.
These devices continue to appear in Intune without any errors but do not receive new configurations. When a user (such as a student without an Intune license) clicks on sync, they see a 400 error. If I log in with an admin user, the device starts to sync.
Why is this happening, and how are shared devices supposed to sync?
Any insights or solutions would be greatly appreciated.
Microsoft Security Intune Configuration
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Doaa Ali Hamdan AL-Jarwani 255 Reputation points2025-06-17T21:38:55.6966667+00:00 Why This Happens:
- Shared device mode is designed for multi-user environments (e.g., schools, kiosks).
- Intune device sync often requires:
- A user context with an Intune license, or
- A device-level sync initiated by MDM or an admin
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- When unlicensed users (e.g., students) click “Sync”, it fails with 400 Bad Request, because they lack permission or license to trigger MDM sync.
- A user context with an Intune license, or
What’s Going Wrong:
- Your policy sync is user-initiated, but the current user (student) has no license
- So the device doesn’t receive new configurations — it stays in Intune but never updates
- Only when an admin or licensed user signs in, sync works
Solutions:
1. Use Device-Level (not User-Level) Sync Triggers
- Instead of relying on users to sync, use:
- Intune PowerShell scripts via device scope
- Or a scheduled Remote Action → Sync from Intune portal
2. Assign an Intune Device License
- If possible, assign device-based Intune licenses for shared devices (e.g., for kiosks/schools)
- This removes dependency on user licensing
3. Use Automatic Device Sync via PowerShell/Script
Deploy a script using Intune or provisioning to:
Invoke-DeviceCleanup
Start-DeviceSync
(Script must run in System context)
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Yasha Kohut 20 Reputation points
2025-06-17T21:44:07.0666667+00:00 We have device-only licenses, which according to Microsoft, cannot and should not be assigned. Am I missing something?
How can I schedule remote sync? I don't want to do it manually for hundreds of PCs. I have a policy to sync every hour, but it seems to be not working on the PC scope. Is it only a user scope policy?
Any insights or solutions would be greatly appreciated.
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