User-driven Microsoft Entra join: Assign Autopilot device to a user (optional)
Autopilot user-driven Microsoft Entra join steps:
- Step 1: Set up Windows automatic Intune enrollment
- Step 2: Allow users to join devices to Microsoft Entra ID
- Step 3: Register devices as Autopilot devices
- Step 4: Create a device group
- Step 5: Configure and assign Autopilot Enrollment Status Page (ESP)
- Step 6: Create and assign Autopilot profile
- Step 7: Assign Autopilot device to a user (optional)
- Step 8: Deploy the device
For an overview of the Windows Autopilot user-driven Microsoft Entra join workflow, see Windows Autopilot user-driven Microsoft Entra join overview.
Assign Autopilot device to a user (optional)
A device that is registered as an Autopilot device can also be assigned to a user. If an Autopilot device is assigned to a user, then any user policies and application installs assigned to that user is applied to the device during the Autopilot process.
Tip
For testing purposes, especially for hybrid Microsoft Entra scenarios, it might be better to first test an Autopilot deployment before assigning the device to a user. Not assigning a user limits the scope of applications, policies, and configurations processed during the Autopilot process.
Tip
For Configuration Manager admins, assigning a user to a device is similar to user device affinity in Configuration Manager.
To assign an Autopilot device to a user, follow these steps:
Sign into the Microsoft Intune admin center.
In the Home screen, select Devices in the left hand pane.
In the Devices | Overview screen, under By platform, select Windows.
In the Windows | Windows devices screen, under Device onboarding, select Enrollment.
In the Windows | Windows enrollment screen, under Windows Autopilot, select Devices.
In the Windows Autopilot devices screen that opens, locate the device to assign a user to.
Once the desired device is located, select the box to the left of the device, making sure that there's check mark in the box, and then select Assign user in the toolbar at the top of page.
In the Select user window that opens, find and select a user for the device, and then select Select to close the window. If necessary, use the Search box to find the desired user.
Note
The selected user must be an Azure user licensed to use Intune.
In the Autopilot device's property window that automatically opens on the right hand side, under User friendly name, verify the default value. If the value is empty or a different friendly name is desired, enter the desired friendly name for the user under User friendly name, and then select Save to close the property window.
The user assignment can be verified by selecting the Autopilot device in the Windows Autopilot devices screen. Once the Autopilot device is selected, it highlights and the Autopilot device's property window automatically opens on the right hand side. The assigned user is listed under User and User friendly name.
Assigning Autopilot device to a user via hardware hash CSV file
A user can be manually assigned to a Windows Autopilot device in the Windows Autopilot device's properties. However, a user can also be assigned to the Autopilot device when the device was initially imported into Autopilot as an Autopilot device. Assigning a user when the device is imported as an Autopilot device can be done by editing the hardware hash CSV file and adding the Assigned User column after the Hardware Hash column. The user's User Principal Name (UPN) should then be added as a value under the Assigned User column.
Important
Use a plain-text editor such as Notepad to edit the CSV file. Don't use Microsoft Excel. Editing the CSV file in Excel doesn't generate a proper usable file for importing into Intune.
For more information on editing the CSV file to add an assigned user to the Autopilot device, see Manually register devices with Windows Autopilot: Ensure that the CSV file meets requirements.
Next step: Deploy the device
Related content
For more information on assigning a user to an Autopilot device, see the following article: