entra-agent-user

Original🇺🇸 English
Translated

Create Agent Users in Microsoft Entra ID from Agent Identities, enabling AI agents to act as digital workers with user identity capabilities in Microsoft 365 and Azure environments.

7.1kinstalls
Added on

NPX Install

npx skill4agent add github/awesome-copilot entra-agent-user

Tags

Translated version includes tags in frontmatter

SKILL: Creating Agent Users in Microsoft Entra Agent ID

Overview

An agent user is a specialized user identity in Microsoft Entra ID that enables AI agents to act as digital workers. It allows agents to access APIs and services that strictly require user identities (e.g., Exchange mailboxes, Teams, org charts), while maintaining appropriate security boundaries.
Agent users receive tokens with
idtyp=user
, unlike regular agent identities which receive
idtyp=app
.

Prerequisites

  • A Microsoft Entra tenant with Agent ID capabilities
  • An agent identity (service principal of type
    ServiceIdentity
    ) created from an agent identity blueprint
  • One of the following permissions:
    • AgentIdUser.ReadWrite.IdentityParentedBy
      (least privileged)
    • AgentIdUser.ReadWrite.All
    • User.ReadWrite.All
  • The caller must have at minimum the Agent ID Administrator role (in delegated scenarios)
Important: The
identityParentId
must reference a true agent identity (created via an agent identity blueprint), NOT a regular application service principal. You can verify by checking that the service principal has
@odata.type: #microsoft.graph.agentIdentity
and
servicePrincipalType: ServiceIdentity
.

Architecture

Agent Identity Blueprint (application template)
    ├── Agent Identity (service principal - ServiceIdentity)
    │       │
    │       └── Agent User (user - agentUser) ← 1:1 relationship
    └── Agent Identity Blueprint Principal (service principal in tenant)
ComponentTypeToken ClaimPurpose
Agent IdentityService Principal
idtyp=app
Backend/API operations
Agent UserUser (
agentUser
)
idtyp=user
Act as a digital worker in M365

Step 1: Verify the Agent Identity Exists

Before creating an agent user, confirm the agent identity is a proper
agentIdentity
type:
http
GET https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/servicePrincipals/{agent-identity-id}
Authorization: Bearer <token>
Verify the response contains:
json
{
  "@odata.type": "#microsoft.graph.agentIdentity",
  "servicePrincipalType": "ServiceIdentity",
  "agentIdentityBlueprintId": "<blueprint-id>"
}

PowerShell

powershell
Connect-MgGraph -Scopes "Application.Read.All" -TenantId "<tenant>" -UseDeviceCode -NoWelcome
Invoke-MgGraphRequest -Method GET `
  -Uri "https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/servicePrincipals/<agent-identity-id>" | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 3
Common mistake: Using an app registration's
appId
or a regular application service principal's
id
will fail. Only agent identities created from blueprints work.

Step 2: Create the Agent User

HTTP Request

http
POST https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/microsoft.graph.agentUser
Content-Type: application/json
Authorization: Bearer <token>

{
  "accountEnabled": true,
  "displayName": "My Agent User",
  "mailNickname": "my-agent-user",
  "userPrincipalName": "my-agent-user@yourtenant.onmicrosoft.com",
  "identityParentId": "<agent-identity-object-id>"
}

Required Properties

PropertyTypeDescription
accountEnabled
Boolean
true
to enable the account
displayName
StringHuman-friendly name
mailNickname
StringMail alias (no spaces/special chars)
userPrincipalName
StringUPN — must be unique in the tenant (
alias@verified-domain
)
identityParentId
StringObject ID of the parent agent identity

PowerShell

powershell
Connect-MgGraph -Scopes "User.ReadWrite.All" -TenantId "<tenant>" -UseDeviceCode -NoWelcome

$body = @{
  accountEnabled    = $true
  displayName       = "My Agent User"
  mailNickname      = "my-agent-user"
  userPrincipalName = "my-agent-user@yourtenant.onmicrosoft.com"
  identityParentId  = "<agent-identity-object-id>"
} | ConvertTo-Json

Invoke-MgGraphRequest -Method POST `
  -Uri "https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/microsoft.graph.agentUser" `
  -Body $body -ContentType "application/json" | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 3

Key Notes

  • No password — agent users cannot have passwords. They authenticate via their parent agent identity's credentials.
  • 1:1 relationship — each agent identity can have at most one agent user. Attempting to create a second returns
    400 Bad Request
    .
  • The
    userPrincipalName
    must be unique. Don't reuse an existing user's UPN.

Step 3: Assign a Manager (Optional)

Assigning a manager allows the agent user to appear in org charts (e.g., Teams).
http
PUT https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/{agent-user-id}/manager/$ref
Content-Type: application/json
Authorization: Bearer <token>

{
  "@odata.id": "https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/{manager-user-id}"
}

PowerShell

powershell
$managerBody = '{"@odata.id":"https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/<manager-user-id>"}'
Invoke-MgGraphRequest -Method PUT `
  -Uri "https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/<agent-user-id>/manager/`$ref" `
  -Body $managerBody -ContentType "application/json"

Step 4: Set Usage Location and Assign Licenses (Optional)

A license is needed for the agent user to have a mailbox, Teams presence, etc. Usage location must be set first.

Set Usage Location

http
PATCH https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/{agent-user-id}
Content-Type: application/json
Authorization: Bearer <token>

{
  "usageLocation": "US"
}

List Available Licenses

http
GET https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/subscribedSkus?$select=skuPartNumber,skuId,consumedUnits,prepaidUnits
Authorization: Bearer <token>
Requires
Organization.Read.All
permission.

Assign a License

http
POST https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/{agent-user-id}/assignLicense
Content-Type: application/json
Authorization: Bearer <token>

{
  "addLicenses": [
    { "skuId": "<sku-id>" }
  ],
  "removeLicenses": []
}

PowerShell (all in one)

powershell
Connect-MgGraph -Scopes "User.ReadWrite.All","Organization.Read.All" -TenantId "<tenant>" -NoWelcome

# Set usage location
Invoke-MgGraphRequest -Method PATCH `
  -Uri "https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/<agent-user-id>" `
  -Body '{"usageLocation":"US"}' -ContentType "application/json"

# Assign license
$licenseBody = '{"addLicenses":[{"skuId":"<sku-id>"}],"removeLicenses":[]}'
Invoke-MgGraphRequest -Method POST `
  -Uri "https://graph.microsoft.com/beta/users/<agent-user-id>/assignLicense" `
  -Body $licenseBody -ContentType "application/json"
Tip: You can also assign licenses via the Entra admin center under Identity → Users → All users → select the agent user → Licenses and apps.

Provisioning Times

ServiceEstimated Time
Exchange mailbox5–30 minutes
Teams availability15 min – 24 hours
Org chart / People searchUp to 24–48 hours
SharePoint / OneDrive5–30 minutes
Global Address ListUp to 24 hours

Agent User Capabilities

  • ✅ Added to Microsoft Entra groups (including dynamic groups)
  • ✅ Access user-only APIs (
    idtyp=user
    tokens)
  • ✅ Own a mailbox, calendar, and contacts
  • ✅ Participate in Teams chats and channels
  • ✅ Appear in org charts and People search
  • ✅ Added to administrative units
  • ✅ Assigned licenses

Agent User Security Constraints

  • ❌ Cannot have passwords, passkeys, or interactive sign-in
  • ❌ Cannot be assigned privileged admin roles
  • ❌ Cannot be added to role-assignable groups
  • ❌ Permissions similar to guest users by default
  • ❌ Custom role assignment not available

Troubleshooting

ErrorCauseFix
Agent user IdentityParent does not exist
identityParentId
points to a non-existent or non-agent-identity object
Verify the ID is an
agentIdentity
service principal, not a regular app
400 Bad Request
(identityParentId already linked)
The agent identity already has an agent userEach agent identity supports only one agent user
409 Conflict
on UPN
The
userPrincipalName
is already taken
Use a unique UPN
License assignment failsUsage location not setSet
usageLocation
before assigning licenses

References