Configure Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) for automatic user provisioning with Microsoft Entra ID

The objective of this article is to demonstrate the steps to be performed in Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) and Microsoft Entra ID to configure Microsoft Entra ID to automatically provision and de-provision users and/or groups to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA).

Prerequisites

The scenario outlined in this article assumes that you already have the following prerequisites:

• A Microsoft Entra user account with an active subscription. If you don't already have one, you can Create an account for free.
• One of the following roles:
  • Application Administrator
  • Cloud Application Administrator
  • Application Owner.

• A Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) tenant
• A user account in Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) with Admin permissions.

Step 1: Assign users to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA)

Microsoft Entra ID uses a concept called assignments to determine which users should receive access to selected apps. In the context of automatic user provisioning, only the users and/or groups that have been assigned to an application in Microsoft Entra ID are synchronized.

Before configuring and enabling automatic user provisioning, you should decide which users and/or groups in Microsoft Entra ID need access to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA). Once decided, you can assign these users and/or groups to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) by following the instructions here:

• Assign a user or group to an enterprise app

Important tips to assign users to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA)

• It's recommended that a single Microsoft Entra user is assigned to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) to test the automatic user provisioning configuration. Additional users and/or groups may be assigned later.

• When assigning a user to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA), you must select any valid application-specific role (if available) in the assignment dialog. Users with the Default Access role are excluded from provisioning.

Step 2: Set up Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) for provisioning

1. Sign in to your Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) Admin Console. Navigate to Administration > IdP Configuration.

   

2. Verify to make sure that an IdP for Single sign-on is configured. If no IdP is set up, then add one by selecting the plus icon at the top right corner of the screen.

   

3. Follow through the Add IdP Configuration wizard to add an IdP. Leave the Single sign-on field set to User. Provide a Name and select the Domains from the drop-down list. Select Next to navigate to the next window.

   

4. Download the Service Provider Certificate. Select Next to navigate to the next window.

   

5. In the next window, upload the Service Provider Certificate downloaded previously.

   

6. Scroll down to provide the Single sign-On URL and IdP Entity ID.

   

7. Scroll down to Enable SCIM Sync. Select Generate New Token button. Copy the Bearer Token. This value is entered in the Secret Token field in the Provisioning tab of your Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) application.

   

8. To locate the Tenant URL, navigate to Administration > IdP Configuration. Select the name of the newly added IdP configuration listed on the page.

   

9. Scroll down to view the SCIM Service Provider Endpoint at the end of the page. Copy the SCIM Service Provider Endpoint. This value is entered in the Tenant URL field in the Provisioning tab of your Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) application.

   

Step 3: Add Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) from the gallery

Before configuring Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) for automatic user provisioning with Microsoft Entra ID, you need to add Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) from the Microsoft Entra application gallery to your list of managed SaaS applications.

To add Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) from the Microsoft Entra application gallery, perform the following steps:

1. Sign in to the Microsoft Entra admin center as at least a Cloud Application Administrator.

2. Browse to Entra ID > Enterprise apps > New application.

3. In the Add from the gallery section, type Zscaler Private Access (ZPA), select Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) in the search box.

4. Select Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) from results panel and then add the app. Wait a few seconds while the app is added to your tenant.

   

Step 4: Configure automatic user provisioning to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA)

This section guides you through the steps to configure the Microsoft Entra provisioning service to create, update, and disable users and/or groups in Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) based on user and/or group assignments in Microsoft Entra ID.

Configure automatic user provisioning for Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) in Microsoft Entra ID

1. Sign in to the Microsoft Entra admin center as at least a Cloud Application Administrator.

2. Browse to Entra ID > Enterprise apps > Zscaler Private Access (ZPA).

   

3. Select the Provisioning tab.

   

4. Select + New configuration.

   

5. Under the Admin Credentials section, enter the SCIM Service Provider Endpoint value retrieved earlier in Tenant URL. Input the Bearer Token value retrieved earlier in Secret Token. Select Test Connection to ensure Microsoft Entra ID can connect to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA). If the connection fails, ensure your Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) account has Admin permissions and try again.

   

6. Select Create to create your configuration.

7. Select Properties on the Overview page.

8. Select the Edit icon to edit the properties. Enable notification emails and provide an email to receive quarantine notifications. Enable Accidental deletions prevention. Select Apply to save the changes.

   

9. Select Attribute Mapping in the left panel and select users.

10. Review the user attributes that are synchronized from Microsoft Entra ID to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) in the Attribute Mapping section. The attributes selected as Matching properties are used to match the user accounts in Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) for update operations. Select the Save button to commit any changes.

    Attribute	Type	Supported for filtering	Required by Zscaler Private Access
    userName	String	✓	✓
    externalId	String
    active	Boolean
    emails[type eq "work"].value	String
    name.givenName	String
    name.familyName	String
    displayName	String
    userType	String
    nickName	String
    title	String
    urn:ietf:params:scim:schemas:extension:enterprise:2.0:User:department	String
    urn:ietf:params:scim:schemas:extension:enterprise:2.0:User:costCenter	string
    urn:ietf:params:scim:schemas:extension:enterprise:2.0:User:division	String

11. Select Groups.

12. Review the group attributes that are synchronized from Microsoft Entra ID to Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) in the Attribute Mapping section. The attributes selected as Matching properties are used to match the groups in Zscaler Private Access (ZPA) for update operations. Select the Save button to commit any changes.

    Attribute	Type	Supported for filtering	Required by Zscaler Private Access
    displayName	String	✓	✓
    members	Reference
    externalId	String

13. To configure scoping filters, refer to the instructions provided in the Scoping filter article.

14. Use on-demand provisioning to validate sync with a small number of users before deploying more broadly in your organization.

15. When you're ready to provision, select Start Provisioning from the Overview page.

Step 5: Monitor your deployment

Once you configure provisioning, use the following resources to monitor your deployment:

1. Use the provisioning logs to determine which users are provisioned successfully or unsuccessfully
2. Check the progress bar to see the status of the provisioning cycle and how close it's to completion
3. If the provisioning configuration seems to be in an unhealthy state, the application goes into quarantine. Learn more about quarantine states the application provisioning quarantine status article.

Additional resources

• Managing user account provisioning for Enterprise Apps
• What is application access and single sign-on with Microsoft Entra ID?

Related content

• Learn how to review logs and get reports on provisioning activity