Unit 5: Invite External Users — Individually and in Bulk

1. Inviting External Users

After configuration, the next operational step is to invite users. Invitations can be issued:

• Individually (via the Entra admin center).
• In bulk (via CSV upload).
• Programmatically (via Graph API).

Each invited user receives an email with a redemption link, allowing them to join the tenant as a Guest.

2. Individual Invitations

Steps to Invite a Single User

• In the Microsoft Entra admin center, go to:

Identity → Users → All Users → New User → Invite External User.

• Enter the email address of the guest (not a group address).
• Avoid using plus signs (+) in email addresses — they aren’t supported.
• Add display name, message, and optional redirection URL (e.g., link to Teams or SharePoint).
• Click Invite.

The invited user is:

• Added to the directory immediately (UserType = Guest).
• Shown in the “All Users” list.
• Pending until they redeem the invitation.

Example: Contoso HR invites linda@fabrikam.com to review HR documentation in SharePoint. Linda receives an email, redeems the link, and appears in Contoso’s tenant as linda_fabrikam.com#EXT#@contoso.onmicrosoft.com.

3. Self-Service App Invitations

Admins can enable self-service management for specific applications. This allows app owners to invite guests directly without being global admins.

Steps (conceptually):

• Enable self-service group management.
• Create a security group linked to the app.
• Assign app ownership and permissions.
• The app owner invites guest users via the Access Panel (myapps.microsoft.com).

This decentralizes collaboration while maintaining governance through Conditional Access and group membership control.

4. Bulk Invitations

For larger organizations, admins can invite hundreds or thousands of users simultaneously using a CSV file.

Steps:

• Go to All Users → Bulk Operations → Bulk Invite.
• Download the sample CSV template.
• Populate it with the following columns:
• Email address to invite (Required).
• Redirection URL (optional).
• Upload the completed CSV.
• Review validation results.
• Select Submit to start the invitation process.

Example CSV Template

Email address to invite [inviteeEmail], Redirection URL [inviteRedirectUrl]

alex@fabrikam.com, https://teams.microsoft.com

julia@tailwind.com,

Once uploaded:

• Microsoft Entra validates each entry.
• Successful entries trigger invitations; failed rows include detailed errors.

Tracking Results

• Go to Activity → Bulk Operation Results to view the number of successes and failures.
• Review any errors (e.g., invalid emails or blocked domains).

5. Invitation Lifecycle

• No expiration – Invitations remain valid indefinitely until redeemed.
• Redemption required – Guests must redeem the invitation once before gaining access.
• Re-inviting users – If a guest loses the original email, you can resend the invitation manually.

6. Real-World Example

Scenario: Contoso’s procurement team needs to onboard 50 vendors to a shared procurement portal. The admin prepares a CSV file with vendor email addresses and portal URLs, uploads it through Bulk Invite, and reviews the upload status in Activity → Bulk Operations. All vendors receive invitations simultaneously, streamlining collaboration setup.

7. Exam Tip

• Bulk invitation format and fields.
• Default guest invitation behavior.
• How to re-invite or check invitation status.
• Role of Guest Inviter and self-service for app owners.

Summary

This unit provided practical guidance for inviting external users. Whether inviting one or many, Microsoft Entra offers flexible tools to ensure secure, auditable onboarding of B2B collaborators.