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Set up SCIM with Azure

Lisa Wong
Updated

This topic walks you through the process of setting up SCIM in Microsoft Azure.

Before you begin, you must complete the following prerequisite tasks:

  • Set up SSO with Azure. You must configure SSO before you start setting up SCIM.
  • Define the groups in Alida to map to your Azure groups.
  • Generate an authentication token. Ensure that you have access to the following settings from the Alida User Auto-Provisioning page:
    • Base URL: The Alida SCIM API endpoint URL.
    • Token: The API token for authentication with the Alida SCIM API endpoints.
Important: SCIM synchronization starts in a paused state. Complete Azure provisioning configuration while SCIM sync remains paused in Alida. Do not click Resume Sync until setup is complete. If you resume sync before users and groups are correctly configured, Alida may remove existing user accounts. For details, see Pause or resume SCIM sync.
  1. Log in to the Azure Portal at https://portal.azure.com.
  2. Under Azure services, click Enterprise applications.
  3. Click the name of the SSO application you created for Alida.
  4. Select Manage > Provisioning in the left menu.
  5. Configure your authentication credentials for connecting to the Alida SCIM API:
    1. Select Manage > Provisioning again in the left menu.
    2. In the Provisioning Mode drop-down list, select Automatic.
    3. Click Admin Credentials to expand the section.
    4. In the Authentication Method drop-down list, confirm that Bearer Authentication is selected.
    5. In the Tenant URL text box, paste the Alida Base URL value.
      This is the Base URL value displayed in the Authentication Credentials section on the User Auto-Provisioning page in Alida.
    6. In the Secret Token text box, paste the Alida Token value.
      This is the token you previously generated in the User Auto-Provisioning page in Alida.
    7. Click Test Connection.
      You should see a success notification confirming that Microsoft Entra can communicate with Alida. If it fails, double-check your URL and token.
    8. Click Save at the top of the page.
  6. Configure attribute mappings to define how attributes are synchronized between Microsoft Entra ID and Alida:
    1. Click Mappings to expand the section.
      The Mappings section is not displayed until after you save your Admin credentials.
    2. Click Provision Microsoft Entra ID Groups.
    3. Under Target Object Actions, deselect the Create and Delete checkboxes.
      The Update checkbox must be selected.
    4. In the Attribute Mappings table, click Edit next to the displayName attribute.
    5. Choose a mapping approach based on your Microsoft Entra group configuration:
      Option A: Direct mapping (recommended) Option B: Expression mapping

      Use this option if your Entra group names already match your group names, or Alida group names can be updated to match the Entra group names.

      1. In the Mapping Type drop-down list, select Direct.
      2. In the Source attribute drop-down list, select displayName.
        Both Source attribute and Target attribute must be set to displayName.

      3. Proceed to step f.

      Use this option if your Entra group names differ from your Alida group names and cannot be renamed.

      1. In the Mapping Type drop-down list, select Expression.
      2. In the Expression text box, enter a Switch() expression that maps each Entra group name to the corresponding Alida group name. The syntax is:
        Switch(<source>, <defaultValue>, 
<key1>, <value1>, <key2>, <value2>,
        ...)
        For example:
        Switch([displayName], "Analyst", 
        "ResearchAdmin",
        "Admin",
        "Researcher", 
        "PowerUser")
        Note: If you need to use a more complex expression, select the Show advanced options checkbox at the bottom of the Attribute Mapping page and click Use the expression builder.

      3. In the Default value if null text box, enter Analyst or the equivalent least privileged group from your configuration.

        This ensures that users will be assigned to the group with the lowest level of access if the Expression returns a null value.

      4. Proceed to step f.
    6. Click OK in the Edit Attribute page.
    7. Click Save at the top of the page to save your attribute mapping configuration.
    8. In the Save changes dialog, click Yes.
    9. Click close in the top right of the page.
  7. Turn on provisioning:
    1. Click Settings to expand the section.
    2. In the Scope drop-down list, ensure that Sync only assigned users and groups is selected.
    3. Set the Provisioning Status toggle to On.
    4. Click Save at the top of the page.
  8. In Alida, resume SCIM sync to complete setup.
    Follow the steps in Pause or resume SCIM sync. Do not resume sync until Azure provisioning is configured correctly.

Turning on provisioning in Azure allows the IdP to send data to Alida. Alida applies user account changes only after you resume SCIM sync. The initial cycle can take some time depending on the number of users assigned.

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