License Management

License Management changes which Microsoft 365 licences someone has. It assigns licences, removes them, or does both in one run, for example to move a user from Business Standard to Business Premium. It needs Microsoft 365 connected, with a GDAP role that can manage licences, such as License Administrator.

License Management in 50 seconds: what it asks, what it does and what you get.

What the form asks

Field
User	Required, always on. The person whose licences change, picked from the client’s users
Licenses to assign	Optional, always on. One or more of the client’s licences to add
Licenses to remove	Optional, always on. One or more of the client’s licences to take away
Reason / ticket reference	Optional by default. For your records and the approver; not sent to Microsoft

Fill in either licence list, or both.

What it does

Creates a ticket in your PSA, if Ticketing is on.
Waits for approval, if Approval is Internal or External, or a conditional override matches.
Assign Licenses: adds the licences in Licenses to assign, in the client’s Microsoft 365. Skipped when the list is empty.
Remove Licenses: takes away the licences in Licenses to remove. Skipped when the list is empty.

With Log actions to the ticket on, the ticket also gets a note when the run starts, after each step and when the run completes. The note after Remove Licenses names the licences it removed. Licences are assigned before any are removed, so each new licence needs a free seat, even when the same run removes another one. If Microsoft can’t assign a licence, the run stops there and nothing is removed.

Configure it

Go to Config and click License Management, under Accounts & Access.

Configure License Management: every option, step by step (1:25).

Setting	Where	What it does
Availability	Header	Internal only, Public form only, Internal + public or Disabled. List on homepage needs a public form. Base config only
User, Licenses to assign, Licenses to remove	Form config	Always on: the automation needs them
Reason / ticket reference	Form config	Hidden, Optional or Required. Can differ per client
Add field, Add section	Form config	Your own questions. They’re saved with the request and can go in ticket templates, but aren’t sent to Microsoft. Add client section asks one client only
Approval	Approval	None runs on submit. Internal waits for a teammate or group; External waits for the client’s approver, set on each client. Conditional overrides use a different approval when the answers match, for example when Licenses to assign is not empty. Let the approver edit the request lets them correct the answers first
Ticketing	Ticketing	Create a PSA ticket for each run, with its type, priority, status, subject and body. Log actions to the ticket adds an internal or public note as each action completes
User directory filters	User directory filters	Which users the User picker lists: licensed, active, no guests, and not in the Entra roles you exclude. Untick Licensed users only to list people without a licence. Exclude specific users at a client’s scope

Approval, Ticketing and User directory filters are set on Base config and apply to every client unless you override them for one. For how Base config and client overrides work, see How configuration works.

Troubleshooting

Someone isn't in the User list

Check User directory filters. Licensed users only is on by default, so people with no licence aren’t listed; untick it on Base config or for that client. Active users only hides accounts whose sign-in is blocked.

“License assignment cannot be done for user with invalid usage location.”

Microsoft needs a usage location on the user before it can assign a licence. Set one in the Microsoft 365 admin center, then run it again.

Assign Licenses fails because no seat is free

Add a seat to that subscription, for example at your distributor, then run it again. The run stopped before removing anything.

Workflow catalogue
Run a workflow
Executions
User Onboarding, which gives new starters their licences
User Offboarding, which can remove a leaver’s licences

Get started

Use Core

Workflows

Manage Core

Reference

What the form asks

What it does

Configure it

Troubleshooting

​What the form asks

​What it does

​Configure it

​Troubleshooting

​Related

What the form asks

What it does

Configure it

Troubleshooting

Related