If you’ve ever stared blankly at the Intune admin centre wondering whether your Conditional Access policies are protecting your estate or just politely waving threats through the door, you’re not alone. Microsoft’s latest addition—Copilot in Intune—is here to help. Or at least, that’s the idea.
Let’s take a look at how to use it, what it’s good for, and where it might still leave you muttering “typical” under your breath.
Getting Started: No Wand Required
First things first, you’ll need to be running Microsoft Intune with the appropriate licensing—Microsoft 365 E5 or equivalent. If you’re still clinging to E3 like a nostalgic pub landlord refusing to upgrade the jukebox, you’ll need to loosen the purse strings.
Once enabled, Copilot appears in the Intune admin centre like a helpful librarian who’s read every policy document ever written and doesn’t judge your inconsistent naming conventions.
To summon it:
- Head to the Intune Admin Centre
- Look for the Copilot icon (usually lurking in the sidebar like a well-meaning intern)
- Click it, and start typing your query—anything from “Explain this compliance policy” to “Why is this device non-compliant?”
It’s conversational, context-aware, and surprisingly good at not making you feel like an idiot.
What It does.
Copilot in Intune isn’t just a glorified search bar. It’s got a bit of nous about it.
Policy Summarisation
Ask it to explain a policy, and it’ll give you a plain-English summary that’s actually readable. No more deciphering JSON blobs like you’re cracking Cold War ciphers.
Compliance Insights
It can surface trends, highlight non-compliant devices, and even suggest remediation steps. It’s like having a junior analyst who doesn’t take lunch breaks.
Troubleshooting
You can ask it why a device isn’t compliant, and it’ll walk you through the likely causes. It’s not infallible, but it’s quicker than trawling through logs while muttering expletives.
Learning Aid
For newer admins or those moonlighting in Intune while secretly wishing they were in Defender, Copilot offers contextual help and links to documentation. It’s like Clippy, but with a degree.
What It Doesn’t Do (Yet)
Of course, it’s not all roses and well-labelled dashboards.
Limited Reasoning
Copilot can explain what a policy does, but it won’t always grasp the nuance of your environment. Ask it why your BYOD policy is causing chaos, and it might give you a textbook answer while ignoring the fact that half your users are still on Android 9.
No Multi-Step Automation
It won’t string together actions like “Create a policy, assign it to a group, and notify the DPO if it fails.” You’ll still need to do the legwork—or build a Logic App if you’re feeling spicy.
Privacy Caveats
While Copilot doesn’t expose sensitive data, it does analyse context. So if you’re working in a regulated environment, you’ll want to double-check what it’s surfacing before you present it to stakeholders who think AI is either the future or a GDPR lawsuit waiting to happen.
Final Thoughts: Worth the Hype?
Copilot in Intune is genuinely useful—especially for those managing sprawling estates with more policies than a local council. It’s fast, contextual, and doesn’t require you to memorise the difference between MDM and MAM (though it’ll happily explain it if you ask).
Is it perfect? No. But it’s a step towards making Intune less of a labyrinth and more of a guided tour. And if it occasionally misinterprets your intent, well—so do most humans.
So go on, give it a whirl. Just don’t expect it to make your coffee or explain why your CEO’s iPad is still showing as non-compliant. Some mysteries are eternal.
Seb
This post clearly shows how copilot in intune makes policy management and troubleshooting easier with plain english summaries and contextual help. I like the balanced view on its current limitations while still highlighting the big productivity boost it brings. Excited to see how it evolves!