Autopilot Device Preparation Not Running? ESP Shows Instead

You built a Windows Autopilot device preparation policy, the user signs in during OOBE, and instead of the Setting up for work or school screen with the round progress bar, the device shows the Enrollment Status Page (ESP). Or it finishes OOBE and none of the apps and scripts from your device preparation policy arrive during setup.

That screen is the clue. Microsoft’s troubleshooting FAQ says: “If the ESP displays during the deployment, then the device isn’t running a Windows Autopilot device preparation deployment” (Device preparation troubleshooting FAQ). The policy isn’t failing. It never started.

I haven’t reproduced this on a live tenant for this article. Everything below comes from Microsoft Learn, linked inline, and I haven’t tested the fix steps on a real device.

The cause: classic Autopilot wins on a registered device

The FAQ names two reasons the ESP shows up instead of device preparation:

• The device is a Windows Autopilot registered device.
• A Windows Autopilot profile is assigned to the device.

And it states the rule: “Windows Autopilot profiles take precedence over Windows Autopilot device preparation policies.”

Since device association shipped (added to the device preparation What’s new page on August 27, 2026), the rule has one more branch. From the device preparation overview: “If the device isn’t associated with the tenant, the Windows Autopilot profile takes precedence. If the device is associated, device association takes precedence and the Windows Autopilot device preparation deployment runs.”

So a registered device runs classic Autopilot unless it’s associated with your tenant. Microsoft’s comparison page adds that “any one device in an environment can only run one of the two solutions.”

This hits teams that move a fleet from classic Autopilot to device preparation. The old hardware hashes are still registered, the old profiles are still assigned to dynamic groups, and new policies alone don’t change which path a device takes.

Fix it

1. Confirm what the device showed. Device preparation shows Setting up for work or school with a round progress bar. If the user saw the ESP’s Device setup and Account setup phases, keep going. If they saw neither, skip to “If no ESP appeared” below.

2. Find the device in Windows Autopilot. In the Microsoft Intune admin center, go to Devices > Windows > Enrollment > Windows Autopilot > Devices and search by serial number. If it’s listed, it’s registered, and classic Autopilot will run unless the device is associated.

3. Decide which path the device should take.

   • Should it run classic Autopilot after all? Then the ESP is behaving as designed, and the device preparation policy doesn’t apply to it.
   • Should it run device preparation? Pick step 4 or step 5.

4. Option A: deregister the device. Microsoft’s order matters (Deregister a device):

   1. Note the serial number, then delete the device from Intune under Devices > Windows.
   2. In Windows Autopilot devices, select the device. If Unassign user is available in the … menu, use it.
   3. Select Delete and confirm. Use Sync and Refresh until the device is gone.

   For Microsoft Entra joined devices, Microsoft says to stop there: “Avoid manually deleting the device from Microsoft Entra ID, as this can cause unexpected issues.” It also warns that doing the steps out of order “can result in orphaned records or unrecoverable devices.”

5. Option B: associate the device instead. If you want to keep the registration, device association makes device preparation take precedence. You export device information in OOBE, pre-associate the device in Intune with that CSV, and association completes when the device connects to a network in OOBE. Check the requirements first: a physical device (no VMs), TPM 2.0 not in Reduced Functionality Mode, and Windows 11 24H2 or 25H2 with KB5120998 or later. Association state shows under Devices > Enrollment > Device association > Devices.

6. Reset the device and run OOBE again. Then confirm you get Setting up for work or school, not the ESP.

7. Check the report. In Intune, go to Devices > Monitor > Windows Autopilot device preparation deployments (reporting and monitoring). The device should show a Deployment status of In progress, then Success or Failed, with app and script detail.

My recommendation: for a straight migration of devices you already own, deregister. Option B makes sense when you also want what association adds, such as device-targeted policy and OOBE customization, and your hardware meets its requirements.

If no ESP appeared

If neither screen showed, the FAQ lists other reasons device preparation never launches:

• Windows is below the minimum version or missing the required update. Device preparation needs Windows 11 24H2 or later, or 23H2 or 22H2 with KB5035942 or later (overview). The update has to be installed before the device first starts, so check OEM images and install media.
• The user signing in isn’t in the user group set in the policy.
• The policy has no device group selected. Microsoft notes a policy can be saved without one.
• You use corporate identifiers and none was added for this device.
• Windows automatic Intune enrollment isn’t configured, or users aren’t allowed to join devices to Microsoft Entra ID.

If several device preparation policies target the user, the one with the smallest number in the Priority column wins.

What not to waste time on

• Editing the ESP profile. If the ESP showed, you’re on the classic path. Device preparation doesn’t use ESP settings.
• Re-checking the device preparation policy’s app list. Apps in that policy can’t install on a device that never started device preparation.
• Deleting the Entra device object by hand. Microsoft tells you not to for Entra joined devices.

If device preparation does start but the device misses its group or apps, that’s a different problem: see device preparation security group membership failures and the broader Autopilot device preparation failures in Intune.

Get the Deployment Doctor

Kit 1 founding presale is open: $39 (regular $49). The Autopilot + Device Prep Deployment Doctor checks your tenant, read-only, for the config that breaks ESP and Device Preparation. You pay now and get the files by Tuesday, December 1, 2026, sooner if they’re ready. Full refund any time before delivery, then 14 days after delivery.

Want to look first? The free, read-only beta scripts are on GitHub: autopilot-deployment-doctor-beta. Its README says they haven’t been run against a live tenant.

FAQ

Does Windows Autopilot device preparation use the Enrollment Status Page?

No. Microsoft says device preparation doesn’t use the ESP, so the ESP shouldn’t display during a device preparation deployment. If it does, the device is running classic Windows Autopilot.

Can a device registered in Windows Autopilot run device preparation?

Yes, if it’s associated with your tenant. Microsoft says device association takes precedence on an associated device. Otherwise the Windows Autopilot profile wins, and you have to deregister the device to use device preparation.

Should I delete the device from Microsoft Entra ID after deregistering it?

Not for Microsoft Entra joined devices. Microsoft says no extra steps are needed after deregistering through Intune and warns that deleting the device by hand can cause unexpected issues.

Do classic Autopilot and device preparation work in the same tenant?

Yes. Microsoft says the two can run side by side in one organization, but any one device runs only one of them.

Sources

All retrieved 2026-10-21.

• Windows Autopilot device preparation troubleshooting FAQ, Microsoft Learn: ESP means not device preparation, profile precedence, other never-launches causes, policy priority.
• Overview of Windows Autopilot device preparation, Microsoft Learn: Windows requirements, association-state precedence rule.
• Compare Windows Autopilot device preparation and Windows Autopilot, Microsoft Learn: one solution per device.
• Windows Autopilot registration overview, Deregister a device, Microsoft Learn: deregistration order and Entra warning.
• Overview of Windows Autopilot device association and requirements, Microsoft Learn: association workflow, monitoring blade, hardware and OS requirements.
• What’s new in Windows Autopilot device preparation, Microsoft Learn: device association date.
• Device preparation reporting and monitoring, Microsoft Learn: report path and statuses.
• Device preparation FAQ, Microsoft Learn: Setting up for work or school screen.