Make Entra App Registation a SharePoint Site Admin

Question

Make Entra App Registation a SharePoint Site Admin

Steve 0

I need to make an Entra App registration owner of SharePoint sites for the purpose of an automation that makes copies of a modern SharePoint site. None of the tools I can find in the admin portal recognize the app as a user, neither by name, ID or Ad nomenclature like i:0i.t|ms.sp.ext|YOUR_APP_ID@YOUR_TENANT_ID. Attempts in PowerShell also fail. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

Rukmini 43,995 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-26T11:42:53.3866667+00:00

Hello Steve An app (service principal) is not a user, so it cannot be added to SharePoint groups (Owners/Members/Visitors) — neither from the UI nor PowerShell. That’s why it isn’t recognized.

Hence as a workaround, you can make use of this API https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/graph/api/site-post-permissions?view=graph-rest-1.0&tabs=http#request and grant full access to the SP.

Let me know if any further queries - feel free to reach out!
Rukmini 43,995 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-27T03:19:29.59+00:00

Hello Steve Following up to see if the above provided information was helpful. If you have any further queries do let us know.

1 answer

Your answer

Rukmini 43,995 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-26T11:42:53.3866667+00:00

Hello Steve An app (service principal) is not a user, so it cannot be added to SharePoint groups (Owners/Members/Visitors) — neither from the UI nor PowerShell. That’s why it isn’t recognized.

Hence as a workaround, you can make use of this API https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/graph/api/site-post-permissions?view=graph-rest-1.0&tabs=http#request and grant full access to the SP.

Let me know if any further queries - feel free to reach out!
Rukmini 43,995 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-27T03:19:29.59+00:00

Hello Steve Following up to see if the above provided information was helpful. If you have any further queries do let us know.

Answer 1

To make an Entra App registration an owner of SharePoint sites, you need to ensure that the app has the necessary permissions and that you are using the correct methods to assign those permissions. Here are the steps you can follow:

Grant Permissions: Ensure that your Entra App registration has the appropriate permissions to access SharePoint. You can do this by navigating to the Entra Portal, selecting your app registration, and configuring the API permissions to include SharePoint permissions.
Use PowerShell: You can use PowerShell to add the app as a site collection administrator. The command typically looks like this:
```
   Add-PnPTeamsTab -Team "YourTeamName" -WebSiteUrl "YourSharePointSiteURL" -AppId "YOUR_APP_ID"
```
Make sure you replace YOUR_APP_ID with the actual application ID of your Entra App.
Check User Type: When trying to add the app as an owner, ensure that you are using the correct format for the app ID. The format i:0i.t|ms.sp.ext|YOUR_APP_ID@YOUR_TENANT_ID should be used correctly, and the app must be recognized as a valid user in the context of SharePoint.
Admin Consent: Ensure that you have granted admin consent for the permissions that your app requires. This is crucial for the app to function correctly with SharePoint.
Troubleshooting: If the app is still not recognized, double-check the permissions assigned and ensure that the app registration is correctly configured in the Entra Portal. You may also want to consult with your tenant or Entra admins for additional support.

By following these steps, you should be able to successfully make your Entra App registration an owner of the SharePoint sites needed for your automation tasks.