Link to a partner ID by using a PAL or DPOR

2025-07-10

Appropriate roles: Account admin

Note

The Microsoft Partner Network is now called the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program.

Microsoft partners provide services that help customers achieve business and mission objectives by using Microsoft products. Partners need access to a customer's environment when they're acting on behalf of the customer in order to manage, configure, and support Azure services.

You can link to a partner ID in one of the following ways:

Partner Admin Link (PAL): A PAL is used for modern commerce platform (Azure plan) subscriptions. It enables Microsoft to identify and recognize partners who drive Azure customer success.

Microsoft can attribute influenced and Azure-consumed revenue to your organization based on the account's permissions (Azure role) and scope (subscription, resource group, resource). PAL tracking capabilities are automated and don't require partner input.
Digital Partner of Record (DPOR): A DPOR is used for Enterprise Agreement (EA) subscriptions. It associates servicing partners with a Microsoft Cloud subscription. It's the online capability to attach a partner to a customer's Microsoft online subscription.

A DPOR benefits the customer, the partner, and Microsoft. A DPOR also enables partners to help customers optimize their usage for desired business outcomes. If a customer moves from EA to the modern commerce platform, DPOR status doesn't move with them.

Note

If you move a subscription from EA to the modern commerce platform, the partner ID isn't transferred.

If you encounter problems with the following procedures, contact Azure support.

Get access from your customer

Before you link your partner ID, your customer must give you access to their Azure resources by using one of the following options:

Guest user: Your customer can add you as a guest user and assign any Azure roles. For more information, see Add guest users from another directory.
Directory account: Your customer can create a user account for you in their own directory and assign any Azure role.
Service principal: Your customer can add an app or script from your organization in their directory and assign any Azure role. The identity of the app or script is called a service principal.
Azure Lighthouse: Your customer can delegate a subscription (or resource group) so that your users can work on it from within your tenant. For more information, see Azure Lighthouse architecture.

Warning

The role assignment that you create might give you highly privileged access to the customer's environment. Be sure to follow good practices for managing privileged accounts.

Link to a partner ID by using a PAL

Link to a partner ID by using a PAL for the modern commerce (Azure plan) platform subscriptions.

When you have access to the customer's resources, use the Azure portal, Azure PowerShell, or the Azure CLI to link your partner ID to your user ID or service principal. Link the partner ID in each customer tenant.

Use the Azure portal to link to a new partner ID

Sign in to the Azure portal.
Go to the Link to a partner ID page in the Azure portal.
Enter the Microsoft partner ID. The partner ID is the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program ID for your organization. Be sure to use the Associated PartnerID value shown on your partner profile. (A partner ID was previously called the Partner Location Account MPN ID.)

To link to a partner ID for another customer, select Switch directory. Then select your directory or use the advanced filter.
Select Link a partner ID.

Use Azure PowerShell to link to a new partner ID

Install the Az.ManagementPartner Azure PowerShell module.
Sign in to the customer's tenant with either the user account or the service principal. For more information, see Sign in to Azure from Azure PowerShell.
```
C:\> Connect-AzAccount -TenantId XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX
```
Link to the new partner ID for your organization. Use the Associated PartnerID value shown on your partner profile.
```
C:\> new-AzManagementPartner -PartnerId 12345
```
To get the linked partner ID, use this command:
```
C:\> get-AzManagementPartner
```
To update the linked partner ID, use this command:
```
C:\> Update-AzManagementPartner -PartnerId 12345
```
To delete the linked partner ID, use this command:
```
C:\> remove-AzManagementPartner -PartnerId 12345
```

Use the Azure CLI to link to a new partner ID

Install the Azure CLI extension:

C:\ az extension add --name managementpartner

Sign in to the customer's tenant with either the user account or the service principal. For more information, see Sign in to Azure by using the Azure CLI.
```
C:\ az login --tenant <tenant>
```
Link to the new partner ID. The partner ID is the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program ID for your organization.
```
C:\ az managementpartner create --partner-id 12345
```
To get the linked partner ID, use this command:
```
C:\ az managementpartner show
```
To update the linked partner ID, use this command:
```
C:\ az managementpartner update --partner-id 12345
```
To delete the linked partner ID, use this command:
```
C:\ az managementpartner delete --partner-id 12345
```

Frequently asked questions about a PAL association

Who can link the partner ID by using a PAL association?

Any user from the partner organization who manages a customer's Azure resources can link the partner ID to the account.

Can a partner ID be changed after it's linked through a PAL association?

Yes. A linked partner ID can be changed, added, or removed.

What if a user has an account in more than one customer tenant?

The link between the partner ID and the account is made for each customer tenant. Link the partner ID in each customer tenant.

However, if you're managing customer resources through Azure Lighthouse, you should create the link in your service provider tenant, by using an account that has access to the customer resources. For more information, see Link a partner ID to your account that's used to manage customers.

Can other partners or customers edit or remove the link to the partner ID?

The link is associated at the user account level. Only you can edit or remove the link to the partner ID. The customer and other partners can't change the link to the partner ID.

Which partner ID should I use for the PAL association if my company has multiple?

Be sure to use the Associated PartnerID value shown in your partner profile.

Where can I find influenced revenue reporting for a linked partner ID?

Performance reporting for cloud products is available to partners in Partner Center at My Insights dashboard. You need to select Partner Admin Link as the partner association type.

Why can't I see my customer in the reports?

You can't see the customer in the reports for one of the following reasons:

The linked user account doesn't have Azure role-based access control (Azure RBAC) on any customer Azure subscription or resource.
The Azure subscription where the user has Azure RBAC access doesn't have any usage.

Does a linked partner ID work with Azure Stack?

Yes. You can link your partner ID for Azure Stack.

How do I link my partner ID if my company uses Azure Lighthouse to access customer resources?

For Azure Lighthouse activities to be recognized, you must associate your partner ID with at least one user account that has access to each of your onboarded subscriptions. You must do so in your service provider tenant rather than in each customer tenant.

For simplicity, we recommend creating a service principal account in your tenant, associating it with your partner ID, and granting it access to every customer you onboard with an Azure built-in role that's eligible for partner earned credit. For more information, see Link a partner ID to your account that's used to manage customers.

How do I explain a PAL to my customer?

A Partner Admin Link enables Microsoft to identify and recognize partners who are helping customers achieve business objectives and realize value in the cloud.

Customers must first give a partner access to their Azure resource. After access is granted, the customer can associate the partner's partner ID. This association helps Microsoft understand the ecosystem of IT service providers and refine the tools and programs that best support our common customers.

What PAL data does Microsoft collect?

The PAL association with existing credentials provides no new customer data to Microsoft. It simply provides the telemetry to Microsoft where a partner is actively involved in a customer's Azure environment.

Microsoft can attribute influenced and Azure-consumed revenue from a customer environment with a partner organization based on the account's permissions (Azure role) and scope (management group, subscription, resource group, resource) that the customer provides to the partner.

Does a PAL association affect the security of a customer's Azure environment?

A PAL association only adds a partner's partner ID to the credential that's already provisioned. It doesn't alter any permissions (Azure role) or provide extra Azure service data to the partner or to Microsoft.

Link to a partner ID by using a DPOR

Link to a partner ID by using a DPOR if you have an EA subscription. Keep these Microsoft policies in mind:

Partners must be added as the DPOR each time a new subscription is sold, regardless of whether the customer is new or existing.
Only the customer can designate a DPOR for their subscriptions.

Add a DPOR to your subscription

Sign in to the Azure portal.
Select Subscriptions, and then select the relevant subscription where you want to add a partner as a DPOR.
Select Partner Information, and then enter the partner's partner ID.
Select Validate ID.

The name of the partner you're adding as a DPOR appears on the UI.
Select Save partner.

A notification tells you that the partner information changed. It might take some time for the portal to reflect this new information. If you don't see it in a few minutes, refresh the page.

Frequently asked questions about a DPOR association

What are the benefits of adding a DPOR to my subscription?

The customer benefits of adding the DPOR to the subscription include:

Control of which specific partner you want to designate for online subscription access and benefits.
Flexibility to change or remove a partner.
Enhanced support and engagement from a partner and Microsoft.
Optimized usage and consumption of services, as supported by designated partners.
Improved partner discoverability.

The partner benefits include:

Attainment of cloud competency.
Incentive designation, as approved by your customer preference.
Closer engagement with Microsoft technical, marketing, and account teams.
Improved customer discoverability.
Microsoft visibility to your customer preference as selected and/or designated.

Who can attach a partner of record?

The administrator role, also called the owner, is the only role within the tenant or account that can attach a partner of record. Service admins, coadmins, and partners who are designated as delegated admins can't change the partner of record.

When should I add a partner of record to my Azure subscriptions?

We recommend assigning a partner of record to Azure subscriptions immediately. This capability is also enabled for Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, Business Central, Intune, and Enterprise Mobility + Security subscriptions in the admin portal for those services.

After a DPOR is assigned, can it be changed? Is there a limit to the number of changes?

You can change, add, or remove a DPOR designation as many times as you want by following these steps:

Sign in to the Azure portal.
Go to Partner Information and select the Delete icon.
When you're asked to confirm that you want to remove current partner information, select Yes.

Can more than one DPOR be assigned to a subscription at the same time?

No. You can designate only one DPOR on any single subscription at a time.

What customer data can a partner see as a DPOR?

Partners who have a DPOR association with customer Azure subscriptions can access the following customer data:

Customer ID and customer name
Customer consumption and usage data
Subscription ID and name
Key subscription attributes, such as start and end dates
Aggregated metered consumption and license usage data
DPOR association date
Aggregated details of Azure services and license-based workloads that are used

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