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absentify’s Microsoft integration provides powerful tools to automate and enhance your absence management workflows. With seamless synchronization between absentify and the Microsoft ecosystem, including Outlook, Teams, and Azure Active Directory (Entra ID), you can save time, reduce manual effort, and ensure your organization operates smoothly.

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Key Features of Microsoft Integration

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1. Outlook calendar synchronization

Automatically sync absences with employees’ Outlook calendars.
  • Manual invite: By default, users receive an iCal email for each absence, which they can manually add to their Outlook calendar.
  • Automatic sync: Enable direct calendar synchronization to bypass emails and ensure all absences are automatically added.
Configuration options per leave type:
  • Synchronize upon request creation.
  • Synchronize only after approval.
  • Disable synchronization for specific leave types.
The public holiday calendar assigned to the user in absentify is also synced to Outlook with an upgrade to either the essentials or plus plan. Unlike absences, public holiday sync can take up to 60 minutes or more. However, once completed, all holidays from absentify appear in Outlook.
For detailed instructions, see our Outlook Calendar Synchronization guide.

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2. Outlook out-of-office reply

Automate out-of-office replies to ensure clear communication during absences.
For setup instructions, visit the Outlook Out-of-Office Reply documentation.

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3. Manager synchronization

Sync user approvers with their Microsoft Entra ID managers.
  • Auto-assign Microsoft managers as approvers in absentify.
  • Ensure approvers are up-to-date and aligned across systems.
To enable this feature, ensure managers are added to your absentify organization. Learn more in the Manager Synchronization guide.

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4. Group calendar synchronization

Enable this permission to sync absences with either Microsoft 365 group calendars or shared calendars.
  • Display department-wide absences directly in shared Outlook group calendars.
  • Improve team coordination and planning by providing a centralized view of team absences.
  • Ensure that group calendars stay up to date automatically without manual calendar entries.
Learn more in the Group Calendar Synchronization guide.

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5. Teams and Entra ID group synchronization

Reflect your organizational structure from Microsoft in absentify by syncing Teams and Entra ID groups.
  • Automatically update department memberships when users are added to or removed from Microsoft groups.
  • Sync group managers with department managers in absentify.
  • Pre-fill Excel imports with data from Entra ID.
  • Enable searching directly in Azure Active Directory when adding new users.
Learn more in the Teams and Entra ID Synchronization guide.

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6. Azure AI integration

Leverage Azure AI to streamline absence management through automation.
  • Use the Teams Bot to record absences automatically.
  • Save time with smart absence processing integrated into Microsoft Teams.
This feature is only available on the Plus Plan and is disabled by default to ensure no data is shared unless activated. For details, visit the Azure AI Integration documentation.

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Tenant admin approval for Microsoft permissions

To approve the required Microsoft permissions for absentify, you need tenant admin rights. If these permissions have not yet been approved by your company, a pop-up window will appear when you attempt to connect absentify to Microsoft services.
  1. If you are a tenant admin:
    • Click “Approve rights” to grant the necessary permissions.
  2. If you are not a tenant admin:
    • You have two options:
      • Copy the approval link and send it to your IT team.
      • Open an automatically filled-out email template to request the necessary permissions.
Microsoft permissions must be approved at the tenant level to enable seamless integration with Outlook, Teams, and Entra ID.

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Microsoft sync logs

Admins can use the Sync Logs view in absentify to monitor and troubleshoot all Microsoft Graph and external synchronization operations. This view provides full transparency into what actions were taken, what succeeded, what failed, and why — helping ensure data consistency across platforms and enabling confident, real-time management of all absence-related processes. Sync logs are especially helpful for:
  • Diagnosing permission or token issues affecting sync reliability
  • Verifying profile updates triggered by Microsoft Entra ID group configurations
  • Confirming whether absences were synced to external systems
  • Tracking automated actions such as out-of-office reply updates

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Sync overview

To access the logs, go to Settings > Microsoft and click the “View sync logs” button located under the Microsoft permissions section. At the top of the Sync Logs page, you’ll see a summary of all synchronization activity:
  • Total Syncs: The total number of sync operations triggered.
  • Successful: Number of syncs that completed without issues.
  • Failed: Number of syncs that encountered errors.
  • Skipped: Syncs that were skipped automatically (e.g. no changes detected).
  • Success Rate: Overall percentage of successful sync operations.
Additionally, a list of Common Errors is shown to help identify recurring problems, including but is not limited to:
  • PROFILE_UPDATE_ERROR
  • UPDATE_FAILED
  • PERMISSION_DENIED
  • TOKEN_REFRESH_FAILED
  • SYNC_FAILED

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Viewing sync details

Each individual sync operation is listed with the following details:
  • Date and time of the sync
  • Member affected by the operation
  • Operation type (e.g. Update Profile, Add to Departments, Set Out of Office)
  • Status (Success, Skipped, Failed)
  • Error (if any)
  • Duration of the sync
Clicking on a sync entry opens a detailed view with enriched metadata depending on the operation type. This may include:
  • Event ID – a unique identifier assigned to each sync operation
  • Sync type – indicates the source or method of the sync, such as Webhook, timeghost, Calendar sync, or Outlook mailbox sync
  • Leave request data – for absence-related syncs; includes details such as leave type, date range, request status (e.g. Approved, Pending), and subject
  • Public holiday sync details – for calendar entries created via public holiday sync; includes the holiday name, date, duration (e.g. FullDay), and confirmation message
  • Profile update data – displays updated user attributes retrieved from Microsoft Entra ID, such as display name, profile photo, job title, manager, or department
  • Workspace ID, User ID, and Item ID – technical identifiers used for referencing data across external systems
  • Error code and message – provides specific error details if the sync was skipped or failed
  • Linked request reference – enables direct access to the related absence request, holiday entry, or user profile for quick troubleshooting or review
This level of detail enables admins to fully understand the context and impact of each sync event, validate expected behavior, and quickly identify and resolve any issues.

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Why sync logs matter

The sync logs are more than just a technical record — they are a crucial resource for administrators to maintain control, transparency, and reliability in their absence management process. Below are key scenarios where sync logs provide essential insights:
When an employee goes on leave, absentify can trigger automatic replies through Microsoft 365. Sync logs allow you to verify whether the out-of-office message was successfully activated and what settings were applied.
For every absence request — and for public holiday entries (if your workspace is on the Essentials plan or higher) — you can verify whether the event was successfully synced to:
  • The user’s personal Microsoft calendar
  • A shared or group calendar
Sync logs also show whether the event was added via automatic sync or sent as an iCal (.ics) calendar invitation. This ensures accurate delivery to relevant calendars and helps confirm that all stakeholders were properly informed.
Absences can be synced with timeghost time tracking. Logs will confirm:
  • Whether the sync was triggered successfully
  • Which absence (leave type and dates) was pushed
  • Any errors during the operation
This is critical for billing, reporting, or project-based time evaluations.
When user data is synced from Microsoft Entra ID (e.g. via group sync), the logs show if a new profile was created or an existing profile was updated, including department and role assignments.
If group owners or Microsoft-assigned managers are updated in Azure, sync logs reflect changes to a user’s Manager or Approver in absentify. This ensures proper approval workflows remain intact.
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