Windows Autopilot vs Autopilot Device Preparation (2026)

Since 2024, Intune admins have had two ways to provision a new Windows device out of the box: the original Windows Autopilot, and the newer Windows Autopilot device preparation. They sound like the same thing wearing a different name, but they’re built on different architecture with genuinely different capabilities — and picking the wrong one for your environment means re-doing your provisioning setup later. This guide compares them feature-by-feature so you can pick the right one the first time.

What Is Windows Autopilot?

Windows Autopilot is Microsoft’s original zero-touch provisioning tool, in production since 2018. It works by registering a device’s hardware hash with Intune ahead of time, then applying a deployment profile the moment that device boots to OOBE for the first time. Because it’s been around for years, it covers four distinct scenarios: user-driven (the everyday “ship it straight to the employee” flow), pre-provisioned (IT does the heavy lifting, the user finishes a light setup), self-deploying (no user interaction at all, useful for kiosks and shared devices), and existing devices (repurposing machines already running Windows without a full wipe).

That maturity comes with real depth: Autopilot Reset for wiping and re-provisioning a device in place, DFCI firmware management, support for HoloLens and Teams Rooms hardware, and the ability to enrol a device straight into SCCM/Intune co-management. The trade-off is complexity — you’re pre-staging hardware hashes, building deployment profiles, and configuring an Enrollment Status Page, all before a single device ships.

What Is Windows Autopilot Device Preparation?

Windows Autopilot device preparation is a ground-up re-architecture of the provisioning pipeline, not an update to classic Autopilot. Instead of pre-registering individual hardware hashes, it uses Enrollment Time Grouping: you configure a device preparation policy and a security group with the Intune Provisioning Client as owner, and any device that authenticates as that user during OOBE picks up the policy automatically. There’s nothing to pre-stage.

The result is a faster, more predictable setup with near real-time monitoring — the deployment report shows every device going through device preparation as it happens, rather than the delayed reporting classic Autopilot is known for. It can also install line-of-business and Win32 apps in the same deployment, which classic Autopilot can’t do. The catch is that it’s a leaner tool: no hybrid join, no HoloLens or Teams Rooms support, and no Autopilot Reset.

Feature Comparison Table

Which Should You Use?

Choose Autopilot device preparation if…

• You’re deploying fresh Windows 11 24H2+ hardware and don’t need hybrid join.
• You want to avoid the overhead of pre-staging hardware hashes entirely.
• You need near real-time visibility into provisioning failures rather than waiting on delayed reports.
• You operate in GCC High or DoD and need a supported path there.

Choose classic Windows Autopilot if…

• You still have Windows 10 devices, or Windows 11 builds older than 22H2/23H2 with the March 2024 update.
• You need Entra hybrid join for on-premises AD integration.
• You’re deploying HoloLens or Teams Rooms hardware, or need DFCI firmware control.
• You need self-deploying or pre-provisioned scenarios, Autopilot Reset, or plan to enrol devices into SCCM/Intune co-management.

Can You Run Both at the Same Time?

Yes. Autopilot device preparation and classic Autopilot can operate side by side across your tenant, so you can pilot device preparation on new Windows 11 hardware while keeping classic Autopilot for existing devices and hybrid-join scenarios. The one rule: a single device can only run one of the two at a time, and classic Autopilot profiles take precedence if a device happens to match both. If you need to move a device from classic Autopilot onto device preparation, deregister it first:

Requirements Snapshot

Autopilot device preparation needs Windows 11 version 24H2 or later, or 23H2/22H2 with the March 2024 update (KB5035942) or later installed. Devices must be able to join Microsoft Entra ID directly — hybrid join isn’t supported. Classic Windows Autopilot has no such ceiling: it works with every currently supported Windows 10 and Windows 11 General Availability build, on both Entra join and Entra hybrid join.

Autopilot device preparation is the simpler, faster option for straightforward Windows 11 Entra-joined rollouts — but it’s deliberately not a full replacement for classic Autopilot yet. For the wider Intune picture, see the Microsoft Intune guide, and if you’re managing devices through both SCCM and Intune, the SCCM to Intune co-management guide covers how the two coexist.