How to Manually Sync Android device with Intune

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to manually sync Android device with Intune. When you initiate manual sync on an Android device, it forces your device to connect with Intune in order to receive the most recent updates, requirements, applied configurations, and communications from your organization.

After you enroll your Android device in Intune, the company portal regularly syncs the device when it is connected to a Wi-Fi network. According to Microsoft, if you’ve been disconnected from Wi-Fi for an extended period of time, you can use the manual sync feature to get any policies and updates you missed.

Manual synchronization of Intune policies on Android devices should be performed to resolve work-related downloads or other processes that are running or stalled. If you’re experiencing slow or unusual behavior while installing or using a work app, notifications not being sent, or if you’re missing a work app that you know you’re supposed to have, try manually syncing your device.

The techniques for updating Intune policies on Android devices differ from those on Mac and Windows devices. On Windows devices, you can manually sync Intune policies using multiple methods and on enrolled Macs, you can do it from the company portal app.

Management policy sync vs. Check device settings

On Android devices, the Company Portal app offers two features related to sync: Management Policy Sync and Check Device Settings. The management policy feature forces Company Portal to sync your Android device with the most recent Intune policies, whereas the check device settings feature forces Company Portal to ensure that your settings meet your organization’s requirements.

Policy Refresh Intervals for Android Devices

The default Intune policy sync interval for Android devices is 8 hours, defined by Microsoft. For newly enrolled Android devices in Intune, the configuration check-ins run more frequently to perform configuration, compliance, and non-compliance checks. Newly enrolled Android devices check in every 3 minutes for 15 minutes, then every 15 minutes for 2 hours, and then around every 8 hours.

What happens when you sync policies on an offline Android device?

In case the remote Android device is powered off or has been in a disconnected state for a while, it won’t get the latest policy updates and requirements. The policy or profile is applied to the device during its next scheduled check-in with Intune, provided it is online. If it doesn’t, then you can force sync Android devices with Intune using the techniques covered in this guide.

Prerequisites

• The Android devices must be enrolled in Intune. Both personal and organization-owned devices can be enrolled in Intune.
• The remote Android devices must be online if you are initiating the sync through the Intune admin center.
• Android devices that are out of sync, do not meet your organization’s requirements, or are marked as non-compliant are ineligible for manual policy sync.

Manually Sync Android device from Company Portal App

The Company Portal app on an Android device automatically syncs our device with Intune every eight hours. If you wish to check in more frequently, you can initiate a manual sync with these steps:

• First, sign in to the Company Portal app for Android.
• In the top-left corner, tap the menu icon to access the Settings.
• Scroll down to Management Policy and tap Sync.

A notification appears at the top that reads “Syncing policy with Microsoft Intune.” Wait for a few minutes while Company Portal syncs your Android device. When complete, the screen shows the timestamp of the last successful sync.

Sync Policy on Android Device from Intune admin center

From the Intune admin center, you can use the ‘Sync‘ device action to force the selected Android device to immediately check in. When a device checks in, it immediately receives any pending actions or policies that have been assigned to it.

To manually sync a remote Android device from the Intune admin center:

• Sign in to the Microsoft Intune admin center.
• Select Devices > By Platform > Android.
• Select an Android device to open its Overview pane, and then select Sync.

A message box appears when you initiate a device sync from the Intune admin center. Intune will attempt to check in with this device. If successful, it will sync current actions or policies to the device. Would like to continue. Select Yes.

To confirm if the policies on the remote Android device have been synced, refresh the Intune admin center. Now on the Overview pane, look for the last check-in time, which shows the timestamp of the last successful sync.