---
title: SAML authentication with Microsoft Entra ID
sidebarTitle: SAML
description: Step-by-step guide for configuring Microsoft Entra ID as a SAML identity provider for Cube sign-in.
---

With SAML (Security Assertion Markup Language) enabled, you can authenticate
users in Cube through Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory),
allowing your team to access Cube using single sign-on.

<Note>

Available on [Enterprise plan](https://cube.dev/pricing).

</Note>

## Prerequisites

Before proceeding, ensure you have the following:

- Admin permissions in Cube.
- Sufficient permissions in Microsoft Entra to create and configure
  Enterprise Applications.

## Enable SAML in Cube

First, enable SAML authentication in Cube:

1. In Cube, navigate to **Admin → Settings**.
2. On the **Authentication & SSO** tab, enable the **SAML**
   toggle.
3. Take note of the **Single Sign-On URL** and **Audience**
   values — you'll need them when configuring the Enterprise Application
   in Entra.

## Create an Enterprise Application in Entra

1. Sign in to the [Microsoft Entra admin center](https://entra.microsoft.com).
2. Go to [Enterprise Applications](https://portal.azure.com/#view/Microsoft_AAD_IAM/StartboardApplicationsMenuBlade/~/AppAppsPreview)
   and click **New application**.
3. Select **Create your own application**.
4. Give it a name and choose a **non-gallery application**, then click
   **Create**.

## Configure SAML in Entra

1. In your new Enterprise Application, go to the **Single sign-on**
   section and select **SAML**.
2. In the **Basic SAML Configuration** section, enter the following:
   - **Entity ID** — Use the **Single Sign-On URL** value from Cube.
   - **Reply URL** — Use the **Single Sign-On URL** value from Cube.
3. Go to **Attributes & Claims → Edit → Advanced settings** and
   set the audience claim override to the **Audience** value from Cube.
4. Go to **SAML Certificates → Edit** and select **Sign SAML
   response and assertion** for the **Signing Option**.
5. Download the **Federation Metadata XML** file — you'll need it
   when completing the Cube configuration.

## Configure attribute mappings

Before returning to Cube, configure the SAML claims Entra sends during
login. Cube uses these claims to identify the user and map optional
attributes such as display name.

Create explicit SAML claims in Entra with the names Cube uses by default.

1. In your Entra Enterprise Application, go to **Single sign-on →
   Attributes & Claims**.
2. Add the following claims. Leave **Namespace** blank for each claim:
   - **Email** — Set **Name** to `email` and **Source attribute** to
     `user.userprincipalname` or `user.mail`.
   - **Display name** — Set **Name** to `name` and **Source attribute** to
     `user.displayname`.

If you plan to map Cube roles based on Entra group membership (see
[Map roles by group](#map-roles-by-group) below), also add a group claim:

1. Still in **Attributes & Claims**, click **Add a group claim**.
2. Choose which groups to include (e.g. **Security groups** or **Groups
   assigned to the application**) and pick a **Source attribute** for the
   group name. For most setups, select **sAMAccountName** or
   **Cloud-only group display names** so the assertion carries
   human-readable group names that match the **IdP group name** values
   you'll configure in Cube Cloud.
3. Save the claim.

   Cube reads Entra's canonical groups claim URL
   (`http://schemas.microsoft.com/ws/2008/06/identity/claims/groups`)
   automatically, so no further attribute renaming is required on the
   Entra side.

## Complete configuration in Cube

Return to the SAML configuration page in Cube and provide the identity
provider details. You can do this in one of two ways:

**Option A: Upload metadata file**

1. In the **Import IdP Metadata** section, click **Upload
   Metadata File**.
2. Select the **Federation Metadata XML** file you downloaded from Entra.
   This will automatically populate the **Entity ID / Issuer**,
   **SSO (Sign on) URL**, and **Certificate** fields.

**Option B: Enter details manually**

If you prefer to configure the fields manually, enter the following
values from the Entra **Single sign-on** page:

- **Entity ID / Issuer** — Use the **Microsoft Entra Identifier**
  value.
- **SSO (Sign on) URL** — Use the **Login URL** value.
- **Certificate** — Paste the Base64-encoded certificate from the
  **SAML Certificates** section.

In both options, also configure the following setting:

- **Auto-provision new users** — When enabled, users are automatically
  created in Cube on their first login via this SAML provider. Enable this
  if you want to provision users only when they first access Cube and you
  are not using SCIM provisioning. New users receive the Viewer role by
  default; see [Default role for new users](#default-role-for-new-users)
  to choose a different role.

## Default role for new users

Auto-provisioned users — both via SAML and via [SCIM][ref-scim] — receive
the **Viewer** role by default. To assign a different role, expand the
**Advanced** section of the SAML configuration form and pick from
**Default role for new users**:

- **Developer**, **Explorer**, or **Viewer** — Cube's [default
  roles][ref-roles].
- Any [custom role][ref-custom-roles] defined in your account, listed
  below the divider.

The selected role applies **only when a user is first created** during
provisioning. Existing users are not modified on subsequent SSO logins or
SCIM updates.

<Info>

Admin status is not assignable through this picker — Admin is controlled
separately. To grant admin permissions, update the user's role manually
under [Admin → Users][ref-manage-users].

</Info>

<Warning>

If the selected role is later renamed or deleted, new users will fall
back to the **Viewer** role until you pick a valid role here. The Viewer
fallback applies whenever the configured default cannot be resolved —
whether that's because no default is set or the configured role no longer
exists.

</Warning>

## Map roles by group

For finer-grained role assignment, enable **Map roles by group** in the
**Advanced Settings** section to assign Cube roles based on a user's
Entra group memberships.

To configure group-based role mapping:

1. Make sure Entra sends a group claim on the SAML assertion. See the
   group-claim step in [Configure attribute
   mappings](#configure-attribute-mappings).
2. In the SAML configuration form in Cube, expand **Advanced Settings**.
3. (Optional) Under **SAML attribute customization**, set the **Groups
   attribute** to the simple name of the SAML attribute carrying group
   memberships. Defaults to `groups`. Cube also reads Entra's canonical
   groups claim URL automatically, so the default usually works
   out of the box.
4. Enable the **Map roles by group** toggle.
5. Click **Add group mapping** and create one entry per group you want
   to map:
   - **IdP group name** — the group display name as it appears in the
     assertion (case-insensitive). With **Source attribute** set to
     **sAMAccountName** or **Cloud-only group display names**, this is
     the human-readable group name. If you left the default (group object
     ID), use the GUID instead.
   - **Cube role** — pick a default or [custom role][ref-custom-roles].

For SAML SSO, group mappings are evaluated **only when a new user is
auto-provisioned** on first login. If any matching group resolves to a
Cube role, those roles are assigned to the new user **instead of** the
configured [default role](#default-role-for-new-users). The default role
is used as a fallback when no IdP group matches (or when the mapped Cube
roles no longer exist). Existing users' role assignments are never
modified by subsequent logins.

The same mapping is also applied by [SCIM][ref-scim] when group
memberships are pushed, so a single configuration drives both SAML SSO
and SCIM group sync.

## Assign users

Make sure the new Enterprise Application is assigned to the relevant
users or groups in Entra before testing.

## Test the integration

1. In the Entra **Single sign-on** section, click **Test**
   to verify the SAML integration works for your Cube account.
2. Alternatively, copy the **Single Sign-On URL** from Cube,
   open it in a new browser tab, and verify you are redirected to
   Entra for authentication and then back to Cube.

[ext-ms-entra-id]: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/identity-access/microsoft-entra-id
[ref-scim]: /admin/sso/microsoft-entra-id/scim
[ref-roles]: /admin/users-and-permissions/roles-and-permissions
[ref-custom-roles]: /admin/users-and-permissions/custom-roles
[ref-manage-users]: /admin/users-and-permissions/manage-users
