# Account for the setup wait introduced by macOS local-account configuration

> Why can a macOS ADE policy wait for final configuration when only local-account settings were added?

- Canonical URL: https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/dse-20260909-514-account-for-the-setup-wait-introduced-by-macos-local-account-configuration/
- Publisher: Detection Systems & Engineering (DSE Security)
- Author: DSE Security Editorial Team
- Published: 2026-09-10T00:23:22+00:00
- Modified: 2026-09-10T02:11:18+00:00
- Last reviewed by DSE: 2026-09-09
- Resource type: Guide
- DSE priority: Information
- Topics: Business Continuity, IT
- Reading time: 1 minutes

## What you need to know

Why can a macOS ADE policy wait for final configuration when only local-account settings were added?

## Potentially affected

Review this dependency when adding local-account settings to a macOS ADE policy or investigating a changed staging experience. Compare the complete account and enrollment policy with the version previously approved.

## DSE recommendation

Tell the staging team that the account choice changes the setup hold, not just the resulting account details.

## Article

## Source facts

In Intune macOS automated device enrollment, configuring local administrator or user account settings enables Await final configuration in the background, even if the administrator leaves that setting untouched. That locked setup stage runs during enrollment; it is not repeated unless the Mac enrolls again. Microsoft specifies no minimum or maximum duration for this stage. [Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/intune/device-enrollment/apple/setup-automated-macos).

## Applicability

Review this dependency when adding local-account settings to a macOS ADE policy or investigating a changed staging experience. Compare the complete account and enrollment policy with the version previously approved.

## DSE recommendation

Tell the staging team that the account choice changes the setup hold, not just the resulting account details. Allocate a representative provisioning test and an escalation route for an unexpectedly long wait. Avoid promising a fixed completion deadline from an illustrative timing observation, and do not remove account controls merely to make the screen disappear.

## Verification

Enroll an approved test Mac using the proposed policy. Observe the final-configuration stage, resulting account configuration, and device readiness before handoff. Record the policy revision and actual elapsed time as a local observation, not a service guarantee. Recheck the sequence after changing account settings or the assigned configuration set.

## Official references

[Microsoft Learn: Set up automated device enrollment (ADE) for macOS](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/intune/device-enrollment/apple/setup-automated-macos).

## Primary reference

- Name: Set up automated device enrollment (ADE) for macOS - Microsoft Intune | Microsoft Learn
- Authority: Microsoft Learn
- URL: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/intune/device-enrollment/apple/setup-automated-macos
- Source publication date: Not stated by the source

## Citation and use

Preferred citation: “Account for the setup wait introduced by macOS local-account configuration,” DSE Security, https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/dse-20260909-514-account-for-the-setup-wait-introduced-by-macos-local-account-configuration/
Publishing principles: https://update.dsesecurity.com/updates/dse-updates-editorial-methodology/
Usage and citation policy: https://update.dsesecurity.com/usage/
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