Assign EIDs to eSIM profiles | emnify Documentation

Assigning an EID binds an eSIM profile to one specific device on the emnify SM-DP+. After that, your MDM downloads the profile by sending only the emnify RSP URL https://rsp-3128.idemia.io. The download needs no activation code, and the person holding the device does nothing.

That’s what makes this route work for a fleet. You assign the EIDs once in the emnify Portal, then your MDM pushes a single command to every device. On compatible devices, you can skip that command and publish the profiles to a discovery service instead.

Before you begin

At checkout, choose an eSIM profile installation method. This choice determines how you get each profile onto a device, and what the order download contains.

I will use activation codes: you receive a QR code, universal link, or numeric code to install each profile.
I will link profiles using the EID: you link profiles by entering device EIDs individually or in bulk.

The order download follows this choice. With activation codes, the CSV contains the ICCID, activation code, and Apple Universal Link for each profile. With EID linking, the CSV contains the ICCID only. QR code images are never included in an order download. With activation codes, retrieve them per device from the eSIM tab in Connected Devices, or generate them for a whole order.

For EID assignment, select I will link profiles using the EID.

The eSIM profile installation method at checkout, with EID linking selected.

Assignment works only on profiles you ordered for EID linking. If you selected I will use activation codes instead, you can still open the assignment dialog, but the assignment fails. In that case, install the profiles with an activation code, or order new profiles for EID linking.

You also need:

eSIM profiles in status Available. Only these are eligible for assignment.
The EID of every device you want to provision.

A device carries its EID on the packaging or the barcode sticker. On Apple devices you can also read it under Settings > Info. For a fleet, export the EIDs of your enrolled devices from your MDM. Refer to your MDM documentation for the export steps.

Publish profiles to a discovery service

When you assign an EID, you can also publish the profile to a discovery service. A compatible device then finds its profile through that service, so your MDM doesn’t need to send the emnify RSP URL. The person holding the device still confirms the download.

The service must match the device type:

Select Apple devices to publish the profile to Apple’s discovery service.
Select Android devices to publish the profile to Google’s discovery service only.

One bulk upload publishes every profile in the file to the same service. For a fleet of Apple and Android devices, upload one file for each device type.

Publishing is optional. Without it, your MDM downloads the profile from the emnify RSP URL.

To publish through the API, add discovery_service to a Link by SIM or Link by Product request. See Trigger SIM operation.

If publication fails

If emnify can’t publish the profile to the discovery service, the assignment fails. The EID isn’t linked, and the profile returns to Available, so you can assign the EID again.

The reason tells you what to do next:

Error code	Reason
`SmdsInaccessible`	Couldn’t reach the discovery service. Try again later or contact support.
`SmdsExecutionError`	Check that the service matches the device, then assign again. If it still fails, contact support.

Assign an EID to a single device

In Connected Devices, find and click the device.

Select the eSIM tab. Next to EID Unavailable, click Assign EID.

In the Assign an EID dialog, type the EID in Enter EID.

If you want to publish the profile to a discovery service, do the following:

Turn on the Publish to a discovery service switch.
In Select a service, select Apple devices or Android devices.

If the switch is on, you must select a service.

Click Assign EID.

The eSIM tab of a Connected Device, with the Assign EID button and the Assign an EID dialog, where Publish to a discovery service is on and Apple devices is selected.

The profile shows Linked while the assignment is processing, then moves to Ready to download. Your MDM can download only profiles in Ready to download status.

If you selected a discovery service, the dialog stays open until emnify publishes the profile. If publication fails, the dialog shows EID not assigned and the reason. To try again, click Assign EID. For what each reason means, see If publication fails.

Assign EIDs in bulk

For more than a handful of devices, upload a CSV file of EIDs instead of assigning them one at a time.

Create a CSV file with one EID per row.

Please note the following limits:

Maximum lines: 10,000, one EID per line
Maximum row length: 100 characters
Maximum file size: 400 KB

You can skip this step and click Download example CSV in the dialog to get a correctly formatted template.

In Connected Devices, click the three-dot menu (⋮) next to Add device, then select Assign EIDs to eSIM profiles.

In the Assign profiles to devices dialog, select the eSIM product you want to assign from.

The Available profiles count shows how many profiles that product has ready.

If you want to publish every profile in the upload to a discovery service, do the following:

Turn on the Publish to a discovery service switch.
In Select a service, select Apple devices or Android devices.

If the switch is on, you must select a service. One upload goes to one service, so upload the EIDs of Apple devices and Android devices in separate files.

Click Click here to browse for your CSV file, or drag and drop the file onto the upload area.

Click Next. The dialog shows a summary of the assignment.

Review the summary.

If you selected a discovery service, the summary shows it under Discovery service.
If any EIDs in your file are already assigned to another eSIM profile in your organization, select Skip these EIDs or Add an additional eSIM profile to these EIDs.
If you have fewer available profiles than EIDs in your file, the summary shows how many EIDs Cannot be assigned. To get those EIDs in a file, keep Download as CSV selected. You can assign them after you order more profiles.

Click Assign EIDs.

The Assign profiles to devices dialog, with Publish to a discovery service on, Android devices selected, and the CSV upload area.

The eSIM product selector lists only the products that support EID assignment in the Portal. If a product you expect is missing, contact emnify Support.

A bulk assignment doesn’t complete immediately. When it completes, you can download a CSV of any failed EIDs with the reason for each failure. The profiles show Linked while the assignment is processing, then move to Ready to download.

If publication to the discovery service fails, the reason in the CSV ends with the error code. For example: Couldn't reach the discovery service. Try again later or contact support. Error code: SmdsInaccessible. The profile returns to Available, so you can upload the EID again. For what each reason means, see If publication fails.

Find the devices you assigned

After a bulk assignment, reuse the same CSV file to narrow Connected Devices to the devices you provisioned.

In Connected Devices, select Add Filter, then choose EID.

Click Import a CSV file and upload the same file of EIDs.

Verify the line count is correct, then click Confirm.

The table now lists only the devices for those EIDs, and the filter shows the count. The filter accepts the same file size and row limits that the assignment accepts, so one file serves both steps. For the plain-text alternative, see Filter table contents.

With the devices filtered, you can rename them in one pass. See Rename devices in bulk.

Record which profile each device received

emnify matches each EID in your file to a profile from your available pool. You don’t choose which profile a given device receives, and the Portal doesn’t report the pairing back to you.

To keep a durable record of which ICCID reached which EID, export the SIM list report. It carries an eid and an iccid column for every SIM in your account. For instructions, see SIM list.

Correct a wrong assignment

You can undo an assignment yourself for as long as no device has downloaded the profile. Check the eSIM profile status in Connected Devices first.

Once the profile shows Ready to download, the eSIM tab shows the assigned EID and an Unassign EID button. Linked is only the brief transitional status while the emnify SM-DP+ completes the pairing, so wait for Ready to download.

In Connected Devices, find and click the device.

Select the eSIM tab, then click Unassign EID.

The profile returns to Available, and you can then assign the correct EID to it. If you published the profile to a discovery service, Unassign EID also withdraws the profile from that service. There’s no limit on this cycle: a profile can move between Available and Ready to download as often as you need.

In the Portal, you unassign one device at a time. To correct a large batch, use the API instead. Send one Trigger SIM operation request with the Unlink SIM action and one target for each SIM.

The download is the point of no return. Once a device has downloaded the profile, the EID can’t be unlinked and nobody can reassign it. Order a new profile instead.

Next steps

Your profiles are ready for your MDM to download. For platform-specific instructions, see:

Other MDM platforms, including IBM MaaS 360, Acceleronix, and ManageEngine, also support this download route.