How to Set Up Meeting Room Displays with Microsoft 365

If your organization uses Microsoft 365, connecting Spacepad room displays to your Exchange Online room resources is straightforward. This guide walks you through the complete setup, from room resources to mounted tablets.

Prerequisites

Before you start, you'll need:

• An M365 admin account (Global Admin or Exchange Admin role)
• Room resource mailboxes in Exchange Online for each meeting room
• Tablets to mount outside rooms (any iOS or Android device works)
• A Spacepad account: sign up free

Step 1: Set up room resources in Exchange Online

If you haven't already created room mailboxes, do this first.

In the Microsoft 365 Admin Center:

1. Navigate to Resources → Rooms & equipment
2. Click Add resource and choose Room
3. Enter the room name, email address, capacity, and location
4. Under Booking options, configure auto-accept and booking window settings
5. Save the resource

Repeat for each room you want to display. Room resources can also be created via PowerShell if you're managing a large number of rooms.

Step 2: Connect Spacepad to Microsoft 365

1. Log in to your Spacepad dashboard at app.spacepad.io
2. Go to Settings → Calendar accounts
3. Click Connect Microsoft 365
4. Sign in with your M365 admin account
5. Review and accept the permission request

Spacepad requests only what it needs. In read-only mode (display only), it requests Calendars.Read and Place.Read.All. If you want to enable booking from the display, it also requests Calendars.ReadWrite.

Step 3: Create displays and link room resources

In the Spacepad dashboard:

1. Go to Displays → Add display
2. Give it a name that matches the room (e.g., "Boardroom", "Meeting Room A")
3. Select the M365 room resource to link. Spacepad lists all room mailboxes in your tenant
4. Save the display

You'll see a connect code on screen. Keep this handy for the next step.

Step 4: Install the app and connect the tablet

1. Download the Spacepad app from the App Store or Google Play
2. Open the app on your tablet
3. Enter the connect code from your dashboard

The tablet immediately starts showing live room availability from Exchange Online.

Step 5: Mount the tablet

Position the tablet at eye level (approximately 145–155 cm from floor to screen center), outside the meeting room door.

Use a commercial tablet wall mount with integrated cable management to keep the power cable tidy. Keep the tablet plugged in continuously; don't rely on battery.

Optional: Enable booking on display

With this feature, employees can book the room directly from the tablet. No need to open Outlook, Teams, or any app. Just tap on the display.

Bookings sync back to the room's Exchange mailbox instantly and appear in Outlook and Teams for all attendees.

To enable:

1. In Spacepad, open the display settings
2. Enable Booking
3. Configure how far ahead people can book (e.g., up to the rest of today, or up to 7 days)
4. Optionally enable Future bookings to allow booking rooms for other days

Note: booking requires Calendars.ReadWrite permission. If you authorized Spacepad in read-only mode, you'll need to re-authorize.

Optional: Check-in & auto-release

Auto-release frees rooms when nobody shows up. If an attendee doesn't check in within your configured grace period, the room is automatically marked as available again, even if there's a meeting on the calendar.

Configuration in display settings:

• Check-in window: how many minutes before start people can check in (1–60 minutes)
• Grace period: how many minutes after start before the room is released (1–30 minutes)
• Exempt tablet bookings: meetings booked directly on the display are exempt from check-in by default (they're already confirmed)

Optional: Extend & end meetings

Enable these from display settings to allow attendees to:

• Extend their current meeting (+15, +30, or +60 minutes) if they need more time
• End early to release the room immediately for others

Both actions sync back to Exchange Online.

Azure AD permissions reference

Spacepad uses OAuth 2.0 with Azure AD. The following Microsoft Graph API permissions are requested:

Permissions are granted during initial authorization by an M365 admin. They can be reviewed and revoked at any time in the Azure AD portal under Enterprise Applications.

Troubleshooting

Room not showing up in Spacepad?

Check that the room resource mailbox exists in Exchange Online and is licensed appropriately. Unlicensed or hidden room mailboxes may not appear in the room list.

Display showing stale or no data?

Verify the tablet has a stable Wi-Fi connection. Spacepad uses real-time webhooks for updates, but webhook delivery depends on the tablet staying online.

Getting 403 errors or permission denied?

The authorization may have expired or permissions may not have been fully granted. Re-authorize Spacepad in your dashboard under Settings → Calendar accounts.

Booking on display not working?

Confirm that Calendars.ReadWrite permission has been granted. You may need to re-authorize Spacepad if you originally connected in read-only mode.

Conclusion

Setting up Spacepad with Microsoft 365 takes about 10–15 minutes for an M365 admin, and about 5 minutes per room after the initial integration is in place.

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