Larry Dignan
for Between the Lines
| August 29, 2021 — 22:00 GMT (23:00 BST)
| Topic: Hardware
With Apple’s iPhone refresh on deck as well as a rollout of iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and MacOS Monterey, the company is adding a bevy of features designed to entice enterprise admins with easier management tools.
Simply put, the platform that’s less of a pain for admins and central IT will ultimately win the day. That’s why Apple is focusing on both the bring your own device employees as well as central device management programs. Typically, Apple’s operating system upgrades land as new iPhones are announced.
With that backdrop in mind, here’s a look at some of the key Apple additions that businesses need to know.
Mobile device management (MDM) updates and declarative management. Apple has been steadily adding features to its software to make devices easier to manage. Mobile device management companies such as Jamf then add capabilities on top of iOS.
Declarative management updates Apple’s existing protocol for device management but enables settings and status reports to be more dynamic without constant polling. Declarative management covers configurations applied to the device, assets, activations, and management and is architected to be more future-proof. Apple is also enabling iOS and iPad OS settings to require a managed pasteboard, which prevents the copy and pasting of content from an app under management to one that is not.
Must read:
Apple releases iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and WatchOS 8 public betas for all to testiPadOS 15 hands-on review: What works and doesn’t work
Better scaling of Mac fleet management. The MDM updates also extend to MacOS and enable admins to force delayed software updates and erase all content and settings more easily. Apple noted in a WWDC document:
Mac computers with Apple silicon or an Apple T2 Security Chip running macOS 12 will now allow a local administrator—or, if enrolled in MDM, an MDM administrator— to perform an Erase All Content and Settings, similar to iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, and watchOS. All user data is erased along with any additional volumes on the Mac. For a Mac with Apple silicon, the security settings are also reset to their default state (Full Security).
With the MacOS tools, Apple is aiming to make onboarding and offboarding employees easier with tools to erase hard drives and content as fast on MacOS as they can on iOS. Enterprises will be able to centrally handle offboarding.
Related Topics:
Apple
PCs
Servers
Storage
Networking
Data Centers
Larry Dignan
for Between the Lines
| August 29, 2021 — 22:00 GMT (23:00 BST)
| Topic: Hardware