Apple Configurator in 2022: What’s new with iOS 16?

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In excess of the coming months, I’ll glimpse at Apple’s WWDC 2022 announcements that will affect IT specialists in the two schooling and organization environments. There’s a lot to unpack this year that may not have produced the headlines in most news tales, so I glimpse ahead to unpacking the modest tidbits and searching at what form of effect each and every a single will make for IT experts who control Apple units, but also those people who use managed Apple equipment for operate and at school. This week, I want to glance at the information that Apple Configurator on Apple iphone can now onboard other iPhones and iPads into Apple Business enterprise Manager and Apple College Manager.

About Apple @ Work: Bradley Chambers managed an enterprise IT network from 2009 to 2021. Through his experience deploying and managing firewalls, switches, a mobile machine administration technique, business quality Wi-Fi, 100s of Macs, and 100s of iPads, Bradley will spotlight ways in which Apple IT managers deploy Apple products, create networks to assistance them, practice consumers, tales from the trenches of IT management, and methods Apple could strengthen its products for IT departments.

It’s hard to feel Apple Configurator is now more than TWELVE several years outdated. In fact, you can continue to read through the authentic launch story from when 9to5Mac covered the announcement. I can nevertheless bear in mind wherever I was when it was announced. I was leaving an additional faculty that was seeking to migrate to Google Workspace (Google Apps at the time) from their area Exchange Mail Server, and I was offering them some strategies from when I had performed it a few many years previously.

When I bought again to the office, I started off to see the release announcements throughout numerous Apple sites. When compared to today’s cloud-to start with tools, Apple Configurator is not one thing that most enterprises can use as their only iOS and macOS management tool. Nevertheless, at the time, it was a basic breakthrough for lots of companies just having started out with iOS management. It eventually produced technology like the Quantity Invest in Application scalable for corporations acquiring apps in bulk. The position of Apple Configurator in 2022 is much unique, but let’s look at what was lifetime in advance of it was released.

Before Apple Configurator

Right before Apple Configurator, the process of deploying applications was suspect at most effective. You’d get nevertheless many copies of an app you required (20 was/is the bare minimum to get a lower price) and acquire an Excel spreadsheet with Application Codes. You’d consider the initially one particular, redeem it in iTunes, and then “keep” the take a look at for compliance explanations. If you were being deploying applications to particular equipment, you’d just e mail the app code to people today in get to redeem it.

With Apple Configurator, you’d redeem the very first code in iTunes to grab the App file, insert it to Apple Configurator, and then you’d import the spreadsheet to unlock further licenses. You’d then have the option to sync it more than a USB connection to units in bulk. I tinkered very a bit getting USB hubs that could ability numerous iPads at a time – the most I could ever get was 8–10 likely at at the time. When you’d want to take away an application, you’d plug it again up, uncheck it in Apple Configurator, and then resync. In comparison to today’s atmosphere, this procedure appears to be archaic, but at the time, it was light-weight several years forward of what we had.

MDM + Apple Configurator in 2022

The purpose of Apple Configurator in 2022 is considerably diverse. In simple fact, you really do not even have to use it. Apple’s zero contact deployment product usually means that it can hand out boxed units and workforce/college students can unbox, join to Wi-Fi, get enrolled in MDM, and get the correct applications and profiles put in. It is achievable that IT can run an Apple deployment for several yrs devoid of at any time touching a system. With Erase All Contents and Configurations, it’s feasible for an IT division to wipe products and disown it from MDM to resell/trade-in when the lease is up as properly. In the age of remote function, it’s definitely incredible what all IT gurus can do with no touching a system.

Apple Configurator is continue to valuable if you want to use it, however. In my expertise, I have identified that making use of it on freshly unboxed gadgets to manually install a Wi-Fi profile can speed up deployment periods if IT doesn’t want to spin up a password cost-free Wi-Fi community. I would usually use the macOS version of Apple Configurator to set up a solitary Wi-Fi profile on all the products as I unboxed them and then permit other folks assist me go via the system of onboarding it the MDM, and so on. It’s not expected, but it is a awesome option.

Apple Configurator for Apple iphone

Very last December, Apple launched the first version of Apple Configurator for Iphone just after saying it at WWDC 2021. The major motive to use the Iphone version of the App was to onboard gadgets not ordered by means of the school’s Apple account into Apple Business/College Manager. In what scenario would this be advantageous? My preliminary pitch for the app was if a Mac was donated to a faculty or enterprise (non-income) to use in working day-to-working day operations. I ran into this circumstance lots of times, and I’d in no way change down absolutely free iPads, but it did make controlling them a problem.

With the update to Apple Configurator in 2022, colleges and organizations will now have the possibility to onboard iOS and iPadOS products into their Apple accounts that we’re acquired straight from Apple. Why is this effective? For the very same reasons I stated earlier mentioned with donated devices, there is also an rising use circumstance: provide chain complications. Acquiring equipment that are in stock has become a problem. Obtaining products in bulk has develop into an even even larger obstacle. I’ve read through countless tweets during the spring and summertime from universities with delayed shipments. The summer season interval is when educational facilities usually are ramping for their fall gadget rollout, so an August or September supply isn’t perfect. I’ve talked to quite a few educational facilities who’ve been piecing Mac deployments together by shopping for products at Ideal Buy, Amazon, B&H Photo, and other suppliers. With Apple Configurator for Iphone, these units can inevitably make their way into their Apple Business enterprise/University Supervisor account, so they operate just like they arrived directly from Apple.

Summary of Apple Configurator announcements from WWDC

The supplemental iPad and Iphone onboarding for Apple Configurator for Apple iphone won’t assistance a faculty today, but it will enable in the upcoming. If provide chain difficulties are nonetheless all around in 2023, it’ll give colleges a different possibility for where by to purchase their equipment. If they get gadgets donated that guidance iOS 16, colleges and corporations can merely say thank you, onboard them into Apple Small business/School Supervisor, and incorporate them to their cell unit management procedure just like all the other devices in the fleet. It may well feel like a small update, but it’s a major enhancement in the ideal predicament.

Apple @ Operate is brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified System. Mosyle is the only remedy that entirely integrates 5 various apps on a one Apple-only platform, allowing Businesses and Faculties to very easily and instantly deploy, deal with & protect all their Apple devices . Above 32,000 companies leverage Mosyle methods to automate the deployment,  management and stability of millions of Apple equipment each day. 

Ask for a Free of charge account today and learn how you can set your Apple fleet on car-pilot at a price position that is hard to feel.

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