Device Management

RSS for tag

Allow administrators to securely and remotely configure enrolled devices using Device Management.

Device Management Documentation

Posts under Device Management subtopic

Post

Replies

Boosts

Views

Activity

App whitelist profile working on supervised iPhone, but not on paired Watch
Hello, I’ve run into an issue with a configuration profile on my supervised iPhone. I’m wondering if anyone here might be able to help? The profile contains the allowListedAppBundleIDs key within the restrictions payload. My Apple Watch is paired with the iPhone. The iPhone was supervised manually with Apple Configurator, hence the Apple Watch has not been directly supervised itself. The profile works completely as expected when installed on the phone. As soon as the profile is installed on the iPhone, I can witness the apps on the Apple Watch rearrange themselves as some apps are hidden. So clearly the profile is applying its restrictions to the Apple Watch to some degree. My issue however is that apps listed in the whitelist are hidden from the Watch. The apps that are missing from my Watch are Walkie Talkie, Find My Items, Find My Friends, Messages, Alarm, Remote, Now Playing, Sleep, Meditation and Heart Rate. This is despite the following bundle IDs being listed in the whitelist array: com.apple.findmy.findpeople, com.apple.findmy.finddevices, com.apple.HeartRate, com.apple.SessionTrackerApp, com.apple.NanoWorldClock, com.apple.findmy.finditems, com.apple.Mind, com.apple.NanoOxygenSaturation, com.apple.watchmemojieditor com.apple.NanoSleep com.apple.NanoNowPlaying com.apple.noise com.apple.tincan com.apple.NanoRemote com.apple.NanoAlarm com.apple.private.NanoTimer com.apple.NanoStopwatch I’ve done some testing, but not sure what I’ve found really. I’ve so far identified 3 scenarios. Scenario 1: I have the whitelist profile installed on the iPhone. I download an app that appears in the whitelist from my watch (or at least its iPhone version does). The apps show up on the iPhone automatically and can be launched there. These apps cannot be launched on the watch. Scenario 2: I downloaded a few apps to my watch, that didn’t automatically install on my iPhone at the same time. They were on the whitelist. These ones couldn’t be launched from my Watch. I then downloaded them to the iPhone and they could be launched there (since they were on the whitelist). Scenario 3: A couple of 3rd party apps on the whitelist could be downloaded and launched from the watch with the whitelist installed. It seems as though there are different kinds of Apple Watch app and this is what I’ve read elsewhere. First of all there are Watch-only apps, which do not automatically install a companion iPhone app. Secondly there are companion apps, which when installed from the Watch App Store download their companion app to the iPhone in the background. Someone please correct me - I’m bound to be overlooking something here. So maybe the apps that when installed from Watch automatically install on iPhone and can only be launched from the iPhone have a separate bundle ID for their Watch app which I haven’t included? Apps that are on the whitelist AND do not automatically install an iPhone app AND can be launched from the Watch, include: solstice What3words So maybe these do not need a companion app, but have the same Bundle ID as their iPhone app? However, I’m still not sure why many stock Apple Watch apps are missing from the Watch…. The most obvious answer is that I’ve got their Bundle IDs wrong, but I don’t think I have given I extracted the bundle IDs from the App Store pages of the Apple WatchOS apps. I noticed at this Apple Support page (https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/deployment/dep34c5cd30f/1/web/1.0) that there is no mention of whitelisting or blacklisting apps on WatchOS using MDM, yet something definitely happens on the watch when the configuration profile is installed on the iPhone. Furthermore, if I tap on a configuration profile, which comprises a blacklist, on my iPhone it will ask me if I want to install it on the iPhone or Watch. The same pop-up question doesn’t happen when the profile contains a whitelist. All this to say, I’m massively confused as to why I can’t get this working. I’d really appreciate anyone’s advice which is bound to be expert. Thank you
2
2
1.6k
Sep ’25
Blocking Photo Attachments in Gmail, Outlook, and Social Media Applications in IOS devices
We are attempting to block the attachment of photos from the Photos/Gallery app when sending emails or sharing on social media applications such as Gmail, Outlook, and other platforms. These are MDM Managed Applications While file attachments (e.g., PDFs, documents) are successfully blocked, photo attachments are not being restricted, allowing users to attach photos without limitations. We are applying the below restriction to the device through an MDM allowOpenFromUnmanagedToManaged: false https://developer.apple.com/documentation/devicemanagement/restrictions Steps to Reproduce: Open the Photos or Gallery app on a mobile device. Open Gmail, Outlook, or a social media application (e.g., Facebook, Instagram). Open the Photos or Gallery app on a mobile device. Select a photo to attach. Try to attach the selected photo to an email or post. Observe that the photo is successfully attached, despite restrictions on file attachments.
0
2
400
Jan ’25
Security configuration updates have been enforced through automatic update policy enabled through an MDM policy.
The security configuration updates have been enforced through automatic update policy enabled through an MDM policy. However our end users would like to know when these updates are triggered by the device and installed successfully. We can see on a few devices that even though the automatic updates are enabled there are many devices with config updates pending. Also is there a way to manually install these config updates as the end user cannot see these updates listed in the software update section.
0
2
306
Feb ’25
DisabledSystemSettings in 2025 year. Is there a method to hide individual items in System Settings that is not Deprecated?
Hi, Is there a method to hide individual items in System Settings that is not Deprecated? It needs some of the settings set and hidden for the end user. I found the DisabledSystemSettings key however it is marked as Deprecated and does not include all the new items, especially those related to Apple Intelligence. Is there any method other than “Restrictions” that does not hide and only set individual settings ? It needs to hide items in system settings :)
0
2
197
Apr ’25
MDM profile for a binary with multiple signatures
Hello, we use an MDM profile that enables FDA for our program. The Identifier is set to be the path to our program. We'd like to have a profile that allows multiple CodeSignatures. Our older programs are signed with a different certificate than the current ones. We tried deploying 2 profiles (one for the 'old certificate' signed binary and the other for the 'new certificate' signed binary). But it looks like that MacOS accepts only one. I have also tried to use ProfileCreator to generate a profile with 2 entries, but it fails to do it. Manually editing the XML file and adding new entries does not work either. I'd like to know if there's a workaround for this issue.
0
2
231
Apr ’25
Platform SSO with Entra on Tahoe - Is it working in Beta 1
This test setup is Jamf Pro as the MDM with Entra as the IdP. PSSO is working on Sequoia devices. Prior to Tahoe, PSSO required the following three items: An existing local account, the delivery of Company Portal, and a profile containing PSSO payload. Based on the Tahoe announcement, it looks like PSSO is now available during Setup Assistant, removing the requirement of first creating a local account. I assume this means that the requirements now as easy as deploying Company Portal and the PSSO profile during the Pre-Stage policy. I attempted this on the macOS 26 beta 1 and during Setup Assistant, with the PSSO profile delivered, Setup Assistant prompts me to login to my IdP. However, pressing Continue will result in a failure, notifying me that the application required is not available. The continue button is now inactive but a "try again" button is available. This results in the loop of trying and then failing, stating that the required application is not available. I eventually must quit Setup Assistant which exits it and drops me at the login window. The only account that is visible is the management account. A trip into DFU and an IPSW restore then follows. Am I trying this too soon? Is PSSO at Setup Assistant not yet fully supported? Is there another requirement other than delivering Company App in the prestige alongside the profile? I've enabled the beta channel in MAU but there is no newer Company Portal being offered. Any guidance here would be appreciated as this is the PSSO announcement I've been waiting for since the deprecation of Apple Enterprise Connect.
2
2
323
Jun ’25
MDM Server and automatic deployment
Hello all, We have built our own MDM solution as we plan to support quite a few devices running iOS. Manual activation is running fine and devices are checking in. We have setup ABM with Device management service setup and linked to our MDM. We have added reseller via Apple customer number and purchased devices are showing in ABM. We have setup default management service assignment as well. When we are setting up a device it gives an error: Remote Management The configuration for your iPhone could not be downloaded from . cancelled Error in the device log is as follows: Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(DMCUtilities)[626] : <DMCHTTPRequestor: 0x84cfd7d40> cannot accept the authentication method NSURLAuthenticationMethodClientCertificate Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(CFNetwork)[626] : Task <663D2346-4B73-4DB2-A134-B1A7DC58E70B>.<1> auth completion disp=2 cred=0x0 Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(CFNetwork)[626] : Task <663D2346-4B73-4DB2-A134-B1A7DC58E70B>.<1> summary for task failure {transaction_duration_ms=285, response_status=-1, connection=7, reused=1, reused_after_ms=0, request_start_ms=0, request_duration_ms=0, response_start_ms=0, response_duration_ms=0, request_bytes=0, request_throughput_kbps=0, response_bytes=0, response_throughput_kbps=0, cache_hit=false} Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(CFNetwork)[626] : Connection 7: TLS Client Certificates encountered error 1:89 Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(CFNetwork)[626] : Task <663D2346-4B73-4DB2-A134-B1A7DC58E70B>.<1> finished with error [-999] Error Domain=NSURLErrorDomain Code=-999 UserInfo={NSErrorFailingURLStringKey=, NSErrorFailingURLKey=, _NSURLErrorRelatedURLSessionTaskErrorKey=, _NSURLErrorFailingURLSessionTaskErrorKey=, NSLocalizedDescription=} Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(CFNetwork)[626] : Connection 7: encountered error(1:89) Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(CFNetwork)[626] : Connection 7: cleaning up Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(CFNetwork)[626] : Connection 7: summary for unused connection {protocol="http/1.1", domain_lookup_duration_ms=0, connect_duration_ms=0, secure_connection_duration_ms=0, private_relay=false, idle_duration_ms=0} Jun 11 14:16:36 iPhone Setup(DMCUtilities)[626] : <DMCHTTPRequestor: 0x84cfd7d40> failed to communicate with the MDM server. Error: NSURLError:Desc : cancelled Domain : NSURLErrorDomain Code : -999 Extra info: { NSErrorFailingURLKey = "https://mdm.domainname/enroll"; NSErrorFailingURLStringKey = "https://mdm.domainname/enroll"; "_NSURLErrorFailingURLSessionTaskErrorKey" = "LocalDataTask <663D2346-4B73-4DB2-A134-B1A7DC58E70B>.<1>"; "_NSURLErrorRelatedURLSessionTaskErrorKey" = ( "LocalDataTask <663D2346-4B73-4DB2-A134-B1A7DC58E70B>.<1>" ); }
0
2
198
Jun ’25
iOS 26 devices in Single App Mode stuck on lock screen
On iOS 26, if in "Single App Mode", the device gets stuck on the lock screen. Devices are configured in SAM (kiosk mode), without a PIN requirement. Since updating to iPadOS 26, every single device that locks (goes to sleep) becomes completely unresponsive at the lock screen. Touch input does not work. The only way to regain access is to reboot the device, which will boot to the SAM app, but then lock again if it goes to sleep. Related discussion in the public forums.
1
2
963
Oct ’25
iOS 26.1 beta2 bug
After applying the MDM camera restriction on iOS 26.1 beta 2, the camera availability status is reported incorrectly. After applying the MDM camera restriction [UIImagePickerController isSourceTypeAvailable:UIImagePickerControllerSourceTypeCamera] return YES
1
1
1k
3w
Mass deployment of certificates and marking it as trusted
Hello, I have a system, which is able to execute bash/zsh scripts on a set of machines. The default behaviour is that the signature of the script is checked on the machine, which is executing it, and in case if it is not signed properly, the system rejects the execution. An own certificate has to be created for signing the scripts, which means that the certificate has to be installed and marked as trusted on the target machines (which are executing the script). I've been using : "/usr/bin/security add-trusted-cert ..." command to install the certificate on the machines as trusted. Since macOS Big Sur, the above command was prompting the local user for admin credentials. To avoid this, Apple suggested to use the following command to temporarily disable and re-enable the confirmation dialog : 1.: /usr/bin/security authorizationdb write com.apple.trust-settings.admin allow 2.: /usr/bin/security authorizationdb write com.apple.trust-settings.admin admin Now with the release of macOS Sequoia, the above command : "/usr/bin/security authorizationdb write com.apple.trust-settings.admin allow" does not work any more. It gives the following output : NO (-60005) I have the following questions : 1.: Could you please suggest an alternative way for IT administrators to install certificates on their machines, without any user confirmation? 2.: Could you please suggest how the same could be achieved using a bash/zsh script? In which context could the above commands : "/usr/bin/security authorizationdb write com.apple.trust-settings.admin allow" and "/usr/bin/security authorizationdb write com.apple.trust-settings.admin admin" still work? Thank you for your help in advance!
12
3
3.6k
Mar ’25
Return to Service with App Preservation issue
We are implementing the Return to Service (RTS) with App Preservation flow. During testing, we were able to successfully fetch the Bootstrap Token as part of the ADE enrollment process. However, when attempting to initiate the Return to Service command with App Preservation enabled, the following error was returned: [ { "ErrorCode": 12089, "ErrorDomain": "MDMErrorDomain", "LocalizedDescription": "Could not erase device.", "USEnglishDescription": "Could not erase device." }, { "ErrorCode": 66002, "ErrorDomain": "MDMBootstrapTokenErrorDomain", "LocalizedDescription": "Failed to generate LAContext for bootstrap token", "USEnglishDescription": "Failed to generate LAContext for bootstrap token" } ] Below is the sample request (with dummy data). The actual request contained valid values in all fields: <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd"> <plist version="1.0"> <dict> <key>Command</key> <dict> <key>RequestType</key> <string>EraseDevice</string> <key>ReturnToService</key> <dict> <key>Enabled</key> <true /> <key>WiFiProfileData</key> <data>WiFiProfileData</data> <key>BootstrapToken</key> <data>BootstrapTokenValue</data> <key>MDMProfileData</key> <data>MDM Profile Data</data> </dict> </dict> <key>CommandUUID</key> <string>3670</string> </dict> </plist>
1
4
912
3w
iOS 18 - Unable to receive files using AirDrop when "allowListedAppBundleIDs" restriction key is used
On a supervised device running iOS 18 without any AirDrop restrictions applied, when a profile with allowListedAppBundleIDs restriction key is installed, the AirDrop sound plays. But still the accept prompt does not appear, making it impossible to accept files. The prompt works as expected on iOS 18 devices to which the allowListedAppBundleIDs restriction is not installed. This issue occurs only on supervised iOS 18 devices to which the allowListedAppBundleIDs restriction is being applied. Device must be in iOS 18 version > Install the (allowListedAppBundleIDs restriction) profile with the device > Try to AirDrop files to the managed device. The expected result is that the accept prompt must pop up but it does not appear. This issue is occurring irrespective of any Whitelisted bundle ID being added to the allowListedAppBundleIDs restriction profile. Have attached a few Whitelisted bundle ID here com.talentlms.talentlms.ios.beta, com.maxaccel.safetrack, com.manageengine.mdm.iosagent, com.apple.weather, com.apple.mobilenotes, gov.dot.phmsa.erg2, com.apple.calculator, com.manageengine.mdm.iosagent, com.apple.webapp, com.apple.CoreCDPUI.localSecretPrompt etc. Have raised a Feedback request (FB15709399) with sysdiagnose logs and a short video on the issue.
6
4
1.9k
Sep ’25
What is recommended way to manage Apple IDs for supervised iPhones?
Hello Apple Community, We are integrating Apple Tap to Pay into our Point of Sale (POS) application. Our organization manages a fleet of supervised iPhones using Apple Business Manager (ABM) and Mobile Device Management (MDM) to onboard devices with preferred settings and automatically install our POS app via MDM-assigned licenses, then our OPS team installs our devices at merchant location and trains their staff on how to operate our service. So far, we have avoided using Apple IDs on these devices, as our setup has relied solely on MDM enrollment and app deployment. However, Apple Tap to Pay requires an Apple ID and Passcode, which presents a challenge for automation at scale. Our Questions: 1. Generally speaking, is there a recommended flow to manage Apple ID and Passcode for our case? 2. Is Managed Apple ID supported by Tap To Pay flow? 3. Is there a way to automate creation of Managed (or regular one if Managed is not supported by Tap to Pay) Apple ID and assignment into supervised iPhone via Apple MDM protocol? 4. Both regular and managed Apple ID requires 2FA via phone number. It appears Passkeys and Authentication Apps are not supported. What is recommended way to manage 2FA phone numbers on a scale of thousands of merchants? 5. Is there a way to enforce/assign specific passcode into supervised iPhone via Apple MDM protocol? Key Considerations: • Devices are corporate-owned and supervised. • Practice shows that merchant staff is unable to manage Apple ID or any sort of iPhone credentials on their own due to frequent staff rotation and sometimes malicious actions by former employees. • MDM is used to manage deployment, security policies, and app installations and updates. • The goal is to avoid requiring end-users to manually sign in with Apple IDs and assign Passcode on each device. Thank you!
0
7
483
Jan ’25
Managing order of Transparent Proxies from MDM like JAMF
There could be a case where-in multiple transparent proxies might exist in the system (for ex., Cisco AnyConnect, GlobalProtect, etc). We want to know if there is a way to order transparent proxies so that the desired transparent proxy gets the request first. During our research, we found a resource which talks about ordering transparent proxies through MDM. https://developer.apple.com/documentation/devicemanagement/vpn/transparentproxy Using this reference, we tried to create a profile and push it through JAMF. Below is the profile that we created and pushed with JAMF. Property List - &lt;?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?&gt; &lt;!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd"&gt; &lt;plist version="1.0"&gt; &lt;dict&gt; &lt;key&gt;TransparentProxy&lt;/key&gt; &lt;array&gt; &lt;dict&gt; &lt;key&gt;ProviderBundleIdentifier&lt;/key&gt; &lt;string&gt;com.paloaltonetworks.GlobalProtect.client.extension&lt;/string&gt; &lt;key&gt;Order&lt;/key&gt; &lt;string&gt;1&lt;/string&gt; &lt;/dict&gt; &lt;dict&gt; &lt;key&gt;ProviderBundleIdentifier&lt;/key&gt; &lt;string&gt;com.cisco.anyconnect.macos.acsockext&lt;/string&gt; &lt;key&gt;Order&lt;/key&gt; &lt;string&gt;2&lt;/string&gt; &lt;/dict&gt; &lt;dict&gt; &lt;key&gt;ProviderBundleIdentifier&lt;/key&gt; &lt;string&gt;com.mydomain.transparentproxy&lt;/string&gt; &lt;key&gt;Order&lt;/key&gt; &lt;string&gt;3&lt;/string&gt; &lt;/dict&gt; &lt;/array&gt; We are not sure if this is the right way to create the profile, though JAMF is not throwing any error while pushing this profile. We see this profile on the local machine as "/Library/Managed Preferences/com.apple.networking.vpn-transparent-list.plist". Is there a way to know if the profile took effect and the order of transparent proxies has changed. Thanks in advance.
3
9
1.3k
Oct ’25
forceAirDropUnmanaged not blocking proximity-based AirDrop (NameDrop) on iOS
We’ve run into what looks like a gap in how forceAirDropUnmanaged is enforced on iOS devices. Setup: Device: iOS 17.x (unsupervised, enrolled in MDM) MDM Restriction: forceAirDropUnmanaged = true Managed Open-In restriction also applied (block unmanaged destinations). Verified: from a managed app, the AirDrop icon is hidden in the share sheet. This part works as expected. Issue: When two iOS devices are brought close together, the proximity-initiated AirDrop / NameDrop flow still allows transfer of photos, videos, or files between devices. In this path, forceAirDropUnmanaged does not appear to apply, even though the same restriction works correctly in the standard sharing pane. What I’d expect: If forceAirDropUnmanaged is enabled, all AirDrop transfer paths (including proximity/NameDrop) should be treated as unmanaged, and thus blocked when “Managed Open-In to unmanaged destinations” is restricted. What I observe instead: Share sheet → AirDrop hidden ✅ Proximity/NameDrop → transfer still possible ❌ Questions for Apple / Community: Is this a known limitation or expected behavior? Is there a different restriction key (or combination) that also covers proximity-based AirDrop? If not currently supported, should this be filed as Feedback (FB) to request alignment between share sheet AirDrop and NameDrop enforcement? This behaviour introduces a compliance gap for organisations relying on MDM to control data exfiltration on unsupervised or user-enrolled devices. Any clarification or guidance would be greatly appreciated.
0
21
1.2k
Aug ’25
Issue Installing PKG via MDM on macOS 15 – “The app is running and we don’t have the context to quit it, failing install”
We’re running into a problem when deploying certain .pkg installers via MDM on macOS 15 and above. The installation fails with the following error message: “The app is running and we don’t have the context to quit it, failing install.” Context: The .pkg is being pushed through an MDM solution (not installed manually). This happens consistently across multiple macOS 15+ devices. The target app is often already running when the MDM tries to install the update. Unlike a manual installation, the MDM does not appear to have the ability to quit the running app before proceeding. Questions: Is this a known change in macOS 15 where MDM-delivered installs no longer have permission to terminate apps during package installation? Are there recommended best practices for handling app updates via .pkg through MDM in this scenario? Has anyone implemented a workaround—such as pre-install scripts, user notifications, or policies to quit the app before running the installer—that works reliably on macOS 15? Is Apple planning to update MDM behavior or installer APIs to address this, or should admins expect to handle quitting apps entirely outside of the MDM installation process? Any insights from Apple engineers or other developers/admins who have encountered this would be really helpful.
0
21
1.8k
Aug ’25
iOS 18 Bug -Certificate Trust Settings for Private Root Certificates Not Available
Importing an existing self- signed trusted root certificate no longer triggers option to trust cert in Settings / About / Certificate Trust Settings In iOS 18. Cert installed manually from internal website, as email attachment, and using profile in Configurator all produce same result. Same cert and processes work on iOS 16.7.10, iOS 17.6.1 and iPadOS 18.0 But not on iOS 18.0 nor beta iOS 18.1 beta5 on iPhone 16 Also tried regening a new test root on macOS Sonoma and installing using Configurator. No difference. It’s broken - I’ve reported it by Feedback - it’s a vital security flaw. Anyone else see this or have a workaround?
73
33
54k
Dec ’24