Apple device management vendor Jamf has added two new iOS apps that work along with its flagship product, Jamf Pro, to make it easier for companies to set up devices for sharing by multiple users and to allow quicker resets when different users move to the shared devices.
The new apps, Jamf Setup and Jamf Reset, were unveiled recently at the company's annual Jamf Nation User Conference (JNUC) in Minneapolis, where several thousand users learned about the latest features, add-ons and strategies for the Apple device management platform.
Jamf Setup is built to allow IT administrators to initially provision devices for users with multiple sets of apps, wallpapers, Home screen layouts, restrictions and more for various categories of users within an organization. Each set of apps is then listed by job category on a main menu where end users can then select the group of apps and other features that fit their specific jobs and requirements.
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IT administrators can then distribute the devices and let the individual users configure the devices themselves by selecting the package they need through Jamf Setup, without having to interact with IT.
"It's absolutely streamlined and allows users to customize that device," Michael Devins, a Jamf product manager, told eWEEK. "It allows end users to select their job role or use case and then see only what is relevant to them on the device."
Jamf Setup essentially creates a shared device for any workflow, making it easier for companies to use shared devices for multiple workers or guests. Users don't need a username or password to begin using the devices.
Potential uses for the app include hospitals where physicians, nurses, pharmacists or laboratory technicians can each have their own menus for needed apps and share the devices by selecting their job title when they begin using them.
The Jamf Reset app is aimed at making it easier to reset and wipe a device in between users, without any direct attention from an IT administrator. Instead of a complicated reset procedure, device users can initiate a complete wipe and confidently erase their data by selecting the Jamf Reset app from the Home screen, which automatically carries out the wipe.
The Jamf Reset app allows users to ready devices for the next users in a cleaner and more scalable way, said Devins.
Both iOS apps are available immediately to current Jamf Pro customers through the Apple App Store and work with iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices. The apps can be customized by business users through Jamf Pro so they can add their own branding and consistent experiences for their own users, said Devins.
New Features for Jamf Pro 10
The latest release of Jamf Pro, version 10, gains several useful new features, including an improved onboarding experience that now allows IT administrators to deploy configuration profiles to Supervised iOS and Apple tvOS devices before the Setup Assistant process is completed. This will ease the process by keeping the device in the Setup Assistant workflow until the assigned profiles finish installing, giving each user a smoother and more consistent enrollment experience, according to Jamf.
Also new is the ability for IT administrators to remotely update the tvOS operation system, which previously could not be accomplished, as well as new support for the Classroom app for macOS. Previously, teachers could only use the app using an iPad, but now they can also use a Mac to guide students in the classroom.
Administrators can also now enable the Activation Lock feature through Jamf Pro, making it easier to make changes after the initial PreStage Enrollment on Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager devices.Previously, customers who wanted to make Activation Lock changes outside of PreStage Enrollment would have to wipe and re-enroll devices to use the feature.
Jamf applications are being used by some 18,000 global customers to manage more than 11 million Apple devices, according to the company.
