Best Approach - iPads for Shared Usage

[Killer_Bot]

Afternoon all,

 

I'm looking to get some advice and feedback on what the general approach is to putting iPads into a 'Shared Use' environment.

 

My approach thus far has been to configure a single iTunes ID, register all iPads to that ID and then push apps out using Meraki. These iPads are unsupervised.

 

This has been straight forward enough when there were 10 iPads but now I'm seeing Academy's want more and more and I'm not sure how efficient this will be moving forwards.

 

The issues with this approach are numerous but firstly I'm not confident we're not breaking Apple terms of service by registering a single account against multiple shared devices. Secondly, whilst we are using Apple VPP, these devices aren't supervised and so used licences can't be revoked. We can redeploy to the same iPad if for some reason it needs formatting but we can't revoke and issue to a different device if for example it were to die a sad death.

 

We're also unable to push out installs silently. At the minute for example a Technician has to be onsite, push out the apps, type in the password on the iPads when prompted and then wait for the apps to install.

 

I've had discussions with Apple consultants, Apple themselves and various other people and the consensus seems to be that unless it's a personalised learning project, there is no efficient solution.

 

It's only just occured to me to ask the Edugeek community and share some knowledge. I've been a long time lurker here but rarely get in involved. Time to change that!.

 

Having a brief look through the forums currently there seem to be some interesting developments (one post in particular mentioning this Apple - Education - IT - Device Enrollment Program that I need to investigate further).

 

Any thoughts, advice and criticisms would be most welcome.

 

Thanks,

 

Dan

[Killer_Bot]

Lots of views but no response.

 

Should I take that to mean Apple still haven't made the process any easier?

 

If anybody would like to share their own methods that would be great.

 

Dan

[Brimstone]

Afternoon all,

 

I'm looking to get some advice and feedback on what the general approach is to putting iPads into a 'Shared Use' environment.

 

My approach thus far has been to configure a single iTunes ID, register all iPads to that ID and then push apps out using Meraki. These iPads are unsupervised.

 

This has been straight forward enough when there were 10 iPads but now I'm seeing Academy's want more and more and I'm not sure how efficient this will be moving forwards.

 

The issues with this approach are numerous but firstly I'm not confident we're not breaking Apple terms of service by registering a single account against multiple shared devices. Secondly, whilst we are using Apple VPP, these devices aren't supervised and so used licences can't be revoked. We can redeploy to the same iPad if for some reason it needs formatting but we can't revoke and issue to a different device if for example it were to die a sad death.

 

We're also unable to push out installs silently. At the minute for example a Technician has to be onsite, push out the apps, type in the password on the iPads when prompted and then wait for the apps to install.

 

I've had discussions with Apple consultants, Apple themselves and various other people and the consensus seems to be that unless it's a personalised learning project, there is no efficient solution.

 

It's only just occured to me to ask the Edugeek community and share some knowledge. I've been a long time lurker here but rarely get in involved. Time to change that!.

 

Having a brief look through the forums currently there seem to be some interesting developments (one post in particular mentioning this Apple - Education - IT - Device Enrollment Program that I need to investigate further).

 

Any thoughts, advice and criticisms would be most welcome.

 

Thanks,

 

Dan

 

The link you copied for DEP is only available in the US at the moment but it will be here soon.

 

Firstly although you are using VPP to buy the correct number of licences, by sharing one Apple I.D. with multiple iPads you will fall into the trap that most people on here have experienced, as the devices are not supervised you will have to type in passwords for every app install and you lose each licence.

 

In order to push out apps silently to the iPads you have to have the following in place....there are NO workarounds

 

1) Devices MUST be supervised - In order to put a supervised profile on the iPads you have to have a copy of Apple Configurator and a Mac, I assume they are already enrolled into your MDM

2) Each iPad MUST have a unique Apple ID

3) Each device needs to signed into the App store with the Apple ID you created above

4) You now have to link tour MDM to your VPP account by downloading the token from the VPP site, and then invite all the users enrolled in your MDM to accept applications, you will now by able to revoke applications and the school retains ownership of content.

 

Now you may be saying to me.....but these are shared devices???

 

You don't have to create personal Apple ID's on each, the email address can be generic and no email account is required for each iPad, even the password for each device can be the same, you may want to lock the account on each iPad so that a user can not sign out of the account, but this is dependent on your deployment model.

 

As you can see this involves some planning from your schools, I have on too many occasions gone into schools who have ordered hundreds of iPads with little thinking and forward planning not to mention training and then they wonder why the investment fails. I have also stopped some schools in their tracks by telling them what they need to think about BEFORE they even start thinking about putting iPads in teachers....

 

Hope this helps you.

[ass17]

Apple terms and conditions state that you cannot purchase one app and share that app over multiple devices that will have shared use. For example it's ok to do this at home but in a business or more so in a school, if you have 100 iPads for shared use, then you need 100 licences.

 

We supervise our iPads with the one single Apple ID and VPP codes, it works well for us.

 

If you want to revoke licenses but not supervise you have to use the other deployment method like meraki uses but you have to get individual users to associate their Apple ID with meraki then you can push the app and revoke it then re-assign it anytime.

 

 

Our model is:

 

School owned iPads that a class of pupils use are supervised via apple configurator

Personal owned iPads that staff use, have apps pushed out via meraki so if they leave we can revoke/re-assign

Edited March 14, 2014 by ass17

[speckytecky]

Thanks for this thread - very useful. One of my SMT has sold the package to our management and governors that iPads are he way for us to go as well. I'm extremely interested in finding a solution prior to it happening as well. To my mind as a Windows Tech iPads seem to be a complete PITA and I would much rather the money that's planned to be spent on them was redirected to replacing a few of my seven year old Fujitsu Siemens workstations!

[Brimstone]

Apple terms and conditions state that you cannot purchase one app and share that app over multiple devices that will have shared use. For example it's ok to do this at home but in a business or more so in a school, if you have 100 iPads for shared use, then you need 100 licences.

 

We supervise our iPads with the one single Apple ID and VPP codes, it works well for us.

 

If you want to revoke licenses but not supervise you have to use the other deployment method like meraki uses but you have to get individual users to associate their Apple ID with meraki then you can push the app and revoke it then re-assign it anytime.

 

 

Our model is:

 

School owned iPads that a class of pupils use are supervised via apple configurator

Personal owned iPads that staff use, have apps pushed out via meraki so if they leave we can revoke/re-assign

 

Without supervision each iPad user has to enter the Apple ID and password to accept installation of the app, so no silent app installation.

 

I DO hope you are using managed distribution for the staff owned iPads with Meraki, otherwise those apps you have pushed out to them are NOT revokable and the licences have now gone and are associated only with the Apple ID. used to install them.

Edited March 14, 2014 by Brimstone

[internetuser]

Whats the best way to create 100 apple ids ?

[ess2k]

Interesting read, will be following up on this more, as our school had iPad minis for staff and are looking down the ipads for pupils route...

Sounds like a lot more hassle for us guys.

[Brimstone]

Interesting read, will be following up on this more, as our school had iPad minis for staff and are looking down the ipads for pupils route...

Sounds like a lot more hassle for us guys.

 

This is all about forward planning, the more forward planning you do the far easier it will be when you start to deploy iPads, I would say that let teachers drool over the iPads BUT don't deploy them before you have an decent MDM solution, VPP account and in some cases how you will manage and identify mobile devices with your existing proxy (remember that iPads don't use any login). This only applies to large deployments, small classroom sets may not need this at first, however I've just helped a school deploy 2,250 and it was a breeze....

[Alis_Klar]

On this thread

 

http://www.edugeek.net/forums/netbooks-pda-phones/133865-ipad-windows-domain-issues.html?utm_source=EduGeek&utm_medium=n5threads&utm_campaign=vbmail

 

the user was complaining that GoogleDrive internet connections drop when the iPad locks it's self when using a lightspeed authenticated proxy connection. Is this a Lightspeed, GoogleDrive iOS app or general iPad issue?

[foofighterjim]

This is all about forward planning, the more forward planning you do the far easier it will be when you start to deploy iPads, I would say that let teachers drool over the iPads BUT don't deploy them before you have an decent MDM solution, VPP account and in some cases how you will manage and identify mobile devices with your existing proxy (remember that iPads don't use any login). This only applies to large deployments, small classroom sets may not need this at first, however I've just helped a school deploy 2,250 and it was a breeze....

 

I have to say @Brimstone , I have seen you comment on a number of iPad related threads and have not really understood where you were coming from. Looking at this now it is pretty clear to me you know you apples. Its the age old adage, filing to plan is planning to fail. Having someone put this sort of issue into such simple terms really helps.

[PEO]

Some great advice here, I use Meraki and it works a treat. My preferred solution is a can off petrol and a lighter but apparently that's out of the question