Apple Configurator 2...?

[Driftingashore]

Anybody know if there's an easy way to arrange app icons? In Configurator 1 I could arrange the icons on one iPad then take a backup and apply that backup to all the other iPads and they'd all share the same icon layout. I just tried the same thing in Configurator 2 and.. well, it didn't work. Applying the backup to other iPads just stripped the apps off them

[Strawdog]

You need include the apps you want installing, in the Blueprint, that you restore the backup with.

[donkeymusic]

when you plug the iPads in does it apply the blueprint each time? if this is the case and any work is saved in an app, will be reset in the same way that you could take a backup in AC.

[Garacesh]

Blueprints are, in my experience, only applied on command. You have to tell configurator to apply it.

 

I haven't found any instance of Configurator doing anything automatically, come to think of it. Updating apps/iOS, overwriting profiles, etc. They all prompt

[donkeymusic]

still trying to get my head around how the blueprints work

[Garacesh]

still trying to get my head around how the blueprints work

 

From my "writing it as I figure it out" documentation..

 

Blueprints are a convenient way to package Profiles and Apps together to streamline deployment. To manage Blueprints, click the Blueprints button and select Manage Blueprints. Use the New button (bottom left) to create a new blueprint and the Done button (bottom right) to go back to Configurator’s main view.

Blueprints come in multiple target categories: AppleTV, iPad only, iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, or iPhone and iPod touch. Currently the only blueprints create are iPad blueprints. Blueprints may also contain a naming convention, however this is unused. Due to the General Pupil Profile disabling name changes, device names must be assigned before any blueprints.

The Apps and Profile pages (left hand menu) are fairly self-explanatory and contain the same interfaces as when applying apps and profiles manually. To assign a blueprint, select the device (or multiple devices), click the Blueprints button and select the correct blueprint.

 

Hope it helps!

[tmoon-mint]

Blueprints are, in my experience, only applied on command. You have to tell configurator to apply it.

 

I haven't found any instance of Configurator doing anything automatically, come to think of it. Updating apps/iOS, overwriting profiles, etc. They all prompt

 

You can use Automator workflows to automate AC 2 actions.

 

Source: https://configautomation.com/

[donkeymusic]

ok, I have been having a play with AC this afternoon, and what i'm finding with setting it up is the following:

 

- Open AC2, set up preferences with organization details.

- Log into the App store ready for installing apps.

- Create 1/2 profiles to cover wifi and restrictions, I have done these as two separate profiles.

- Create new blueprint for a trolley of iPads, adding apps and adding profiles required, so for this i applied both profiles.

- Plug in iPad and modify Device name and wallpaper

- Prepare iPad

- Apply Blueprint

- Complete setup of iPad, i had set all the steps to be skipped during Preparation setup.

 

So few questions based on this,

 

1 - If the device has already been prepared and had the blueprint assigned, do further devices requiring to be prepared? not tested but if an iPad has a blueprint applied without preparing, what happens to the device, i guess it setup but not supervised?

2 - If i want to edit a blueprint, other than adding apps and profiles, what else can be done, i have sections for setup and device but there is nothing showing under there.

3 - Does the above steps seem correct for initial setup?

4 - The above doesnt show any MDM in configured, just wondering the benefits are other than being applying to push outs settings remotely, if this is the case, surely i would be best to supervise the devices, add wifi settings and then auto enroll into Profile manager and then push out the apps and restrictions this way?

 

Thanks for any assistance offered.

[Garacesh]

- Complete setup of iPad, i had set all the steps to be skipped during Preparation setup.

You may want to still have the Region screen, else time is set to Cupertino time and is wrong for UK users. It's not a massive issue, but it might screw with anything if you're using something with a short TTL.

 

1 - If the device has already been prepared and had the blueprint assigned, do further devices requiring to be prepared? not tested but if an iPad has a blueprint applied without preparing, what happens to the device, i guess it setup but not supervised?

2 - If i want to edit a blueprint, other than adding apps and profiles, what else can be done, i have sections for setup and device but there is nothing showing under there.

3 - Does the above steps seem correct for initial setup?

4 - The above doesnt show any MDM in configured, just wondering the benefits are other than being applying to push outs settings remotely, if this is the case, surely i would be best to supervise the devices, add wifi settings and then auto enroll into Profile manager and then push out the apps and restrictions this way?

 

Thanks for any assistance offered.

 

1 - If a device has not been prepared, it needs preparing. Devices need preparing individually (as in, each device needs it doing to them, not you need to do it one-by-one).. If you try to apply a blueprint that contains a profile that uses restrictions that require the device to be supervised, it will fail.

2 - You can apply a naming convention by right-clicking the blueprint, but that seems to be about the only other thing you can do. It's apps, profiles and names.

3 - More or less, yeah. If you don't have MDM, then that seems right. That's certainly how I'm doing it here as I've given up on Profile Manager.

4 - Some MDM apparently* gives you further configuration options, such as locking down more settings that Configurator profiles don't offer. Remotely modifying settings as you've mentioned. Also with most MDM you can trigger a remote wipe or lock.

 

* I say apparently as I can't confirm first-hand

[donkeymusic]

Thanks I will go with that until i look further into MDM, we've never needed wireless control of the iPads so AC2 will do it for me at the moment.

 

next steps is installing apps, any advice?

[Garacesh]

next steps is installing apps, any advice?

Keep trying. Don't give up.

 

In my experience, app deployment fails sporadically and often reapplying the blueprint without changing anything suddenly works. You may find it's worth applying apps to your sets app-by-app instead of using blueprints if you're affected too badly by it. If one app fails on one iPad, the entire set rolls back to how it was before applying the blueprint. Bit annoying, to say the least.

 

Back on using the blueprint, if your profile applied has the restriction stopping name changes, Configurator 2 cannot change the name. I've taken to naming them 'manually' (right click, modify, device name) before applying blueprints.

[donkeymusic]

Keep trying. Don't give up.

 

In my experience, app deployment fails sporadically and often reapplying the blueprint without changing anything suddenly works. You may find it's worth applying apps to your sets app-by-app instead of using blueprints if you're affected too badly by it. If one app fails on one iPad, the entire set rolls back to how it was before applying the blueprint. Bit annoying, to say the least.

 

Back on using the blueprint, if your profile applied has the restriction stopping name changes, Configurator 2 cannot change the name. I've taken to naming them 'manually' (right click, modify, device name) before applying blueprints.

 

Just attempted to install apps and they all installed first time, however the apps did all ask for the iTunes account details, adding this it worked fine, then i think i can disable the install apps via restrictions. The only issue with this is that i would have to add the details to a trolley of 17 iPads each time. Anyone found a way around this?

 

With regards to naming, I set it up to work with the blueprint, but whilst testing and updating the blueprint to apply new profiles and new apps, it was also assigning a new name to the device so think this might have to be a manual step, unless it can be set to not overwrite.

[Garacesh]

Just attempted to install apps and they all installed first time, however the apps did all ask for the iTunes account details, adding this it worked fine, then i think i can disable the install apps via restrictions. The only issue with this is that i would have to add the details to a trolley of 17 iPads each time. Anyone found a way around this?

Stop using iTunes. Stop using Apple ID's. Use the Volume Purchasing Program (VPP) to obtain apps that don't require Apple ID's. We actually have everything Apple ID related turned off on our iPads to stop the kids being able to use theirs.

[donkeymusic]

Stop using iTunes. Stop using Apple ID's. Use the Volume Purchasing Program (VPP) to obtain apps that don't require Apple ID's. We actually have everything Apple ID related turned off on our iPads to stop the kids being able to use theirs.

 

Thanks will have a look at that for todays task.

 

one more regarding blueprints, if i make a change to a policy, do i have to run the blueprint each time, as this re-installs all apps and dont really want this for what might be a small restriction change.

 

Thanks

[Garacesh]

No.

 

Say, for example, you make a change to the profile (which is what I assume you're meaning), you can connect the devices to Configurator, right click, add, profile, select the modified one, and add it in. If you've modified an existing profile then you'll be prompted to overwrite the old version* (as they carry the same GUID), if it's a new profile from scratch you'll probably want to delete the old profile first (right click, remove, profile). The Blueprint just serves as a handy way to configure a device from-scratch or apply a multitude of changes all at once.

 

* This can be exploited to have multiple similar profiles all with same GUID. Make a profile, make a copy it in Finder, then edit the new copy. That way you can have profiles with slightly different tweaks, of which only one can be applied. For example, I have a 'Pupil Profile' and a 'Pupil Profile (No Camera)'. It's no the best solution, but when restrictions don't have a 'Not configured' state like GPO does, it's the best I can think of.

Edited November 19, 2015 by Garacesh

[donkeymusic]

Thanks,

 

Thats seems okay.

 

I have an account that I used for VPP which has paid apps assigned to it, if i attempt to use this account in AC2 it wants to take over the account, i m guessing the best option is to create a new account for AC2 and VPP?

 

Thanks

[Garacesh]

Hmm. Can't help you on that one. I logged into Apple VPP via a web browser (Volume Purchase Program), "purchased" all my free apps, logged into VPP via configurator, and there they were. I don't recall that prompt. But we haven't purchased any paid apps here, and also this VPP account was previously used by our old NM (who moved away to greener pastures) so it's possible AC1 gave that prompt and he already responded to it. Sorry about that.

[donkeymusic]

All sorted with VPP now and seems to be going okay, the only other thing i need to add to my process is adding the devices to find my Find Iphone, do you do anything with this?

 

thanks

[Garacesh]

No. In fact, I'd prefer it if those apps weren't there because I'm not sure how they work exactly (I don't know a whole deal about Apple kit).. Can kids, for example, set it up to work with their own devices, or..? I dunno.

 

Ideally we're going to have MDM figured out at some point. Profile Manager doesn't communicate directly with the device, it goes via Apple's infrastructure, which means I should be able to use the remote wipe/etc options if any of our devices were to go walkies or not be on our network anymore. Once they have internet connection, even if we do use Profile Manager, it should still be able to modify devices as long as they have some kind of internet access.

 

 

.. In theory, anyway. I'm not sure how accurate that is, but that's the impression I'm getting.

[Bev]

Probably a stupid question, and I haven'#t read all 15 pages. But how to I view/edit a profile? I can create new ones, and apply existing ones, but I want to change one and I can't find any screen where I can view or edit the existing profiles.

[tmoon-mint]

Probably a stupid question, and I haven'#t read all 15 pages. But how to I view/edit a profile? I can create new ones, and apply existing ones, but I want to change one and I can't find any screen where I can view or edit the existing profiles.

 

File > Open and then select your mobileconfig file.

[Garacesh]

You can open the profile by launching Configurator, going to File, then Open, and finding the profile wherever it's saved.

 

If you're talking about modifying a profile that has been added to a blueprint, you can't modify it via the blueprints screen. Same solution, file, open.

 

I can't guarantee that if you edit a profile, the updated version applies with the blueprint. It may update, or when you add a profile to a blueprint it may copy/cache the settings somewhere. I haven't tested.

[Bev]

Thank you, I would have never found that!

[will2102]

I have a issue where I have just installed apps and they all installed first time, however the apps did all ask for the iTunes account details when they were launched any help ?

[Garacesh]

I have a issue where I have just installed apps and they all installed first time, however the apps did all ask for the iTunes account details when they were launched any help ?

 

This has been covered a few times already. Stop using a 'personal' iTunes account and start using Apple's VPP. Apps purchased through VPP don't ask for Apple ID's

 

Using a combination of Configurator 2 and VPP you can remove the need for Apple ID's (on the end device) altogether.