Apple Configurator 2 advice needed please

[Totoro]

I would be really grateful for some advice to help get me up and running with AC2.

 

I inherited a Mac/AC1.5 set up for 80 iPads in two cabinets about a year and a half ago. The iPads are unsupervised and I don’t need to set up Wi-Fi or anything as the users log on to the institutional Wi-Fi with their username and password. I generally set up one device, mainly adding bookmarks to Safari and occasionally adding a free app or two (downloaded from iTunes) with all of the unused apps tidied away in a folder, and then back up that device with a descriptive name. I then restore that backup to all of the devices that I need.

 

Everything has been running (fairly) smoothly until I updated a couple of the iPads to iOS9 and realised AC1.5 was not compatible.

 

The Mac OS has been updated and AC2 installed so I now need to get back up and running extremely quickly and am struggling.

 

I played with Blueprints, but my tests didn't work, and reading posts here it seems like this isn't going to work for me.

 

I then tried backup and restore which initially didn’t work (it said it was backing up, but there were no backups listed when I tried to restore) but after a few attempts and a reboot seems to have settled down. I can set up a device and back it up, although it seems that once a device has been prepared, it won’t let me restore an alternative backup without completely wiping the iPads - which takes AGES. This isn't a feasible option going forward, it used to take minutes.

 

I mainly just wanted to check to see if I’m missing something. Is there an easy to achieve what I need to? I would be extremely grateful if someone could point me in the right direction. Alternatively, should I be looking at AC1.7 as from reading here it’s compatible with iOS9.

 

I’ve not even attempted trying to include apps as reading posts here, it seems like I’m going to have to completely change my procedure and use VPP, not iTunes. I have no idea how to do that so will have to read up.

 

On a slightly different note, does anyone using AC with a cabinet have issues with connectivity? When I plug a cabinet in, AC only picks up a handful of devices and have to unplug/plug it in a number of times before they are all recognised.

 

Thanks so much for reading this far, I really would be ever so grateful for pointers. I'm supposed to set up a number of iPads tomorrow but it’s not looking likely at this point

[Brimstone]

OK, here are the highlights of using AC2

 

1. AC2 no longer uses redeem codes, in fact they will be very much a dead dodo with education soon. AC2 uses Managed Distribution Licences, which are purchased via VPP, you buy both paid for and free app using this method so no iTunes. If you have existing redeem codes these can be migrated by sending a request to VPP support. if you try to install an app via AC2 downloaded from iTunes, AC2 considers that a "personal app" so the iPad you are installing it on has to have the same Apple ID that was used to download it in iTunes, so don't bother using this anymore

 

2.AC2 has a migration tool, under the file menu which can migrate all your existing profile's, any user data or Enterprise apps (apps that are used privately and not in the app store)

 

The video's and help guide below should help you get through tomorrow...

 

http://help.apple.com/configurator/mac/2.0/

[Sheridan]

There's just the small issue that ac2 is very buggy and unusable by many.

 

I can't use it on single devices and plugging into a cabinet shows a flickering display of random iPads as it detects some, then changes it mind constantly.

 

Apple rushed this out without any real testing so I've just ditched it until there's an update.

[Techie2000]

There's a good guide on here on how to use AC as it were before - https://community.zuludesk.com/topic/118-apple-configurator-2-getting-an-ipad-ready-for-zuludesk-supervised-mode/