iPads - Where to start?

[StormTrooper59]

Hello all,

 

It's been about 4 to 5 years now since I dealt with iPads and back then I was using Apple Configurator 2 alongside Apple VPP for purchasing of apps and used Lightspeed MDM. Fast forward to now and I am working in a different place, we've just got 60 new iPads to replace an aging estate of iPads that couldn't be updated past iOS 9.3.5 or something! The good news is Apple Configurator 2.5 and Lightspeed MDM is also in use here and they are by and large pretty similar to when I last used them. I've heard about Apple School Manager and DEP but I don't know too much about these, looking elsewhere has confused me a little with all the apple talk and acronyms they bring up and since it's been a while for me since I was dealing with iPads I was hoping someone on here could point me to what the current best practice is nowadays?

 

Thanks in advance

[DGardiner]

Hello all,

 

It's been about 4 to 5 years now since I dealt with iPads and back then I was using Apple Configurator 2 alongside Apple VPP for purchasing of apps and used Lightspeed MDM. Fast forward to now and I am working in a different place, we've just got 60 new iPads to replace an aging estate of iPads that couldn't be updated past iOS 9.3.5 or something! The good news is Apple Configurator 2.5 and Lightspeed MDM is also in use here and they are by and large pretty similar to when I last used them. I've heard about Apple School Manager and DEP but I don't know too much about these, looking elsewhere has confused me a little with all the apple talk and acronyms they bring up and since it's been a while for me since I was dealing with iPads I was hoping someone on here could point me to what the current best practice is nowadays?

 

Thanks in advance

Stop what youre doing, put things on a shelf until you have ASM setup.

 

Enrol the ipads you have into DEP on ASM using configurator, or ask the supplier to push them into DEP (any ipads you have turned on will need wiped to pickup the new provisioning profile), you can then force them to auto enrol into LSMDM and save yourself a headache.

 

https://www.apple.com/uk/education/k12/it/

[Aprice]

I'm a big advocate for Mosyle, partly because it is free!

 

DEP and VPP have now basically become Apple School Manager (sort of) The idea being suppliers enroll the devices into DEP for you, then they are pretty much ready out of the box.

 

We've always found that a bit flakey, so keep them enrolled in DEP and set them up using Apple Configurator to ensure they end up supervised.

 

Mosyle can probably explain it better than I can!

[mw184]

I second Mosyle, been using it for a couple of years now and have never looked back!

[DGardiner]

I'm a big advocate for Mosyle, partly because it is free!

 

DEP and VPP have now basically become Apple School Manager (sort of) The idea being suppliers enroll the devices into DEP for you, then they are pretty much ready out of the box.

 

We've always found that a bit flakey, so keep them enrolled in DEP and set them up using Apple Configurator to ensure they end up supervised.

 

Mosyle can probably explain it better than I can!

DEP has never been flakey for us, if youre having devices not auto enrol thats your MDM not doing the prestage enrolment properly - with jamf our devices are ready to go 15 minutes after hitting asm, usually just check the sites prestage enrolment to check the new devices have filtered in and off we go.

 

Moysle is good for what it is if you want a free way to chuck apps about but i dont rate it tooo high after using it for a year

[StormTrooper59]

Thanks all, we already have Lightspeed MDM that we pay for anyway so we won't be moving away from that at least not for the foreseeable future. I've put an application in for ASM and just waiting for it to be verified which could take until next week.

[Dan2025]

With your new iPads, you'll be able to ask the supplier for their 'Reseller ID' which you add into ASM, you'll also have an organisation ID which I think you'll get within ASM which you give the reseller and they can then add the devices to your DEP.

 

Saves bothering with apple config for any new devices in future, as you can just get any future purchases to be added to DEP which is within ASM, link lightspeed with apple school manager and they'll pick up the profile automatically once you put wifi on.

 

Any devices you've began setting up will need to be apple config'ed though.

Edited December 9, 2021 by Danwinchelsea

[Aprice]

This was a couple of years ago, have to say it is working a lot better now with automated enrollment.

 

Used to have to reset the odd iPad two or three times to get it to enrol.

Edited December 9, 2021 by Aprice