Pushing notifications to users on iOS and Android devices

This week is all about the different options in Microsoft Intune to send push notifications to users on iOS (and iPadOS) and Android devices. The trigger of this post is the option to send push notifications as an action for noncompliance, which was introduced with the 2005 service release of Microsoft Intune. Besides that, it was already possible to send custom notifications to a single device, to the devices of a group of users, or as a bulk action to multiple devices. In this post I want to go through the different options for sending push notifications, followed by showing the end-user experience. Send custom notifications Custom notifications can be used to push a notification to the users of managed iOS (including iPadOS) and Android …

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Configuring the OneDrive sync app basics for Windows devices

This week is all about configuring the OneDrive sync app basics for Windows devices. The main component for accessing OneDrive for Business content on Windows devices, is the OneDrive sync app. By default the OneDrive sync app is available on Windows devices and installed per user. In this post I’ll have a look at the installation of the OneDrive sync app and the basic configuration that I think that should be applied to get the best user experience. All by using Microsoft Intune for managing the Windows devices. I’ll end this post by having a quick look at the configuration on the Windows device. OneDrive sync app installation The first thing that should be addressed is the installation of the OneDrive sync app. By default, …

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Accessing SharePoint and OneDrive content on unmanaged devices

This week is all about accessing SharePoint sites and OneDrive accounts on unmanaged devices. More specifically, limiting access to SharePoint and OneDrive content on unmanaged devices. Configuring (limited) access to SharePoint sites and OneDrive accounts starts by using conditional access. For applying conditional access to SharePoint sites and OneDrive accounts, the Office 365 SharePoint Online cloud app, or the recently introduced Office 365 (preview) cloud app can be used. The first cloud app is applicable to all services that depend on SharePoint Online (including OneDrive and Teams). The second cloud app is applicable to all productivity and collaboration services of Office 365. An all-in-one app. However, both of these cloud apps don’t provide really granularity to only apply specific behavior for accessing specific SharePoint sites, …

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Android Enterprise and Microsoft Intune

This week is all about the device management jungle of Android Enterprise. I should have discussed this subject a long time ago, but better late than never. Especially when I’m still seeing many question marks when discussing Android Enterprise. With the release of Android 10.0 coming to the different existing Android devices now, the purpose of this post is to create an overview of the different enterprise deployment scenarios of Android Enterprise, including the Microsoft Intune specific additions, and the different related enrollment methods. Everything focussed on providing a good starting point for managing Android devices. The main trigger is the nearing end of Android device administrator with the release of Android 10.0. Earlier I provided the steps for simplifying the migration of Android device …

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Simplifying management of the Google Chrome browser

This week is all about simplifying the management of the Google Chrome browser. I’ve done my fair share of posts about different methods for managing settings for the Google Chrome browser, by using Microsoft Intune, like for example by using ADMX-files or by using PowerShell, but it can be easier. It can also be achieved by using Chrome Browser Cloud Management. Chrome Browser Cloud Management is a cloud-based solution that enables the management of the Google Chrome browser across Windows, Mac and Linux devices. In this post I’ll start with a short introduction about Chrome Browser Cloud Management, followed by the steps to enrol Windows devices by using Microsoft Intune. I’ll end this post by looking at the end-user experience. Note: Keep in mind that …

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Simplifying the migration of Android device administrator to Android Enterprise work profile management

This week is all about a recently introduced feature that will help organizations with their move away from Android device administrator managed devices to Android Enterprise work profile management. That is a very welcome feature as Google is decreasing device administrator support in new Android releases, which makes difficult for Microsoft Intune (and any other MDM-solution) to adequately manage Android device administrator managed devices starting with Android 10. The feature in Microsoft Intune that will help with moving away from Android device administrator managed devices is a compliance setting that will enable organizations to block devices in a structured manner and to provide a direct migration path to Android Enterprise work profile management. In this post I’ll show how to create and configure a device …

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Enable device upload when already using co-management

This week is all about the recently introduced functionality of Microsoft Endpoint Manager tenant attach. More specifically, the device sync and the device action functionalities that become available via the Microsoft Endpoint Manager admin center for Configuration Manager managed devices. This is the first big step into creating an integrated solution for managing all devices. This brings Configuration Manager and Microsoft Intune together into a single console. In this post I’ll start with an introduction to the different cloud integration options, followed by the step for enabling the device upload. I’ll end this post by having a look at what this integration brings from an administrator perspective. Introduction to cloud integration Let’s start with a quick introduction to all the different cloud integration terminologies that …

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Changing the primary user of Windows devices

This week is all about the primary user of a Windows device. More specifically about the recently introduced functionality to change or remove the primary user of a Windows device. The primary user is used within Microsoft Intune to map a licensed user to a device. Changing the primary user enables the administrator to switch the primary user of a device from one user to another user, or to switch a device without an assigned primary user (shared device) to a specific user. Besides that, removing the primary user enables the administrator to switch a device from a specific user to a shared device. In this post I’ll start with a short introduction about the primary user (and shared devices), followed by actually changing the …

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Managing local administrators via Windows 10 MDM

This week is all about managing local administrators via Windows 10 MDM by using restricted groups. There has been many requests for a post like this after I wrote this post about creating local user accounts. And I have to admit that this post has been on my backlog for a long time. Better late than never, I think. Also, I’m definitely not the first to write about this subject, but I do think that I have some new insights that can be really helpfull. In this post I’ll start with an overview of the options for configuring local administrators on Azure AD joined (and Microsoft Inune managed) devices and reasons for using restricted groups, followed by the steps for configuring restricted groups. I’ll end …

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Using bulk actions for renaming Windows devices

A few months ago, I did a blog post about the different ways of renaming Windows 10 devices. This week is a follow-up on that post, as it will also be about renaming Windows devices. This time it’s about using the recently introduced functionality to perform Bulk actions on devices. Those Bulk actions include the action to rename Windows 10 devices in bulk. That Bulk action is also available as a single action on a device and is currently not available for hybrid Azure Active Directory joined devices, nor available for co-managed devices. In this post I’ll show how to perform this action by using the Microsoft Endpoint Manager admin center, followed by using the Microsoft Graph Explorer. I’ll end this post by showing an …

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