Mobile Device Management (MDM)
Overview
A Mobile Device Management (MDM) solution, also called an Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) solution, lets administrators enroll, configure, secure, and update a fleet of devices from a central web console. Instead of setting up each device by hand, an administrator defines policies once and the MDM pushes them to every enrolled device.
An MDM is typically used to:
- Enroll devices in Android Enterprise as fully managed (device owner) devices
- Install, update, and remove applications through managed Google Play or the MDM's own enterprise app catalog
- Apply device policies such as passcodes, restrictions, and Wi-Fi networks
- Configure Datalogic-specific settings, including scanner settings, through OEMConfig
- Apply Scan2Deploy profiles without scanning a barcode
- Deploy firmware and Espresso package updates. Espresso is the Datalogic package of device-specific drivers and APIs that runs on top of the Android firmware.
Datalogic devices work with any Android Enterprise compatible MDM, including SOTI MobiControl, Microsoft Intune, SureMDM, Workspace ONE, and many others.
Differences between MDMs
Every Android Enterprise MDM supports the core features: enrollment, managed Google Play apps, device policies, and OEMConfig. Beyond that, MDMs are not created equal. Some features are missing or work differently, and the same feature often has a different name in each MDM. Where an MDM doesn't support a feature, these docs describe a workaround, such as hosting files on Azure Blob Storage, or launching Scan2Deploy through OEMConfig on Microsoft Intune.
| SOTI MobiControl | Microsoft Intune | SureMDM | Workspace ONE | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Push files to the device | Yes, Packages, or a File Sync policy for files under 2 GB | No. Host files on a web server, such as Azure Blob Storage, for the device to download | Yes, File Transfer job | Yes, Files/Actions component |
| Run scripts and send intents | Yes, scripts with sendintent | No. Use the Launch Activities setting of Datalogic OEMConfig to start an app with intent extras | Yes, Run Script job | Yes, Run Intent action |
| Firmware update | Package with a post-install script | OEMConfig Firmware Update settings, with the package hosted on a web server | Composite Job: File Transfer and Run Script | OS Upgrade action in a product |
| OEMConfig | OEM Config configuration in a profile | OEMConfig profile. Only one per device | OEMConfig Policy profile | Application configuration of the OEMConfig app |
| Scan2Deploy intent from Studio | Yes, EMM Intent | No. Copy the encrypted profile data for OEMConfig Launch Activities | Yes, EMM Intent | Yes, EMM Intent (Airwatch Intelligent Hub) |
| Dedicated device enrollment | Same enrollment type as fully managed | Separate enrollment profile | Same enrollment type as fully managed | Same enrollment type as fully managed |
MDMs add features and rename menus with each release. If a step on these pages doesn't match your console, check your MDM's own documentation, linked at the top of each procedure.