Bushel’s Top 3 Frequently Asked Questions

There are three big topics that generate the most frequently asked questions for our support team and they revolve around VPP, DEP and APNs. I like alphabet soup as much as the next person, but it can get pretty confusing when you are trying to understand how those terms relate to Apple mobile device management. Let’s take a look at these acronyms and what they mean:

APNs

APNs stands for Apple Push Notification service. An APNs certificate allows Bushel to communicate with your devices. When MDM commands need to be sent to your managed devices, APNs tells your devices to check in. The MDM then sends any new commands or notifications to the devices you have enrolled. APNs maintains a constant connection with your devices, allowing Bushel to manage your devices collectively.

VPP

VPP stands for Volume Purchase Program. VPP allows you to buy apps in volume from the App Store, sync them with Bushel, and deploy them to your devices. Apps purchased through VPP are owned by the company that the VPP account is associated with. The company retains the licenses for the apps and can redistribute them to new employees or devices. VPP can be used to deploy apps to users with an Apple ID or directly to devices without an Apple ID.

DEP

DEP stands for Apple’s Device Enrollment Program. Using DEP, your Mac and iOS devices will automatically enroll in Bushel the first time they are turned on. DEP also enables over the air Supervision for iOS, which is a special mode that unlocks deeper device management capabilities. Devices might be eligible for DEP when ordered through Apple or authorized resellers who support DEP.

Sign up for VPP and DEP at https://deploy.apple.com.

For more information on APNs, VPP, and DEP visit our support center at https://docs.jamf.com/jamf-now/documentation/Jamf_Now_Documentation.html.