What OS features are our Heroes most interested in seeing?

Apple’s latest operating systems are just around the corner and iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and macOS Monterey are packed with plenty of reasons to be excited. With Apple’s first Fall Special event taking place today, and that anticipation building even further, we at Jamf wanted to hear from our trusted Jamf Heroes, what features and aspects of OS 15 and macOS Monterey they were looking forward to the most.

Here are some of the most popular answers:

Universal Control

A nice feature for all users with both iPad and Mac, looking to continue to enhance how seamlessly their personal, Apple ecosystem works together. This continuity enhancement lets users work with a single mouse and keyboard and move between Mac and iPad for a seamless experience, with no setup required. Users can even drag and drop content back and forth between devices.

Apple Configurator iOS App

The ease of enrolling devices with Apple Configurator now comes on iOS. Before, you had to walk around with a Mac device and a cable to use Apple Configurator, but not anymore.

Now:

1. Log in with your Managed Apple ID
2. Use your camera
3. Register the image which pops up in the Setup Assistant

Erase All Content and Settings on a Mac

In the past, admins didn’t have an easy and clean method for wiping a Mac device, the same way they had for iOS devices. This Fall, Mac computers with Apple silicon or the T2 chip running the new operating system will have the ability to reset, erase all content and settings, and make the device ready for a new user in a few easy steps. It’s a feature that will also be incredibly powerful to admins looking to test configurations, security settings, and more without the laborious workflow for resetting the system.

Apps & Books

Organizations around the world choose Jamf to help them procure, deploy, and manage apps and books for their teams. Whether acquiring a critical business app or distributing an eBook to an entire school, Jamf’s integrations with Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager already ensure organizations can seamlessly browse, purchase and distribute apps and books.

Apple is preparing to debut a new API that will deliver a more performant and scalable apps and books experience going forward. This is an exciting quality of life improvement for many admins, especially those who rely heavily on apps and books for day-to-day productivity. We are actively working on supporting this new API and are looking forward to sharing more as information becomes available.

Private Relay

For years Apple has been building a reputation as a privacy-first company. This year Apple took that another step forward and announced Private Relay, a new cloud service that protects an individual’s privacy by hiding their IP address and location from the websites they visit. Private Relay is not a personal VPN, but in many cases, it eliminates the need for users to subscribe to a separate VPN service

Coincidentally, Jamf — with the acquisition of Wandera — now has a product called Private Access, which eliminates the need for traditional corporate VPNs. So, not only will Jamf support Apple’s new privacy features and even promote and accelerate their use, but we will also extend their value by offering our own take with enterprise-level security and privacy capabilities by way of Private Access. The best part? Private Relay and Private Access will coexist out-of-the-box.

Account-driven User Enrollment

Account-driven User Enrollment eliminates the need for IT to send an enrollment URL to end users. Instead, end users can skip the complicated workflow of installing a management profile and get some managed apps and resources on their device, easy as that. Think of it like zero-touch enrollment for BYOD.

These are just a few of the popular responses from our heroes and that only scratches the surface of what Apple is rolling out for users across the world this fall. OS upgrade season is here and it’s exciting. But it is important for admins to ensure their own environment is ready to handle the new operating systems to avoid any unnecessary headaches that can come with upgrading too soon. Jamf is ready to help you along your upgrading journey with tons of content and guides to help.

Happy upgrading!