Mobile OS update management is a capability available in most mobile device management (MDM) solutions that allows organizations to manage OS updates on mobile devices. MDM solutions regularly scan the devices to check for available mobile OS updates and based on the policies configured manage OS update. OS update management includes delaying, automating and scheduling the mobile OS update. This topic will cover the following information:
Managing mobile devices not just includes managing the app, content and users, it also includes managing the operating system (OS) that the device is running on. Many organizatons allow users to handle the mobile OS update on their respective devices, but this approach of allowing users to manage OS updates has many disadvantages. You can overcome these drawbacks by deploying a mobile device management solution that supports OS update management in your organization. OS update management has different requirements based on the type of mobile OS update that is released, the number of devices to be updated, the previous OS versions and a lot more. This topic will cover the following information:
A vendor releases a new mobile OS update for a variety of reasons. Some of the common reasons for releasing a mobile OS update are:
Be it a security patch or a new feature release, these OS updates must be installed on the devices. Here are some of the ways in which OS update management can benefit devices:
The major benefit of mobile devices in organizations, is the ease of corporate data access. But, it also increases the chances of data breaches. Attackers tend to rely on identified vulnerabilities to easily access corporate data from mobile devices. The longer the vulnerability stays unpatched, higher the chances of data breach in organization. New OS updates provide patches for these vulnerabilities and reduces the probability of cyberattacks in organizations.
Most of the feature updates released cater towards improving the performance of the devices and also adds features that help improve data security. Older OSs slow down over time thereby affecting user productivity as well.
When a new mobile OS update is released, the vendors reduce support for the old versions. Even third-party apps stop providing features compatible with the older versions. This will cause issues in accessing corporate data from these apps and also the device running the older versions would not receive app updates leading to higher risk for data breaches.
Many organizations also develop their apps in-house for different platforms like iOS, Android, Windows and Chrome OS. While developing these apps, they would also need to support the older OS versions to avoid app compatibility issues.
A mobile device management solution, like Mobile Device Manager Plus, provides organizations with OS update management capabilities to manage OS updates. Mobile Device Manager Plus supports OS update management for iOS, Android and Chrome devices. With Mobile Device Manager Plus, organizations can perform the following actions when a new mobile OS update is available on the devices:
In addition to the above mentioned capabilities to manage OS updates, Mobile Device Manager Plus provides other granular control over Chrome OS updates
Refer this document for the steps to configure OS update management policies for iOS, Android and Chrome OS devices.