Re-enrol devices in MDM
Users can enrol devices in an MDM solution in three ways: Automated Device Enrolment, Device Enrolment and User Enrolment. When you migrate from one MDM solution to another, the steps are slightly different for each enrolment method.
After their new MDM solution has been configured, users can unenrol their devices from the old MDM solution. Before they unenrol, the re-enrolment process should be thoroughly tested.
Automated Device Re-enrolment
Automated Device Enrolment is designed for devices owned by the organisation.
iPhone, iPad and Apple TV devices: Requires that the device go through Setup Assistant, and so it must be erased before re-enrolment. The MDM server assignment in Apple School Manager or Apple Business Manager should be set before the device is erased. This also erases all data on the device, so if any files on the device are important to the user, they should be copied off the device so they can be restored later.
Apple Watch: Paired and managed Apple Watch devices are unpaired and reset when the MDM profile is removed.
Mac computers: If the Mac appears in Apple School Manager or Apple Business Manager, the following command can be issued on the Mac to re-enrol in a new MDM solution:
sudo profiles renew -type enrollmentAfter re-enrolment, the Mac is supervised.
Important: When you restore from a backup onto the same iPhone or iPad, your backup’s supervision state is restored. If you restore from a backup onto a different iPhone or iPad, your supervision state comes from Apple School Manager, Apple Business Manager or Apple Business Essentials.
Device re-enrolment with Mac computers
How you re-enrol a Mac varies depending on the following factors:
Removable profile: The user can remove the profile by going to System Settings (macOS 13 or later) or System Preferences (macOS 12.0.1 or earlier), choosing Profiles, and clicking the Remove button (-) when the current MDM profile is selected.
Non-removable profile: The profile must be removed by MDM or the Mac must be erased. After the profile is removed or the device is erased, the device can be manually enrolled in the new MDM solution.
Note: If the Mac is using macOS 11 or later, it’s supervised when manually enrolled into MDM.
Device re-enrolment with iPhone, iPad and Apple Vision Pro
For iPhone, iPad and Apple Vision Pro re-enrolment, if the MDM profile is marked as removable by the end-user, the user can remove the profile by navigating to Settings > General > VPN & Device Management, selecting the MDM profile and tapping Remove Management. If the device is supervised, supervision is retained when re-enrolling the device into MDM.
Note: Paired and managed Apple Watch devices are unpaired and reset when the MDM profile is removed.
Non-removable profile: The profile must be removed by MDM or the device must be erased. After the profile is removed or the device is erased, the device can be manually enrolled in the new MDM solution.
Important: When you unenrol devices from your current MDM solution, all Managed Apps and their data may be removed from the device. (MDM administrators can set the option to remove Managed Apps when the device is unenrolled.) To prevent data loss, make sure data from Managed Apps is backed up so it can be restored later. See the Apple Support article Back up and restore documents and data from Managed Apps.
Device re-enrolment with Apple TV
For Apple TV re-enrolment, after the MDM profile is removed, the device can be manually enrolled in the new MDM solution. To manually re-enrol in tvOS 15 or later, navigate to Settings > General > Privacy, hover over Share Apple TV Analytics, press Play/Pause, then enter the URL of the enrolment profile.
User re-enrolment
Devices enrolled by the user don’t have to be erased.
Important: When you unenrol devices from your current MDM solution, all Managed Apps and their data may be removed from the device. (MDM administrators can set the option to remove Managed Apps when the device is unenrolled.) To prevent data loss, make sure data from Managed Apps is backed up so it can be restored later. See the Apple Support article Back up and restore documents and data from Managed Apps.