Migrate devices to a new management service in Apple Business
Overview
In Apple Business, users whose role has permissions to assign devices to device management services can migrate devices from one device management service to another. This includes being able to set a deadline for the migration to take place.
For example, you may be:
Moving from an on-premises to a cloud-based device management service.
Moving devices into a single device management service when acquiring another organization.
Migrating from one device management service to one from a different developer.
Note: You can cancel the migration before it starts, which reverts the device to the original device management service and cancels migration prompts on the device.
Migration includes the following features:
Ability to set a deadline for completing enrollment, and view the pending migrations notification on the device page.
If the user doesn’t take action, the organization can enforce migration and reenrollment. This involves a restart on an iPhone or iPad, and a nondismissible full-screen prompt on a Mac.
iPhone and iPad devices have the option to preserve apps and their associated data if the new device management service delivers the apps before sending the
DeviceConfiguredcommand.After reenrollment, the new device management service creates Activation Lock bypass codes.
Important: To provide continued service access and a seamless user experience, you need to ensure the new device management service applies configurations that match those of the previous device management service and use the await_device_configured key for managed apps, FileVault, and Activation Lock configurations.
Requirements
To migrate from one device management service to another, your devices need to meet the following requirements. If they don’t meet the requirements, they’re unable to show the deadline option, and bulk actions result in failures (which appear in the activity log).
Supported | Not supported |
|---|---|
Devices with iOS 26, iPadOS 26, or macOS 26, or later. | Shared iPad |
Devices enrolled manually using Apple Configurator after the 30-day provisional period. | Devices enrolled manually using Apple Configurator before the 30-day provisional period. |
You need to own the device and enroll it with Automated Device Enrollment. Additionally, macOS 26 or later supports migration for Mac computers that unenroll and reenroll with profile-based enrollment. | Migrating to and from the built-in device management service isn’t supported. |
See Migrate managed devices to another device management service in Apple Platform Deployment.
What happens to apps purchased in volume during the migration?
If apps purchased in volume are part of the deployment, don’t set a migration deadline greater than 30 days. To properly prepare before a migration that involves apps purchased in volume:
1. Remove the content token from the current device management service.
2. Upload a new content token to the destination device management service.
Depending on your current device management service, you may have the option to immediately remove the app after removing the license.
If you can’t access the current device management service, you can’t unassign the apps, so the apps remain assigned and users can use them as follows:
For up to 30 days or when the app developer performs a receipt check.
Until the new device management service unassigns them.
Eventually, the content token expires, and the previous device management service loses access to the Apple Business organizational unit. Assignments still remain.
Migrate a single device to a new device management service
In Apple Business, sign in with a user whose role has permissions to assign devices to device management services.
To view roles and permissions, see Intro to roles and permissions.
If necessary, search for the device in the search field. See How to search.
Select the device, then select Assign Device Management.
Select the device management service you want this device to migrate to.
If you want to set a deadline, select Add Deadline.
If you’re unable to set a deadline, the devices don’t meet the requirements.
Set a deadline of more than a day or less than 90 days.
Select Continue.
Carefully read the dialog, then select Confirm.
A new activity is created.
Choose one of the following:
Stop the activity.
View the activity.
Select Close.
Wait for the activity to complete, then select Done.
If there are unassigned apps, reassign them with the new device management service.
Migrate multiple devices to a new device management service
In Apple Business, sign in with a user whose role has permissions to assign devices to device management services.
To view roles and permissions, see Intro to roles and permissions.
If necessary, search for devices in the search field. See How to search.
To search for specific devices, you can paste up to 1024 serial numbers from a text file, with each serial number separated by a comma.
Select the devices, then device management service you want them to migrate to.
If you want to set a deadline, select Add Deadline.
If you’re unable to set a deadline, the device doesn’t meet the requirements.
Set a deadline of more than a day or less than 90 days.
Select Continue.
Carefully read the dialog, then select Confirm.
A new activity is created.
Choose one of the following:
Stop the activity.
View the activity.
Select Close.
Wait for the activity to complete, then select Done.
If there are unassigned apps, reassign them with the new device management service.
Edit the date of, or cancel a migration for, a single device
In Apple Business, sign in with a user whose role has permissions to assign devices to device management services.
To view roles and permissions, see Intro to roles and permissions.
If necessary, search for the device in the search field. See How to search.
Select the device that you want to edit the migration date or cancel the migration for.
Select Change Deadline, change or remove the deadline.
Select Save.
A new activity is created.
Choose one of the following:
Stop the activity.
View the activity.
Select Close.
Wait for the activity to complete, then select Done.
Edit the date of, or cancel a migration for, multiple devices
In Apple Business, sign in with a user whose role has permissions to assign devices to device management services.
To view roles and permissions, see Intro to roles and permissions.
If necessary, search for devices in the search field. See How to search.
To search for specific devices, you can paste up to 1024 serial numbers from a text file, with each serial number separated by a comma.
Select the devices that you want to edit the migration date or cancel the migration for.
Select Assign, Reassign, or change or remove the deadline.
Select Save.
A new activity is created.
Choose one of the following:
Stop the activity.
View the activity.
Select Close.
Wait for the activity to complete, then select Done.