iPad Capabilities With signageOS MDM
An iPad set up through Apple Business and signageOS MDM, our own MDM service for iPad, is supervised: signageOS MDM controls the device itself, not just the apps on it, and you do it all from Box. To set one up, see Apple iPad Provisioning with signageOS MDM.
What signageOS gains
- The signageOS app installs and updates silently, without an Apple Account.
- The app verifies itself into your Organization, with no verification code.
- The iPad's serial number is shown in Box.
- signageOS stays on the screen and opens again after a restart, a power loss or a crash.
- A technician on site lifts the kiosk lock for 30 minutes with the device PIN.
What you can do from Box
| Capability | Where in Box |
|---|---|
| Install, update and remove apps: App Store apps, Custom Apps from Apple Business and your own builds | Packages → iPadOS apps, the device policy and the device detail |
| Set the managed configuration of an app | Packages → iPadOS apps → Edit managed configuration |
| Lock the iPad to one app (Single App Mode) and choose the lock options | Device policy → iPadOS → Kiosk and apps |
| Lift the kiosk lock for maintenance | Device detail → Apple MDM → Kiosk |
| Restart, shut down or lock the screen | Device detail → Apple MDM |
| Rename the iPad and set its time zone | Device detail → Apple MDM, or a name template and time zone in the device policy |
| Update iPadOS to a target version by a deadline, and defer new updates | Device policy → iPadOS → Network and updates |
| Join Wi-Fi without a tap on site, with a proxy for the whole iPad | Device policy → iPadOS → Network and updates |
| Install configuration profiles, such as certificates or VPN configurations | Device detail → Apple MDM → Profiles |
| Block features such as the App Store, AirDrop, Siri, the camera, Apple Intelligence or iCloud | Device policy → iPadOS → Restrictions and security, or one iPad in the device detail |
| Set the wallpaper, a Lock Screen message, Bluetooth and the Home Screen layout | Device policy → iPadOS → Device and enrollment |
| Skip Setup Assistant panes and prevent removing signageOS MDM | Device policy → iPadOS → Device and enrollment |
| Mirror the screen to an Apple TV with AirPlay | Device detail → Apple MDM |
| Put a lost iPad in Lost Mode, locate or erase it, and see its Activation Lock | Device detail → Apple MDM → Security |
The device policy applies to every iPad that has the policy; the device detail changes one iPad. Commands reach an offline iPad the next time it connects.
Apple lists every payload and command in the Apple Platform Deployment guide.
What an MDM can't do
- Grant the location or camera permission in advance: someone taps Allow on the iPad once
- Capture video in screenshots
- Give apps the iPad's MAC address or serial number directly; signageOS MDM reads them from iPadOS for Box
- Let the app leave Single App Mode by itself: to get back to the Home Screen, use the on-site maintenance mode, or unlock the app in Box
The limits that apply to every iPad are listed in iPad Limitations Without MDM.