What is Apple Business Manager? A Guide to Getting Started with ABM

Apple Business Manager is a free software tool that registers and manages iOS devices like iPhones, iPads, and macOS devices like MacBook computers owned by an organization. Apple Business Manager also manages your organization’s Apple IDs (user accounts), purchased content (apps), and device SSO. Apple Business Manager is not an MDM — but it is required in order to use an MDM with Apple devices.

iOS Device Management

What are the features of Apple Business Manager?

Apple Business Manager has a number of core features that are useful to organizations managing iOS and macOS devices, including (but not limited to):

• List all owned iOS and macOS devices
• View device information (serial number, hardware configuration, MDM enrollment status)
• MDM enrollment (including automated enrollment)
• Manage and purchase content for use on Apple devices
• Created shared iPad passcodes
• Disable Activation Lock for Apple devices
• Apple ID user management, user permissions, and user groups (including by location)
• Manage SSO (federated signon) for Apple devices

Is Apple Business Manager an MDM?

No, Apple Business Manager is not an MDM (mobile device management) tool. However, Apple Business Manager integrates very closely with Apple’s paid MDM service, Apple Business Essentials. Think of Apple Business Manager as the “foundation” layer to using an MDM. Apple Business Manager keeps track of every iOS and macOS device in your organization and can be configured to automatically enroll each of those devices in your MDM. It does this by registering the serial number of every iOS and macOS device you purchase, associating that serial with your Apple Business customer ID, and sending that information to your connected MDM provider. This means that as soon as a device is activated and has internet connectivity, it begins the MDM enrollment and provisioning process automatically.

How does Apple Business Manager work with an iOS MDM?

All iOS MDMs must communicate through Apple’s owned cloud infrastructure in order to function. This means every iOS device you want to manage must be registered through Apple before it can be enrolled in an MDM. Apple Business Manager is the simplest way to register your iOS devices in a highly automated fashion and is specifically built to streamline the process of MDM enrollment. 

First, you need to set up an Apple Business Manager account with Apple. Then, you can connect your Apple customer ID (or an ID from an Apple Authorized Reseller), such that every device you purchase will automatically be associated with your Apple Business Manager profile. Then, you can connect your 3rd-party MDM server to Apple Business Manager and authorize automated enrollment. Automated enrollment allows Apple to pass the serial number of every device you purchase to your MDM provider, so that as soon as a new iOS device is activated, it automatically enrolls with your MDM.

Apple Business Manager is not a management or command-and-control interface for your MDM — it’s merely the portal through which you manage your inventory of Apple devices, Apple user IDs, and purchased device content (e.g., from the App Store or iTunes).

Apple Business Manager vs. Apple Business Essentials

Apple Business Manager is a free software tool for basic inventory management of Apple devices purchased by your organization, and is required in order to enroll those devices in an MDM. Apple Business Essentials is an MDM service that also includes features like access to AppleCare repair and support plans, iCloud emails for your business, iCloud storage, and more. Apple Business Essentials is not free — the monthly cost is based either on the number of devices or users in your organization ($3/mo per device, or $7/mo per user).

Apple Business Essentials uses a similar interface when compared to Apple Business Manager, and is best thought of as an “extended” experience that adds the functionality of an MDM on top of the basic features of the Apple Business Manager tool. This means you can manage system updates on your devices, device content and behavior (security requirements, allowed apps), track the location of your devices (including remote lock and erase), define device templates (packages), and control a wide variety of device settings. Apple Business Essentials is comparable to a relatively basic MDM in functionality and is designed mostly for COPE (Corporate Owned, Personally Enabled) use cases, where devices are distributed among employees or students for general use.

Do I need to use Apple Business Manager?

If your business or organization (school, non-profit, agency, etc.) owns more than a handful of Apple devices, Apple Business Manager is essential. Without Apple Business Manager, any kind of iOS or macOS device inventory must be managed manually. You need Apple Business Manager to create Apple IDs for your employees to use iOS devices. You need Apple Business Manager to purchase apps and content for your devices. You need Apple Business Manager to enroll devices in an MDM.

Using Apple devices in an organization without Apple Business Manager may not be “impossible,” but it creates challenges and risks that are wholly unnecessary. And given Apple Business Manager is totally free, there’s no real reason not to use it. Even in the event you don’t “need” an MDM today, Apple Business Manager makes enrolling your devices in one down the line far easier, should you decide to use one eventually.

Do I need an iOS MDM with Apple Business Manager?

Technically, Apple Business Manager can be used without an MDM. But Apple Business Manager is not a device management tool; it’s little more than an enrollment and device inventory manager. This means Apple Business Manager can’t control the apps distributed on your devices, manage software updates, security settings, or remotely lock and erase your iOS devices. For these kinds of functions, you need a proper iOS MDM.

Further, Apple’s own MDM, Apple Business Essentials, lacks key features like remote device viewing, staged application rollouts, and other crucial features for organizations operating fleets of iPad kiosks. Apple Business Essentials is also useless for mixed Android and iOS fleets — it only supports Apple devices. For a more flexible iOS MDM solution, you can learn about Esper here: 

iOS Device Management

Setting up Apple Business Manager

The Esper Help Center has several guides to help you get started with Apple Business Manager, and with managing iOS devices more broadly: 

Introduction to iOS Management

If you are brand new to managing iOS devices, this is a good place to start. This guide includes instructions on initial setup with Apple Business Manager: Introduction to iOS Management. 

Setting Up Apple MDM Management

Apple MDM Management allows you to manage the certificates and tokens you need to provision iOS devices in the Esper console. After setup, you can sync devices between ABM and Esper. Setting Up Apple MDM Management 

Onboarding iOS Devices

You can onboard devices automatically or manually. Here are guides for both: 

• Automatic iOS Onboarding with Apple Business Manager
• Manual iOS Onboarding with Apple Configurator and Apple Business Manager