Good Technology's MDM Is Primed for iPhone 6

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If record-shattering preorder numbers are any indication, Apple’s iOS 8-powered iPhone 6 smartphones and iPhone 6 Plus phablets are set become a familiar sight in the enterprise.

With new iPhones come new challenges. Administrators will need to weigh the mobile operating system’s new capabilities against their business and security requirements, and configure their user IT environments accordingly.

Don’t panic, says mobile device management (MDM) specialist Good Technology.

Good’s MDM platform is iOS 8-ready, announced the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company. Support for Apple’s latest mobile OS extends to Good’s suite of collaboration and security apps, including Good for Enterprise, Good Access, Good Connect apps, among several others.

Customers will be able to seamlessly incorporate iOS 8 and its new business-friendly feature set into their bring your own device (BYOD) environments, according to the company.

“Good makes it easy for IT to support the latest iOS 8 MDM capabilities, such as new restrictions, the new device enrollment process, managed domains and always-on VPN,” boasted the company in a statement. “There is no server upgrade required, and with most end-user devices configured for auto-update of their apps, the shift to iOS 8 will be transparent.”

Already a hit with consumers, Apple has been on a mission in recent years to provide mobile workforces with enterprise-grade capabilities.

iOS 8 extends passcode protection to its built-in software (Mail, Calendar, Contacts, Reminders, Notes, and Messages) as well as third-party apps. The update also supports S/MIME encryption for individual emails.

New data management and content filtering options enable organizations to set limits on the apps that are allowed to interact with their data. Certificate-based single sign-on streamlines the authentication process for enterprise apps.

Other new MDM capabilities “include the new and simplified enrollment process, ability to configure always on VPN, allowed domains for native mail and browser, and allow/disallow restrictions such as handoff, iCloud sync for managed apps, backup of enterprise books, notes and highlight sync, erase all content and settings, configuring restrictions and internet results in Spotlight search,” noted Nikfar Khaleeli, Good Technology’s director of product marketing, in a company blog post.

Developers can leverage over 4,000 new APIs to extend and enhance their apps. Predictive typing, third-party keyboard support, “Tap to Talk” messages, enhanced built-in image editing tools and HomeKit smart home integration are among several of the new user-centric features.

iOS 8 is the company’s “biggest release” since it cut the virtual ribbon at the Apple App Store. “We’re excited for hundreds of millions of users to begin experiencing iOS 8, with incredible features that offer new ways to use your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch,” said Craig Federighi, senior vice president of Apple Software Engineering, said in a Sept. 9 statement.

Pedro Hernandez is a contributing editor at Datamation. Follow him on Twitter @ecoINSITE.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.