Updating the Operating System of Apple Devices

Before you begin

Apple devices must meet the following requirements.

iOS

  • If enrolled in geofences ADE, iOS 9 or later
  • If not enrolled in ADE, iOS 10.3 or later
  • Supervised

macOS

  • macOS 10.11 or later
  • Enrolled in ADE

About this task

Note: You can update an iOS device to any version later than the current one. However, you can only update macOS devices to the latest available version of its operating system. You cannot roll back the update on either iOS or macOS devices.

To update the operating system of an Apple device:

Procedure

  1. In the Devices view, select the Apple devices to update.
  2. Note: SOTI MobiControl prompts all compatible Apple devices to scan for OS updates every 24 hours. However, you can use the Scan for OS Updates device action to force your devices to scan immediately.

    For security and stability reasons, OEMs often stagger the rollout of updates. Therefore, if an update was recently released, different devices may receive different results, even if they are running the same OS version.

    On the Device Actions menu bar, select the More menu button and select Scan for OS Updates in the Device Actions menu.
  3. In the Scan for OS Updates dialog box, select the Scan for OS Updates button.
    Note: Select any warning messages to get more information about why the scan failed.
    Note: Offline devices scan for OS updates on the next check-in.
  4. For each device, open the Device Information panel and check the Software Updates section to see available OS updates.
  5. Select all devices with available updates. Select the More menu button.
  6. In the Device Actions menu, select Update OS. The Update OS dialog box opens.
  7. In the Update OS dialog box, select one of the following options from the OS Update Method list:
    • Download or install the software update
    • Download the software update but do not install it
    • Install an already downloaded software update
    • Download the software update and update the user via the App Store (macOS only)
    • Download the software update and install it at a later time (macOS only)
    Note: Select any warning messages to get more information about why the scan failed.
  8. In the Update OS dialog box, select the Update OS button to start the update.

What to do next

Once the update begins, observe its progress in the Device Information panel. Status information updates whenever the device checks in, but you can use a Refresh OS Update Status device action to update the status immediately.