Since the commercial launch of the SOTI ONE Platform, SOTI has been busy developing new capabilities to reduce the cost, complexity and downtime of business-critical mobility. The February 2019 update of the SOTI ONE Platform includes the release of SOTI Snap 1.8 and SOTI MobiControl 14.3. Highlights of the releases include:

SOTI Snap 1.8

Multi-form apps

As the use of mobile apps within the enterprise grows in popularity, users may find it difficult and cumbersome to navigate between multiple apps to perform the tasks needed by their business. SOTI Snap 1.8 addresses this by adding support for multiple forms within a single app, enabling the creation of multi-purpose apps. Using multiple forms, organizations can improve the effectiveness and convenience for end users by combining related tasks into a single app, such as managing orders, adding items to inventory, or creating and/or updating products.

SOTI MobiControl 14.3

Android Management Enhancements

On the heels of Google’s recognition of SOTI MobiControl as an Android Enterprise Recommended (AER) Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) solution, SOTI MobiControl 14.3 adds numerous Android security and management features that make it is easier for companies to adopt Android devices for a variety of their mobile use cases.

• Companies can now use Google SafetyNet to assess the integrity of their devices during enrollment and during use and have SOTI MobiControl automatically take actions if a device has been tampered with.
• Enterprise Factory Reset Protection ensures only authorized administrators can setup company-owned devices after a factory reset.
• Prevent all system messages, errors and alerts from being displayed to the end user – this capability is particularly useful for kiosk devices.
• Agent Delivery Service (ADS) simplifies the discovery of, and updates to, newer versions of OEM-specific management agents.
• Packages can now be deployed to work profiles giving companies more flexibility for deploying line of business (LOB) apps to employee-owned devices. In addition, packages can now be restricted to install only during specific time periods to avoid installation/update of apps during critical business hours.
• A new Task Scheduler profile for scripts enables one-time or periodic execution of scripts based on a schedule.

Apple Management Enhancements

iOS device management is enhanced to include the ability to search and apply updates for VPP B2B apps, requiring that SOTI MobiControl completes its initial setup during DEP enrollment before the device can be used, and the introduction of new restrictions that protect company contacts and passwords. Modern Mac management using SOTI MobiControl gets a boost with improvements to agent configuration, application deployment, and configuration profiles that can be targeted to the logged-in user or the device.

• SOTI MobiControl will automatically be deployed and configured after native Mobile Device Management (MDM) Mac enrollment, reducing the number of enrollment steps for the end user. The agent supplements the built-in MDM capabilities on Macs to give administrators additional information and capabilities on the device, including remote control.
• macOS application bundle (.app) and Apple disk image (.dmg) files can now be silently installed to devices.
• macOS devices now support alert rules, enabling administrators to define alerts and actions based on various events and conditions on the device.
• 17 new macOS configuration profiles have been added that target the device and logged-in user, including firewall settings, login restrictions, Filevault encryption, printer setup and support for F5 and custom SSL VPNs.

Linux Management Enhancements and support for Zebra RFID devices

Investments in RFID solutions, powered by Linux-based RFID devices, have grown exponentially in industries such as: retail, transportation and logistics, healthcare, and supply chain and manufacturing. However, the tools required to deploy, secure, monitor and maintain Linux-based RFID devices have not evolved at the same rate, often costing IT departments time and staff to physically interact with these devices to perform functions, such as OS updates. SOTI MobiControl 14.3 addresses this gap by adding new Linux device management capabilities including, OS update management, SSH Terminal emulation, access to web administration consoles on headless devices, and the ability to blacklist apps. In addition, SOTI MobiControl 14.3 adds support for Zebra’s Linux-based FX7500 and FX9600 RFID readers – leading solutions in the RFID market.

Re-designed user interface (UI) for profiles and packages

In SOTI MobiControl 14.3, SOTI introduced a new look and feel, along with new capabilities for the Administrative Console. This same UI design has now been extended to the Profiles and Packages sections in SOTI MobiControl. The re-designed UI simplifies the filtering and ad-hoc reporting of SOTI MobiControl profiles and packages, while offering an OS-agnostic view that simplifies their administration.

Other notable enhancements

• SOTI MobiControl now supports Microsoft Azure AD for user authentication, and profile, app and content assignment.
• Numerous APIs have been introduced for integrating third-party systems, including the ability to create, update, delete and retrieve detailed information for profiles and packages.

For a detailed list of changes in SOTI MobiControl 14.3, visit SOTI MobiControl documentation page.

Each solution within the SOTI ONE Platform works on its own to solve today’s toughest mobility challenges. By working together, SOTI ONE tears down mobility silos and connects everything: mobile devices, IoT endpoints, apps and back-office systems. But don’t take our word for it, start a trial today and check it out for yourself.