IPad enrollment via apl configurator, ABM/DEP/MDMSolved

Participant
Discussion
3 weeks ago

It appears that the Docs for ios enrollment via Apple Configurator are out of date for ios 18. I haven’t added a device in the past 11 months (education cycle), so the following items feel much different from before.

First, the wifi profile never gets applied in any scenario I’ve walked thru for new devices, causing the prepare process to throw the Provisional Enrollment Failed error. Lots of Apple Community threads like this one that suggest the work around of “preparing” after you setup the wifi.

Second, The DEP process fails. If you prepare after entering the wifi, apple configurator resets the device (and reboots) with the profile and settings. When you enter the wifi again (because wifi profile doesn’t work any more) then it finds that it is in ABM, but ABM is not assigning to the default MDM. Instead, it sets as Apple Configurator 2. When you change it to the MDM and continue setup on the ipad, the MDM is assigned and ipad configured. Sadly, the IPad is in an “Unsupervised” state which the user is allowed to “Leave Remote Management”.

I have gone through MANY different iterations following lots of different adivce out there, but it all ends the same, either the device is “managed” but not locked down/supervised, or not managed at all. It’s as if Apple has either broken or taken away this ability to use DEP/MDM auto enrollment if consumer purchased devices.

Anyone else experience issues with ABM/DEP/hexnode?

Replies (1)

Marked SolutionPending Review
Hexnode Expert
3 weeks ago
Marked SolutionPending Review

Hi @tinomen,
Thanks for sharing the detailed breakdown of your experience. We understand how frustrating it can be when the expected workflow doesn’t behave like it used to. We’ve tried a similar setup and were able to complete device enrollment with the Wi-Fi profile pushed during preparation, so it might be worth double-checking a few items:

  1. Could you confirm the exact error message you’re seeing during the “Provisional Enrollment Failed” step? Sometimes subtle differences in wording point to different causes. Please attach a screenshot if possible.
  2. If possible, try preparing with a simpler Wi-Fi profile or even a different network to rule out connectivity issues.
  3. Try running a full factory reset on the device, proceed manually up to the Wi-Fi selection screen, and then apply the configuration via Configurator. This can sometimes bypass the initial failure loop.
  4. Can you check if the device is already showing up in Apple Business Manager before you run Configurator? If it’s not in “Released” state, Configurator prep can fail.
  5. Please make sure the MDM enrollment URL you enter in Apple Configurator matches exactly with the one provided on Hexnode’s Apple Configurator enrollment page.

Note that, when a device is added through Configurator, ABM usually lists it as “Added by Apple Configurator.” You may just need to reassign it to your Hexnode MDM server in ABM before continuing with enrollment.

A couple of quick clarifications that would help us guide you further:

  1. Which version of Apple Configurator are you currently using?
  2. Have you noticed the same behavior across multiple iPads, or only one/two specific devices?
  3. Is the “Unsupervised” state showing after you’ve reassigned the device to Hexnode in ABM, or even before that step?

This info should help narrow down whether the issue is profile-related, ABM assignment-related, or a change in Configurator/iOS 18 behavior.

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