JAMF Launches Bushel Cloud MDM Service for Apple Devices

JAMF Software, a Minneapolis-based provider of Apple IT management solutions, announced that Bushel, the company’s cloud-based mobile device management (MDM) platform for enterprise workgroups and small and midsized businesses (SMBs), is now generally available.

Bushel was designed to help Apple-centric groups within larger organizations and SMBs manage and secure their devices without necessarily enlisting an IT department, according to Bushel product manager Charles Edge.

“Bushel enables anyone, including non-technical staff, to manage Mac, iPad and iPhone without the headache,” said Edge in a statement. “Users can take advantage of all the best in Apple technology, including enterprise-grade security features simply and at low cost.”

With Bushel, JAMF joins an increasingly crowded field of cloud-delivered MDM platforms. The competition includes VMware’s AirWatch, Good Technology and MaaS360 from IBM Fiberlink.

The product supports Apple’s Device Enrollment Program (DEP) for hands-free configuration and inventory, allowing organizations to automate the process of onboarding new devices and simplifying the device activation process. Bushel’s automatic email configuration tool supports Microsoft Exchange, Google and Yahoo, among other services.

Should an iPhone or other Apple device go missing or get stolen, Bushel supports remote device locking and wiping. Administrators can require devices to have passcodes and also disable iCloud to limit unauthorized file sharing. A built-in encryption management tool for Mac (FileVault 2) helps further safeguard business data for users of Apple’s desktops and notebooks.

Organizations can also streamline business app management, asserts the company. Bushel can be used to distribute a suite of applications to all devices at the same time, automatically. Apple Volume Purchasing Program (VPP) support enables bulk app purchases and keeps company-owned apps in-house by revoking apps from unused devices.

The browser-based dashboard maintains a catalog of all managed device, including username, OS version, device model and storage usage. Search capabilities help users pinpoint a desired device when the list gets too long.

Steve Brasen, managing research director for Enterprise Management Associates, said in prepared remarks that Bushel helps level the MDM playing field for SMBs.

“Constrained by limited budgets and insufficient support resources, many smaller organizations have traditionally considered mobile management solutions to be out of their reach even though business requirements for mobile security and performance are as essential to their operational success as they are for their larger competitors,” he said.

Bushel is available now. The first three managed devices are free. Additional iPhones, iPads and Macs can be added at a cost of $2 per device per month.

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

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

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