Jamf is making a bigger play for the eduction market by introducing Jamf School, a version of its Apple device management platform designed for use in schools by teachers, with a more intuitive interface that doesn't require a high level of IT knowledge to maintain.
Based on the Jamf Cloud infrastructure, Jamf School is a system for teachers to manage and use Apple devices in a learning environment. Created with a simpler interface than the more technically-minded versions, the system is used to control what can or cannot be used on Apple devices during classes.
Jamf School includes a collection of apps for management, including Jamf School Teacher, which is used for overall management. Teachers can create lesson profiles, communicate with students, and restrict the use of websites, apps, camera, and other functions.
Jamf School Parent gives parents the ability to guide their children's use of apps and features on school-issued iPads, with the aim of keeping kids focused on educational tasks and homework. Parents can also schedule access based on the days of the week, saving from having to constantly monitor usage.
The Jamf School Student app gives children the ability to install apps pre-approved by the school. The app can also be used to communicate with teachers, store documents in their own personal iCloud Drive, and other functions.
To help manage Jamf School, there is built-in access to Jamf Support within the apps, as well as chat support from within the administration console. Upgrades are also available for enhanced support, including chat, email, phone, and virtual screen sharing assistance.
For more complex school needs, Jamf Pro will be gaining more eduction-related features in the next quarter, including an app request workflow, access to the Jamf Parent app, a secure LDAP integration with Google to use Google Cloud Directory for simplified user logins and deployment, and the ability to leverage the Student Information System within Apple School Manager.
Jamf School is available to education customers based in the United States, with other markets to follow.
1 Comment
We used ZuluDesk, the company purchased by Jamf that produced this solution. ZD has worked very well for us, and, thankfully, nothing much changed since the acquisition. Simple. I have no IT degree and was able to manage our deployment and maintain it since with very little trouble.