Thursday, April 4, 2019

See OS version for devices with basic mobile management

What’s changing 

Admins will be able to see the operating system (OS) version for devices with basic mobile management. Previously, this information was only available for devices with advanced mobile management.

Who’s impacted 

Admins only

Why you’d use it 

OS version is an important piece of information for assessing device security. This is because devices with older OS versions may not receive all security patches and can be more prone to threats. With visibility into the OS versions used by more devices in your organization, you can better understand potential security vulnerabilities and take actions to make sure devices with access to corporate data are using OS versions you see as appropriate.

How to get started 

  • Admins: To see OS version for basic devices, go to Admin console > Device Management > Devices
  • End users: No action needed. 


Additional details 

Admins will be able to see OS information in several places:

  1. On the devices list page (Admin console > Device Management > Devices) in the OS column. Previously this would have been blank for basic devices. On this page, admins will be able to filter devices with a specific OS to find devices with specific vulnerabilities or see what impact an OS update policy may have. 
  2. In the device detail page for each device. 
  3. In the audit logs at Admin console > Reports > Devices. Note that this is only available to G Suite Business, G Suite Enterprise, and G Suite Enterprise for Education domains. 


See and filter by OS version in the devices list view 

Helpful links 

Help Center: Set up basic mobile device management 

Availability 

Rollout details 

  • Rapid Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on April 4, 2019. 
  • Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on April 4, 2019. 

G Suite editions 
Available to all G Suite editions.

On/off by default? 
This feature will be ON by default.

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