Abstract
This white paper provides an overview of Microsoft® System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008, an end-to-end solution for provisioning, securing, and managing Windows Mobile 6.1 devices in a corporate network. By focusing on the key mobile device challenges faced by IT administrators— including management, control, maintenance, device security, and support—this paper discusses how System Center Mobile Device Manager helps IT administrators save time and reduce costs. The paper also introduces improved features from the latest Mobile Device Manager Service Pack 1
(SP1) enhancements and provides an overview of the long-term benefits of this end-to-end mobile
device management enterprise solution.
Introduction to System Center Mobile Device
Manager 2008
With today’s mobile workforces, IT staff are required to manage an ever-expanding fleet of mobile
devices and ensure that every device is authorized, has secure access and adequate permissions on the network, and does not compromise the security of corporate data. IT professionals need a
flexible, end-to-end solution that helps them ease the process of securing and managing devices
within a corporate network, while providing a more secure, single-point access for line-of-business (LOB) applications and corporate data. Mobile Device Manager is a comprehensive, reliable, and low-cost management solution that can be easily deployed into an enterprise’s existing Microsoft infrastructure. Designed to address the three core requirements of IT professionals—security, device management, and Mobile VPN—Mobile Device Manager is a solution that helps
administra-tors to efficiently address the growing need for increased security and manageability of Windows
Mobile® 6.1 devices within a network.
Security Management
Mobile Device Manager provides a security management platform for Windows Mobile 6.1 devices with more than 130 policy settings and built-in mechanisms that help prevent the misuse of corporate data. Administrators can lock down many areas of the Windows Mobile 6.1 devices,
including certain communications and device functionality, while exercising significant control over
the software that can be installed on devices.
Device Management
Mobile Device Manager is a simple and comprehensive solution for distributing software to Windows Mobile 6.1 devices and maintaining an inventory of devices in a complex organizational environment. Mobile Device Manager enables device enrollment through over-the-air (OTA)
An Introduction for Technical Audiences
through role-based administration, MMC snap-ins, and Microsoft Windows PowerShell™ com-mandlets. Comprehensive reporting tools within Mobile Device Manager provide IT professionals with improved visibility of devices and help reduce the cost and complexity of managing devices within a corporate network.
Mobile VPN
Mobile Device Manager provides a single point for security-enhanced, behind-the-firewall access
to corporate data and LOB applications. With Mobile Device Manager, administrators can facilitate security through a mobile-optimized, IPsec-based Mobile VPN link. The Mobile VPN link secures wireless communications between a mobile device and corporate servers by establishing an IPsec tunnel between the device and the Gateway Server. There is no dependency or requirement for
SSL encryption. However, if there is SSL-encrypted traffic from another source (such as ISA Server
2006), Mobile Device Manager’s IPsec tunnel can envelop this. (See the diagram at the end of this
document for details.) This combination of IPsec VPN and SSL encryption lends a definite edge over
other systems that generally rely on a single security barrier. With features such as fast reconnect and session persistence, Mobile VPN helps maximize user productivity in mobile environments.
Mobile Device Manager 2008 SP1 Enhancements
Mobile Device Manager SP1 helps provide organizations with even greater security management
and device management with performance improvements, bug fixes, and enhanced feature
updates. For added device management capabilities, Mobile Device Manager SP1 now offers the following enhanced features:
Windows Server® 2008 Compatibility: Mobile Device Manager SP1 is designed to run against a
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domain/forest running Windows Server 2008 Active Directory Domain Services.
Multiple Instance: Mobile Device Manager SP1 with Multiple Instance enables organizations
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to deploy more than one instance of Mobile Device Manager within the same Active Directory Forest, and helps support enterprises deploying more than 30,000 mobile devices within a single forest.
Enrollment Auto Discovery (available at Remote Console): Mobile Device Manager SP1 eases
•
the user enrollment experience by allowing the user to initiate the enrollment process without
entering complex Fully Qualified Domain Names (FQDN) or URLs. Enrollment Auto Discovery
matches the user with the correct Mobile Device Manager instance, eliminating any guesswork and mismatch.
PIN Reset (available at Remote Console): Mobile Device Manager SP1 allows users to request
•
a PIN reset on their current device, which can be initiated by the IT helpdesk or directly by the user via a Self Service Portal (SSP). If the user is unable to unlock his or her device as a result of a forgotten or lost PIN, PIN Reset gets the user back up and running in a fast and predictable manner.
Performance and Scalability: Mobile Device Manager SP1 increases system/server capacity to
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40,000 users from Mobile Device Manager 2008 levels.
Virtualization: Mobile Device Manager SP1 has Hyper-V™ support using hosted Windows Server
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IT Solutions for Mobile Challenges
This section of the white paper underlines the benefits of Mobile Device Manager by presenting
real-life scenarios pertaining to device management, security management, and Mobile VPN.
Device Management with Mobile Device Manager
In an enterprise network, IT administrators often have to rely on multiple management solutions to
configure, manage, track, and target mobile devices in a corporate network. System Center Mobile
Device Manager allows administrators to address device management needs through a single, easy-to-use package. This reduces the cost of purchasing and maintaining a proprietary solution as well as the time spent learning it.
Seamless over-the-air device enrollment
• . A simple, one-time device enrollment wizard
results in fewer user-related logon issues, reducing the pressure on the IT helpdesk. Since
Mobile Device Manager leverages Active Directory® and certificate services, device enrollment and configuration is now simpler and more convenient. The new Mobile Device Manager SP1
offers Enrollment Auto Discovery, which eases the user enrollment experience and alleviates IT helpdesk pressure even more.
• Efficient software distribution. Mobile Device Manager distributes software and sends
updates OTA, making the task of software distribution to multiple managed phones significantly
easier and reducing device downtime.
• Simplified tracking through rich inventory and reporting. Mobile Device Manager has rich inventory and add-on reporting capabilities that provide detailed reporting of device hardware and installed software. Along with a Microsoft SQL Server™–based infrastructure, administrators can easily keep track of devices within the enterprise network.
• Delegation of tasks through role-based administration. The role-based administration capability within Mobile Device Manager lets administrators delegate tasks on the basis of func-tions; simplify the tracking and deployment of devices; and focus on management, inventory, and reporting. Additionally, the Mobile Device Manager Self-Help portal allows IT administra-tors to grant user access for basic device management functions—including device wipe and creating new enrollment records—reducing users’ reliance on the IT helpdesk.
Security Management with Mobile Device Manager
Since mobile devices can potentially hold confidential corporate and personal data, the loss or theft of these devices poses a significant security risk for an organization. Ensuring that every device
is protected from misuse is a challenge. Mobile Device Manager diminishes the risk of a security breach with mechanisms that help provide security to sensitive data.
Anti-theft mechanisms.
• Mobile Device Manager mitigates security risks through on-device
file encryption of sensitive corporate information. When a device is lost or stolen, Mobile Device
Manager allows administrators to execute a remote device wipe when the device is online and connected to the VPN, preventing the misuse of critical data.
• Granular device control. Mobile Device Manager’s robust security management platform allows administrators to lock down several areas of a Windows Mobile 6.1 device, including communications or even device functionalities like Bluetooth, SMS/MMS, WLAN, POP/IMAP, and e-mail.
• Application-level control. With Mobile Device Manager, administrators have significant
control over Windows Mobile 6.1 devices within an enterprise by providing administrators with access to more than 130 policy settings. These policies enable mobile devices to be listed and managed, allowing control over many of the applications that users might install on their devices.
Mobile VPN with Mobile Device Manager
Administrators need to be certain that mobile devices connect to the corporate network over a secure connection. With the help of Mobile VPN, Mobile Device Manager ensures that Windows Mobile 6.1 device users access their corporate network (via a network service provider or a corpo-rate Wi-Fi connection) through an encrypted link. As a result, Windows Mobile 6.1 device users gain
security-enhanced, behind-the-firewall access to corporate data and LOB applications.
Secure data access.
• Administrators are challenged with ensuring that communications between an authenticated mobile device and the corporate intranet are secure. With Mobile Device Manager, administrators can allow or deny a secure network access connection between a Windows Mobile 6.1 device and an organization’s network.
• LOB-authenticated access. Mobile device users are often required to access an organization’s LOB application servers. With Mobile Device Manager, administrators can allow or deny a secure network access connection between a Windows Mobile 6.1 device and an organization’s LOB application servers.
Session persistence and fast reconnect.
• The session persistence and fast reconnect feature
in Mobile Device Manager allows users to reconnect to the corporate intranet without re-authenticating or losing session history, resulting in an increasingly seamless and trouble-free user experience.
System Center Mobile Device Manager—A
Comprehensive Mobile Device Management Solution
Mobile Device Manager is a reliable, end-to-end solution that can easily scale to manage the needs of an enterprise’s growing mobile workforce. Not only is it easy to deploy in an existing Windows Server infrastructure, but as an organization grows and its mobile computing needs multiply, Mobile Device Manager has the capacity to scale accordingly. This section of the white paper examines the scalable architecture of Mobile Device Manager and provides details of the Microsoft products and technology it supports.High Scalability and Availability
The Mobile Device Manager architecture supports different server configurations, depending on the organization’s requirements. Mobile Device Manager servers allow for flexible implementation options, where server configurations can be planned to cater to small corporate network-integrated configurations and to complex load-balanced scenarios.
Reduced Pressure on IT Helpdesk
Transparent processes such as device enrollment, session persistence, fast reconnect, a “Self-Help” portal, and Mobile Device Manager SP1’s new PIN Reset feature enable Windows Mobile 6.1 device users to self-manage many facets of their devices, resulting in reduced dependency on IT support. This frees up valuable hours for the helpdesk team, enabling them to become more responsive and
efficient while resolving user issues.
Greater Control of Mobile Devices
Mobile Device Manager allows for an unprecedented degree of control over mobile devices and their usage through comprehensive security management policies and granular targeting of groups
of users and/or devices to define and enforce IT security and management policies. Through Active Directory integration, it allows for the mobile device to be managed as a first-class citizen.
Easier Deployment with Other Microsoft Products
Mobile Device Manager is designed to support existing IT infrastructure in a corporate network,
enabling an easier deployment. Mobile Device Manager leverages Windows Software Update Services (WSUS) 3.0 with Service Pack 1 to allow applications to be distributed to managed devices. WSUS must be installed on the DM Server prior to installing Mobile Device Manager. Mobile Device Manager leverages existing Microsoft products and services like Active Directory, Certificate
Authorities, SQL Server, Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0, and Microsoft .NET Framework version 2.0 to provide IT administrators with an easy-to-deploy management solution. In addition, Mobile Device Manager must be installed on servers running a minimum of Windows Server 2003 SP2 64-bit editions. Because of Mobile Device Manager’s extensible platform, IT professionals are able to include support for any operating system feature or application through administrative
(ADM) templates and the Registry Configuration Service Provider (CSP).
In case of LOB application servers, Mobile Device Manager enables Windows Mobile 6.1 devices to securely access mailboxes residing on Microsoft Exchange Servers and custom Web–based services hosted on application servers.
Summary
Mobile Device Manager 2008 SP1 is a comprehensive server solution for the management of Windows Mobile 6.1 phones. It empowers IT professionals to provide highly secure data and
network access for their mobile workforce and define a strong and flexible IT security policy, while retaining a high degree of control over their mobile device usage without sacrificing ease
of usability. Mobile Device Manager SP1 is easy to deploy, integrate, and maintain with existing IT
infrastructure and is highly scalable for efficient mobile device management and provisioning. In
summary, it is the single point of management for Windows Mobile 6.1 devices in the enterprise.
Resources
For more information on Mobile Device Manager SP1, see www.windowsmobile.com
For more information on Windows Mobile devices for business, see
