Schedule to Approve, Block or Wipe mobile devices in Google Workspace

In this article, we will explore schedule to Approve, Block or Wipe mobile devices in Google Workspace. Mobile devices have become an integral part of our professional lives, allowing us to stay connected and productive on the go. However, managing these devices can be a daunting task, especially when it comes to ensuring security and enforcing policies. That's where mobile device management (MDM) in Google Workspace comes into play.

Benefits of Mobile Device Management in Google Workspace

Implementing mobile device management in Google Workspace offers a myriad of benefits for both organizations and users:

• Firstly, it enhances security by enabling IT administrators to remotely enforce policies and restrictions on mobile devices. Additionally, MDM provides the ability to remotely wipe a device, safeguarding confidential information from falling into the wrong hands.
• Furthermore, Google Workspace mobile device management improves productivity by allowing seamless integration and synchronization of work-related applications and data across multiple devices. This means that employees can effortlessly switch between their smartphones, tablets, and computers while having access to the same files and applications. 
• Lastly, MDM in Google Workspace simplifies device setup and provisioning, making it easier for organizations to manage a large fleet of mobile devices. IT administrators can remotely enroll devices, configure settings, and push applications, eliminating the need for manual setup and reducing the workload on IT teams.

Features of Google Workspace Mobile Device Management

• Google Workspace offers a comprehensive set of features for mobile device management, empowering organizations to maintain control and security over their devices. One of the key features is the ability to enforce passcode requirements on devices.
• Another important feature is the ability to enforce encryption on devices. Encryption adds an extra layer of security by scrambling data, making it unreadable to unauthorized individuals.
• Google Workspace mobile device management also allows IT administrators to configure advanced security policies, such as disabling app installations from unknown sources or restricting access to certain applications. By implementing these policies, devices are protected against malware and other security threats.

Setting up Mobile Device Management in Google Workspace

Step 1: Open the Google Admin console.

Step 2: From the main menu, select "Devices".

Step 3: Choose "Mobile and endpoints devices".

Step 4: Click on "Settings".

Step 5: Follow the prompts to configure the necessary settings, such as enabling mobile device management and selecting the desired level of control.

Admins can enroll devices in the management system once mobile device management is enabled.

• Google Workspace offers a comprehensive solution of Mobile Management Management (MDM). In Google Admin Console > Devices > Mobile and endpoints, you can approve, block, unblock, or delete a managed device as well as remove corporate data from a mobile device.

As such, scheduling these actions may be necessary in certain circumstances. And scheduling MDM is not a functionality that Google Admin Console provides.

• Schedule to approve a user owned mobile device only on the first day of a summer intern.
• Schedule to wipe the account from a device if the device is still not synced after 45 days.
• Schedule to delete a device from the list when a summer intern leaves the organization.

If you constantly check in the mobile device list and do a minor task, your time may be fragmented and wasted. Planning ahead and combining tasks is a way to improve productivity in time management.

Set up automation on Foresight

When setting up automation on Foresight, it is important to understand the differences between Google Workspace and the Foresight automation tool. One key distinction is that scheduling MDM (Mobile Device Management) is not a functionality provided by the Google Admin Console.

This means that if you require MDM scheduling capabilities, Foresight may be a more suitable solution for your needs. Foresight offers advanced automation features that can greatly streamline your workflows and enhance productivity.

In Foresight, a workflow automation starts from a trigger and executes actions. If you don't know the basic concepts of Foresight, please see xFanatical Foresight Glossary. The scheduling of mobile device management is relatively simple automation, with a Time trigger and a [Approve/Block/Delete/Unblock/Wipe] mobile device action.

Check out a short video demo for the article. The video shows Foresight can automate approving a mobile device by schedule.

Here is a generic step-by-step instruction.

1. Sign into Foresight.
2. In Rules page, click the button to create a new automation rule.
3. In the Select a trigger step, select the Time trigger.
4. In the Edit trigger > Time step, set the Trigger time field to a future schedule.
5. Click Next.
6. In the Select an action step, select the mobile device action you wanted to do. As an example, click the Approve mobile device.
7. In the Edit actions > Approve mobile device step,
   1. Sign in with Google
   2. In the Device id field, copy and paste the mobile device id from your Google Admin Console. If you don't know where to find the device id, please see Google's documentation View mobile device details.
   3. In the User primary email field, input the primary email of the user on the device. The field is optional, but it's suggested to input it to avoid the rule triggering on the wrong device.
8. (Optional) If you have extra mobile devices to take management actions at the same schedule, click the button at the action tab to add another parallel action.
9. However, When you finished the action configuration, click Review.
10. Then, give the rule a name, e.g. Approve Julie's Android device on June 1.
11. Click Create.
12. Your rule is created, which may look like this. The rule will execute at the given time and approve the mobile device.
    

Below are demonstrations of each action related to mobile device management. Use the instructions above and replace the action as you need.

Schedule to Approve a mobile device

Connect the Time trigger and Approve mobile device action to schedule approving a mobile device. Input the Device id and User primary email. Foresight will approve the mobile device on behalf of you at your specified time. A mobile device's status will change to Approved, allowing it to sync the user's work data.

Please see Google's documentation approve a device.

Schedule to Block a mobile device

Connect the Time trigger and Block mobile device action to schedule blocking a mobile device. Input the Device id and User primary email. Foresight will automatically block the mobile device on behalf of you at your specified time. The mobile device's status will turn into Blocked. Blocked devices cannot sync with corporate data. Please see Google's documentation delete a device.

Schedule to Delete a mobile device

Connect the Time trigger and Delete mobile device action to schedule deleting a mobile device. Input the Device id and User primary email. Foresight will automatically delete the mobile device on behalf of you at your specified time. The mobile device will be removed from your device list. The user has to enroll the device again. Please see Google's documentation block a device.

Schedule to Unblock a mobile device

Connect the Time trigger and Unblock mobile device action to schedule unblocking a mobile device. Input the Device id and User primary email. Foresight will automatically unblock the mobile device on behalf of you at your specified time. The mobile device's status will return to Approved. Please see Google's documentation unblock a device.

Schedule to Wipe a mobile device

Connect the Time trigger and Wipe mobile device action to schedule wiping a mobile device. Input the Device id and User primary email. Select the Device wipe type option, Wipe an account from the device or Wipe the device. Not both options are available. It's based on the device type and your device management level (basic or advanced). Check the option of the device in your Google Admin Console first. If the option you configured is unavailable, the action will fail.

Foresight will send a wiping request to Google services on behalf of you at your specified time. Google services will de-facto wipe the the mobile device. The mobile device's status will change to Account wiping or Wiping etc. It usually takes a few minutes to wipe the work data. After the wiping task is completed, the status will change to Account wiped or Wiped. Please see Google's documentation wipe a device.

Here are some other Foresight workflow automation examples you might be interested in

• Automated Welcome Email to Google Workspace New Users
• Automatically Assign New Users to Groups in Google Workspace
• Automatically Suspend Inactive Users in Google Workspace
• How to automate offboarding workflows in Google Workspace 
• Automatically Share Calendars to New Group Members in Google Workspace
• Auto Add members to Groups After Changing User’s OU
• Suspend Google Workspace users by Schedule
• Delete Google Workspace users by schedule
• Auto report, block and wipe inactive mobile devices in Google Workspace

Conclusion

Foresight provides a more robust solution. As a workflow automation tool, Foresight allows you to schedule your workflows and automate processes. With Foresight's scheduling capability, you can set up a workflow to execute automatically at a specific time or on specified days/weeks/months. This helps you create a more dynamic and efficient process.

This feature is not available in Google Workspace, which means that you will have to manually execute them every time they are needed.

Try a 14-day free trial foresight automation tool today and experience the joys of hassle-free group management.