Over the last few years, we’ve taken many steps to phase out the use of Device Administrator in the Workspace ONE platform. From highlighting Device Administrator as “Android (Legacy)” to building migration workflows for legacy deployments, our investments have been focused on the proliferation of Android Enterprise. The incredible growth and adoption of Android Enterprise led us to take further action, restricting the use of Device Administrator for new Android 10+ enrollments and new Workspace ONE customers. This announcement was made in May, with related product changes coming this November.
Announcement
Now is the time for the next step. In alignment with Google, we are announcing the end of support for Device Administrator on the Workspace ONE platform. Device Administrator will reach end of support on March 31st, 2022. After that date, VMware will no longer provide or guarantee support for devices enrolled using Device Administrator, regardless of enrollment date.
“VMware continues to be a leading partner in the transition to Android Enterprise. We are excited by their latest announcement of ending Device Administrator support on Workspace ONE – this is a critical step to help customers benefit from the best Android experience.”
-David Still, Managing Director, Android Enterprise
End of Support Timeline
November 2020:
• New Android 10+ deployments must use Android Enterprise
• New customers deploying Workspace ONE UEM for the first time will not have the option to use Device Administrator
March 31, 2022:
• End of support for Device Administrator on the Workspace ONE platform
(For full details, please review our Knowledge Base Article.)
What does this mean for customers using Device Administrator?
Customers currently using Device Administrator are highly encouraged to plan a migration strategy to move to Android Enterprise. We understand that this is a significant undertaking, and such an effort is not easy. We hope that the timing of this announcement provides customers ample time before March 2022 to migrate existing Device Administrator deployments to Android Enterprise. To help with this transition, VMware has worked closely with Google and other partners to develop migration resources and tools (links to additional resources are available in our Knowledge Base Article).
• VMware Docs: Android (Legacy) Device Administrator Migration
• Knowledge Base Article: Migrating from Device Administrator to Android Enterprise (2960236)
• Blog/Video: Work Profile Migration to Android Enterprise
• Blog/Video: Work Managed Migration to Android Enterprise (Zebra)
• Google Content: Android Enterprise Migration Bluebook
For further assistance, our teams are standing by ready to help you with our migration strategies and we’re committed to working with you to build the best possible Android management product.
