Last week, VMware and Meta announced new details on their partnership to enable virtual reality (VR) devices for business use. At the Meta Connect event, the company announced availability of Quest for Business, a subscription service that enables management of Meta Quest devices using VMware Workspace ONE Unified Endpoint Management (UEM).
As part of that announcement Mark Zuckerberg stated, “Next month we are launching Meta Quest for Business, which is going to help you bring mixed reality to your organization … this is going to be compatible with VMware Workspace ONE.”
VMware and Meta have been technology partners since 2019, but last week Meta announced official support for VMware Workspace ONE UEM when Quest for Business is generally available in October.
Meta Quest for Business enables support for third-party unified endpoint management solutions such as VMware Workspace ONE UEM. Workspace ONE UEM is the market-leading UEM solution used by tens of thousands of organizations globally.
How do Quest for Business and Workspace ONE UEM work together?
The combination of Quest for Business and Workspace ONE UEM enables seamless and automated configuration and management of Meta Quest devices.
A Meta Quest user simply turns on the device, selects Quest for Business setup, enters their user credentials, and the device can be automatically enrolled into Workspace ONE UEM.
Workspace ONE UEM then automatically configures and secures the device, pushes applications and content to the device, and sets the device up ready for employees to use. IT admins can then manage Meta Quest devices directly from the Workspace ONE UEM console.
Why official support is so important
VMware Workspace ONE UEM is one of only three UEM/MDM solutions supported by Meta, and it’s the only supported solution that offers advanced functionality for Meta Quest devices.
VMware works closely with Meta to ensure compatibility between Workspace ONE UEM and Meta Quest for Business. Customers can have peace of mind that VMware and Meta validate and support their solutions across Meta Quest, Meta Quest for Business, and Workspace ONE UEM.
XR-specific MDMs are not supported by Meta for Quest for Business. Today XR MDMs are using unsupported methods to enroll Meta devices. They also require configuration of Meta Quest devices by connecting them to a laptop or desktop. Its critical organizations deploy officially supported solutions to minimise risk to their business. In addition, it’s important that businesses use solutions that meet important security compliance standards, such as ISO27001 and SOC 2.
For customers deploying Meta Quest devices alongside other XR devices, it’s important that those other device vendors officially support your chosen MDM/UEM solution. VMware Workspace ONE UEM is the only solution that is fully supported across the major XR device vendors — giving customers maximum choice of device.
Workspace ONE is also the only supported solution that offers advanced functionality, such as a custom launcher for all major XR devices and advanced application management. Workspace ONE Launcher is used on AR devices such as Magic Leap, RealWear and Vuzix, while Workspace ONE XR Hub can be used on popular VR devices such as Meta, PICO, and HTC VIVE.
Workspace ONE UEM also has advanced app deployment functionality — such as conditions, scheduling, compliance, relay servers, a content delivery network (CDN) and single sign-on (SSO) — which is critical to deploying immersive applications.
Finally, VMware Workspace ONE enables you to manage all your devices — XR and non-XR — from a single console. There’s no need to employ a costly point solution just to manage your XR devices. Today, Workspace ONE UEM is the lowest-cost solution that supports XR devices.
Setting up Meta Quest for Business with VMware Workspace ONE UEM
IT admins will need to set up Quest for Business by adding Workspace ONE UEM as a device profile from within the Quest for Business console.
The device profile allows IT admins to set specific Workspace ONE enrollment parameters.
IT admins will also need to set up their users with Quest for Business, via an IdP or by creating accounts manually.
Once setup is complete, end users can easily enroll devices into Workspace ONE UEM during device setup. Learn how in this Tech Zone document.
Migrating from an unsupported XR MDM to Workspace ONE UEM
If you are currently managing your VR device fleet with an unsupported XR MDM, you should migrate your devices to Workspace ONE UEM. These are the steps:
- Set up Workspace ONE UEM using this Tech Zone guide.
- Upload any required VR applications or files to Workspace ONE UEM.
- If you require an in-headset custom launcher, set up Workspace ONE XR Hub, using this guide.
- For Meta Quest devices, set up Quest for Business integration with Workspace ONE UEM.
- For HTC and Pico devices, create a QR code using Workspace ONE UEM, or for HTC, a QR code generator
- Use your existing solution to remotely factory reset your devices.
- Your users can now easily enroll a device into Workspace ONE UEM:
- For Meta Quest users, simply follow in-headset instructions to set up with Quest for Business. Read more here.
- For HTC VIVE Focus 3/XR Elite, scan the HTC QR code at boot. See this documentation.
- For Pico Neo 3 or 4 Enterprise, scan the UEM QR code during set up. See this documentation.
Additional resources
You can find more information on Quest for Business here.
You can read instructions on enrolling Quest devices into Workspace ONE UEM here.
For new VMware customers, it is easy to sign up for Workspace ONE and start using our cloud solution. We offer a free trial to get you started. Find more information here
Find more information on Workspace ONE UEM here.
Find more information on Workspace ONE XR Hub here.
