How to Add Devices to Apple Business Manager

Introduction: Adding Devices to Apple Business Manager

Apple Business Manager makes possible any number of handy workflows and tools for IT teams. Chief among them:

• Automated Device Enrollment (which in turn makes zero-touch deployments possible);
• Federated authentication (tying your identity provider to your Apple devices); and
• Buying and distributing Apple content.

But you can’t do any of that if the devices your organization uses aren’t in Apple Business Manager to start with. There are a few ways to do so. Here’s how to get it all set up.

Technical Requirements for Adding Devices to ABM

There are a few things you have to have in place before you can take full advantage of Apple Business Manger.

Create Apple Business Manager Account

If you haven’t already done so, the first step is to create an account in Apple Business Manager. That means going to business.apple.com and providing some information:

• The name of the person enrolling the organization (in other words, you);
• An email address that isn’t already used for other Apple services; this will then serve as the Managed Apple Account for your Apple Business Manager account;
• The name and URL of your organization: and
• Your phone number.

You’ll be sent a verification code (to the email and your phone). Once you verify that, you go back to business.apple.com, sign in with your new credentials, then supply some more information:

• Your organization’s Data Universal Numbering System (D-U-N-S) number.
• Contact information (name, email, and job title) for someone in your organization who Apple can call to verify your organization.

Apple will then review and verify your info. Assuming that all goes well, your organization will be approved.

Assign Your MDM Solution

The next setup step is to add information about your MDM solution to Apple Business Manager; you must add at least one.

You first sign into Apple Business Manager with an account that has the role of Administrator or Device Enrollment Manager. At the bottom of the Apple Business Manager home screen, you select your user name, then Preferences , and then MDM Server Assignment.

Click Add, then add a name for the server. You upload a public key certificate file, download a token, add that token to your MDM server. (For full details see the Apple Business Manager User Guide and your MDM solution’s support documentation.)

Add Your Apple Customer Number

While you’re in the MDM Server Assignment section, you can also add your Apple Customer Number. That number is assigned to you by Apple and used whenever you purchase hardware or software directly from the company.

Alternatively, you can also add Reseller Numbers if you’re buying devices from an authorized reseller. Apple has more detailed instructions for managing device suppliers here.

Assign Devices to MDM Server in Apple Business Manager

Once all that’s set up, you have two principal avenues for adding devices to your MDM solution in Apple Business Manager.

Buy Devices from Apple or Authorized Reseller

The first route is to buy devices from Apple or an authorized reseller. When you do so and provide them with your Organization ID, your purchases will be added to your Apple Business Manager instance automatically at the time of purchase. (That Organization ID is used throughout the Apple Business Manager ecosystem, not only for device purchases, but also distributing custom apps.)

Add Devices with Apple Configurator

If you have devices purchased before you created an Apple Business Manager account, you can add them manually using Apple Configurator fortunately that doesn’t mean those devices can’t be added to Apple Business Manager and managed using your MDM.

Apple Configurator for Mac can be used to add iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV devices. Apple Configurator for iOS be used to add iPhone and iPad devices, as well as Mac computers. For details on that, see How to Add Devices to Apple Business Manager Using Apple Configurator.