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iOS Tips

Too Many Redirects error?

If you see a "Too many redirects" error while trying to enroll in MDM, please do the following to successfully complete your enrollment:

  1. Clear the cache of your Safari browser by going to  Settings > Safari > Clear Cookies and Data. Tap Clear Cookies and Data to confirm.
  2. Restart your device by pressing and holding the Home button and the Sleep/Wake button until the device powers down.  Then press and hold the Sleep/Wake button until the Apple logo appears.
  3. Begin the enrollment again using Safari to go to mdm.stanford.edu/register.

Battery life

Reduce battery drain

You can reduce the drain on your device's battery with some of these practices:

Turn off:

  • Bluetooth
  • Email Push notifications — or set it to "Manual" (Settings > Fetch New Data).
  • Wi-Fi, when you're not using it
  • Apps — by pressing the Home button when you're finished with them
  • EQ (in Settings > iPod)
  • Disable or reduce your use of Location Services (Settings > General > Location Services)

Turn on:

  • Airplane mode if you don't need to make calls or send SMS messages (you can still use Wi-Fi in Airplane mode)
  • Enable Auto-Brightness in Settings, or dim the screen with the Brightness slider

Change your behavior:

  • Check your email less often.
  • Avoid playing graphics-intensive games

Mail

Why use MDM (managed) email?

Many of you might already have Stanford email, calendar, and contact information on your devices. If you replace your existing accounts with the managed account provided by MDM, you can benefit in these ways:

  • Easy removal: The managed account can be removed remotely if your device is lost or stolen, or if you leave Stanford. In contrast, a manually configured account can't be removed without wiping the entire device.
  • Better battery life: Managed email and calendar settings are optimized by reducing the number of hits to the server, thus putting less drain on your device's battery.

Duplicate accounts

If you already have Stanford Email and Calendar on your device when you enroll in the MDM program — but you want to install managed mail — delete your old account before you add the managed account to avoid duplicate emails and appointments. Deleting your account will not delete your messages and appointments from the server. They will be safely reinstalled through the MDM enrollment process.

To delete an account on your iOS device:

  1. Tap Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendar.
  2. From the list of accounts, tap the one you want to delete.
  3. Tap Delete Account (the red button) at the bottom of the page.
    You will see a prompt that says "Deleting this account will remove its data from your iPhone/iPad."
  4. Tap Delete Account.

What to expect — installing MDM mail

When you include MDM mail during your enrollment, you'll see a lot of activity for a few minutes on your device. All your messages need to download and your appointments need to sync to your calendar. This is normal. In a few minutes, you'll have your messages and appointments on your device.

Passcode lock

The MDM sets up your device to require a passcode after a certain period of inactivity (Auto-Lock), or for a "grace period" after you press the On/Off button at the top of the device (Require Passcode). It enables these settings with a maximum amount of time allowed for each of these functions.

When you install the MDM, it activates the Apple factory default settings. MDM permits you to increase these values up to the maximum defined in the table below. Change the settings here:

  • Auto-Lock (for inactivity): Settings > General > Auto-Lock
  • Require Passcode (for grace period after lock): Settings > General > Passcode Lock (enter passcode) > Require Passcode
Feature Apple default setting MDM maximum time allowed
Auto-Lock 1 minute (iPhone), 2 minutes (iPad) 5 minutes
Require Passcode immediately 5 minutes

Passcode expiration

MDM sets a passcode expiration policy of two years. If you set a passcode prior to enrolling in MDM, the expiration occurs when the passcode age reaches the two year mark — not two years after enrolling in MDM. The new passcode cannot be the same as the old passcode.

Your personal settings and other profiles

If you already have configuration profiles or personal settings on your device that might cause conflict with the MDM, your results may be as follows:

Passcode length: if your passcode is longer than the length by Stanford MDM, your longer passcode will be retained after you enroll in MDM.

Auto-lock: The MDM allows Auto-Lock settings up to 5 minutes. If your device is set to Never, or to < 5 minutes before you enroll in MDM, your results may vary. If possible, turn off your existing Auto-Lock and Passcode Lock settings before you install MDM. After you enroll, you can choose Auto-Lock settings of up to 5 minutes and your Passcode Lock will be set to 1 minute, which you can reset to Immediately if you prefer.

Removing retired devices from MDM

For devices that are enrolled, but where the device has been replaced by a newer device, you can update MDM as follows:

  • Devices that are still active can be removed from the system using the Unenroll button at mdm.stanford.edu. This only works if the device can receive a command from Apple. It must be on and have connectivity.
  • For devices that have been retired and are no longer able to receive signal, click the Delete Device link at mdm.stanford.edu. 
Last modified February 26, 2016