(This post co-authored with Jessica Yang, Program Manager, Microsoft 365) 

Microsoft Intune is pleased to announce the release of a new configuration designer experience for managing Android Enterprise devices using the OEMConfig application. We have received very positive early feedback from customers and partners and we can’t wait for you to try the improved user experience. In this article, we will walk through some steps to get started.   

What is OEMConfig? 

OEMConfig is a standard for the Android Enterprise platform that allows OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturers) and EMM (Enterprise Mobility Management) providers to build and support OEM-specific features in a standardized way on Android Enterprise devices. With OEMConfig, an OEM defines OEM-specific management settings for their devices (also known as a management “schema”) in an application that they host in the Google Play store. Microsoft Intune uses this application to expose those settings in the admin console for you to configure. The settings configured in the resulting profile are then executed by the OEMConfig application on the device. 

How does this help you? 

Historically, EMMs such as Intune manually built support for OEM-specific features after they're introduced by the OEM. This approach sometimes led to duplicated efforts, delay in support for new features, and slow adoption. 

With OEMConfig, you get day zero support for management features, direct from the OEM. When the OEM adds or enhances management features for the device, they also update their OEMConfig application in Google Play store. Intune automatically reads those updates and makes them available to you in the console. No waiting! 

Ways to create an OEMConfig profile 

You’ll find OEMConfig profiles in the Device configuration blade alongside your other device configuration profiles. The Intune documentation has complete details on creating and monitoring an OEMConfig profile. This article covers your two options for creating profiles. 

Option 1: Configuration designer 

We’ve created a brand-new configuration designer that gives you an intuitive interface for creating OEMConfig profiles, no matter how complicated the schema gets. This eliminates the need to hand-code an OEMConfig profile using the JSON editor, which can get tricky, especially when dealing with complex or heavily nested schemas. 

When you select an OEMConfig application to configure, Intune reads the schema from the app, and automatically generates a full graphical user interface for configuring the settings specified in the schema. 

The configuration designer lets you easily: 

• Create and manage complex bundles and bundle arrays with many levels of nesting 
• View setting titles and descriptions, which OEMs may use to provide documentation 
• Understand what options are available for a given setting 

Going forward, the configuration designer is the default editor for OEMConfig profiles in Intune. 

Option 2: JSON editor 

The existing JSON editor interface is still there if you need it. For example, if you need to duplicate a setting many times, simply and copy and paste the corresponding JSON representation of that setting. Or, to take a backup of your profile, save the contents of the JSON editor to a file before you start making changes. 

Changes made in the configuration designer are synced to the JSON editor, and vice versa. If you accidentally enter invalid JSON syntax, the editor also provides error messages so you can see what needs to be changed. 

Does my OEM support OEMConfig? 

Each OEM decides how they want their devices to be managed. We recommend you contact your device manufacturer to ask if they support OEMConfig with a schema built according to the standard.  

If an OEMConfig application exists for your device, but it isn’t showing up in the Intune console, please contact us using the instructions on the Intune OEMConfig documentation page. As more OEMs start adopting this new standard, the number of supported OEMs in Intune will increase, giving you more options for managing Android devices.

Next steps 

This feature expands the breadth and depth of support for Android Enterprise in Microsoft Intune and facilitates ruggedized and specialized devices to take full advantage of the Microsoft 365 cloud. This is a relatively new approach for both device manufacturers and management platforms, and we encourage you to push your OEMs to support this standard. You can learn more about OEMConfig here. 

Microsoft offers a variety of resources and tools to help you succeed. Create an OEMConfig profile in Microsoft Intune using our online guides. For further assistance, you may contact FastTrack, a service that’s included in eligible Microsoft subscriptions at no additional cost. FastTrack provides customized guidance for onboarding and adoption, including access to Microsoft engineering expertise, best practices, tools, and resources so you can leverage existing resources instead of creating new ones. 

More info and feedback 

Learn how to get started with Microsoft Intune with our detailed technical documentation. Don’t have Microsoft Intune? Start a free trial or buy a subscription today! 

As always, we want to hear from you! If you have any suggestions, questions, or comments, please visit us on our Tech Community page. 

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