User Guide

Chapter 1 Deploying iPhone and iPod touch 21
Configuring Devices
Next, you need to decide how you’ll configure each iPhone and iPod touch. In large
part, this is influenced by how many devices you plan on deploying and managing
over time. If the number is relatively small, you may find that it’s simpler for you or your
users to manually configure each device. This involves using the device to enter the
settings for each mail account, Wi-Fi settings, and VPN configuration information.
See Chapter 3 for details about manual configuration.
If you plan on deploying a large number of devices, or you have a large collection of
email settings, network settings, and certificates to install, then you may want to
configure the devices by creating and distributing configuration profiles. Configuration
profiles quickly load settings and authorization information onto a device. Additionally,
some VPN and Wi-FI settings can only be set using a configuration profile, and if you’re
not using Microsoft Exchange, you’ll need to use a configuration profile to set device
passcode policies.
Configuration profiles can be encrypted and signed, which allows you to restrict their
use to a specific device, and prevents anyone from changing the settings that a profile
contains. You can also mark a profile as being locked to the device, so once installed it
cannot be removed without wiping the device of all data, or optionally, with an
administrative passcode.
Whether or not you’re configuring devices manually or using configuration profiles,
you also need to decide if you’ll configure the devices or if you will delegate this task to
your users. Which you choose depends on your users’ locations, company policy
regarding users’ ability to manage their own IT equipment, and the complexity of the
device configuration you intend to deploy. Configuration profiles work well for a large
enterprise, for remote employees, or for users that are unable to set up their own devices.
If you want users to activate their device themselves or if they need to install or update
enterprise applications, iTunes must be installed on each user’s Mac or PC. iTunes is also
required for software updates to iPhone and iPod touch, so keep that in mind if you
decide to not distribute iTunes to your users. For information about deploying iTunes,
see Chapter 4.