Introducing Android Airwatch

Question

My question may seem really stupid for those who worked on implementing android Airwatch. But their documentation is not very well written, and I have a few doubts.

So, I set up my user and added my device using the airwatch console.

I have added app restriction code in my existing Android app.

I also added a key, the values ​​that will be redirected to the application, through the Airwatch agent application.

But I do not get this key, the values ​​that I must fulfill when executing the following code:

Bundle appRestrictions = myRestrictionsMgr.getApplicationRestrictions(); 

The appRestrictions package is empty.

I read some where in the docs that AppConfig requires Android 5.0+ with Android for the working device. Does this mean that I have to enable android to work on my Android device? Is this required for development? I tried in vain to do this using this link: https://support.google.com/a/answer/6178111?hl=en . Can someone please share a document to enable android to work on my Android device, if necessary.

Answer 1

You really need Android for Work to use Airwatch to customize your application.

You must ensure that you are using a device that supports AfW. All devices with Android 6.0+ support work profiles, as well as many devices with Android 5.0+. Some recommended devices can be found here.

Once you do this, you must create a new profile in the Airwatch console to make sure that they create a working profile on your device. Go to "Devices" → "Profiles" → "View List" and click "Add" → "Add Profile" and select "Android" → "Android for Work"

This should allow you to create an AfW policy that will apply to any assigned groups. Any applications that you click on these devices can be configured using the application restriction infrastructure, by editing the application, go to the "Deployment" tab and enable "Send application configuration." You should be able to set key value pairs.

All that said, if you are testing from a developmental point of view, you are much better off testing with TestDPC, the open source testing tool that Google provides on Google Play (just search for “TestDPC”) and on Github

There is a user guide on github, but it’s very easy to use to create work profiles, configure applications using application restrictions, etc.

I would use Airwatch as soon as you are ready for production testing, but TestDPC is a much better tool while you are still developing.

Answer 2

On Android, key-value pairs must be confirmed by Google Play. There are two ways to achieve this:

• Publish your app on the Google Play store (e.g. Wandera app)
• Publish your application in the company's private store. To do this, you need to set up your Android for Work account.

In iOS it’s easier, just specify key-value pairs at the time of assignment.

Answer 3

For AirWatch, your information about the key value and value belongs to the CustomSettings settings, so you should use APi to retrieve user settings, for example, below:

 final boolean isEnrolled = awSDKManager.isEnrolled(); if (isEnrolled) { final String settings = awSDKManager.getCustomSettings(); }