Technical · Course T3Lesson 3 of 4
Setup Assistant & supervised policies
7 min read- Configure MDM profile removal and skip-screens in DEP Setup
- Match supervised policy types to Apple hardware
- Recommend corporate-default Setup Assistant choices
Automated enrollment doesn't just skip manual setup — it lets you design the setup. The DEP Setup tab (unlocked once the ABM token is in) controls what a user sees the first time a device powers on.
Profile removal
The first switch matters most: Allow MDM Profile Removal. For corporate supervised fleets, leave it disabled (the default) — the management profile can't be removed from device Settings, which is precisely the guarantee a customer buys supervision for. Enable it only for deployments that are deliberately soft-managed.
Skip screens, per device family
Setup Assistant screens are grouped by category, and you check off what to skip:
| Category | Typical skips |
|---|---|
| Common | Apple ID, App Store, Siri, Location Services, Diagnostics, Apple Pay, Privacy, Screen Time, Terms & Conditions |
| iPhone / iPad | Passcode prompts, iMessage & FaceTime, Move from Android, SIM Setup, Emergency SOS |
| Mac | FileVault, iCloud Desktop & Documents, Registration, True Tone |
| Apple TV | TV provider sign-in, "Where is this Apple TV?" |
The corporate default: skip Apple ID, Diagnostics, Location Services, and Terms & Conditions at minimum — every skipped screen is a support call that never happens on rollout day. Save the configuration; it applies at the next activation.
The supervised policy set
Create the policies matching the customer's hardware under Settings → Device Provisioning:
| Policy | Hardware |
|---|---|
| iPhone & iPad Supervised | Corporate iPhones and iPads |
| Mac Supervised | MacBooks / Macs |
| Apple TV Supervised | Conference-room and signage Apple TVs |
| Shared iPad Supervised | Multi-user iPads (shift work, education patterns) |
Automated enrollments pick up the appropriate supervised policy; the unsupervised iPhone & iPad policy exists for the manual/BYOD path — next lesson.
What partners get asked
"Can we stop staff creating Apple IDs on company iPads?" — yes: skip the Apple ID screen and restrict account changes in policy. "Can a user un-manage the device?" — not supervised hardware with removal disabled. "Can one iPad serve a whole shift?" — that's Shared iPad, its own policy type. Three questions, three one-line answers — this tab is where all three live.