iOS Onboarding with Direct Profile (Apple Configurator)

Onboard Apple® iOS devices into Esper directly through Apple Configurator, without Apple Business Manager (ABM). Use this method when a device isn't in ABM and you need to prepare it for enrollment as part of the standard device setup flow.

Requirements:

• Access to the tenant's Esper console
• A Mac® computer with the Apple Configurator App installed
• The Apple device connected to the Mac
• A stable internet connection on the device throughout setup

In this article:

• Building the Esper Enrollment URL
• Adding Esper as a Server in Apple Configurator
• Preparing the Device
• What Happens Next
• Troubleshooting

Building the Esper Enrollment URL

Apple Configurator needs the tenant's Esper API URL, not the standard console URL. Convert one to the other before adding a server.

Step 1: Take the tenant's Esper console URL, for example https://foo.esper.cloud.

Step 2: Replace the host with the API host: foo-api.esper.cloud.

Step 3: Append the enrollment path: /api/tenant/v0/mdm/enrollmentconfig/.

Step 4: Confirm the URL ends with a trailing slash.

The result should look like this:

Note: Enter the API enrollment URL in Apple Configurator, not the console URL. If the trailing slash ('/') is missing, the next step can fail.

Adding Esper as a Server in Apple Configurator

Step 1: Open Apple Configurator on the Mac and go to Settings.

Step 2: Click on the Services tab.

Step 3: Click the add (+) button to create a new service, and follow the prompts until you reach Define a Device Management Service.

Step 4: Enter a name for the service. Any name works, since it's only used to identify the server in Apple Configurator.

Step 5: In the Hostname or URL field, paste the enrollment URL built in the previous section, for example https://foo-api.esper.cloud/api/tenant/v0/mdm/enrollmentconfig/.

Step 6: Click Next. The server is added to Apple Configurator.

Preparing the Device

Step 1: Connect the device to a stable Wi-Fi network. Do not continue setup beyond this point.

Step 2: In Apple Configurator, right-click the device and start the Prepare flow.

Step 3: Choose the configuration option for enrolling into an MDM server.

Prepare with: Manual Configuration 

• Check Supervise devices 

Tip: Allow devices to pair with other computers can be useful in test environments but is not recommended for Production devices.

Step 4: When prompted to add or select an MDM server, select the server created in the previous section.

Step 5: Continue through the remaining Apple Configurator prompts to complete the prepare flow.

What Happens Next

Once preparation succeeds, the device fetches the Esper enrollment configuration and continues onboarding. 

After enrollment completes, the device appears in the tenant's Devices & Groups directory, where commands and management actions can be applied.

Devices enrolled this way will be provisioned with a Default blueprint, meaning the device will be onboarded to its factory settings. Change the device’s blueprint to apply your preferred configurations. 

Troubleshooting