Bulk Device Removal from Esper Tenant: Remove Only vs. Factory Reset Options Explained

Android

When you manage a large fleet, you need to remove aged, missing, or decommissioned devices from your Esper tenant to keep your managed device count accurate and avoid unnecessary billing. This article explains how to remove devices in bulk and clarifies the difference between removing devices with or without a factory reset.

Before you begin

Bulk device removal in Esper is performed at the group level. You'll need:

• Access to Devices & Groups in the Esper Console
• A user role with Device Management write permissions (read-only roles cannot remove devices)

How to remove devices in bulk without factory reset

Use this option when you want to remove devices from your tenant and stop them from being counted in your managed fleet, but you don't need to wipe the physical devices. Offline devices can be removed using this method.

1. In the Esper Console, go to Devices & Groups.
2. Create a new group for the devices you want to remove (for example, Decommission-Batch-Jun2026).
3. Move all target devices into this group.
4. Open the group and select all devices or the specific subset you want to remove.
5. Click Actions → Remove Devices.
6. In the removal dialog, leave both Factory Reset Device and Wipe External Storage unchecked.
7. Enter your confirmation and submit.

After removal, the devices no longer appear in your tenant and are not counted toward your managed fleet. If a removed device comes back online later, it will keep its current configuration.

How to remove devices in bulk with factory reset

Use this option when you want to ensure that if a removed device reconnects to Esper later, it will automatically factory reset and be wiped clean.

1. In the Esper Console, go to Devices & Groups.
2. Create a new group for the devices you want to remove.
3. Move all target devices into this group.
4. Open the group and select all devices or the specific subset you want to remove.
5. Click Actions → Remove Devices.
6. In the removal dialog, enable both Factory Reset Device and Wipe External Storage.
7. Enter your confirmation and submit.

After removal, the devices no longer appear in your tenant. If any device reconnects to Esper in the future, it will automatically trigger a factory reset on reconnection.

Important: Only perform one removal pass per set of devices. Choose the option that matches your intent before initiating removal. Do not remove the same devices twice using both options.

Remove Registration vs. Remove Device

Esper supports two distinct removal actions for different device states:

Use Remove Registration only for devices in a pre-provisioned state that never completed enrollment. For active or offline managed devices, use Remove Device with the appropriate factory reset settings.

Troubleshooting

The Remove Devices action is not available:

• Verify that your user role has Device Management write permissions. Read-only roles cannot remove devices.

Offline devices were removed but the device record persists in your tenant:

• Confirm that the removal was submitted without factory reset toggles enabled. Offline device records can be removed without the device being online.
• Check that the removal action actually completed by navigating back to the group and confirming the devices are no longer listed.

A removed device reappeared in your tenant:

• This occurs when a device comes back online and re-enrolls but was not factory reset before reconnecting. For future removals of devices that may reconnect, use the factory reset option.

Still need help?

If you encounter any issues removing devices or have questions about the right removal option for your use case, contact Esper Support.