Enabling No Battery Mode on Samsung rugged tablets via Knox Service Plugin (KSP) in Esper

Android

Title: No Battery Mode not working on Samsung rugged tablets — enable via KSP

When deploying Samsung Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro or Active5 Pro devices in fixed-power environments, No Battery Mode allows the device to run entirely from external power with the battery bypassed. Without the correct Knox Service Plugin (KSP) configuration in Esper, this mode will not activate even when the device is connected to power.

Why this happens

No Battery Mode is a Knox-gated hardware feature controlled exclusively through KSP managed configurations. It cannot be enabled through standard Android settings or the Esper Agent alone. The KSP app must be installed, approved in Managed Google Play, and carry a valid Knox Platform for Enterprise license before the configuration key becomes available.

Before you begin

Confirm the following before proceeding:

The device is a Samsung Galaxy Tab Active4 Pro, Active5 Pro, or another Samsung Knox-enabled rugged model that supports No Battery Mode.
Knox Service Plugin is approved in your tenant's Managed Google Play store. To approve it, go to Apps & Configuration → Approve Apps and search for Knox Service Plugin.
The device has an active Knox Platform for Enterprise license. Without a valid license, the No Battery Mode configuration key will appear but will not take effect.

Enable No Battery Mode on a single device

Use this method to test the configuration on one device before rolling it out at scale.

Go to Devices & Groups and select the target device.
Select the Apps tab and locate Knox Service Plugin in the installed app list. If KSP is not installed, install it from Managed Google Play before continuing.
Select the KSP app entry to open its detail panel.
Expand Managed Configurations. Managed configurations are only available after KSP has been approved in your Managed Google Play store — if this section is empty, complete the approval step in Before you begin.
Locate the Enable No Battery Mode toggle and set it to ON.
Select Save to push the configuration to the device.

Verify: On the device, open Samsung Settings and confirm the No Battery Mode status indicator is active. The device should operate normally from external power with the battery bypassed within a few minutes of saving the configuration.

Enable No Battery Mode at scale using a Blueprint

Use this method to deploy No Battery Mode across a device group.

Go to Blueprints and open an existing blueprint or create a new one.
Navigate to the Apps section of the blueprint and add Knox Service Plugin as a managed app.
Select the KSP app entry to expand it, then open Managed Configurations.
Locate Enable No Battery Mode and set it to ON.
Save the blueprint and apply it to the target device group.

Verify: After the blueprint converges on the group — typically within 15 minutes — confirm No Battery Mode is active on at least one device using the Samsung Settings check described in the single-device section above. The device's Activity Feed in Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Activity Feed will show the managed configuration update as a completed event.

Troubleshooting

Knox Service Plugin has no Managed Configurations section

KSP has not been approved in Managed Google Play. Go to Apps & Configuration → Approve Apps, search for Knox Service Plugin, and approve it. Managed configuration keys are only exposed after approval. Re-open the app entry on the device or blueprint after approving.

The "Enable No Battery Mode" key is missing from Managed Configurations

Your installed version of KSP may not support No Battery Mode for your specific device model. Check Samsung's KSP release notes to confirm the minimum KSP version required for your device. Update KSP through Apps & Configuration if a newer version is available.

The setting saves but No Battery Mode does not activate on the device

The device does not have a valid Knox Platform for Enterprise license, or the license has expired. No Battery Mode is a Knox-gated feature and will remain inactive without a current license regardless of the managed configuration value. Verify license status directly in Samsung Knox Portal and reapply the configuration after the license is confirmed active.

If this doesn't resolve it

If No Battery Mode is still not activating after completing the steps above, contact Esper Support with the following information:

Device model and Android version (visible under Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Device Info)
Installed KSP version (visible under Devices & Groups → [Device Name] → Apps)
A screenshot of the KSP Managed Configurations panel showing the current toggle state
Confirmation of Knox license status from Samsung Knox Portal
The relevant Activity Feed entries from the device showing the configuration push attempt

Still need help?

If the steps above don't resolve the issue, submit a support ticket with your device model, Android version, Esper Agent version, and a description of what you've already tried — this helps the support team investigate without a follow-up.