- Platforms
- AndroidZebra
- Products
- IntuneStageNow
- Result
- A Zebra device staged by one barcode scan and enrolled as corporate-owned
Overview
Stage Zebra devices with one StageNow barcode that downloads, installs and launches the Company Portal app, then enroll them in Intune as Android device administrator.
StageNow is an administrator tool that creates XML-based profiles for Zebra (OEM) specific configuration settings on the devices. The configuration profiles are called Mobility Extensions (MX) and work on top of the Android operating system, unlocking an additional layer of enterprise features.
Zebra's devices have a unique capability of being able to leverage the StageNow mobile app to execute configuration (MX) profiles used for staging and preparing the Zebra devices. Staging can be done through a quick scan of a Barcode, NFC tag or Local File browse:
Microsoft suggests using Zebra StageNow MX profiles for Android device administrator (legacy Android) scenarios, for example, if devices do not support Google Mobile Services (GMS) or Android Enterprise is not available in a particular country or region, for more information see how to use and manage Zebra devices with Zebra Mobility Extensions.
Microsoft Intune also supports modern Android management of Zebra devices through Android Enterprise (COBO, COSU, COPE) modes, which support OEM (Zebra) specific settings through OEMConfig profiles. You can read my other article about it here.
In this blog, I would like to go through the Android (device admin) staging and MX profile creation in StageNow tool to Enroll in an MDM (Intune), where the MDM agent (Company Portal app) is downloaded from a local Staging Server (FTP), installed and auto-launched to complete the device enrollment.
Prerequisites
Before you start, check that you have the following.
| Area | What you need | Docs |
|---|---|---|
| Licence | Microsoft Intune Plan 1 (a DEM account also needs an Intune licence) | Licensing |
| Admin role | Intune Administrator (also manages DEM accounts) | DEM |
| Intune | Android device administrator enrollment set up | Setup |
| Device enrollment manager (DEM) account optional with Android device administrator allowed in enrollment restrictions | DEMRestrictions | |
| Devices | Zebra device without GMS, Android 8.0 to 15, MX 4.3 or later | MX matrix |
| StageNow | StageNow on a Windows 10 or 11 computer with Java | Download |
| Company Portal APK for sideloading | APK |
Configuration
With the prerequisites in place, set it up in this order.
Create the Enroll in an MDM profile in StageNow
Open the StageNow desktop app on your Windows computer to create a new MX profile, for example Enroll in an MDM
As the MDM Agent that you would like to use, select Others
Choose option No, I want to Download the file to my device
Select NO for MDM Agent Support App (.APK file)
Select NO once again for an MDM Configuration file
To Sideload the Company Portal app with StageNow, the Company Portal app (APK file) needs to be hosted on a Staging Server (FTP), either External or Built-In
Note: The Company Portal app for Android (APK file) used for sideloading can be downloaded directly from the Microsoft Download Center.
Install MDM Agent (CompanyPortal.apk)
To Launch MDM (CompanyPortal.apk) after the installation, select Yes and provide the following details matching the Company Portal app:
- Package Name:
com.microsoft.windowsintune.companyportal - Class Name:
com.microsoft.windowsintune.companyportal.views.SplashActivity
The Staging profile is ready for Review. Its steps are Download, Install and Launch MDM Agent (Company Portal app), sideloaded from the built-in staging FTP server.
The Barcode for the StageNow client app (pre-installed) for Zebra devices can be taken from the page below
Complete Profile page
Result
I am staging a Zebra device by using the DEM account (Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD)) to enroll the device as corporate-owned, which removes the option to unenroll the device from the Company Portal app, so users can't easily remove the MDM management (at least not directly from the MDM Agent).
This is the StageNow mobile app, used for one of the 3 available staging methods
Barcode Staging opens a camera app (built into the StageNow app) needed for scanning
Staging in progress…
Company Portal app installed successfully and the device is ready to be enrolled in Intune
Signing in with DEM account (Microsoft Entra ID)
The Company Portal app requires Device Administrator to manage Android devices, so the person who enrolls the device needs to Activate this device admin app
Device ownership type is Corporate
Staging Successful
