Is there a way to use soti to tell a device to check for an OS update and install it?
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Is there a way to use soti to tell a device to check for an OS update and install it?
As far as I know, there is in general no way to directly initiate OS update check/installation for Android/Android+ devices. Each brand/model has different OS upgrade server and procedure/options (how frequent to check, where to get, automatic/user request, etc). Some models add support for more frequent automatic security-related update (e.g. SE for Android Policy Delivery, etc.) by default.
On the contrary, there is a feature control option to block OS upgrade by Samsung and LG Android+ agents. Many of my customers block OS upgrade on their Samsung devices by default, and disable such blocking only after they have confirmed on test device that all existing apps and MobiControl policies continue to work fine with the upgraded firmware.
Recently, there seems to be some new API's being added for some devices on Samsung KNOX (EFOTA), Android Enterprise , etc platforms to partially support what you need. I think they are not ready for production yet.
Finally, there is a script command "set_system_update_policy" for Android Enterprise device running Android 6.0+ to control system update policy, and Zebra devices might have its special script/mechanism to control firmware upgrade.
I can certainly speak to the Zebra devices. SOTI has a script for applying Zebra Android OS Updates (install_system_update) that are distributed to the /sdcard/ as ZIP files. There isn't really a built in mechanism for the devices to check in with SOTI to look for an OS Update specifically, but a Package or File Sync Rule can be created that distributes the ZIP file containing the update and with a Post-Install script that executes the update. OEMVersion (Zebra's specific maintenance build numbers) can be used as a filter criteria for Profile eligibility in recent versions of SOTI.
I am a new user, and I have some TC8000's I need to updated the OS from 4.4.3 to 5.1.1.
Where do I get the zip files from to push to the devices?
You can download this zip file from Zebra Support page.
https://www.zebra.com/us/en/support-downloads/mobile-computers/handheld/tc8000.html
Hello,
is there a way to automatically get the device back into the Wi-Fi after installing the system update?
For this particular scenario, upgrading the TC8000 device from Kit Kat to Lollipop will leave them in a factory default state. In the future, upgrading a Lollipop minor build to another Lollipop minor build will preserve the device configuration including wifi connectivity and SOTI enrollment. You would have to re-connect to WiFi and re-enroll using the MobiControl Stage client on the device if you're upgrading TC8000s from K->L
Once defined, how is this Android Enterprise System Update maintenance window actually adhered to? Is it only applicable to apps being deployed via Managed Google Play?
When configuring a FileSync Rule, you can specify a device System Update schedule. Is it the same thing ?
set_system_update_policy policy type [startTime] [endTime]
Where
Note:Regarding the time parameters for Windowed policy: Time parameters are measured as the number of minutes from midnight in the device's local time. They must be in the range of 0-1440.
If the start and end times are the same, the window is considered to include the WHOLE 24 hours, that is, updates can install at any time. If start time is later than end time, the window is considered to span midnight.
Example
To set the system update policy as default:
set_system_update_policy 0
To set the system update policy as windowed with the maintenance window set to occur from 11 pm to 3 am:
set_system_update_policy 2 1380 180
The time window defined with "set_system_update_policy" applies to system firmware update delivered from server(s) of the OEM device manufacturer. This control mechanism is only applicable to Android Enterprise devices in managed-device mode.
On the contrary, MobiControl File-Sync rule supports both uploading and downloading of ANY files between MobiControl server and devices. The mechanism is applicable to Generic Android, Android Plus, Android Enterprise, Windows, iOS, etc., though different platforms may have different access restrictions on device directory/file. Most OEM brands do not distribute official device firmware (flash binary image) file from their support site, and thus file-sync rule cannot be used to distribute and initiate system update for such devices. Zebra is one exception - with the flash binary image file distributed from their official support web site, file-sync rule configured with appropriate post-script can be used to perform system firmware update.
