Send a command to a device
A command is one thing you tell the device to do: lock the screen, ask for information, turn on Lost Mode. The device must be Enrolled and online before it can do it.
When to use thisYou need to act on one device now, not to set Wi-Fi or a lasting restriction (that is a profile or a policy).
How to send
Open the device page. Click Send command.
The Command box lists only commands this device can run. The line above counts how many commands are hidden. Run now sends immediately. Schedule, then pick Date and time, to set a time — the send button then becomes Schedule. Choose the command. Click Send.
Open the Commands tab. The Status column uses these words:
- Pending — the command was created. The device has not been woken, or the device said it was not ready so the command is held.
- Queued — the device was woken, and the command is waiting for the device to come online.
- Sent — the command was delivered. The device has not finished answering yet.
- Acknowledged — the device finished and confirmed. For Install Application on a device that is not supervised, this status can mean the phone is asking the person to allow the install. Open the Apps tab. If the app is not under Installed apps, it is not installed yet.
- Failed — the device or the system reported an error.
- Canceled — the command was canceled before the device did it.
Command history for the demo device. The Acknowledged column is when the device confirmed, not when you clicked Send.
Commands often used on iPhone and iPad
| Command | What the device does | Requires |
|---|---|---|
| Device Information | Sends the name, operating system, and serial again. | Enrolled |
| Security Info | Says whether the device has a screen passcode. | Enrolled |
| Installed Application List | Lists apps. | Enrolled |
| Installed Configuration Profiles | Lists profiles on the device. | Enrolled |
| Lock Device | Locks the screen. Also in the … menu → Lock device. | Enrolled |
| Clear Passcode | Clears the screen passcode. | The Passcode lock row on the device page shows Unlock token present |
| Change Device Name | Renames the device. | Supervised |
| Setting Wallpaper | Sets the lock-screen wallpaper, the Home Screen wallpaper, or both. A PNG or JPG image, up to 5 MB. | Supervised |
| Enable Lost Mode | Locks the device and shows the message you wrote. After the device confirms, the Lost Mode row becomes Active. | Supervised |
| Device Location | The device sends coordinates. See the Location tab. | Lost Mode is on |
| Play Lost Mode Sound | The device plays a sound so you can find it. | Lost Mode is on |
| Disable Lost Mode | Turns Lost Mode off. | Lost Mode is on |
| Change Roaming Settings | Sets Voice Roaming and Data Roaming to On, Off, or No change. Send stays off until at least one row is On or Off. Turning Data Roaming On also turns voice roaming on. On iOS 16 and later, the dialog says to prefer Data Roaming. | An Enrolled iPhone. Supervision is not required |
Recovery Lock on a Mac
Set Recovery Lock locks recoveryOS and the Startup Options screen on a supervised Apple silicon Mac running macOS 11.5 or later. Daily login still works. An Intel Mac does not have this command. After the Mac confirms, the system checks the password. A mismatch does not remove the lock. Clearing the lock is a separate action in the same command. If the password is lost while the Mac stays enrolled, Recovery stays closed until MDM clears the lock or the Mac is unenrolled.
Initialize Device wipes the device. Restart Device and Shut Down Device restart or power off. Read the command name before you click Send. The dialog hides commands this device cannot run — if a command is missing, the device is not supervised or not Enrolled.
Installing and removing profiles, and installing apps, are usually not sent by hand here. Assign them on Configuration profiles and Apps so the system pushes them.
Common questions
- The command is stuck on Queued or Sent, and does not become Acknowledged?
- The device is offline, out of battery, or the push certificate has a problem. Unlock the device, check the network, then see Push certificate.
- I renamed it, but the page still shows the old name?
- The name on the page comes from the device’s reply. Wait until Change Device Name or Device Information is confirmed by the device.
- Lost Mode is finished — what next?
- Send Disable Lost Mode. Do not leave the device stuck on the lost screen.
- Clear Passcode is Acknowledged, but Passcode lock still says Unlock token present?
- That row means the remote-clear token is still there. It does not say whether a screen passcode is set. Send Security Info to see that.
- Install Application is Acknowledged, but the Apps tab does not list the app?
- A device that is not supervised is asking the person to agree. Ask them to confirm on the phone. Do not read Acknowledged as “the app is installed.”