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Enrolling an unmanaged device as supervised

An unsupervised iOS device can retroactively be registered in Apple DEP without users losing their data and content. According to Apple documentation, restoring a backup on the same device restores the device management status from the backup — an unsupervised device cannot be converted into a supervised DEP state directly from its own backup. The following workaround routes the backup through a second temporary device: because restoring to a different device applies device management from Apple School or Business Manager instead.

Apple describes this behavior as follows:

  • Restoring from a backup to the same iPhone or iPad restores device management status from the backup.
  • Restoring from a backup to a different iPhone or iPad obtains device management status from Apple School / Business Manager.

Example

If a device is configured to be supervised and automatically enrolled in MDM, but is restored from a backup created when that same device was unsupervised, the device becomes unsupervised. An unsupervised device cannot be directly restored from its own backup if supervised mode and Apple DEP registration are desired — which is why routing through a second device is required.

Preparing the DEP Recovery Profile

Create a dedicated temporary DEP profile in Relution for this workaround with the following settings:

  • Enable Allow pairing with Macs or PCs and configuration via Apple Configurator.
  • Do not skip the setup step Allow Device Location.
  • Do not skip the setup step Restore from Backup.
  • Do not skip the setup step Sign in with Apple ID.

Learn more about configuring a DEP profile in Relution: Configure DEP Profile →

Workflow

1. Backup

Create a backup of the unsupervised Device-01 via iCloud or locally on a Mac or PC. Restore this backup onto a second device, Device-02. Then create a new backup of Device-02 via iCloud or locally — this second backup will later be restored onto Device-01 and will be treated as a backup from “another device”.

2. Preparation

Reset Device-01 to factory settings. Add Device-01 to Apple School / Business Manager using Apple Configurator 2. Learn more in Adding Apple devices to DEP retroactively →. Assign the temporary DEP recovery profile to Device-01.

3. Integration in Relution

Assign Device-01 via Apple School / Business Manager to the corresponding Relution server with the prepared DEP recovery profile. Set up the device by following the setup assistant on the device.

4. Restore Backup

On Device-01 in the setup assistant, select Restore Apps & Data and choose the backup created from Device-02. For iCloud backups, use the same Apple ID used during backup creation.

Because the backup originates from Device-02, the restore counts as a restore on a different device: management settings are not taken from the backup, but from the DEP profile configured in Relution — making Device-01 supervised and DEP-enrolled.

After successful restore, switch back to the default DEP profile. The setup step for restoring backups on the device will no longer be displayed.