Understanding the user experience with Managed OS for macOS
Managed OS is a Kandji feature that enforces macOS updates to keep your company's devices safe and secure.
macOS 14 and Later
Notifications
Notifications for software updates in macOS 14 & Later are handled by macOS. You will see prompts like the example below instead of being notified in the Kandji Menu Bar app. You can choose to install the update right away, schedule it for that night, or simply ignore it and install it at a later date.
macOS will notify you once per day leading up to the deadline. 24 hours before the deadline, the notification will appear hourly and ignores Do Not Disturb. In the last hour before enforcement, you will be notified at 30 minutes and then every 10 minutes.
If a device is not turned on when the enforcement deadline passes, the update is scheduled for 60 minutes after it is powered on and realizes it is behind its scheduled enforcement. Kandji cannot control the contents or timing of these notifications, as the operating system determines both.
Information about an update being enforced is also visible in System Settings:
macOS 13 and Earlier
Update Notifications
You will receive a banner notification once the update is cached. Clicking on the notification will open the Kandji Menu Bar App.
Updating macOS Inside the Kandji Menu Bar App
You will notice the Kandji menu bar app has a red dot indicating that an action is required. This indicator will begin to appear once the update is cached.
When clicking on the Kandji menu bar app dropdown, you will see the available macOS update and its version.
The update will be visible in the Kandji menu bar app as soon as it is cached.
Update Confirmation: Once you click the Update button in the menu bar app, they will be presented with the update information and the option to start the update immediately. Once you click Start Update, all open apps will be forcibly closed and kept closed until the update is finished.
Install in Progress: After you start an update via the Kandji menu bar app, they will be shown the following Install in Progress window. The Mac will automatically reboot to complete the update installation.
Enforcement Deadline Reached
Once the enforcement deadline has been reached, the Kandji menu bar app will open, displaying a 30-minute countdown, giving you time to close all programs and save their work.
If you don't click Update Now by the end of the countdown, Kandji will forcibly close all apps and begin the upgrade.
Delay 1 hour: You will also have the option to delay the enforced install by one hour, each hour, for up to an additional 24 hours. This helps prevent installations from disrupting critical activities during the working day.
Installation Failure
When you use the menu app to allow Kandji to update or upgrade macOS, and that MDM-initiated update or upgrade cannot be completed successfully, the menu app guides you to manually complete the update or upgrade via System Settings (in macOS Ventura) or System Preferences (macOS Monterey or earlier). If you ignore that initial prompt, the Kandji menu app will continue encouraging you to complete the task, with increasing frequency over time. This helps ensure that all users update to the appropriate macOS version as soon as possible.
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