Declarative Device Management: What IT Teams Need to Know

Apple announced that legacy MDM software update commands are going away. If you manage Apple devices, your current update workflow is on a deprecation clock, declarative device management is the only path forward. Deanna, Product Manager at Jamf, breaks down the shift from imperative to declarative management, demos how to configure software update deferrals through Jamf Blueprints, and previews what's coming next on the Jamf Pro roadmap — including enhanced reporting, audit history, role-based access, and advanced scoping. What You'll Learn: ► Why Apple deprecated legacy MDM software update commands at WWDC 2025, and what replaces them ► How declarative device management shifts update enforcement from server-side polling to device-side state management ► Step-by-step: configuring software update deferrals in Jamf Blueprints ► Jamf Pro roadmap: reporting, change management, sites support, activation predicates CHAPTERS: 0:00 Introduction: What IT Teams Need to Know About DDM 1:15 About Jamf: Apple-First Management and Security 2:23 Imperative vs. Declarative Device Management: The Big Shift 4:48 Software Update Methods:Legacy, Third-Party, and Declarative 6:27 WWDC 2025: Apple Deprecates MDM Software Update Commands 7:22 What Are Jamf Blueprints? 8:21 Blueprints Year in Review: Features Shipped Q1–Q4 9:56 Demo: Configuring Software Update Deferrals in Blueprints 13:12 Scoping and Deploying a Blueprint to Managed Devices 14:06 Coming Soon: Enhanced Reporting and Device-Level Status 16:07 Change Management: Audit History for Blueprints 17:14 Role-Based Access and Sites Support for Blueprints 18:34 Advanced Scoping, Exclusions, and Activation Predicates 20:29 Apple DDM Spec Coverage and Roadmap Ahead 23:18 Getting Started: Single Sign-On with Jamf Account 24:15 7 Best Practices for Migrating to Declarative Device Management #applemdm #mobiledevicemanagement #jamf #devicemanagement