Every technology category has its own vocabulary, and mobile device management is no exception. Conversations with vendors, product documentation, and deployment guides assume familiarity with terms that are not always explained. If you are evaluating MDM platforms, planning a deployment, or simply trying to understand what your IT team is recommending, knowing these terms makes the entire process easier.
This glossary covers the core MDM vocabulary in plain language, organized by category. It is designed to be a reference you can return to throughout the evaluation and deployment process.
Platform and Architecture Terms
MDM (Mobile Device Management): The category of software that allows organizations to remotely manage, configure, monitor, and secure mobile devices including tablets, phones, kiosks, and signage players. Moki is an MDM platform purpose-built for dedicated customer-facing device deployments.
EMM (Enterprise Mobility Management): A broader category that includes MDM alongside mobile application management and mobile content management. EMM platforms are typically designed for managing employee devices across a corporate environment. MDM is a subset of EMM.
UEM (Unified Endpoint Management): An even broader category that extends EMM to include traditional computing endpoints like laptops and desktops alongside mobile devices. General-purpose UEM platforms often add MDM as a feature, while purpose-built MDM platforms like Moki focus exclusively on mobile and dedicated devices.
MDM Server: The cloud-based infrastructure that hosts the MDM platform and maintains the connection with all enrolled devices. When IT teams refer to the MDM server, they mean the backend system that sends instructions to and receives data from managed devices. For cloud-based MDM like Moki, this infrastructure is hosted and maintained by the vendor.
Dashboard: The web-based interface where administrators view the status of the device fleet, push configurations, manage groups, set alerts, and troubleshoot devices. Moki’s dashboard is the central operational tool for fleet management.
Enrollment and Provisioning Terms
Enrollment: The process of establishing a managed connection between a device and the MDM platform. Once a device is enrolled, the platform can monitor it, send it configurations, and manage it remotely. Enrollment is typically a one-time process per device.
Zero-Touch Enrollment: An automated enrollment process for Android devices where the device enrolls itself automatically at first power-on without any manual configuration at the device. Requires hardware purchased through a zero-touch certified reseller.
Apple Business Manager (ABM): Apple’s platform for managing device purchases and enrollment for organizations. When iOS devices are purchased through Apple’s channel and linked to ABM, they enroll automatically in the connected MDM platform when powered on. Moki integrates with Apple Business Manager for supervised iOS enrollment.
Android Enterprise: Google’s framework for managing Android devices in business environments. Provides deep OS-level management capabilities including Device Owner mode for kiosk deployments. Moki supports Android Enterprise for fully managed Android device deployments.
Android Agent: Moki’s proprietary MDM application for Android devices that provides device management capabilities on hardware that may not fully support the Android Enterprise framework. Moki’s Android Agent extends management compatibility to a wider range of Android hardware.
Pre-Registration: Registering a device’s serial number in the MDM platform before the device is powered on, so that when the MDM agent is opened on the device, enrollment completes automatically without manual input. Moki supports pre-registration for Android Agent devices.
Supervised Mode: An iOS-specific designation for organization-owned devices that enables a significantly expanded set of MDM management capabilities. Supervised mode is required for Single App Mode, the deepest level of kiosk lockdown on iOS. Supervision is applied through Apple Business Manager or Apple Configurator 2.
Device Enrollment Program (DEP): Apple’s original name for the automated enrollment capability that is now managed through Apple Business Manager. You may still see DEP referenced in older documentation. It refers to the same concept as ABM-based automated enrollment.
Configuration and Policy Terms
Configuration Profile: The set of settings, restrictions, app assignments, and policies that define how a managed device behaves. Configuration profiles are created in the MDM dashboard and applied to devices or device groups. They cover everything from kiosk mode settings to Wi-Fi credentials to security requirements.
Kiosk Mode: A device configuration that restricts the device to a single application or defined set of applications. In kiosk mode, users cannot navigate outside the designated app, access the home screen, or reach device settings. Moki’s kiosk mode enforces this restriction at the OS level through Android Enterprise or iOS supervised mode.
App Lock: Another term for restricting a device to a single application. Often used interchangeably with kiosk mode, though some platforms distinguish between single-app lock and multi-app kiosk environments.
Single App Mode: The iOS-specific implementation of full device lockdown to one application. Only available on supervised iOS devices. When Single App Mode is active, the Home button behavior is controlled by MDM, notifications are suppressed, and all navigation outside the designated app is blocked.
Device Owner Mode: The Android Enterprise configuration that gives the MDM platform system-level control over an Android device. The most powerful and secure form of Android device management. Required for OS-level kiosk lockdown on Android.
Allowlist: A list of approved applications or URLs that a device is permitted to access. Everything not on the allowlist is blocked. Used in combination with kiosk mode to define exactly what a device can and cannot do.
Compliance Policy: A set of rules that define what a compliant device configuration looks like. Devices that fall outside the defined parameters are flagged as non-compliant, triggering an alert or automatic remediation action.
App Distribution Terms
VPP (Volume Purchase Program): Apple’s program for purchasing app licenses in bulk and distributing them to supervised iOS devices through an MDM platform without requiring individual Apple IDs on each device. VPP is now managed through Apple Business Manager.
Managed Google Play: Google’s mechanism for organizations to approve apps from the Play Store and push them silently to Android Enterprise enrolled devices without user interaction.
Silent Installation: Pushing an application to a device without any user prompt or interaction required at the device. Silent installation is a key MDM capability that allows apps to be deployed and updated across a fleet without involving anyone at the device location.
Sideloading: Installing an Android application directly from an APK file rather than through the Play Store. Used for enterprise or proprietary apps that are not published publicly. Supported on Android devices managed through Moki.
Remote Management Terms
Remote Screen View: The ability to see the live screen of a managed device from the MDM dashboard. Moki supports remote screen view for Android and BrightSign devices, allowing IT teams to see exactly what is happening on a device without being physically present.
Remote Control: Full interactive access to a device’s screen, allowing the IT team to interact with the device using a mouse and keyboard from the MDM dashboard. Moki provides remote control for Android and BrightSign devices.
Remote Reboot: Sending a restart command to a device from the MDM dashboard without physical access. Resolves many common device issues including frozen applications and connectivity problems.
Remote Wipe: Erasing all data and settings from a device remotely from the MDM dashboard. Used when a device is lost, stolen, or decommissioned. After a remote wipe, the device returns to factory default state.
OTA (Over-the-Air): Refers to updates, configurations, and data delivered to devices wirelessly through the network connection rather than through a physical cable or on-site visit. Nearly all modern MDM operations are OTA.
Monitoring and Alerting Terms
Application Environment Monitoring: Moki’s feature for tracking real-time device health data including network status, battery level, memory usage, and application performance for every enrolled device.
Alert Threshold: The specific condition that triggers a notification. For example, an offline alert threshold of 15 minutes means an alert fires when a device has been unreachable for 15 minutes. Thresholds are configurable in the MDM platform.
Heartbeat: The regular check-in signal a managed device sends to the MDM server to confirm it is online and operating normally. If heartbeat signals stop, the platform registers the device as offline and may trigger an alert.
Fleet: The complete collection of devices managed under a single MDM account or organizational unit. Fleet management refers to the ongoing operational work of monitoring, configuring, and maintaining all devices.
Device Group: A logical collection of devices in the MDM platform organized by location, device type, platform, or any other attribute. Groups are the primary mechanism for targeting configurations and updates to specific subsets of the fleet without managing each device individually.
Security Terms
Encryption: The process of converting data on a device’s storage into an unreadable format that requires a cryptographic key to access. Encryption protects data on devices that are lost, stolen, or physically accessed without authorization.
Passcode Policy: MDM-enforced requirements for device access codes, including minimum length, character complexity, and lock screen timeout. Applied through the configuration profile.
Remote Lock: Locking a device remotely from the MDM dashboard so it cannot be used without an administrator code. Different from remote wipe, which erases the device. Remote lock is typically the first response to a lost or potentially compromised device.
Certificate: A digital credential used to authenticate the connection between a device and the MDM server, verify app sources, or establish secure network connections. MDM platforms use certificates to ensure that only authorized devices and platforms can communicate.
Starting Your MDM Journey
Knowing these terms is the foundation for making informed decisions at every stage of the MDM evaluation, procurement, and deployment process. When a vendor says they support zero-touch enrollment through Android Enterprise with Device Owner mode and compliance-based alerting, you now know exactly what that means and what questions to ask next.
Schedule a Moki demo to see these capabilities demonstrated on your specific device type, or explore Moki’s FAQ for answers to specific questions about how each feature works in practice. Start a free trial to begin exploring the platform and applying these concepts to your own deployment.