Lesson 21: Policy Overview

Jamf 100 Course
Solution
Application
Content Type
Training Content
Utilities & Services
ft:locale
en-US

Goal

Explore Jamf Pro policies for Mac computers, including what they are, how they are created, and what makes them special.

Video

Key points

  • Policies can be run on managed computers using Jamf Pro.

  • Common management tasks available with policies include:

    • Installing software packages

    • Running scripts

    • Adding printers

  • The jamf binary is used to run policies and does not require the Apple Push Notification service (APNs).

  • One policy is configured by default in every new instance of Jamf Pro: Update Inventory.

    • This policy determines computer inventory collection frequency.

  • Policies consist of four fundamental components:

    • Content: configured payloads

    • Trigger: when the policy is configured to run

    • Execution Frequency: how often the policy runs

    • Scope: the computers/users for which the policy is configured to run

  • Policies can be configured to run automatically, made available in Jamf Self Service, or both.

  • Jamf Pro keeps logs to monitor the users/computers for which a policy has run, is pending, or has failed.

    • Flushing the most recent log entry for a user/computer allows the policy to be run again at the next trigger event.

  • Policies can be added to the Jamf Pro Dashboard, a tool that allows administrators to easily monitor the status of many policies at once.

Review

To view answers, click arrow next to each question.

  1. What are the four fundamental components of a policy?
    The four fundamental components of a policy are configured payloads, a trigger, an execution frequency, and scope.
  2. What part of the Jamf Management Framework facilitates the use of policies on an enrolled computer?
    The jamf binary checks for policies on enrolled computers.
  3. Can a policy be configured to run automatically and made available in Self Service?
    Yes, a policy can be both triggered automatically and made available in Self Service.

Practice

  1. Navigate to Computers > Policies.

  2. Create a new policy.

    1. Configure the policy:

      1. Trigger: Recurring Check-in

      2. Execution Frequency: Once per Computer

      3. Scope: Deploy to a test computer enrolled in your Jamf Pro instance.

    2. Click the Maintenance payload and configure:

      1. Update Inventory: Deselected

      2. Reset Computer Names: Selected

    3. Save the policy.

  3. Verify the policy has run by checking the policy log in Jamf Pro.

Resources

Jamf 100 Course

Jamf Pro Documentation