Microsoft has finished the fourth version of its Windows Intune management service, with an obvious yet needed focus on mobile device management.
Allegedly December 17th was the target date to release the new wave including Windows 8, RT and Windows Phone 8 support. But existing customers will have to wait until mid January for the new features.
Besides adding support for the latest versions of Windows and Windows Phone, the new version of Windows Intune enables sideloading of applications for Microsoft and non-Microsoft devices.
Wave D also brings to the table agent-based management for not only Windows RT and Windows Phone 8, but also iOS. This is great news and moves away from the reliance of EAS via Exchange although android will still need EAS for management.
Most customers who were on Office 365 or other hosted Exchange platforms could never use EAS to manage mobile devices, so this is great news.
Microsoft has also modified the pricing and licensing for Windows Intune with the latest release, providing a $6 per user per month version too (with no Software Assurance rights and no Windows Enterprise license) for use for managing up to five devices.
