 Next, in the menu bar click on the date and time. Then choose "Open Date & Time Preferences..."  In the Date & Time window, if there is a lock in the lower left corner click it and enter in the Administrator username and password. (This will allow you to edit the settings in this window.) Next, near the top of the window uncheck "Set date and time automatically". In the area directly below this, manually adjust the date and time boxes by clicking on the individual numbers for each section and typing in the correct number. Once this step is complete, click the 'Save' button but do not close the Date & Time window as you will need to return to it at a later step. Have you ever received the following error message when attempting to open Configurator using the cart MacBook? If you answered "yes," then chances are the MacBook isn't connecting to the CPS network because the date and time are incorrect. To confirm, click on the date and time time listed in the menu bar at the top right of the screen—sometimes just the year is incorrect; other times all the information is incorrect. To resolve this issue you must first turn off the Wi-Fi on the MacBook. Written by Gerald Proctor, iOS Device Management Administrator   Go back to the menu bar, click the Wi-Fi icon, and choose "Turn Wi-Fi On." After a few moments the MacBook will automatically join the CPS network. Now that you have a working internet connection, return to the Date & Time Preferences window and check the box next to "Set date and time automatically" to re-enable this feature. Close the Date & Time window.
You should now be able to open Configurator and not receive the "could not refresh the iOS update catalog." error message.
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 If you’ve ever spent time reading through release notes for software updates, then you know they can sometimes be vague and wonder if updating will really benefit you. When reading through the recently released iOS 8.3 update notes, one line item especially caught our eye, “Addresses an issue where some devices disconnect intermittently from Wi-Fi networks.” Part of the iOS Support Team’s testing of iOS 8.3 was to challenge this known Wi-Fi issue as we have encountered it in schools across the district—iPads spuriously dropping off the network or the Wi-Fi speed reducing to a crawl. It appears the issue was a software bug in the iOS and how it communicates with wireless access points (WAPs). Most WAPs, including the ones in our schools, have two radios. One radio broadcasts at 5GHz—this is the “fast lane”—and the other radio broadcasts at 2.4GHz—this is a “slower lane”. What was happening with the iPads, before this update, was that they were only choosing the fast lane and overwhelming the WAPs with the number of connected devices. Normally, if a device cannot connect to the WAP’s first radio (the fast lane), it would move over to the other radio (the slower lane). The iPads would not move over to the slower lane, causing them to either completely disconnect from the WAP, dropping off the network, or search for and attempt to connect to another WAP—even if it was almost out-of-range. The iOS 8.3 update has resolved this “network lane switching” issue and iPads will move over to a WAP’s 2.4GHz radio thus alleviating traffic and reducing devices disconnecting intermittently from the Wi-Fi network! So the big question, should I update? Short answer is maybe. This update would be immediately beneficial for schools with either a high density ratio of devices to WAPs or devices being used in wide open areas. NOTE: This update can not fix any structural issues like bricks and concrete that affect Wi-Fi connectivity. The two wild cards we have to consider are additional iOS updates from Apple and testing windows. Apple is releasing new products next week which will probably prompt an increase in the frequency of iOS updates that ITS would have to test. PARCC testing starts back up again at the end of the month and NWEA is right around the corner. If you lift the Apple Block to update the iPads on a day while your school is testing, the school could experience Wi-Fi issues—disrupting testing. Please consider scheduling any iPad iOS updating for a time that works best for your school’s environment and don’t forget to put in a ticket, 24 hours in advance, to have the Apple Block lifted during the update day. If you have any specific questions about updating the iPad iOS, please feel free to send them to iPads@cps.edu Written by Samantha Miller, iOS Device Management Administrator - Team Lead
    In parts 2 and 3 of this 4 part iOS Passcode lock series, you learned how to remove a passcode lock located on the lock screen with Apple Configurator and AirWatch. Now, we will discuss how to remove a passcode lock using recovery mode for a disabled iPad, an iPad that is locked in Guided Access, or that had locally created Restrictions that need to be turned off and the passcode is unknown. Written by Gerald Proctor, iOS Device Management Administrator When the Apple logo appears, release ONLY the Sleep/Wake button and continue to hold the Home button until the connect to iTunes graphic appears on the iPad screen. Next, connect the iPad to the computer. Ignore any message that appears in iTunes. On the iPad, press and continue to hold BOTH the Sleep/Wake button and the Home button. You will need to continue to hold BOTH of these buttons as the iPad screen goes black and restarts—this can take upto 60 seconds. In iTunes, if there was a message that appeared when you originally connected the iPad press cancel to this message. A pop-up window should appear explaining that the software on the iPad needs to be restored to factory settings or updated. On the keyboard, press and hold the option key and then click the Restore button. NOTE: Placing an iPad into Recovery Mode and restoring it to remove a passcode completely erases all the information, apps, photos, and profiles from the iPad. If the iPad was previously supervised via Apple Configurator, the iPad must be re-supervised after placing it into Recovery Mode and restoring it. Before you Begin
Recovery Mode & Restoring the iPad First, using a computer, open iTunes.  In the pop-up window, navigate to the downloads folder, select the iOS update file you downloaded earlier from the Compliance Site, and click Open.  NOTE: If you select the incorrect iOS Update file you will receive a message stating that the iPad could not be restored because the firmware file is not compatible. Click OK. Hold down the option button and click Restore iPad. Navigate to the downloads folder and choose the appropriate iOS Update file. You may need to download a different iOS Update file from the Compliance Site if the original downloaded file does not work for the model iPad you are attempting to restore. If the appropriate iOS Update file was chosen, the below message will appear...  Click Restore. The process will take about 10 minutes to complete and you will see the iPad screen go black and an Apple logo will appear with a progress bar beneath it. Once the process is complete iTunes will display a "Welcome to Your New iPad" message.  Ignore the "Welcome to Your New iPad" options in iTunes, disconnect the iPad from the computer, and quit iTunes.
You have now successfully completed placing the iPad into Recovery Mode and restoring it via iTunes. If the iPad was originally supervised via Apple Configurator you will need to open Apple Configurator and re-supervise the iPad. If the iPad was not supervised you can now manually proceed to set the iPad up via the iPad set up screens. |
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