How to Manage Corporate Android Devices Remotely

Managing corporate Android devices remotely is essential for any company with a field team, devices spread across branches, or fleets of tablets and smartphones outside the central office. This guide covers the main remote management features available in a modern MDM.

Essential remote commands

An MDM built on Android Enterprise lets you run remote, real-time commands such as:

• Lock the device: immediately locks the screen, useful in case of loss or suspected misuse.
• Locate the device: retrieves the device's geographic location (when policy and the end user's consent allow it).
• Wipe data: removes corporate data from the device, fully or partially, in case of loss, theft, or an employee's departure.
• Reboot the device: useful for applying policy updates or resolving freezes remotely.
• Reset password: forces a PIN or password reset without needing physical access to the device.

Continuous monitoring

Beyond one-off commands, remote management includes continuous monitoring of:

• compliance status against the defined policies;
• operating system version and update needs;
• installed apps and storage usage;
• battery level and connectivity.

Applying policies in bulk

Instead of configuring devices one by one, an MDM lets you define a policy once and apply it to entire groups of devices — by branch, role, or operation type — with automatic updates whenever the policy changes.

What to consider before enabling monitoring

As the administrator, you act as the data controller with respect to the devices' end users. Before enabling features like location tracking, it's important to clearly inform employees about what's being monitored, for what purpose, and to ensure this aligns with applicable labor and data protection law.

Conclusion

Remote management is what separates a secure, scalable Android device operation from a reactive, vulnerable one. See it in action with a free 14-day trial on ZonixEM.