15.6 Refreshing a Device

A device refresh can be initiated in the following ways:

Scheduled Refresh
Manually Triggered Refresh
- Quick Task Refresh initiated by the Administrator.
- ZENworks User Portal or ZENworks Agent App refresh initiated by the end user.

15.6.1 Initiating a Scheduled Refresh

The Device Refresh schedule lets you define how often a device contacts the ZENworks Server to update information such as policies and bundles.

During a scheduled device refresh, data from the ZENworks Server cache is read and delivered to the device. Therefore, if an action is assigned to a device you need to wait until the server cache is updated with the assignment, which is determined by the value specified in Assignment Optimization Settings. For more information on Assignment Optimization Settings, see Infrastructure Management Settings in ZENworks Management Zone Settings Reference.

For example: If a bundle is assigned to a device and the Refresh Device quick task is executed immediately, then the bundle might not deploy on the device. If you want to install the bundle immediately, you can instead execute the Install Bundle quick task.

This schedule can be defined at three levels:

Management Zone: The schedule is inherited by all device folders and devices. To configure this setting, navigate to Configuration > Management Zone Settings > Device Management > Device Refresh and Removal Schedule.

Device Folder: The schedule is inherited by all devices contained within the folder or its subfolders. Overrides the Management Zone refresh schedule. To configure this setting, navigate to Devices > <Folder (Details)> > Settings > Device Management > Device Refresh and Removal Schedule.

Device: The schedule applies only to the device for which it is configured. Overrides the refresh schedules set at the Management Zone and folder levels. To configure this setting, navigate to Devices > <Select a Device> > Settings> Device Management > Device Refresh and Removal Schedule>

NOTE:If you are configuring this setting at a Device Folder or at Device level, then you need to click Override or else the default setting will apply.

Timed Refresh

This option ensures that for multiple devices that have the same refresh schedule, the ZENworks Server does not initiate their refresh at the same time. The default value is 120 minutes and the minimum value that you need to set is 60 minutes. For example, if you have 1000 devices with the same refresh schedule, you might overburden your ZENworks Server. By selecting this option, the server waits a randomly generated amount of time before initiating the refresh on these devices.

To define the refresh schedule fill in the following fields:

Fill in the following fields to define the schedule:

Days, Hours, Minutes: Specifies the maximum amount of time within which the mobile devices should refresh. For example, to set the refresh time as 8.5 hours, you would specify 0 Days, 8 Hours, 30 Minutes.
Click Apply to save the settings.

15.6.2 Manually Triggered Refresh

If you do not want to specify a refresh schedule, then select Manual Refresh on the Device Refresh and Removal Schedule page (Configuration > Device Management > Device Refresh and Removal Schedule). This option lets users manually initiate a refresh. Manual refresh can be initiated by:

Using the Refresh Device quick task.
Using the Refresh icon on the ZENworks Agent App or the ZENworks User Portal.

During a device refresh initiated manually, ZENworks bypasses the server cache and it retrieves the latest updates and send these updates to the devices.

Refresh Device Quick Task

You can initiate a device refresh through a ZENworks Control Center quick task. The quick task sends a synchronization request to the device. When the device connects to the ZENworks Primary Server, it uploads updated device information and receives configuration changes (for example, policy changes) that have not already been sent to the device. This quick task is applicable for Android and iOS devices that are enrolled as fully managed devices in the management zone.

In ZENworks Control Center, click Devices > Mobile Devices to display your enrolled mobile devices.
Select the check box in front of the Android or iOS device you want to refresh, click Quick Tasks > Refresh Device to display the Refresh Device quick task.
Retain the default values of the quick task options and click Start to initiate the device refresh.
Click Hide to close the quick task, after the quick task is initiated.
Click in the upper-right corner of the Devices list to refresh the list.

The device’s Last Contact time is updated to show the refresh time.
(Optional) Click the device to show its properties, then review the Device Information page for any updated device information. For more information, see Viewing Device Information.

Refresh Device on the User Portal or the ZENworks App

Click the Refresh icon on the ZENworks User Portal for iOS devices or the ZENworks Agent app for Android Devices. When a refresh is initiated from the device, the device connects to the ZENworks server, it uploads updated device information and receives configuration changes (for example, policy changes) that have not already been sent to the device.