Groups

What Are Device Groups

A Group is a collection of devices that you manage as a single unit. Instead of configuring each iPhone, iPad, or Mac individually, you add devices to a group and manage the group. Every device in the group inherits the same settings, apps, and policies.

Why Use Groups

Groups let you organize devices along any dimension that matters to your organization:

• By department — Engineering, Sales, HR, Finance
• By role — Managers, Field Staff, Executives, Interns
• By location — NYC Office, London Office, Remote Workers
• By device type — iPads, MacBooks, iPhones, Apple TVs
• By use case — Kiosk Mode, Point of Sale, Digital Signage

This structure scales from a handful of devices to thousands. Add a new hire's device to the right group, and it is automatically configured — no manual setup per device.

Group Colors

Each group can be assigned a color for quick visual identification in the dashboard. When browsing your device inventory or group list, the color badge helps you spot which group a device belongs to at a glance. This is especially useful when a device belongs to multiple groups — the color coding makes membership relationships immediately visible.

Adding and Removing Devices

Add Devices to a Group

1. Navigate to Device Groups in the sidebar.
2. Select the target group.
3. Click Add Devices.
4. Choose devices from the list or search by name, serial number, or model.
5. Confirm the selection.

Remove Devices from a Group

1. Open the group's device list.
2. Select the device(s) you want to remove.
3. Click Remove from Group.
4. Confirm. The device retains its current configuration but will no longer receive group-level updates.

Bulk Import by Serial Number

For large deployments, you can add devices to a group in bulk by serial number:

1. Open the target group.
2. Click Import Devices.
3. Paste a list of serial numbers (one per line) or upload a CSV file.
4. GuardMDM matches each serial to an enrolled device and adds it to the group.
5. Review the results — any unmatched serials are reported so you can investigate.

This is the fastest way to populate groups when onboarding a fleet of new devices.

A Device Can Belong to Multiple Groups

Unlike a strict hierarchy, GuardMDM allows a single device to be a member of multiple groups simultaneously. For example, an iPhone can belong to both the Sales group and the Remote Workers group. This flexibility lets you layer organizational dimensions without duplicating device records.

When a device is in multiple groups, it receives the combined configuration from all assigned Blueprints. If two Blueprints define the same setting, the most restrictive value applies.

Groups and Blueprint Assignment

Groups are the link between devices and their configuration. A Blueprint is assigned to a group, and every device in that group receives the Blueprint's settings. This is the core management flow:

To assign a Blueprint to a group:

1. Go to Blueprints and select the Blueprint you want to assign.
2. Under Assigned Groups, click Add Group.
3. Select the group(s) that should receive this Blueprint.
4. Save. Devices in the selected groups will pick up the Blueprint on their next check-in.

For detailed management instructions, see the Device Groups section.