Dell lets businesses manage mobile devices through K3000 appliance

Dell Software has released the K3000 Mobile Management Appliance in its Kace series. Through this appliance, companies can manage both business and personal mobile devices running iOS and Android, according to Dell.

In its Kace series, Dell has already released some appliances for managing desktops and servers in a network, such as the Kace K3000. With the introduction of the K3000 the manufacturer focuses on the management of mobile equipment by it system administrators. With this, Dell says it is responding to the bring your own device development in which employees bring their own tablet or smartphone and the need of companies to manage these in a secure manner.

Security policies can be enforced on iOS and Android devices with a maximum of 10,000 devices through the K3000 management interface. The software works with iPhones and iPads running iOS 4, 5 and 6, and smartphones and tablets running Android 2.2+. To do this, an agent application must be installed on the mobile device.

Using various policies, certain features of a device or tablet can be disabled or made inaccessible, such as the camera or the ability to install software. These policies can be defined in profiles. It is also possible to remotely lock devices or wipe them via remote wipe. Another feature of the Kace K3000 appliance is the push of business applications.

The K3000 can be run as a virtual appliance on existing hardware, but a physical version will also be available. Furthermore, the management system would be compatible with the K1000 management application. As of January, the K3000 will only be delivered to existing Kace customers, but Dell plans to release more details about a further rollout next year.