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Glossary

App deployment

App deployment is the process of getting an application installed, configured and kept up to date on a fleet of devices from a central console, without anyone touching each handset. For an IT team it replaces emailed download links and store searches with silent installs, assignment by group, and an install report the next morning.

How it works

Three ingredients: a source for the app, a target group, and a delivery mechanism the OS trusts.

On Android, public apps come from Managed Google Play, where the admin approves an app for the organization and the MDM installs it into the work profile or onto a fully managed device with no Google account prompt. Private apps are uploaded to the same Managed Google Play catalog or delivered as an APK by the MDM. On iOS and iPadOS, licenses come from Apps and Books in Apple Business Manager (the old VPP), assigned per device so no personal Apple Account is needed; in-house apps arrive as IPA files signed for enterprise distribution or as Custom Apps published privately through ABM. Windows apps deploy as MSI or Win32 packages, or from the Microsoft Store for Business successor, WinGet.

The console then decides the mode. Required apps install silently and can't be removed. Available apps sit in a catalog the user picks from. Managed app configuration ships the server URL and tenant settings with the install, so first launch works.

Updates follow the same path. On Managed Google Play the admin can pick a default, priority or postponed update policy per app since 2020; on iOS the MDM pushes the new version to managed apps. For internal builds, uploading version 3.2 and assigning it to a group is the whole release.

Why it matters for a fleet

The first time you deploy 14 apps to 400 devices by hand, you learn why this exists. Someone forgets one. Someone installs the wrong version from a link forwarded twice. Six months later, support can't tell which build runs where.

Deployment also solves the account problem. Field workers on Android scanners shouldn't need a Google account to receive the delivery app, and iPads in a hospital shouldn't need an Apple Account per nurse. Device-based licensing on both platforms removes that friction.

The honest caveat is staged rollouts. A broken build pushed to every device at once is a broken fleet. Deploy to a pilot group of 20 first, wait a day, then widen.

How Appaloosa handles it

Appaloosa deploys public apps through Managed Google Play and Apple VPP, and private apps from your own uploads: APK and IPA files, versioned, assigned per device group, with Custom Apps supported through Apple Business Manager. Managed app configuration travels with the install, updates are pushed by assigning a new version, and removal is one action that takes the app and its data off the work side. The full scope is on the Mobile Application Management page.

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Frequently asked questions

Can I deploy an app without the user having a Google or Apple account?
Yes on company-managed devices. Managed Google Play installs apps into the managed profile with a managed Google Play account the MDM creates silently, and Apple's device-based licensing through Apps and Books assigns the license to the device serial number. Users never sign in to a store.
How do I roll back an app version after a bad release?
For your own builds, assign the previous version in the console and the MDM installs it, although Android won't downgrade silently unless the device is fully managed and the policy allows it. For public store apps, you can't roll back; you can only block the app or pause its update policy. That's why a pilot group before full rollout is worth the extra day.
What's the difference between a required and an available app?
A required app installs silently and reappears if the user deletes it, which suits business-critical tools such as the delivery or ticketing app. An available app is listed in the company catalog and installs only when the user asks, which suits optional tools and keeps storage under control on older devices.