Device-Driven Management Workflows for Offline Compliance Enforcement
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Solution Overview
Problem
The management of enterprise resources using device-driven workflows faces challenges due to the proliferation of personal devices, leading to security issues and management failures caused by network connectivity losses and conflicts between workflows depending on different library or application versions, especially when executed during prohibited times.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of device-driven management workflows that handle conflicts by using a state machine language to specify tasks based on the current state of the client device, enabling the client device to direct deployment operations and enforce policies, profiles, and compliance rules, even in scenarios with network connectivity issues.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If device-driven management workflows are implemented to handle conflicts using state machine language, then compliance and security are enforced, but network connectivity requirements increase bandwidth consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-loads and caches workflow definitions, compliance rules, and device state schemas into local storage on the client device before network connectivity is lost. This allows the device to execute management workflows and enforce compliance rules offline without consuming additional bandwidth, resolving the contradiction between maintaining reliable compliance enforcement and reducing bandwidth consumption.
2Extent of automation
If continuous network connectivity is required for management service communication, then centralized control is maintained, but management failures occur during connectivity loss
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the device management architecture into autonomous components: the client device contains a local workflow engine with cached workflow definitions and a state machine interpreter that can execute independently offline. This segmentation allows centralized control to be maintained when connected while ensuring management continuity during connectivity loss, as the local engine autonomously handles compliance enforcement without real-time server dependency.
3Productivity
If device-driven workflows are executed on client devices, then deployment efficiency improves, but conflicts arise between workflows depending on different library or application versions
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates and caches a complete copy of the workflow definition including all required library and application version specifications in the device's local storage. The state machine language interpreter on the client device executes workflows using these cached copies, ensuring consistent execution environments regardless of conflicts between different workflow versions. This copying approach maintains deployment efficiency while ensuring workflow execution consistency by isolating each workflow's dependencies from system-wide version conflicts.
4Productivity
If personal devices are allowed for enterprise use, then cost savings and productivity gains are achieved, but security risks and management complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the operational parameters of device management by implementing offline-capable workflows that can enforce compliance rules and deploy updates without continuous network connectivity. This allows personal devices to be managed effectively despite their diversity, as the state machine language interpreter adapts to different device states and configurations locally. The parameter change from online-dependent to offline-capable management reduces the complexity of managing heterogeneous personal devices while maintaining security and productivity benefits.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are various embodiments for recognizing state changes in client devices and managing the state of client devices using device-driven management workflows. A computing device can receive a state of a client device. The computing device can then determine if the received state matches an expected, compliant state of the client device. When the computing device determines that the received state does not match the expected state, the computing device can identify a remedial workflow that would bring the client device into compliance. The computing device can send the remedial workflow and an instruction to run the remedial workflow to the client device.