The term
Unified Endpoint Management is the software category that brings enrolment, configuration, monitoring and protection of every device touching company data into a single console.
The term came from merging three things companies used to buy separately: MDM, for mobile devices; EMM, for enterprise mobility; and desktop management tooling. Instead of one dashboard per operating system, IT and security work with one policy applied to the whole fleet.
UEM, MDM and RMM
| What is compared | MDM | RMM | UEM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Focus | Mobile devices | IT infrastructure | Every endpoint touching data |
| Console | One per system | One per environment | A single one, for the whole fleet |
| Security policy | Per device profile | Maintenance-oriented | Ports, network, sites and programs |
| Operation monitoring | No | Machine metrics | Activity, screen and productivity |
| Incident response | Remote wipe | Ticket and script | Precautionary lock and shutdown |
The endpoint lifecycle
Unified management only works when it covers the whole endpoint. There are four stages, and the platform runs all of them:
- 1Enrol: the agent is installed and the device joins the company inventory.
- 2Configure: policies reach the device and start taking effect.
- 3Monitor: telemetry, activity and captures land in the console in real time.
- 4Protect: a detected deviation becomes an alert, a lock or a remote shutdown.
Where to see it in practice
The UEM page on the site walks through the full lifecycle with the controls at each stage, plus a detailed comparison between UEM, MDM and RMM.
Frequently asked questions
- Does UEM replace my MDM?
- In practice yes, when the fleet is laptops and desktops. UEM covers the same ground as MDM and goes further, with one policy for the entire fleet.
- Do I need UEM with only a few devices?
- The gain shows up around the first ten: that is the point where applying policy machine by machine stops being viable.
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