computer science

Mobile application management

Mobile application management is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Mobile application management rather than just read about it. In short: Mobile application management (MAM) describes the software and services responsible for provisioning and controlling access to internally developed and commercially available mobile apps used in business settings, on both company-provided and 'bring your own' mobile operating systems as used on smartphones and tablet computers. Mobile application management provides granular controls at the application level which e…

Key takeaways

Mobile application management belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Mobile application management to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Mobile application management from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Mobile application management (MAM) describes the software and services responsible for provisioning and controlling access to internally developed and commercially available mobile apps used in business settings, on both company-provided and 'bring your own' mobile operating systems as used on smartphones and tablet computers. Mobile application management provides granular controls at the application level which enable system administrators to manage and secure application or 'app' data. MAM differs from mobile device management (MDM), which focuses on controlling the entire device, and requires that users enroll or register their device, and install a service agent. While some enterprise mobility management (EMM) suites include a MAM function, their capabilities may be limited in comparison to stand-alone MAM solutions, because EMM suites require a device management profile in order to enable app management capabilities.

History Enterprise mobile application management has been driven by the widespread adoption and use of mobile applications in business settings. In 2010, the International Data Corporation (IDC) reported that smartphone use in the workplace will double between 2009 and 2014. The 'bring your own device' (BYOD) phenomenon is a factor behind mobile application management, with personal PC, smartphone, and tablet use in business settings, vs. business-owned devices, rising from 31 per cent in 2010 to 41 per cent in 2011. When an employee brings a personal device into an enterprise setting, mobile application management enables the corporate information technology (IT) staff to download required applications, control access to business data, and remove locally cached business data from the device if it is lost or stolen, or when its owner no longer works with the company. Use of mobile devices in the workplace is also being driven from above. According to Forrester Research, businesses now see mobile as an opportunity to drive innovation across a wide range of business processes. Forrester issued a forecast in August 2011 predicting that the "mobile management services market" would reach $6.6 billion by 2015 – a 69 per cent increase over a previous forecast issued six months earlier. Citing the plethora of mobile devices in the enterprise – and a growing demand for mobile apps from employees, line-of-business decision-makers, and customers – the report states that organizations are broadening their "mobility strategy" beyond mobile device management to "managing a growing number of mobile applications". Mobile application management has started using machine learning and behavior tracking to improve app security and enforce company policies, especially for personal devices used in the workplace (BYOD). The advent of Internet of Things (IoT) has been changing lives for the better. It is not limited to homes but, has a pivotal role connecting teams, devices and decisions. With more connected devices, there is a boost in data generation, data analysis and reporting.

App wrapping Application (or app) wrapping was a favoured method of applying policy to applications as part of mobile application management solutions. Normally, application wrapping is performed using a Software Development Kit (SDK) from an application or EMM seller that permits an engineer or administrator to convey an application programming interface (API) that empowers board arrangements to be set up. For instance, an application-wrapping API would allow an administrator to control who is allowed to download an application and whether corporate information accessed throught eh application could be copied or shared. Application wrapping can be applied during internal software development or sometimes later to commercially accessed apps by inserting additional executable codes through the SDK. One commonly used application platform, Microsoft's Office 365, presents a set of challenges to its management. Previously, Office 365 did not support application management through third-party EMMs, unless it was through its InTune cloud-based administration service. Increasingly, the likes of Apple and Samsung are overcoming the issue of app wrapping. Aside from the fact that app wrapping is a legal grey zone, and may not meet its actual aims, it is not possible to adapt the entire operating system to deal with numerous wrapped apps. In general, wrapped apps available in the app stores have also not proven to be successful due to their inability to perform without MDM.

System features An end-to-end mobile application management solution provides the ability to: control the provisioning, updating, and removal of mobile applications via an enterprise app store, monitor application performance and usage, and remotely wipe data from managed applications. Core features of mobile application management systems include:

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Mobile application management

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Mobile application management claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Mobile application management before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Mobile application management ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Mobile application management

In research: Mobile application management appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Mobile application management in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Mobile application management is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Mobile device management, Mobile software, Mobile telecommunication services, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Mobile application management outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Mobile application management in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Mobile application management means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Mobile application management out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mobile application management in simple terms?

Why does Mobile application management matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Mobile application management?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Mobile application management.