Manage VPP app and book distribution

You can assign and revoke apps and assign books you purchase through the Volume Purchase Program (VPP) to users and user groups.

There are several ways to distribute apps and books to users and in each case, the user must accept an invitation and have an Apple ID. Invitations can be done by user, by user group, or by devices already associated with users. For example, you can invite an entire group of users who have devices already assigned to them. The invitation can go to the device, not necessarily the user.

Note:  You must have port 25 open on your firewall for Profile Manager to send the invitation to users. If you want to use your mail server as a relay, select “Relay outgoing mail through ISP” in the Mail service and enter your outgoing mail server name in the window.

  1. Create users or bind to another supported directory service. For information, see Create a user account in Server Help.

  2. Install the Volume Purchase Program service token. For information, see View app and book purchases in Server Help.

  3. Invite users or groups to enroll in VPP managed distribution. For information, see Invite users to enroll in VPP managed distribution and Invite groups to enroll in VPP managed distribution.

  4. Use the Profile Manager sidebar to select the user, or group that will receive the apps or books, then click the Apps or Books tab.

  5. Click Add add button to select an app or book from the list, or click Delete delete button to revoke an app that has already been assigned, then click OK.

    Once you assign an app or book to a user or group, the number of apps or books available for assignment decreases accordingly. When you revoke an app, the number increases.

  6. Click Save.

    When users log in to the App Store on their Mac or iOS device, the app appears as available for installation in the Purchases list. Assigned books appear in iBooks. If you want apps or books to be downloaded without user interaction, see Push purchased apps and books to users and user groups.