Skip to main content

Avoid Unexpected App Removal

  • Updated

Apple’s “Offload Unused Apps” Option

The NIH Toolbox is updated multiple times throughout the year, as well as when Apple releases a new iOS update, so it is important to keep your iPad and your NIH Toolbox V3 app updated. To obtain the latest version of iOS, see Settings > General > Software Updates on your iPad. Please be aware that newer versions of iOS automatically remove infrequently used apps. To ensure the NIH Toolbox app does not get offloaded by accident during your iOS update, we recommend turning off the automatic function that offloads unused apps from your iPad before updating your iPad’s iOS system. To turn off the automatic Offload Unused App function, please go to Settings > General > iPad Storage > Offload Unused Apps.

 

 

Device Management Services

Please be aware that apps installed by a device management service can potentially be removed for reasons outside of the NIH Toolbox apps’ control. If any of your NIH Toolbox apps are to be installed via a device management service (e.g., MDM), the apps can be removed automatically when that system drops the iPad or when the app license is taken back. This happens without anyone touching the iPad and without changing anything else on it. In terms of licenses, your IT group controls which iPads are allowed to have these apps because they “licensed” them by getting them from the App Store. If that permission is moved to another device or the iPad was dropped from the management system, the apps are removed automatically. We believe it is likely that the apps, if confirmed that were installed by your IT group, can be removed if the devices are unenrolled from the device management system.

 

Please communicate with that service provider and/or your institution’s IT team to ensure the NIH Toolbox app(s) will NOT be unexpectedly removed from the device.

 

Managed apps can be removed from a device:

  • Remotely by the device management service by removing the app configuration or sending a remove application command.
  • When a user unenrolls a device from a device management service.
  • Unenrollment also removes applied app configurations and their associated apps.
  • If the app was installed using the app installation command, an attribute can be set which defines whether the app gets removed upon unenrollment.
  • Managed apps are always removed when unenrolling from an account-driven enrollment.

 

On an iPhone, iPad, and Apple Vision Pro, removing a managed app also removes its associated data in its data container.

 

For more information from Apple about distributing managed apps, please refer to the “Remove managed apps” section here: https://support.apple.com/guide/deployment/distribute-managed-apps-dep575bfed86/web.

 

 

 

 

Data entered in and collected by the NIH Toolbox apps are stored in the app. If the app is removed from the iPad, that data is lost. It is best practice and highly recommended to regularly export your data and ensure it is securely backed up. For more information:

Related to