DDM updates fail on iPads in Intune

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Level 1

5 points

DDM updates fail on iPads in Intune

Hi I am looking into using DDM to update iOS devices in Microsoft Intune as the previous update profiles are being deprecated.

I created a configuration profile with the update setting to Enforce Latest Software Update Version, 1 day delay (for test purposes).

iOS 26.3.1 is currently the newest.

I targeted one iphone (ios 26.3)and one iPad (iPadOS 26.2), the iPad is supervised. Intune say the config is successfully assigned to both.

The iPhone gets the setting and is enforcing the update, and the iPad does not.

The iPad says the current installed version is required by Januar 1st at year 1:

The iphone says it will install by March 9th 2026 (sorry it is in Norwegain language):

I tested withe several different config, but the result was the same.

My initial thought was that this might be because the iPad was supervised.

I have access to a second tenant, so then I tested the same there. I targeted one iPhone and one iPad (both are unsupervised and both running iOS 26.3).

The result was exactly the same, Intune says both devices got the config successfully, but on the devices, only the iPhone got the correct setting (Install 26.3.1 by this morning), the ipad says install 26.3 by January 1st year 1.

Does anyone else have issues updating iPads using DDM? Or see what I am doing wrong?

Posted on Mar 9, 2026 2:56 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Bebrillet

Level 1

8 points

Mar 16, 2026 3:14 AM in response to vidar34

Hello,

We are experiencing almost the exact same issue. We have been using the DDM software update with the Enforce Latest policy since fall 2025 with good results. However, over the past few weeks, we’ve noticed that it has stopped working. The policy is applied to supervised iPads, and we are also located in Norway.

Here is what we have tried so far in our troubleshooting:

Removed the profiles from several devices and re-applied them
Wiped a few iPads and applied the policy again
Created a new policy using DDM Enforce Latest combined with Forced Automatic Updates and applied it to some devices
Created a new policy using Targeted Version instead of Enforce Latest — this is the only thing that worked

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Answer 2

Mar 9, 2026 5:20 AM in response to vidar34

This may not be a configuration issue.

Declarative Device Management support for software update enforcement isn’t always consistent between iPhone and iPad in Intune. Many admins have reported that the “Enforce Latest Software Update Version” declaration works reliably on iPhones but sometimes fails to trigger on iPads even when the profile shows as successfully applied.

A few things you can check:

- Make sure the iPad is supervised and enrolled through Automated Device Enrollment (ADE).

- Confirm the device is running iPadOS 17 or later, since DDM features depend on newer OS versions.

- Try forcing a manual sync and restart of the iPad after the policy is applied.

If the iPhone enforces the update but the iPad does not under the same configuration, it is likely a current Intune/DDM limitation rather than a policy problem.

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Answer 3

vidar34 Author

Level 1

5 points

Mar 9, 2026 6:47 AM in response to karlabensi

Hi karlabensi

Thank you for your reply.

I have tried to google this a lot but I cannot find much written about it.

I would think this feature is widely in use, for various kiosk devices at least, and also a lot of large firms would like to have the security updates on track, but it does not seem that way..

A few things you can check:

- Make sure the iPad is supervised and enrolled through Automated Device Enrollment (ADE).

This is not a requirement for this setting, and it works fine on the two non-supervised iPhones I tested.

- Confirm the device is running iPadOS 17 or later, since DDM features depend on newer OS versions.

As stated, the iPads are running 26.2 and 26.3

- Try forcing a manual sync and restart of the iPad after the policy is applied.

This has already been tried several times.

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Answer 4

vidar241

Level 1

8 points

Mar 23, 2026 7:19 AM in response to Bebrillet

I got notifications on my 2 test iPads during last week/this weekend, so perhaps Apple or MS has done something?

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Answer 5

Mar 23, 2026 7:30 AM in response to vidar241

Yes, seems to be working now!

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