Skip to main content

Jamf Pro - Distributing Configuration for Apple devices

This article describes how to integrate Apple devices with SurePath AI using the Jamf Pro platform

Updated over 3 weeks ago

About this document

This document covers creating the required policy that distributes the proxy configuration and the root CA certificate via the Jamf Pro platform. It does not include steps on any other parts of the Jamf platform including initial Jamf configuration or device enrollment.

Prerequisites

Supported platforms

  • MacOS 12 and later

  • iPadOS 16 and later

  • iOS 16 and later

Downloading the MDM files

The MDM deployment files are available from the Proxy Connector configuration page in the SurePath AI admin interface.

  • Click Connectors in the CONFIGURE section

  • Select an existing Proxy connector or click ADD CONNECTOR to create a new one

  • If creating a new connector, provide a descriptive name and select Proxy as the connector type, then click SAVE

  • From the connector details page, download the MDM files for your environment using the DOWNLOAD button in the MDM Files section

The downloaded ZIP file contains deployment files for both Windows and Apple platforms. For Jamf Pro deployments, the following Apple configuration profiles are available:

  • Apple iOS/iPadOS: Configuration profile (surepath.ai.ios.mobileconfig) for any Apple MDM

  • Apple macOS: Configuration profiles for any Apple MDM (surepath.ai.macos.mobileconfig) and JAMF-specific profiles with user identification (surepath.ai.macos.jamf.email.mobileconfig, surepath.ai.macos.jamf.udid.mobileconfig)

The SurePath AI PAC file

SurePath AI distributes its proxy information via a Proxy Auto-Config (PAC) file. This PAC file contains all the information needed to direct only generative AI traffic to the SurePath AI proxy service while sending other traffic via their normal route.

The use of a PAC file also allows SurePath AI to update the list of generative AI domains. Most operating systems and browsers will request the PAC file every 1-2 hours and if a new file can’t be retrieved the current one will continue to be used.

The SurePath AI root CA certificate

Just like other network security and SASE vendors, certificate trust allows SurePath AI to intercept and apply policy to connections to generative AI website. The SurePath AI root CA certificate needs to be trusted by all devices that need to be governed by SurePath AI.

User identification and policy application

Organizations can deploy SurePath AI proxy configurations through standard Apple configuration profiles. However, basic configuration profiles typically set a PAC URL without user-specific identifiers, which means all traffic from a device is associated only with the Proxy Connector itself. This approach is known as Connector authentication, where SurePath AI can identify which connector the traffic came from but cannot distinguish between individual users on shared devices or associate native application traffic with specific users.

The JAMF-specific SurePath AI configuration profiles enhance this capability by including unique identifiers in the PAC URL. These profiles leverage JAMF payload variables to include user email addresses or device UDIDs. Organizations deploying through JAMF should use one of these JAMF-specific profiles rather than the basic profile. When email addresses are included in the PAC URL, SurePath AI can immediately identify users and attribute their traffic without requiring any additional steps. When device UDIDs are used as the unique identifier, SurePath AI can associate traffic with users after they sign in to a GenAI service for the first time, enabling ongoing identification of all traffic from that unique identifier.

This improved user identification provides several operational benefits. First, it significantly reduces instances of Connector authentication in User Activity logs, making it easier for admins to audit and report on individual user behavior. Second, it enables more granular policy application based on user identity rather than just device or connector identity. This is particularly valuable for organizations that need to apply different policies to different users or groups, as SurePath AI can enforce user-specific or group-specific policies even for traffic that would otherwise only be identifiable at the connector level.

Configuring Jamf Pro

SurePath AI provides Apple configuration profile (mobileconfig) files that can be deployed through Jamf Pro to configure proxy settings and certificate trust. These files are available from the Proxy Connector configuration page in the SurePath AI Admin UI.

JAMF-specific configuration profiles

For organizations using JAMF Pro, SurePath AI provides configuration profiles that leverage JAMF payload variables to include user-specific identifiers in the PAC URL. These profiles enable user-level traffic attribution without requiring users to authenticate.

The following JAMF-specific profiles are available for macOS devices:

Profile

Platform

Identifier Type

JAMF Variable

surepath.ai.macos.jamf.email.mobileconfig

macOS

User email

$EMAIL

surepath.ai.macos.jamf.udid.mobileconfig

macOS

Device UDID

$UDID

When JAMF deploys these profiles, it automatically substitutes the payload variables with actual values:

  • Email identification ($EMAIL): JAMF replaces this variable with the user's email address from JAMF's user records. This enables SurePath AI to immediately identify users and apply user-specific and group-specific policies from the first request.

  • UDID identification ($UDID): JAMF replaces this variable with the device's unique identifier, which serves as a unique identifier for all traffic from that device. After a user signs in to a GenAI service for the first time, SurePath AI associates that unique identifier with the user, enabling ongoing identification of traffic from that identifier. This approach ensures users sign in before their activity is tracked.

Organizations should use one of these JAMF-specific profiles rather than the basic profile without variables. The choice between email and UDID depends on organizational requirements. Security-focused organizations may prefer UDID-based identification because it requires users to sign in before their traffic is associated with their identity. Email-based identification provides immediate user recognition and policy application, which can streamline the user experience when user email information is reliably available in JAMF.

For iOS and iPadOS devices, use the standard surepath.ai.ios.mobileconfig profile, which configures proxy settings without user-specific identifiers.

Creating the Configuration Profile for MacOS devices in Jamf Pro

  • Log in to the Jamf Pro web interface

  • Browse to Computers on the left

    • Click on Configuration Profiles under Content Management

  • Click Upload in the upper-right area of the pane

  • In the Upload OS X Configuration Profile modal, click the Choose File button

    • Select the appropriate mobileconfig file for macOS (either surepath.ai.macos.mobileconfig for basic deployment, or one of the JAMF-specific profiles with user identification: surepath.ai.macos.jamf.email.mobileconfig or surepath.ai.macos.jamf.udid.mobileconfig)

    • Click Open

  • On the New macOS Configuration Profile page, click on the Scope tab

    • Assign the Configuration Profile to the desired targets

      • Consult the Jamf Pro documentation for more details on scoping

    • Click Save

  • The configuration profile will now be deployed

Creating the Configuration Profile for iPadOS and iOS devices in Jamf Pro

  • Log in to the Jamf Pro web interface

  • Browse to Devices on the left

    • Click on Configuration Profiles under Content Management

  • Click Upload in the upper-right area of the pane

  • In the Upload iOS Configuration Profile modal, click the Choose File button

    • Select the surepath.ai.ios.mobileconfig file

    • Click Open

  • On the New iOS Configuration Profile page, click on the Scope tab

    • Assign the Configuration Profile to the desired targets

      • Consult the Jamf Pro documentation for more details on scoping

    • Click Save

  • The configuration profile will now be deployed

Verifying the SurePath AI integration

After deploying the configuration profiles to Apple devices, admins can verify that endpoints are properly configured to integrate with SurePath AI by using the Ready tool at ready.surepath.ai. This verification tool checks both certificate trust and network configuration to ensure that GenAI traffic will be properly routed through and governed by the SurePath AI platform.

To verify the integration, navigate to ready.surepath.ai from a configured endpoint. The tool automatically runs tests and displays validation results. If both the Certificate Trust and Network Configuration tests show green Valid results, the endpoint is properly integrated and GenAI traffic originating from that device will be processed by SurePath AI.

Interpreting results

If the Certificate Trust test shows a red Invalid result, it means that the SurePath AI root certificate is not trusted by the device or browser. This could be the result of the certificate not being deployed to the device yet. Admins should check the device's local certificate trust store for the SurePath AI Root CA certificate. If the certificate has been deployed and verified as installed, the device might need to be restarted for the browser to read the newly added SurePath AI root CA certificate.

If the Network Configuration test shows a red Invalid result, it means that the SurePath AI platform is not receiving traffic from the endpoint. This is most likely due to the network configuration not being pushed to the device. Some browsers or applications, like Firefox, ignore system-level proxy settings and have internal proxy settings that will need to be configured separately from the system-level settings that are configured in this document.

Please reach out to your SurePath AI account team if you have any questions or issues with the SurePath AI integration.

Did this answer your question?