This control gives macOS, Windows and Linux devices consistent names, generated by AI from employee and device details. Use it to keep your inventory readable without renaming machines by hand.

Feature/Functionality

Overview

You describe the naming format in a prompt. Factorial IT turns that prompt into a name for each device and pushes it through MDM.

How to use

1. Go to MDM > Controls > Add new control and choose Device naming.
2. In Naming pattern configuration, explain how each name is built: which attributes, in what order, with which separators and which case. See Write the prompt below for an example.
3. Say what to do in edge cases, such as devices with no serial number or devices with no one assigned.
4. Use only letters, numbers and hyphens.
5. Click Preview. Factorial IT runs your prompt on up to 5 randomly chosen devices of the control's platform and shows each one's Current name and Projected name. Check the result before you deploy.
6. Run the preview before you save, and run it again every time you edit the prompt. Saving is not possible without it.
7. Choose where the control applies: all devices, specific device groups, or a custom target.

If older network systems in your company enforce the NetBIOS length limit, keep names under 15 characters. This mainly affects Windows devices.

How it works

Factorial IT runs the naming prompt when a device is enrolled or when its assigned employee changes. It then sends the resulting name to the device through MDM. The employee does not have to do anything. Devices on Windows Home, and devices where scripts are switched off, are not renamed.

• macOS: both the computer name and the hostname change, with no restart.
• Windows: the computer name changes and doubles as the hostname. The new name only applies after the next restart, and Factorial IT does not force that restart.
• Linux: the hostname changes and doubles as the computer name.

Whenever the details behind a name change, the name is worked out again, so your inventory stays up to date.

Write the prompt

You can refer to attributes with placeholders in double curly braces, such as {{serialNumber}}, or simply describe them in words, in any language. These attributes are available:

There is no username attribute. If your prompt asks for a username, Factorial IT builds one from the first letter of the first name followed by the last name.

Example

Format: {{platform}}-{{serialNumber}}
- Platform: MAC for macOS, WIN for Windows, LIN for Linux.
- Serial number in uppercase.
- No serial number: use STOCK-XX, where XX is a two-digit number.
- 15 characters maximum: when the serial number is too long, keep its last characters.
Example: WIN-5CD1234XYZ

• The first line sets the order of the parts and the separator between them.
• Each following rule deals with one part, or with one situation where an attribute is missing.
• XX asks for a number that goes up: Factorial IT takes the highest number already in use with the same prefix and adds one. If STOCK-01 and STOCK-03 exist, the next device becomes STOCK-04.
• The final example line shows the case and length you expect.

Factorial IT leaves a device's name alone when it already matches your format. So write the format as rules for building a name from attributes, not as a list of names to allow or block.

Length and character limits

• Hostnames are cut at 63 characters. On Windows and Linux the computer name is the hostname, so the same limit applies. On macOS the computer name can be up to 64 characters.
• On Windows, a longer name is still applied in full, but the NetBIOS name only keeps the first 15 characters. If you need a shorter limit, say so in the prompt and confirm it in the preview.
• Windows does not accept a computer name made up only of digits (see Microsoft's Rename-Computer documentation). If a name could end up as a bare serial number, add a prefix in the prompt.

Edge cases

Add a rule for each situation that applies to your devices. When the prompt has no rule for a situation, Factorial IT uses the default shown here.

Change or switch off the control

Open the control from MDM > Controls to edit or disable it. Saving the control while it is active renames every targeted device again. Disabling stops enforcement. It does not remove settings already applied on devices.

Troubleshooting and FAQ

Troubleshooting

• The preview is empty.
  • The preview only picks devices of the control's platform. If your inventory has none, a message says so. Retired devices are not counted.
  • The preview ignores the control's targeting. It chooses at random from the first 100 devices of that platform found by Factorial IT.
  • The preview table only appears while the control is switched on in the form.
  • Factorial IT could not build a name for the devices it chose. Run the preview again.
• The projected name is the same as the current name.
  • The device was already named by a device naming control, and the preview can reuse that name. Saving the control while it is switched on renames every targeted device from the new prompt.
  • The current name already fits your format as Factorial IT reads it, so it is kept. Make the format stricter: fixed parts, order, case and length.
• The preview shows different devices each time. This is expected: devices are chosen at random on every preview.
• A Windows device still shows its old name. The new name only applies after the next restart. Devices on Windows Home, or with scripts switched off, are never renamed.
• A device kept its old name after you disabled the control. This is expected. Disabling stops enforcement but does not undo names already applied.

FAQ

1. Does the employee have to do anything when the name changes?
   No. On macOS and Linux the change applies in the background. On Windows it applies after the next restart, which Factorial IT does not trigger.
    
2. When is a device renamed?
   When it is enrolled, when its assigned employee changes, whenever the details used in the name change, and every time you save the active control.
    
3. Can I use a username in the name?
   There is no username attribute. If the prompt asks for one, Factorial IT builds it from the first-name initial and the last name.
    
4. Does the control work on iPhone, iPad or Android?
   No. It supports macOS, Windows and Linux.