This blog will focus on the new look of the improved Intune Company Portal UI and examine how this refreshed look will also improve the user experience!
Introduction
The Intune Company Portal app is designed to make life easier for both end users and IT administrators. It allows users to install third-party applications, corporate apps, and other apps.
Luckily, Patch My PC has almost every app you need in its catalog. This ensures that the end user can manually install every app they need on their own. After opening the new, improved Intune Company Portal app, the end user can install the app themselves by selecting it and clicking on install. Easy, right?
Giving end users the possibility to install (or uninstall) applications on their own turf also means the IT administrator doesn’t have to deploy every app during the Autopilot process. This can save time and reduce errors during device enrollment. The app’s simple design and real-time updates make it user-friendly, while also helping IT teams manage apps and monitor compliance more effectively. Overall, the new Company Portal makes application deployment and device management more straightforward and efficient.
Key Features and Improvements
Let’s look at some graphical improvements Microsoft implemented to give the Company Portal app a nice makeover.
Company Portal App Home Page
The Home page now displays apps, including featured ones, and shows a device status overview in the top right corner. The side menu icons have also been updated for a fresher look.
Downloads & Updates
The Downloads & Updates page lists installed apps and apps currently in the download queue. For instance, you can see FileZilla Client is installing, and its progress has just reached 100%.
After it finishes installing successfully, the famous toast message will appear, mentioning that the FileZilla Client application was just installed.
Notifications
A new Notifications button on the Company Portal app’s home page provides quick access to the latest notifications.
With these notifications, you can quickly determine if an application failed to install. For example, if an application fails to install, you will receive a notification that mentions which apps failed to install.
Company Portal Device Page
The Device page highlights compliance status in a color-coded block, making it easier for users to spot issues. Users can view suggested remediation steps, review device information, and take necessary actions for their device.
In the example below, the Company Portal app shows that I am good to go and that I can securely access the company resources. If my device status changes, I could easily try to fix it myself by clicking on Check Access.
This will make sure that the device attempts to retrieve the latest compliance status.
Now that we have examined the major changes let’s find out how we could deploy the new Company Portal version and improve user onboarding.
How to Deploy the Preview Version Manually
Before the Company Portal reached General Availability (GA), you were required to download the preview version from the Microsoft Download Center manually.
Once you download the new Intune Company Portal, Upload the Company Portal app installation file and all necessary dependencies for your device architecture.
After selecting the proper appx bundle file, you must also upload the required files based on the Windows Operating system architecture. In the example below, I selected the x64 versions.
Once you have uploaded all the required files, you must assign the app to a small group of test devices or users. Also, make sure that you configure the install context to Device Context.
If you’re using Autopilot Device Preparation (AP-DPP), you’ll need to assign the Company Portal to the same just-in-time device group you configured in the Autopilot profile. Alternatively, you could assign it to all devices, but that’s probably not the most efficient approach.
Fortunately, in October, Microsoft rolled out a new version of the Company Portal, bringing with it the ability to leverage the built-in Microsoft Store option.
How to Deploy the new UI Company Portal Automatically
During the week of October 7th, Microsoft announced the updated UI for the Intune Company Portal app on Windows.
With this update, any existing Company Portal installations on devices will automatically get the new version. Plus, admins can now deploy the Company Portal straight from the Microsoft Store, making the deployment process even easier!
Please Note: When assigning it to System, you could run into issues when using AP-DPP, so please make sure it is configured to User.
Conclusion
The updated Company Portal App UI has a fresh design and improved user experience. With this refreshed new Company Portal, installing the applications published with Patch, My PC is going to be a lot more fun!
If you want to learn more about the company portal’s details, sign up for the Intune Company Portal Demystified webinar!
