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Android devices with multiple policies

What

Android Policies can be used to manage settings on Android devices. For a list of some of the things that can be managed take a look at Android EMM Policies and Permissions.

When/Why

When more than one policy is applied, how will you know which settings are in effect? In reality, Android only supports 1 policy at a time so what is the logic used when combining them?

How

This is the crucial ordering.  merge_policy_fragment() follows the principle of "most restrictive" policy wins, but what is more correct in those gray areas of competing information?  For example, which fragment wins if there are two conflicting WiFi configurations?  In that case, the last one, as ordered by distance first (in DESC order), and ties won by the most recently created association. 

  1. This ordering is the reverse of other sections of the FW code because here, "last one wins".  So, closer distance overwrites farther distance. 
  2.  Being precise, we (FileWave) do not order beyond (distance, assoc_id) in other parts of the code.  We do here, however.

For even more clarity about what is installed, you can look at Device Details for a device in FileWave Central. Go to the Installed Policy tab and see the policy as it was sent to the device. This view will let you know exactly what was sent.

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