How FileWave turns your changes into device work

Start with the pieces you will use

In FileWave, deciding what a device should receive and delivering it are separate steps. Understanding those steps will help you deploy content and troubleshoot problems.

You will work with these pieces:

• FileWave Server holds your management configuration and coordinates work for devices. FileWave can host it for you, or your organization can run it on premises.
• FileWave Central is the administration application for macOS and Windows. FileWave Anywhere provides browser-based administration for supported workflows. This guide will name the interface used in each exercise so you do not have to translate between screens.
• A managed device is an endpoint you have brought under management. Windows and macOS can use the FileWave Client software; MDM enrollment is a different management connection. Your platform's enrollment lesson will explain which connection your exercise requires.
• A Fileset is an item you prepare for delivery, such as files, an application installer, or a supported configuration profile. The available types and delivery methods depend on the platform.
• A Deployment connects the content to its intended targets and settings. It answers: “What should these devices receive, and how should it be made available?”

Creating content and targeting it are different actions. Importing an installer alone does not tell FileWave which devices should receive it.

What Model Update means

The model is the server's published management configuration. Update Model is the action that commits pending model changes so applicable device work can be distributed. You may also hear this action called a Model Update.

For example, you can prepare a Fileset and save a Deployment targeting one test computer. Saving the Deployment does not confirm that the computer has received the content. Review the pending changes and choose Update Model to publish them.

This is not a FileWave Server software upgrade, an operating-system update, or simply a refresh of the screen.

A Model Update commits pending changes from all FileWave administrators, not only your own. In a shared environment, coordinate with the other administrators before updating the model. A test group limits your Deployment's targets; it does not make the Model Update itself private to your test.

In FileWave Central, click Update Model in the toolbar to open the Update Server Model dialog. It asks, “Do you really wish to update the FileWave server model?” Choose Update Model to confirm, or Cancel if you are not ready. The dialog is a confirmation, not a preview of pending changes. Before opening it, review your Deployment targets, content, and other pending work, and coordinate with other administrators.

Central asks you to confirm the Model Update. This dialog does not display a list of pending changes.

Publishing is not the same as finishing

Use this sequence to understand a deployment:

Prepare the content → choose and review targets → save the Deployment → review pending changes → Update Model → verify the result.

A higher server model number confirms that a new model was committed. It does not confirm that a particular device is online, that a download has finished, or that an application installed successfully.

For a Windows or macOS FileWave Client workflow, the Client checks for applicable work and processes its updated instructions. Network availability, check-in timing, download size, installation conditions, and any schedule you configured can affect when the result appears. An offline computer cannot immediately receive the change.

MDM has its own platform-specific delivery and status behavior. Follow the verification steps in the Apple or Android exercise rather than applying desktop Client troubleshooting to every platform.

Try explaining it back

Before your first deployment, check that you can answer these questions:

1. You imported an installer but did not create a Deployment. Which computer is supposed to receive it? None has been targeted by that import alone.
2. You saved a Deployment but have not updated the model. Does saving it confirm that the device has received the content? No. The pending model change still needs to be committed.
3. The model number increased, but your test computer is offline. Did the installation succeed? Not necessarily. You still need device and deployment evidence.
4. Another administrator has unfinished changes. Is it safe to assume your Model Update publishes only your test? No. Coordinate and review the pending work first.

You do not need to memorize model internals. Remember the distinction between preparing, publishing, and verifying. The first deployment lesson will let you see each stage.

When you need more detail

• Deployments in FileWave Central: the target, content, exclusion, and timing controls.
• Update Model in FileWave Anywhere: the browser interface and shared-administrator commit behavior.
• Fileset Status Meanings: how to interpret the result when a Fileset is not yet active.