Slowness in Configuration Removal on Zebra Devices with Microsoft Intune

Question

Slowness in Configuration Removal on Zebra Devices with Microsoft Intune

Lokesh K 35

When using Microsoft Intune to remove device configurations from enrolled devices, there is a noticeable performance discrepancy between device types:

Zebra devices: The configuration removal process is significantly slow (~3 to 5 hours), even for device configuration policies alone.
Lenovo tablets: The removal process occurs almost instantly.

What factors could be contributing to this performance difference, and what strategies can be implemented to improve the configuration removal speed on Zebra devices? Are there other admins experiencing similar behavior with Zebra devices?

Pauline Mbabu 1,840 Reputation points Microsoft Employee

2025-09-30T10:29:46.3033333+00:00
Hello Lokesh,
Here is what I could find relating to this:
Intune configuration removal is significantly slower on Zebra rugged Android devices may be due to how they handle policy updates. Zebra devices often rely on periodic pull check-ins (especially without Google Mobile Services), fetching changes only every ~8 hours. In contrast, Lenovo tablets (running Windows or standard Android) support real-time push notifications, allowing near-instant policy removal. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/intune/intune-service/configuration/device-profile-troubleshoot

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/intune/intune-service/apps/manage-without-gms

Additional factors include:

Different OS management APIs: Zebra uses Android’s device-admin/OEMConfig, while Lenovo uses Windows CSPs.

OEM quirks: Zebra’s power management and persistent settings can delay or block automatic removal.

Your answer

Pauline Mbabu 1,840 Reputation points Microsoft Employee

2025-09-30T10:29:46.3033333+00:00

Hello Lokesh,
Here is what I could find relating to this:
Intune configuration removal is significantly slower on Zebra rugged Android devices may be due to how they handle policy updates. Zebra devices often rely on periodic pull check-ins (especially without Google Mobile Services), fetching changes only every ~8 hours. In contrast, Lenovo tablets (running Windows or standard Android) support real-time push notifications, allowing near-instant policy removal. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/intune/intune-service/configuration/device-profile-troubleshoot

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/intune/intune-service/apps/manage-without-gms

Additional factors include:

Different OS management APIs: Zebra uses Android’s device-admin/OEMConfig, while Lenovo uses Windows CSPs.

OEM quirks: Zebra’s power management and persistent settings can delay or block automatic removal.