Accessing Unily on

Mobile Devices
To make sure users can keep connected whilst on the move, Unily is
available to users on their mobile device. This guide explains your
options for offering mobile access to your users.

To make sure users can keep connected whilst on the move, Unily is available to users
on their mobile device. This guide explains your options for offering mobile access to
your users.

Unily offers 3 options for access on mobile devices:

Mobile browser
Unily can be accessed in the same way as on desktop and, as standard, pages and
content within Unily are responsive, meaning they automatically adapt to the device the
user is using. In addition to being responsive, there are 3 capabilities that can give
users an experience that's completely tailored based on their access on a mobile
platform:

• Content variants of Site pages can be created and targeted to mobile platforms
to, for example, remove or reorder content included in the desktop view.
• Content variants of Content views can be created so that Stories have a view
tailored to mobile platforms.
• Homepages can be targeted based on a user accessing on a mobile platform so
that you can, for example, prioritise and surface completely different content
based on what you believe to be important to users on the move or the front line
of your workplace.
 • Header configurations can be created so that, when a user is accessing Unily on
a mobile platform, they have a navigation that reflects their needs.

Unily Mobile Application

Available to all customers, users can download the Unily Mobile Application from the
Apple App Store (for iOS devices) or Google Play Store (for Android devices). In both
cases, Unily is developed for the latest and last operating system (for example, at 16
November 2020, iOS 14, iOS 13, Android 10 and Android 9 are supported). The
application isn’t available for other device types.

Once downloaded, users need to enter the six-digit code for your site (which is the
same for all users and can be requested from your Onboarding Manager or Customer
Success Manager), and then their login credentials. The Unily Mobile Application offers
a few key benefits over access via mobile browser

• Push notifications give the ability for users to be notified of activity in Unily, and
for admins to use Broadcast Notifications to message mobile application users.
• Offline reading allows users to save content for viewing without a data
connection.

Custom Branded Application

For customers with more than 2,500 users, and following commercial discussions and a
review of technical prerequisites, a custom branded application might be an option, and
offers additional benefits over the Unily Mobile Application:

• No need to enter the six-digit code for your site

• Custom app name
 • Custom app icon
• Custom splash screen
• Support for Universal Links, so that links to your site, in Broadcast emails for
example, open directly in the app
• Additional distribution options

Please note, for any Branded Application developments, 1 iOS app, and 1 Android app
are developed.

Considerations for the branded app

Before investing in a branded application, there are a few areas you should consider:

Do you have the skillset internally to launch and maintain

the application?

We carry out the majority of setup. However, there are some tasks that need to be
completed by you or someone within your company. There is also a risk that Apple or
Google makes changes to the setup, requirements or distribution of applications that
require updates to be made to the application at a later date – many of which we can’t
carry out on your behalf.

Configuration of your device policies and other access control mechanisms is also a key
part of setup and can’t be done on your behalf by Unily.

Are you able to distribute the Branded Application?

Distributing the app can be a complex process and, depending on whether you need to
distribute to iOS devices, Android devices, or both, there will be various aspects that
you’ll need to consider.
For iOS devices, distribution is via Custom Apps for Business, which supports an MDM
option for managed devices. The app cannot be submitted to the public App Store, and
app bundles cannot be distributed directly. These limitations are imposed by Apple’s
policies and are outside of our control. Custom Apps for Business submissions require
approval from Apple and, while we will make every effort to ensure the app passes this
approval process, we can make no guarantees.

For Android devices, distribution can be via the Play Store or directly from MDM. We
provide the app bundle and you would be responsible for distribution.

More details on the setup and distribution of the Branded Application can be
found below under iOS and Android Application Setup, iOS Branded Application
Distribution and Android Branded Application Distribution.

Mobile Application Security and

Authentication
All communication between the Mobile apps and servers are encrypted using TLS
standards and any OS specific standards. Data stored on the device relies on the OS
encryption standards like full disk encryption and keychain/keystore.

Branded apps can optionally support Intune MAM SDK app protection policies, which
would give you extra control to setup app protection policies for things like not allowing
copy and pasting. See https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/mem/intune/developer/app-sdk-
get-started for more information on Intune MAM SDK.

Authentication
In addition to authentication that’s in place during the login process, the Branded mobile
apps also support Microsoft Authenticator and MSAL.

Configuration of policies and other access control mechanisms is the responsibility of

the client and undertaken at your own risk.

iOS and Android Branded Application Setup

For both iOS and Android apps, we’ll need the following:

• Creation of graphical assets:

o App Icon that’s 2048x2048 pixels at 72dpi, in PNG format, with no
rounded corners, gloss effects or transparency.
o For Android only, a small push icon that’s used next to notifications, that’s
512x512 pixels at 72dpi, in PNG format, that’s white only on a transparent
background.
o Splash/launch screen that’s 1440x2560 pixels at 72dpi, in PNG format.
Plain colour, gradients or patterned backgrounds work best across the
various sizes that this image might be used.
• Decision on the App display name (the text displayed below the app icon on
device home screens). It’s best for the name to be no longer than 12 characters
so that it doesn’t get truncated with ellipsis.
• A test account within your environment, that Unily can use to test the app.
• For MDM deployments, contact details for the person who will be responsible for
deploying the final app package to devices.
• Is the optional Microsoft Intune MAM SDK required?
See https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/mem/intune/developer/app-sdk-get-
started for more information on Intune MAM SDK

For Android, we also require:

 • Contact details for the person responsible for taking the prepared app package
and preparing it for deployment.

For iOS, we also require:

• That you’re enrolled into the Apple Business Manager. More details can be found
at https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/apple-business-manager
• You have Custom Apps enabled in Apple Business Manager
• Your Organisation ID (as displayed in Apple Business Manager)
• Your Organisation name (as displayed in Apple Business Manager)
• App name to display in the App Store, with a 30 character limit. This can be
different to the app display name we show on the iOS device. This has to be
unique across the Apple platform.
• Primary language E.g. English UK
• Whether the app will be globally available
• Privacy Policy URL
• A Support URL which can be used by users to find support resources or contact
information for the app.
• If required, A Marketing URL, with any information about how you market the
app. This can also just be the URL to your company.
• One or more keywords that describe your app, which will help to make App Store
search results more accurate. Separate keywords with an English or Chinese
comma (or a mix of both), with a 100 character limit.
• Description of what the app does and who the target audience is, with a 4,000
character limit
• Login credentials for the Apple review process. Please do not use usernames
containing the words "test" or "demo", as we’ve found that Apple can reject
submissions on this basis. It’s best to use real sounding names.
• A minimum of 3 screenshots, and a maximum of 10. Apple requires screenshots
of the app as part of the review process, so these can be taken once the
Branded app has been built and uploaded to TestFlight, and before submitting
the app for review. Screenshots should:
o Show the app in use
 o Not have device bezels or round corners
o Be in JPG or PNG format, in the RGB colour space, with no transparency
or alpha channel
o Be in 2 different sizes to cover 6.5 inch screens (for iPhone XS Max,
iPhone XR) and 5.5 inch screens (for iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7 Plus,
iPhone 8 Plus)
 1242 x 2688 pixels at 72 dpi (portrait)
 1242 x 2208 pixels at 72 dpi (portrait)

iOS Branded Application Distribution

Custom Apps for Business is the only supported option for distributing iOS & iPadOS
branded apps - Apple App Store and Apple Developer Enterprise program cannot be
used.

Unily will develop your branded app and distribute it on the Apple App Store privately
and securely to your organisation. Once the Branded App is approved by Apple and
published by Unily, you’ll find it in Apple Business Manager.

Custom Apps have the same management options as App Store apps, and can be
deployed using either managed licences (via MDM) or redemption codes. If using the
redemption code option, you'll need to have a way to distribute these to your
users. Each code allows one user to install the app.

Please note: For customers intending to distribute the Application to multiple countries,
redemption codes cannot be requested in Apple Business Manager and reused on
Apple IDs tied to other Country stores. Multiple instances of Apple Business Manager
need to be set up for each country.
Apple Business Manager and MDM don’t have this limitation.
For more information on Custom Apps for Business, head
to https://developer.apple.com/business/custom-apps/.

App Store Connect

Having submitted the branded app to Apple TestFlight and verified that it works as
expected, Unily will submit the branded app to Apple for review and approval before it
can be published to Apple Business Manager.

New apps, as well as each updated version, goes through the app review process with
Apple. The same app review guidelines used for App Store apps also apply to branded
apps. More information about why Apple must review the app can be found
here: https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines/. The review process
typically takes 1–2 days, and more information can be found
at https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/.

In order to verify that the branded app meet the review guidelines, Apple will need to
sign in and operate the app, and our Onboarding team will help determine how to meet
this requirement with appropriate handling of proprietary or sensitive business data.

Android Branded Application Distribution

Unily will develop your branded app and provide you with the Android .apk package file,
which can be distributed by your organisation using a method of your choosing:

Public availability via Google Play

You can make the branded application available for installation from Google Play, to
anyone in the world. You’ll require a Google Play Console account, and more
information can be found at https://developer.android.com/distribute/console.
Private availability using Mobile Device Management (MDM)
or G Suite

Your .apk package can be added to your MDM system for automatic distribution to
enrolled devices in line with the configuration you’ve set up. For example, on Microsoft
Intune, you can add the .apk directly as a Line-of-Business app.

For more information on the options for making your branded application available
privately, head to https://support.google.com/a/answer/2494992.

Default Mobile Links to App

Experience
Overview
Defaulting mobile links to open in the branded app experience, also known as
"Universal Links," allow the user to open links on their device in the branded
app instead of opening the mobile browser. For example, an email containing the link
to https://intranet.client.com will open up the Client's branded app if installed on the
device.

This document is a guide on the steps required from the Client to enable Universal
Links on their branded mobile app.

Prerequisites for configuration

• Unily production site must be version 5.26 or higher.

• Branded mobile app for iOS and Android must be version 5.2.0 or higher.

Enable Support on the server side

Please raise a SNOW (Service Now) ticket requesting that Universal Links be enabled
on your production site for the Branded mobile app.

Troubleshooting Universal Links

• Universal Links are not working in the Android app. If you are using the Google
Play console and have the setting for "Let Google manage and protect your app
signing key" enabled, then Unily will need to be informed so that the correct
sha256 hash can be provided for server configuration.

F.A.Q
Q: Is Universal Links supported in the generic Unily app from the App Store / Google
Play?
A: No because the app has to include at build time all the information required like the
server URL that will be handled by the app. This means that the Unily app would have
to include the server address of all our clients and constantly be kept up to date. It
would also be a leak of confidential information and thus only branded apps are
supported.