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Is it possible to “retire” (or enterprise wipe) a fully managed device?

No. On a fully managed device, both an enterprise wipe/retire and a full wipe result in a factory reset. The entire device is under management with no separation between corporate and personal data, so there is nothing to selectively remove.

Android Enterprise requires a DPC actively enrolled as Device Owner to provide management policies. Removing the DPC means removing everything, and the device resets to factory settings.

EMM terminology varies

EMMs use different labels for the same underlying action. "Retire", "enterprise wipe", "selective wipe", "delete device", and "unenrol" may all trigger a factory reset on a fully managed device. Always verify what the action does in your specific EMM before running it on a production device.

What about COPE and work profile devices?

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The behaviour is different for other deployment scenarios:

  • Work profile (BYOD): Removing management deletes only the work profile. Personal apps, data, and accounts are completely unaffected. This is the closest Android Enterprise gets to a true selective wipe.
  • COPE (Android 11+): The EMM can remove just the work profile (preserving personal data), issue a full factory reset, or - with AMAPI - use the RELINQUISH_OWNERSHIP command to convert the device to an unmanaged personal device.
  • COPE (Android 8-10): The older architecture treated COPE as a fully managed device with a work profile on top. Removing management factory resets the device, same as fully managed.
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General
Provisioning
Work profile
Fully managed
App management
FAQ
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