Microsoft Intune: How I Manage Company Laptops and Devices

Introduction

In a hybrid work environment, managing corporate laptops and devices is one of the most important responsibilities of an IT department.

Gone are the days when IT teams had to manually configure every laptop in the office before handing it to an employee. Modern endpoint management allows many of these tasks to be automated and managed remotely.

As an IT Systems Manager, Microsoft Intune is one of the key tools I use to manage company devices. It helps IT teams configure devices, deploy applications, enforce security policies, monitor compliance, and respond when a device is lost or compromised.

Here is how I approach Microsoft Intune and endpoint management in a real-world business environment.

1. Windows Autopilot and Device Provisioning

One of the biggest advantages of modern Windows management is the ability to provision a company laptop without manually configuring everything from scratch.

This is where Windows Autopilot can make a major difference.

Ideally, a new Windows device is registered with Windows Autopilot by the OEM, reseller, or distributor before it reaches the organization. Microsoft also provides PowerShell-based methods for organizations that need to register devices themselves.

For organizations handling their own registration, the Get-WindowsAutopilotInfo PowerShell script can collect the device’s hardware hash and either save it as a CSV file or upload it directly to the organization’s Intune environment.

Once the device is registered and an Autopilot profile is assigned, the basic workflow can look like this:

1. The employee receives the company laptop.
2. They connect it to an internet connection.
3. Windows starts the normal out-of-box setup.
4. The user signs in with their company Microsoft account.
5. Intune applies the organization’s configuration and security policies.
6. Required applications are deployed automatically.

This can dramatically reduce the amount of manual work required by IT.

However, Autopilot isn’t magic. The quality of the enrollment experience depends heavily on how well the Intune policies, application packages, security policies, and Entra ID configuration have been prepared beforehand.

A poorly designed Intune environment can simply turn a manual setup problem into an automated one.

2. Enforcing Device Compliance and Conditional Access

Once devices are enrolled in Intune, the next challenge is making sure they remain secure.

This is where Intune compliance policies and Microsoft Entra Conditional Access work together.

For example, an organization might require devices to have:

• BitLocker enabled
• Microsoft Defender enabled and healthy
• A supported Windows version
• A secure password or PIN
• No obvious security or compliance issues

Intune evaluates whether the device meets the organization’s compliance requirements.

Conditional Access can then use that compliance information when deciding whether a user should be allowed to access corporate resources.

For example, a company might configure a policy requiring users to access Microsoft 365 resources only from compliant devices.

This creates an important relationship:

Intune manages the device → Entra ID manages identity and access → Conditional Access evaluates the risk and requirements.

That combination is one of the foundations of a modern Microsoft cloud environment.

3. App Deployment: Intune vs. NinjaOne

Software deployment is another area where endpoint management can save IT teams a significant amount of time.

For standard business applications, I prefer using Intune to package and deploy software automatically.

Typical applications might include:

• Microsoft 365 Apps
• VPN clients
• Security software
• Line-of-business applications
• Utilities such as 7-Zip
• Other standard applications required by employees

Once an application has been packaged correctly, Intune can deploy it without requiring IT to manually install the software on every computer.

However, there are situations where speed matters more than standardization.

For example, if an employee needs a particular application immediately and the Intune deployment hasn’t reached the device yet, waiting for the normal policy and application deployment cycle may not be practical.

This is where we can use NinjaOne, our RMM platform, for certain urgent or one-off deployments.

NinjaOne allows IT to run scripts and perform administrative tasks directly on managed devices, which can be extremely useful when something needs to be done immediately.

I don’t see Intune and NinjaOne as necessarily competing tools.

Instead, I see them as tools that can complement each other:

Intune = standardized, policy-driven endpoint management

NinjaOne = fast operational control and RMM capabilities

The right balance depends on the organization’s environment and management strategy.

4. Managing Remote and Off-Site Devices

Modern company laptops don’t necessarily spend most of their time inside the corporate office.

Employees may work from home, from another office, from a customer site, or while travelling.

That makes traditional management methods much less practical.

Because Intune is cloud-based, enrolled devices can receive policies, applications, security configurations, and updates without needing to be physically connected to the corporate network.

As long as the device has an internet connection and can communicate with the required Microsoft services, IT can continue managing it remotely.

Windows Update Management

Another important part of endpoint management is controlling Windows updates.

Instead of allowing every device to install updates at exactly the same time, organizations can use Windows Update for Business policies and update rings to gradually deploy updates across groups of devices.

For example:

Pilot devices → Early adopters → Broad deployment

This phased approach gives IT an opportunity to identify problems before a Windows update reaches the entire organization.

It also helps reduce the risk of having a company-wide issue caused by a problematic update.

5. Protecting Lost or Stolen Devices

Laptops can be lost or stolen.

The physical device may be replaceable, but the business information stored on it may not be.

This is why endpoint security needs to assume that a device could eventually fall into the wrong hands.

BitLocker Encryption

One of the most important protections for Windows laptops is BitLocker drive encryption.

If the laptop’s storage is encrypted, simply removing the SSD and connecting it to another computer should not give an attacker easy access to the company’s data.

Intune can be used to manage and monitor BitLocker configuration and recovery key information.

Remote Wipe

If a company laptop is lost or stolen, Intune can also issue a Wipe command.

The Wipe action can factory reset the device and remove organizational data, applications, and configurations. Microsoft specifically documents Wipe as an option for devices that are lost or stolen.

The important thing to remember is that remote actions depend on the device being able to receive the command. A device that is offline may not process the action until it reconnects.

For this reason, encryption is still critical. You should not rely solely on a remote wipe command to protect a lost laptop.

6. Monitoring Device Health and Inventory

Endpoint management isn’t just about pushing policies.

IT also needs to know what devices exist and whether they are healthy.

Intune provides visibility into managed devices, including information such as:

• Device ownership
• Operating system version
• Compliance status
• Hardware information
• Installed applications
• Enrollment status
• Security configuration

This information becomes particularly valuable when troubleshooting.

For example, if an employee reports that an application isn’t working, IT can first check whether the device is properly enrolled, whether the required application is installed, whether the device is compliant, and when it last checked in.

That can save a significant amount of time compared with troubleshooting the problem completely blind.

7. The Human Side of Endpoint Management

Technology is only part of successful device management.

Users also need to understand what is happening to their devices.

For example, if IT suddenly enforces a security policy that requires a restart, blocks an application, or changes how users sign into Windows, employees may see it as an IT problem rather than a security improvement.

That’s why communication is important.

Before making significant Intune changes, I prefer to consider:

• Will this interrupt the user’s work?
• Does the user need to restart the device?
• Will an application stop working?
• Does the user need to take any action?
• Can the change be tested on a smaller group first?

A technically correct policy can still become an operational problem if it is introduced without considering the user experience.

Conclusion

Microsoft Intune has changed the way IT departments can manage company laptops and devices.

Instead of relying entirely on manual configuration, domain connectivity, and physical access to computers, IT teams can manage much of the endpoint environment remotely.

For me, the most important areas are:

Automated provisioning → Security policies → Compliance → Application deployment → Windows updates → Device monitoring → Data protection

Intune becomes even more powerful when combined with Microsoft Entra ID, Conditional Access, BitLocker, Microsoft Defender, and other IT management tools such as NinjaOne.

But the goal isn’t simply to automate everything.

The real goal is to build an endpoint management system that is secure, reliable, manageable, and practical for the people using the devices every day.

That’s where good endpoint management goes beyond simply configuring policies in an admin portal.

(If you haven’t read my previous guide on managing the broader Microsoft 365 ecosystem, feel free to check out my post on https://aussiekim.com/microsoft-365-management-real-business/