- BFSIBanking, Financial Services & Insurance
- HealthcareComing soon
- ManufacturingComing soon
- Retail & E-CommerceComing soon
FileWave UEM
Your Macs and Windows PCs need the same apps and patches. Two tools and full reinstalls waste the week — FileWave UEM manages Macs, Windows PCs, iPhones, iPads and Android devices from one server you host or FileWave hosts on AWS, and its patented Filesets send software file by file, repairing anything a user deletes on the next sync.
Buy through TechBag
Same software. Better outcome — at a lower cost.
How it’s rated
Full scoreboard ↓Quick answer
The FileWave platform family
This page covers FileWave UEM — FileWave’s only product, with patching, imaging and the Self-Service Kiosk included. The rest:
Quick facts
30-second orientation- Product
- Cross-platform UEM with file-level software delivery, imaging and patching under one licence
- Maker
- FileWave AG, Wil, Switzerland, founded 1992; majority-owned by Munich-based Armira since 2018
- Leadership
- Nurdan Eris, who founded the company, has led it again since May 2026; Nikola Gander is Co-CEO
- Status
- FileWave 16.4.1 (September 2026); majors roughly quarterly, with N and N-1 supported
- Delivery
- Self-hosted on a Mac or a Debian 13 appliance, or FileWave Cloud Hosting on AWS
- Platforms
- macOS, Windows, iOS and iPadOS, tvOS, visionOS, Android; ChromeOS inventory via Google
- Price
- Not published; quoted per device per year, counted as computers, mobile devices and Chromebooks
- Free
- Community Edition for 15 computers, 15 tablets and 15 Chrome devices; 30-day full trial
- India
- AWS Asia Pacific (India), ap-south-1, is one of five hosting regions; confirm it at order time
- In India via
- TechBag — device-class scoping, hosting choice, a quote in INR with GST
Understand file-level device management before you buy it
Most product pages skip this. We start here — so you buy a capability, not a buzzword.
What is file-level endpoint management?
FileWave sends software as tracked files, not whole installers, from one server to every OS.
A separate tool per OS and full reinstalls vs FileWave UEM — the honest table
What consolidation actually replaces, dimension by dimension.
| Dimension | A separate tool per OS, full reinstalls | FileWave UEM |
|---|---|---|
| Updating a large app | Repackage and resend the full installer | Send only the files that changed |
| A user deletes app files | A ticket, then a manual reinstall | Restored on the next sync |
| Macs and Windows PCs | A separate tool for each OS | One server; Central or Anywhere console |
| Branch-office downloads | Every site pulls from head office | Boosters cache content near devices |
| Where the server runs | The vendor’s cloud, wherever it is | Your Mac or Debian box, or a chosen AWS region |
| What it is NOT | — | Full ChromeOS control, a price list, or SOC 2 |
The cheapest test is Community Edition: enrol a few Macs and PCs, push one large app as a Fileset, and delete a file to see it heal.
The five pieces of the platform
Vendors love diagrams; buyers need to know what they’re actually operating. Here’s the whole platform, demystified.
Server
One server holds every Fileset, profile and inventory record. Host it yourself on a Mac or a Debian 13 appliance, or have FileWave run it on AWS in a region you choose.
Consoles
Central is the native admin app for macOS and Windows; Anywhere is the web console. FileWave says both come with every licence, so no seat is bought per console.
Client
Macs and Windows PCs run the FileWave Client beside Apple MDM or Windows MDM via Entra; iPhones, iPads and Apple TVs use MDM and DDM; Android uses Google’s EMM API.
Edge
Boosters cache Filesets near the devices that need them, so branches stop pulling every download from the server; the Imaging Virtual Server images Windows PCs over PXE.
One server on your Mac, a Debian box or hosted AWS — Filesets cached by Boosters and applied by the client or MDM.
Nine capabilities. Enrol, deliver, maintain.
FileWave UEM delivers software file by file to every major OS from one server, yours or hosted.
Macs and iPads out of the box
ADE through Apple Business or School Manager, apps from VPP, and, since 16.4, the Apple School and Business Manager API.
Autopilot hands PCs over
Entra automatic enrolment and Windows Autopilot send new PCs to FileWave’s Windows MDM, with the agent added for deeper work.
Work profile or fully managed
QR, afw#setup or zero-touch enrolment on Google’s management API, with a work profile for personal phones and single-app lock.
Software sent file by file
A patented Fileset tracks every file, so an update ships only what changed and the package stays editable after deployment.
Package by snapshot
Fileset Magic snapshots a Mac or Windows PC before and after an install, then builds the Fileset from the difference it finds.
A self-service app catalogue
FileWave’s Kiosk is a store users open to install approved apps and scripts themselves; it is a catalogue, not device lockdown.
OS, apps and firmware
OS and third-party patching across platforms, plus BIOS, UEFI and driver updates on Windows and App-Auto-Patch for macOS.
Apple updates by declaration
Since 15.4, FileWave declares the target Apple OS version and the deadline; 16.4 adds JSON import and export for DDM settings.
Deleted files come back
If a user removes or corrupts a file a Fileset placed, the next sync restores it, and interrupted downloads resume, not restart.
Watch FileWave UEM in action
FileWave’s own explainers on Apple DDM and OS patching, a live self-hosted server set-up, and a school district running four operating systems.
FileWave: Did you know? Apple DDM
A quick FileWave explainer on Apple’s Declarative Device Management and how the console uses it.
OS Patching Strategies
FileWave’s session on planning operating-system patching across a mixed fleet of devices.
Setting Up a FileWave Server in Minutes | Live Demo on Linode
A self-hosted FileWave Server stood up live on a Linode cloud instance, step by step.
How Pelican Rapids Public Schools Manages Four Major Operating Systems with FileWave
A US school district on running four operating systems from the one FileWave console.
Want a live, India-context walkthrough for your environment?
Book a guided demo →Every OS brings its own tool and its own reinstalls. FileWave sends software file by file to all of them.
Here’s what genuinely sets it apart — and exactly where it stops.
Software delivery at the level of the file
Most MDMs hand a device a whole installer. FileWave’s patented Filesets track each file, so an update sends only the changed parts, a package stays editable after deployment, and a file a user deletes is put back on the next sync. Fileset Magic packages from snapshots.
Macs and Windows PCs at equal depth
Macs get an agent plus MDM and DDM, with ADE, FileVault key escrow and Entra Platform SSO. Windows PCs get the agent, Windows MDM through Entra, Autopilot, PXE imaging and BIOS, UEFI and driver updates. Phones, tablets and Apple TV share the console.
Your server, or a hosted region you pick
The server runs on a Mac or a Debian 13 appliance in your own building, which FileWave pitches to public bodies for data sovereignty. Or FileWave hosts it on AWS in one of five regions, ap-south-1 (India) among them, with daily backups kept for 30 days.
Where it stops
There is no public price. ChromeOS is inventory and reporting on top of Google Admin Console, not a replacement. Android sits on Google’s management API, whose standard projects stop at 500 devices unless raised, and FileWave documents no Knox or Zebra layer. ISO 27001 covers development, not hosting; no SOC 2 or uptime figure is published.
The numbers behind the platform
What your FileWave UEM rollout looks like
Count devices by class
List computers, phones and tablets, and Chromebooks separately, since FileWave counts licences by class, then pick hosting.
Start on the free tier
Install Community Edition or the 30-day trial, link Apple Business Manager and Entra, and enrol a few devices of each OS.
Build the first Filesets
Package two awkward apps with Fileset Magic, push them to a pilot group, then delete a file to watch it heal on sync.
Patching and Boosters
Set OS and third-party patch schedules, add DDM update deadlines for Apple, and place a Booster at each larger branch.
Roll out and hand over
Move the remaining fleet, publish the Self-Service Kiosk catalogue, and agree how many technicians need TeamViewer.
The review scoreboard
Modelled on Gartner Peer Insights structure. *Counts and breakdowns are illustrative pending verified review collection.
Quick poll — what’s driving your evaluation?
Talk to an advisor“Our design suite update went to 300 Macs overnight, and only the changed files crossed the wire. The campus link barely moved.”
“Pupils delete app folders for fun. The next sync quietly puts them back, so those tickets have all but stopped.”
“New laptops arrive through Autopilot, and the same console still images our lab PCs over PXE. One tool, both jobs.”
“We put a Booster in each regional office, and the Monday patch rush no longer drags on the head-office server.”
“Single-app lock suits our Android scanners, but we hit Google’s 500-device quota and needed FileWave to escalate it.”
“Chromebooks show up as inventory only; policy still lives in Google Admin. Plan on running both consoles side by side.”
Where everyone sits — the grids
Analyst firms bury this view behind paywalls, and G2 retired its Grid. So here’s TechBag’s synthesis of the UEM and MDM market — tap any vendor to see why it sits where it does.
TechBag UEM & MDM Grid
Execution strength vs product vision — the classic market map, minus the paywall.
Quoted per device a year; free Community Edition to 15 of each class.
Hosting Control × Fleet Breadth
The grid nobody publishes — where the server can run and keep its data, India included, vs how many kinds of device it manages in depth.
Own Mac or Debian server, or five AWS regions incl. India; six OS plus ChromeOS inventory.
Positions are TechBag’s illustrative synthesis of public review-platform data and vendor documentation — not a reproduction of any analyst graphic. Verify before relying on it.
FileWave UEM vs the UEM & MDM field
Against Jamf Pro, Microsoft Intune, ManageEngine Endpoint Central, OpenText ZENworks and Hexnode UEM — on deployment, platforms, Apple and Android depth, patching, price, free tiers and India data.
| Dimension | FileWave UEM | Jamf Pro | Microsoft Intune | ManageEngine Endpoint Central | OpenText ZENworks | Hexnode UEM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | File-level UEM | Apple-only flagship | Cloud MDM plus MAM | Patch-led UEM | Self-hosted suite | Kiosk-strong UEM |
| Deployment | Mac, Debian or hosted | Jamf Cloud or on-prem | Microsoft cloud only | On-prem or hosted | Servers; Windows SaaS | SaaS only |
| Platforms covered | 6 OS + ChromeOS view | Apple only | Five, Linux included | Desktops and mobiles | Win, Mac, Linux, mobile | Six, no Linux |
| Apple and DDM | Agent + MDM + DDM | The Apple benchmark | ADE and DDM | DDM partial | DEP; no DDM shown | ADE; DDM partial |
| Android and kiosk | AMAPI, single-app lock | Not in Jamf Pro | Every AE mode | Android kiosk mode | No kiosk documented | Knox and four kiosks |
| Patching and imaging | OS, apps, BIOS, PXE | Mac scripts and policy | 3rd-party is add-on | 850+ third-party apps | Patches + OS imaging | Win + Mac, by CVE |
| Pricing model | Per device, annual | Per device, plans | Per user, bundled | Per 50 endpoints | Per module or Suite | Per device, 4 tiers |
| Published entry price | Not published | $12.50/Mac/month | $8/user/month | $795/yr per 50 | Not published | $2.20/device/month |
| Free tier and trial | 15+15+15 free; 30 days | No free tier | Free if bundled | Free to 25 + 25 | No free edition | 14-day trial |
| Included vs add-on | Remote control extra | Plans bundle the trio | Suite features extra | Editions gate features | Patch feed: 60 days | Tier sets the depth |
| India data location | ap-south-1 or on-prem | On-prem only | India geography | Chennai, Mumbai, on-prem | Your own servers | US, EU or UAE |
| Support and assurance | 24/5; ISO for dev | ISO 27001, SOC 2 | Microsoft runs it | Local, India-HQ | Your servers to patch | 24/7 live support |
| Lock-in and exit | Filesets to rebuild | Scripts to rewrite | Tied to Entra | Agent swap to leave | Your DB, their agent | Rebuild kiosk setups |
| Best fit | Schools, Mac + Windows | Apple-only enterprises | Microsoft 365 estates | Patch-first on a budget | Self-hosted, Windows-led | Kiosk-heavy mixed fleets |
Which approach fits you?
Honest fit signals — because the fastest way to lose your trust is to pretend one product wins every scenario.
Choose FileWave UEM if…
- ✓You run Macs and Windows PCs side by side and want both managed at agent depth, with imaging and firmware updates, from one console
- ✓Large or fiddly applications keep breaking, and file-level delivery with self-healing would end the reinstall tickets
- ✓You need the server on your own hardware, or hosted by the vendor in an AWS India region rather than abroad
Compare alternatives if…
- ✓You want a price to read before a sales call — Jamf, Intune, Endpoint Central and Hexnode all publish theirs
- ✓Android kiosks, Samsung Knox or rugged scanners are the core of the fleet — Hexnode and Intune go further there
- ✓Chromebooks need full policy control — FileWave reads ChromeOS inventory but leaves policy to Google Admin Console
Do not expect…
- ✓A per-device list price, or a SOC 2 report and published uptime figure for the hosted service
- ✓Device lockdown from the Self-Service Kiosk — that is an app catalogue; lockdown is the Android single-app policy
- ✓A Gartner Magic Quadrant placement — FileWave announces none, only a Peer Insights listing
FileWave UEM is one of 28 UEM & MDM products TechBag carries. The UEM & MDM guide narrows them to a shortlist and shows the reasoning. →
What does packaging and reinstalling by hand cost you?
Drag the sliders (managed devices; IT staff-hour cost). Estimates model the staff time spent packaging and reinstalling software, patching and fixing broken installs at an assumed 1.5 hours per device a year, with 70% of it removed by file-level delivery, self-healing and scheduled patching. Both figures are assumptions. Illustrative.
Loaded cost = salary + overheads per productive hour. Illustrative only — your TechBag quote models your actual environment and modules.
Three ways to consume it
Not published: FileWave quotes every paid licence per device per year, counted separately for computers, mobile devices and Chromebooks, with education pricing on request. FileWave Cloud Hosting adds a one-time server migration charge and an annual per-device hosting charge; TeamViewer remote control is licensed per technician. Community Edition is free for 15 computers, 15 tablets and 15 Chrome devices, and the 30-day trial has no device cap. TechBag counts your fleet by class and quotes in INR with GST.
Community Edition
Best for small labs and evaluations
- Free for 15 computers, 15 tablets, 15 Chrome
- Forum and community support only
- No TeamViewer licences included
+ Platform add-ons
Best for a broader rollout
- Scoped to your estate
- Add-on modules as needed
- Phased, right-sized deployment
Licensed FileWave
Best for school and business fleets
- Quoted per device per year, by class
- Self-hosted or FileWave Cloud Hosting
- TeamViewer per technician, extra
Buy it for less — TechBag pricing beats list
Whatever the list prices above, TechBag negotiates a significantly better deal — with GST-compliant INR invoicing and local support. Ask us for your discounted quote.
Get an India-ready quote
Tell us your requirements and current tools — we’ll model it against what you spend today.
The 8 questions to ask every vendor
Take this into your next vendor call — including ours.
How many computers, mobile devices and Chromebooks do you run? FileWave licenses each class separately.
Self-host on a Mac or Debian appliance, or FileWave Cloud Hosting? If hosted, confirm ap-south-1 in writing.
Are Chromebooks a big share? FileWave adds inventory and reporting but does not replace Google Admin Console.
Will you pass 500 Android devices? Google’s default API quota needs FileWave to escalate; Knox is not documented.
Do you need device lockdown or an app store? FileWave’s Kiosk is the store; lockdown is Android single-app.
How many technicians need TeamViewer? It is licensed per technician through FileWave, not brought from outside.
Does policy require SOC 2 or an uptime SLA? FileWave’s ISO 27001 covers development, and no uptime is published.
Can your team upgrade a self-hosted server each quarter? FileWave supports only the current and previous major.
Questions buyers ask
Ready to evaluate FileWave UEM?
Bring your device counts by class and your hosting rules, or let a TechBag advisor run a trial that weighs a self-hosted server against the India hosting region.
Stats, ratings, review counts and pricing are illustrative and sourced from public materials; verify before purchase.