Where did Kiosk mode go?

dvroegop · June 2016

With the latest update, which I love by the way, it seemed the Kiosk mode is gone. This is rather disappointing: I loved this feature because I could let people play with the app without being worried they would mess up the device.

What is the rational behind this?

DavidKlineMS · June 2016

@dvroegop,
Per the release notes, Kiosk mode has been removed.

Thanks!
David

DavidKlineMS · June 2016

@dvroegop,
Per the release notes, Kiosk mode has been removed.

Thanks!
David

dvroegop · June 2016

Thanks David.
Still, I am wondering why. This was a great feature....

Richard216 · June 2016

Yes I agree, I would like to know the thinking behind this. Since we have seen this functionality, we were actually hoping touse Kiosk mode. We have content that we want to show to people under very tight time constraints. Kiosk mode is ideal for this.

Jimbohalo10 · June 2016

@dvroegop @HoloSheep @Dell_Studio216 I wonder if applocker could be the answer to Kiosk mode, if it could be made to work on HoloLens. Its certainly supported by Windows 10

HoloSheep · June 2016

@DavidKlineMS and team, I too would agree with the majority here that it is disappointing to see the removal of Kiosk mode.

Perhaps there were some technical limitations, but if they can be overcome in a reasonable way I would hope to see Kiosk Mode return in the next update.

No doubt you guys are tracking analytics and I would guess that so far the usage of the Kiosk mode had been pretty low.

However, I would counter that to start with we are busy developing our demos and getting up to speed on the platform and the tools, but as we start to stabilize these demos and show them to clients and users it will be very handy to be able to setup the device in a kiosk mode for simplicity of not having to constantly fuss with the device to get it back into a happy state so that the next person can experience the demo. It will also help us protect our devices from wandering Air Tappers that go off exploring and tapping on things we rather they didn't. As a matter of fact at the WinHUGR meeting last night when I got to the portion of my presentation where members came up to experience the demo I wish I had the opportunity to pre-configure the demo devices to just run the featured demo.

@Jimbohalo10 thank you for the applocker suggestion, it may be a viable strategy for some folks and some scenarios, but that sounds a little heavy on the IT device management side of things for what I personally had in mind for using Kiosk mode.

Please give Kiosk Mode another chance

Jimbohalo10 · June 2016

@HoloSheep "Please give Kiosk Mode another chance "

Kiosk mode is to go into Windows 10 Anniversary, but ONLY IF, enough people do the Insider Quest in the Feedback Hub for the Bug Bash. From Edge insiderhub://announcements/8c857c1f-7d52-4f74-b161-48aabd5ac155?Source=ShareLink

This is Limited time (ends Monday 23:59 PST) so I suggest you attempt to do the Kiosk Quest or click "Done" to get the Upvotes counting.

Let us make it clear NO Win 10 Kiosk votes , NO HoloLens kiosk, potentially uses same build code

AngryPixel · July 2016

Kiosk Mode is essential for my product, I was expecting it like any other version of Windows. I am planning on eventually shipping my software along with hardware for a controlled user experience. Public users should not be messing with the OS when they should only be experiencing one specific app on the headset.

AlexD · July 2016

I'm wondering if kiosk mode could make an appearance in the Commercial Version
As it says on the website, there are a few extra features on it.

Enterprise features include identity management, enterprise network features for Wi-Fi, firewall, proxies and VPN, mobile device management, data encryption, and application side-loading.

If you think about it, what we have is a Developer version so from that point of view, yeah, kiosk mode does not really apply.

Jesse_McCulloch · July 2016

Yes, kiosk mode is one of the features in the enterprise HoloLens sku

HoloSheep · July 2016

@AlexD, & @Jesse_McCulloch according to PCWorld's article earlier this month the enterprise and developer editions are one and the same.

Has anyone seen anything public that definitively indicates that the enterprise edition is a different build than the developer one?

If for some reason they were different builds, I personally would not agree with the statement that "kiosk mode does not really apply" with respect to the developer edition. Personally I would feel even stronger that if a kiosk mode was supported on an enterprise build that it would be yet one more important reason that it came back to the developer edition build.

Assigned access on Windows 10 works for Pro, Enterprise and Educational builds of the OS, I would hope that some form of Kiosk mode on the HoloLens would follow a similar path and if they left it out of a some version that it might only be left out of a consumer "Home" flavor of the device if there ends up being such a thing and only if there was a compelling reason to leave it out of any build at all.

AlexD · July 2016

@HoloSheep yes. It's confirmed that the Enterprise edition will have different software. It's exactly the same hardware but it will have more features to make it more enterprise friendly. The quote I gave in the previous post was from the official Hololens commercial page.

HoloSheep · July 2016

Hi @AlexD,

I looked carefully at the quote you gave in your previous post:

and I believe it could be interpreted as saying that Enterprise customers can count on the given list of features to be supported by HoloLens, period. It doesn't say anything about a separate "Enterprise Edition" and also does not state that the devices that are part of a potential volume enterprise order would be in anyway different from a "Developer Edition" device.

Some of the features in the list, like application side-loading for example, are definitely supported by the current developer edition already. Some of the features sound like they are about compatibility with existing enterprise device management tools like "mobile device management" which is not too different from the abilities shown in the desktop HoloLens app or the Device Portal support.

Which features on that list are not supported by the current developer device and which ones are just undiscovered by us or have not been "lit up" but are already there under the covers?

The quote also does not rule out that new enterprise features may come to the "Developer Edition" in a future flight similar to the May update.

If there were two different builds it seems just as reasonable (but somewhat unlikely) to expect that the "Development Edition" might be a build with some extra development features that the Enterprise build might not have.

In my opinion that page on it own does not confirm or deny that there will be two separate editions of the device with the exact same hardware but different software. It also does not add any clarity as to the fate of Kiosk mode, which is what some of us in this thread are concerned about.

All that said, you may be correct, there maybe different versions in the works but I think we need more than the contents of that web page to confirm one way or the other and to tell if Kiosk mode is in some way related.

Jesse_McCulloch · July 2016

@HoloSheep - It was announced at WPC that there is a different SKU for the Enterprise edition, and that it included things like Kiosk mode, management through Windows Intune, ability to join Domains, and a few other enterprise necessary features. One of my friends was there and had the word straight from Microsoft themselves. They said there is no need for the developers to have access to the Enterprise edition, because writing apps for them should be the same. I personally disagree with that, but, it's not my call.

HoloSheep · August 2016

@DavidKlineMS so with today's announcement about Commercial Suite, what does this mean to the rest of us developers with many thousands of dollars worth of Developer devices who simply would like to be able to use Kiosk Mode?

Is the "Commercial Suite" available (through MSDN Subscription or any other source) as a download or upgrade to existing Developer Devices?

Since it is a "Suite" does that open up the opportunity to install pieces of the suite (like Kiosk mode for example) on a device?

Are there additional costs associated to getting the Commercial Suite?

Is there a developer story for development and testing scenarios that would use/require Commercial Suite features?

dvroegop · August 2016

I understand the need for the Commercial Suite. However, I also see the need for Kiosk Mode in a developer device. Why? Simple: we built the software and then hand the device to the product owners, stake holders and customers to try out the features we built this sprint. We don't want them to be distracted by other apps.

We want to be able to leave the dev device with those people for a day or so and then come back to get their feedback. We are not going to buy a separate device with a more expensive license just for this use case.

Of course, the end-customer of end-user of the finished product will need the commercial variant. But during development stages Kiosk made can be a tremendous helpful tool.

Please reconsider!

utekai · September 2016

Kiosk mode is helpful for demonstrating software on this new device that few know yet how to use easily.

Yes, it is very useful feature.

Billy · October 2016

I concur with many here about kiosk mode, hopeful a groundswell can cause a few changes. We are demoing our app often and it would be very helpful to have the advantages of Kiosk mode. Throughput, ease of use, training, etc. would all be improved in an exhibition setting for us.

I'm hoping the HoloLens team can make an adjustment.

Where did Kiosk mode go?

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Windows Holographic User Group Redmond

Windows Holographic User Group Redmond

Windows Holographic User Group Redmond

Windows Holographic User Group Redmond