Multiplatform support
macOS
I've been working with macOS since the end of the nineties, so some years before the change from the classical Mac-OS to OS-X - and the ability of Apple to make drastic changes but still remain true to their key values, has always been remarkable. The great merit of macOS is, the "marriage" of this solid, flexible yet reliable Unix base, with Apple’s creative tools and ecosystem.
The Unix base also makes macOS rather popular among developers, because - one can natively work in a Unix shell… In fact, you can hardly tell, whether you're working in a Linux or a macOS shell - apart from the fact, you can simply install e. g. zsh, tcsh etc., and define this as the default shell.
The superior design of UI and products on the other hand, attracts designers, or generally speaking, people from the creative industries. These user groups know their systems very well and have high demands for IT: and that's exactly, what makes it challenging for me.
Windows
Windows on the other hand, is less easily defined regarding usage scenarios, hardware, software - which is charming in another way. The fact, workstations can be configured with components at wish, is for instance a big advantage for high performance 3D / video editing machines. The OS developed in a paradoxical way the last couple of years: for consumers, it "closed" itself, meaning that adapting the OS more than superficially, is harder than ever (partly necessitated by security concerns). For professionals it opened up at least slightly, for instance by implementing Linux frameworks as a Windows subsystem and offering various distributions in their app store.
Regarding Windows Server, please see the separate page.
MDM
I worked with the following MDM / EMM systems for managing iOS devices:
- VMWare Airwatch
- Jamf Pro MDM
Both have their advantages; while Jamf Pro has its strengths in managing the various Apple systems (iOS, macOS, tvOS…), Airwatch is better geared towards multi-platform environments. This inevitably makes the product more complex and necessitates compromises, so it really depends on the use case, which MDM makes more sense. Having an MDM solution is necessary for most companies though - and sticking to iOS as the only officially supported mobile-OS, definitely has advantages for enterprise security.
Virtualization
Being able to test new software in containers, deploy applications in divergent OS's if necessary and switch back to previous snapshots of a system can save huge amounts of time and effort. VMWare Fusion / Workstation have a proven record; VirtualBox is obviously popular because of the cost savings; Citrix servers are more complex to setup but more flexible, when used in productive environments. Virtualization has in fact gotten so common, in server infrastructures, it's hardly noticed anymore - like for instance in MDM systems, where apps run in containers on mobile devices, streamed from some servers (which in their turn are also VMs / containers), and the owner doesn't even notice.