Deploy Device Protection with NinjaOne
Use NinjaOne MDM to deploy Aikido Device Protection across your managed macOS fleet with the required permissions in place.
All devices must be enrolled in NinjaOne MDM (via manual profile install or Apple Business Manager / Apple School Manager Automated Device Enrollment) before you begin.
Installation
What you'll need
Before starting, make sure you have the following from the Aikido Device Protection dashboard:
The Aikido Device Protection
.mobileconfig(downloaded from the Aikido Device Protection dashboard)The Aikido Device Protection installer (
.pkgfile, downloaded from the dashboard)
If you're missing any of these, go back to the Aikido Device Protection dashboard, click Connect Device, and complete the pre-flight steps.
Add the Aikido Device Protection configuration profile
Open the
.mobileconfigfile in a text editor to copy its XML contents.In the NinjaOne Admin Portal, click Administration in the left navigation pane, open the Policies drop-down, and select MDM Policies.
Click Create New Policy (or edit an existing macOS policy) and select Apple as the platform with macOS as the device type.
Give the policy a name (e.g. "Aikido Device Protection").
Open the Custom payload section and click + Add payload.
In the Add payload dialog, enter a name (e.g. "Aikido Device Protection") and paste the full XML contents of the
.mobileconfigfile into the Content field.Click Update to save the payload, then save the policy.
Assign the policy to the target macOS device group.
NinjaOne deploys each custom payload as a separate MDM profile to the device. The Aikido .mobileconfig already contains all required payloads, so a single Add payload entry is enough.
This profile allows the Aikido Device Protection system extension to load silently, enables the network content filter, and stops users from disabling background services in System Settings → Login Items.
Upload the Aikido Device Protection installer
In the NinjaOne Admin Portal, go to Administration → Library → Automation.
Click + Add and select Installation.
In the Install Application dialog, fill in the following:
Name: Aikido Device Protection
Description: Aikido Device Protection
Operating system: macOS
Installer: Upload the Aikido Device Protection
.pkgfile.Run as: System
Save the installation package.
Deploy in the right order
Deploy the configuration profile before the installer for a smoother rollout.
Assign the Aikido Device Protection MDM policy (containing the configuration profile) to the target device group.
Verify it is installed on a test device before continuing.
Deploy the Aikido Device Protection installation package to the same devices using a scheduled task, on-demand run, or a policy-based deployment.
Reboot devices after installation
Restart your target devices after the agent installation completes. The agent fully activates on the next boot.
Verify the deployment
On a test device, confirm:
The system extension is activated:
systemextensionsctl list | grep aikidoExpect to see the extension marked
[activated enabled].Open System Settings → General → Login Items & Extensions and confirm the Aikido Device Protection entries cannot be toggled off.
Troubleshooting
Users still see the popup
Make sure the configuration profile is scoped correctly and installed before the package policy runs
Extension is waiting for user approval
Check the System Extensions payload and confirm the team ID and bundle ID match exactly
The package installs but the device does not connect
Confirm the token script ran before the package install and that the token was copied correctly
Duplicate extension entries appear
Reboot the device
The content filter is not approved silently
Re-upload the .mobileconfig profile and verify it is installed on the device
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