Air Drop Assistant (ADA) gives you more granular control over your AirDrop Settings than normal MDM controls.

On iOS, when switching AirDrop to Everyone, it switches back to Contacts Only after 10 minutes.

On macOS, AirDrop is either Off, Contacts Only, or Everyone - a setting you have to toggle manually via System Settings > General > AirDrop & Handoff or from the Control Center menu item.

ADA allows you to set, if AirDrop goes to Contacts Only or Off and the time frame to switch it.

Why might you want this feature?

• You use your computer frequently in public spaces and do not want AirDrop set to be left open to receive from Everyone.
• Organizations allow AirDrop but want more granular control than Apple's device management gives you.

ADA can be configured by configuration profile deployed by your MDM.

Domain com.ttinc.Air-Drop-Assistant

airDropSetting - Type: String Acceptable Value: Contacts Only or Off

• When set ADA will be locked to switch AirDrop to that settings after the timer.

timing - Type: Integer Acceptable Value: 0-1000

• Time length before ADA will switch AirDrop to the value from airDropSetting

hideMenuIcon - Type: Boolean Acceptable Value: true or false

• Hides the menu bar icon

icon_mode - Type: String Acceptable Value: colorful or bw

• Makes the icon colorful or monochrome.

afterFirstLaunch - Type: Boolean Acceptable Value: true or false

• Hides the first launch question.

ADA can also be registered to load at login with the argument register and removed from login items as well.

/Applications/Utilities/Air\ Drop\ Assistant.app/Contents/MacOS/Air\ Drop\ Assistant --register

and

/Applications/Utilities/Air\ Drop\ Assistant.app/Contents/MacOS/Air\ Drop\ Assistant --unregister

ADA AirDrop directional restriction can be configured by MDM.

/Applications/Utilities/Air\ Drop\ Assistant.app/Contents/Resources/ADA_PF_Helper_Script.sh -argument

• -blockOut blocks outgoing AirDrop
• -blockIn blocks incoming AirDrop
• -remove allows AirDrop both directions

Example mobileconfig

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>PayloadContent</key>
    <array>
        <dict>
            <key>PayloadIdentifier</key>
            <string>ccom.ttinc.Air-Drop-Assistant.26F7424C-FEF3-4E94-8E78-2673B2B8CDD3</string>
            <key>PayloadType</key>
            <string>com.ttinc.Air-Drop-Assistant</string>
            <key>PayloadUUID</key>
            <string>26F7424C-FEF3-4E94-8E78-2673B2B8CDD3</string>
            <key>PayloadVersion</key>
            <integer>1</integer>
            <key>airDropSetting</key>
            <string>Contacts Only</string>
            <key>timing</key>
            <integer>5</integer>
            <key>hideMenuIcon</key>
            <true/>
            <key>icon_mode</key>
            <string>colorful</string>
            <key>afterFirstLaunch</key>
            <true/>
        </dict>
    </array>
    <key>PayloadDescription</key>
    <string>ADA Settings</string>
    <key>PayloadDisplayName</key>
    <string>ADA</string>
    <key>PayloadIdentifier</key>
    <string>com.ttinc.Air-Drop-Assistant</string>
    <key>PayloadOrganization</key>
    <string>BOB</string>
    <key>PayloadScope</key>
    <string>System</string>
    <key>PayloadType</key>
    <string>Configuration</string>
    <key>PayloadUUID</key>
    <string>1BBD23DE-7ED7-45DF-8126-5085A681ED83</string>
    <key>PayloadVersion</key>
    <integer>1</integer>
</dict>
</plist>