I push profiles via MDM, no need to use Exchange. You could use captive portal to authenticate users on a network, that way they could use whatever tech they wanted. Sure, we have several test labs with equipment we want setup the exact same way, this is what I use profiles for. Most of the clients no longer need or want Big Data telling them how to use their tech.
A captive portal requires users to perform more steps to get to their resources. Anyway, I think it just comes down to having different work flows and different users. My users are
not tech savvy in the least (maybe 1 out of 20 is), and almost all of my users are in office, at their desk. I have very few mobile users. It's just a different business type I think, and for that, authentication and binding and central management works very well.
Limited access, not good use case for global workflows, we rarely get the luxury of sitting in cubicles in a single office building. Recommend something more robust like ownCloud. That way you can access your documents in China without VPN or tunnel access
Again, different use case. Most of my users do sit in a single office, and if they find themselves in a different office, all my offices are interconnected via VPN and authenticate to the same domain so they can still access their resources from any office.
Additionally, all of our storage servers
can also be accessed via web. So in the rare case that they need to access something from outside the office, we basically have our own internal "cloud" and they can login using their AD credentials. Seems like the best of both worlds to me: via AD and binding, resources are presented to the user automatically when in the office, but are still available without VPN when traveling.
No longer recommended practice. Public calendars are hosted via web applications, same for private / shared calendars. Again accessible from anywhere in the world and with any device. I can access my secretary's calendar with a borrowed Kindle on a plane to Spain. Not so easy with Exchange.
When was the last time you used Exchange? Exchange has had web access since version 2011 at least (so also in version 2013 and 2016), which allows you to access E-mails, Calendars (shared and personal), and Contacts via a web browser, from any device, borrowed or not.
seriously? You really had to stretch here.
Yeah, there are actually like 20 things that can be customized via profiles and I just picked the first one to pop in my head which was the Dock.
Here is a more complete list, in addition to the features I already listed:
1. Manage available, authorized, automatically installed printers
2. Manage network settings, including IPs, subnets, adapters (WiFi, etc.) and VPNs
3. Manage installed certificates
4. Restrict or allow access to specific parts of the OS or applications, including system preferences
5. Customize the Finder window
6. Specify programs for automatic start
7. Automatically setup corporate chat in Messages app
etc.
Here's my argument. Who uses tech like this anymore? No one, everyone is specialized, we no longer have offices of workers with the same configurations. Bound or managed systems create more headaches for IT than they fix with today's use case and tech savy clients.
Again, I think your use case and workflow and work environment are just very different from mine. I work with a multi-national corporation with offices all over the world, and most of my workers (not all), are desk-bound. A lot of our offices are in poorer countries, and users don't even necessarily have their own capable devices like laptops, or tablets, or smartphones.
