Enable the Software Kiosk

Enable the Software Kiosk

The Software Kiosk lets the people using your managed devices install approved software themselves. It lives in the octoja agent's self-service app, which sits in the device's system tray. A user opens the app, browses or searches the list of apps you've approved for that device, and installs one with a single click — so routine software requests never have to reach you. Each entry shows whether the app is already installed or has an update available.

This guide walks an administrator through switching the kiosk on and choosing which software appears in it.

Before you start

• You need the Monitoring Check Management permission to open and edit config packages. It covers everything inside a package — the checks, the software deployments and the agent settings. It is granted per group under Administration → Groups.
• To change agent settings on a single device, you need the Edit Device permission for it. Device permissions are also granted per group under Administration → Groups.
• A config package must already exist (or you need permission to create one), and it should match the devices you want the kiosk on.
• The octoja agent must be installed on the target devices.

Step 1 — Show the agent and turn on the kiosk

The kiosk only appears once two agent settings are on for the device: Show agent in system tray (so the self-service app is reachable) and Software kiosk enabled. Set the tray one first — the kiosk setting stays greyed out until it is on. You can set both for a whole group of devices through a config package, or for one device on its own.

For matched devices, via a config package

1. Go to Configuration → Config Packages and open the package that matches the devices you want.
2. Open the Agent tab and find the Agent settings card.
3. Turn on Show agent in system tray.
4. Turn on Software kiosk enabled.
5. Save the config package.

Every device the package matches gets these settings. A device ends up with a setting switched on if any of its config packages turns it on, so you set the rule once and it follows your fleet.

For a single device

1. Open the device from Devices.
2. From the device's action menu, choose Agent settings.
3. For Show agent in system tray, pick On to override it for this device.
4. For Software kiosk enabled, pick On as well.
5. Click Save.

Each setting shows Default (the value it inherits from the device's config packages) or an Override you set here. Leave a setting on Default to keep following the packages, or set it to On or Off to fix it for this one device.

Step 2 — Publish software to the kiosk

Turning the kiosk on gives the user an empty shelf. You decide what goes on it per software item in a config package's Software tab.

1. Go to Configuration → Config Packages and open the package.
2. On the Software tab, use Add Software to add a deployment (or open one you've already added). See Deploy Software to Devices for how to add software.
3. Turn on Show in Software Kiosk for that item. This automatically sets the deployment to Update only: the user requests the initial installation in the kiosk, then octoja keeps the installed software current. If it is absent, assigning the package alone does not install it.
4. Save the config package.

Repeat for each app you want available in the kiosk. Only the items you switch on appear there; everything else in the package still deploys the way it normally would.

What the user sees

On a device where the kiosk is on, the person using it opens the octoja agent from the system tray and finds the Software Kiosk. There they can:

• Browse or search the list of apps you approved for that device.
• Install an app with one click.
• See, for each app, whether it's already installed or has an update available — and update it from the same place.

The octoja agent installs software using the execution context configured in the software deployment. In system context, users without local administrator rights can install approved software machine-wide. User context uses the signed-in user's account; the package must support that installation mode. A standard account does not gain administrator rights. In particular, user-context Chocolatey installations can fail for lack of permissions, while suitable winget packages support installation in the user's profile.

Tips

• Use a config package's Agent settings to switch the kiosk on across a group of devices at once, and reserve the per-device override for one-off exceptions.
• Keep the kiosk list short and relevant to each device group — approve the everyday apps your users actually request, and leave specialised tools to a scheduled deployment.
• An app only reaches the kiosk when both its config package matches the device and Show in Software Kiosk is on for that item.
• Each device sees entries that fit its operating system — winget, Chocolatey and custom software packages on Windows, Homebrew on macOS, APT on Linux. To cover a mixed fleet, flag one entry per platform.
• Installed and update states are detected machine-wide. Software a user installed only under their own account may not be reflected.

FAQ

How do I remove an app from the Software Kiosk?

Under Configuration → Config Packages, open each package that matches the affected device and makes the app available in the kiosk. On the Software tab, remove the corresponding software entry or open it and turn off Show in Software Kiosk. Save the config package. The app remains available in the kiosk while another matching package still makes it available.

Deleting a package or version under Custom Packages does not replace this step: kiosk availability belongs to the software entry in the config package, not to the installer file.

Can users uninstall software through the kiosk?

No. The kiosk offers installation and updates, not an uninstall action. Users should contact their IT team to arrange removal through the organization's approved process. Removing an entry from the kiosk only changes its availability there; it is not an uninstall request.

You can follow and vote for the feature request to uninstall software through the kiosk.