I imagine it was a fat fingering. I’ve purchased MBPs for my org in person at an Apple Store because I needed them urgently and I had to call my Apple rep to manually assign the serials to our company in ABM.
You can manually assign MacBooks to your Apple Business account.
Just install Apple Configurator on an iPhone and hold the phone close to the laptop at initial boot. It will show a sort of QR code and when you scan it it’s attached.
The initial detection will only trigger when it is in the “choose locale” screen, just after the very first “choose language” screen.
If you go beyond “choose locale” it will not work, even if you go back a step, and even if you reboot.
Then in ABM change the MDM platform to whatever you want (your Jamf instance) and Bob’s your uncle
That is simultaneously (a) so freaking cool and (b) the most nonobvious, undiscoverable UI/UX I've ever heard of.
"How do you do this sort-of complex business process to a new apple device?"
"Oh just install this app on your phone, then hold the phone next to the computer when you turn it on. No, don't open the app. No, don't lock the phone. No, don't click anything on the computer, lest you go too far."
Just install Apple Configurator on an iPhone and hold the phone close to the laptop at initial boot. It will show a sort of QR code and when you scan it it’s attached.
The initial detection will only trigger when it is in the “choose locale” screen, just after the very first “choose language” screen.
If you go beyond “choose locale” it will not work, even if you go back a step, and even if you reboot.
Then in ABM change the MDM platform to whatever you want (your Jamf instance) and Bob’s your uncle