I am developing a custom DPC (Device Policy Controller) app.

My uninstall logic works correctly on fully managed devices (Device Owner), but it does not work on BYOD devices (Work Profile / Profile Owner).

Context

• On fully managed devices → uninstall works fine.

• On BYOD (work profile) → the method runs without crashing, but the app is not uninstalled.

• The app was installed from the managed Google Play (work profile Play Store).

Code

public static boolean uninstallPackages(Context context, String... packages) {
    if (DPCUtils.isDeviceOwner(context) || DPCUtils.isProfileOwner(context)) {
        if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.LOLLIPOP) {
            PackageInstaller packageInstaller = context.getPackageManager().getPackageInstaller();
            for (String pkg : packages) {
                packageInstaller.uninstall(
                    pkg,
                    PendingIntent.getBroadcast(
                        context,
                        0,
                        new Intent(),
                        Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.S
                                ? PendingIntent.FLAG_IMMUTABLE
                                : 0
                    ).getIntentSender()
                );
            }
            return true;
        }
    }
    return false;
}

According to the documentation

PackageInstaller.uninstall() is available to:

• the installer of record

• the device owner

• the affiliated profile owner

In BYOD, I am the Profile Owner (not affiliated).

What is the correct and supported approach to silently uninstall applications in a BYOD work profile setup?