Apple Remote Desktop 2 Technology Overview November 2004
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 Contents Page 3 Introduction Desktop Management Made Easy What’s New in Apple Remote Desktop 2 Page 5 Setting Up Apple Remote Desktop 2 Setting Up Client Computers Discovering and Organizing Computers Page 9 Software Distribution Installing Software Page 11 Asset Management Hardware Reports Software Reports Offline Reporting Page 16 Remote Administration Remote Shell Scripts Remote Boot Disk Selection Page 19 Remote Assistance Observe and Control Multi
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 3 Introduction Desktop Management Made Easy 9% Administration 11% Technical Support 2% Other 49% End User Management 29% Hardware/ Software Desktop management accounts for 70 percent of total system costs. Source: Table 2, Windows XP System, “Desktop TCO Update 2003,” Michael Silver, Gartner Group. Apple Remote Desktop 2 is the new release of Apple’s desktop management software, enabling administrators to manage Mac OS X systems quickly and easily.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 What’s New in Apple Remote Desktop 2 Apple Remote Desktop 2 offers more than 50 new features for managing networked Mac OS X systems. Key features include the following: • Installation of multiple software packages. Apple Remote Desktop 2 supports the simultaneous installation of multiple software packages on one or more Mac systems. Software installation occurs in the background and requires no end-user interaction.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 5 Setting Up Apple Remote Desktop 2 Apple Remote Desktop 2 gives you all of the tools you need to manage the Mac computers on your network—whether you’re distributing software, providing online assistance, or collecting hardware and software asset information. To get started with Apple Remote Desktop, install the administration software on the system you will use to manage remote Mac computers.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 6 Discovering and Organizing Computers After you’ve enabled the Mac computers you want to manage, you can discover them using the built-in network scanners and organize them using computer lists. Network scanners This powerful new feature can discover Mac systems that are Apple Remote Desktop enabled or VNC enabled.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 Remote control of server systems Apple Remote Desktop 2 enables you to control Xserve systems as well as Mac computers—complementing the remote management tools built into Mac OS X Server. Because servers are often “headless” and in remote locations, the Server Setup Assistant in Mac OS X Server includes a one-click option to install and configure the Apple Remote Desktop Agent. Also available is a command-line utility for configuring software on the server.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 User mode Now you can allow non-administrator users to run Apple Remote Desktop 2 with some or all of the features enabled. Features can be enabled or disabled in the Apple Remote Desktop preference pane. Restricted Access Preference Pane 1. Toggle user mode 2. Specify features 1. Toggle user mode. Administrators can allow non-administrator users full or partial access to the feature set of Apple Remote Desktop 2. 2. Specify features.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 Software Distribution Apple Remote Desktop 2 is an ideal solution for installing or upgrading software across multiple Mac systems. Whether it’s a new version of Mac OS X or a suite of applications, it’s easy to keep all of your computers up to date—without interrupting your users or requiring any user interaction. Installing Software Use the Install Packages task pane to choose the software you wish to distribute.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 10 After installation, your installer files are deleted automatically from the client system. Apple Remote Desktop can even restart the client system remotely. Software installations can be deployed immediately or scheduled for a later date and time—for example, when network traffic is low or users are away from their computers. For applications that require only drag-and-drop installation, you can use the File Copy feature for software distribution.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 11 Asset Management As an administrator or support professional, you need to keep track of the configuration of Mac systems in your organization. Apple Remote Desktop 2 allows you to collect information on more than 200 hardware and software attributes. For fast retrieval, it stores all reports in the included SQL database, making it easy to generate custom reports using any number of third-party SQL-aware tools.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 12 System Overview Report with System Overview Result 9. Refresh button 8. Edit Task button 10. Print 7. Category filter 11. Export 1. System attribute selection 2. Cached report settings 3. Schedule task 4. Target computer list 6. Results view 5. Save task 1. System attribute selection. Collect and view information on more than 100 system attributes. Attributes are organized by categories.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 13 USB Devices. Information on Universal Serial Bus devices connected to the client computer includes product name and ID, vendor name and ID, speed, and bus power for each device. PCI Cards. Specific information about the PCI cards installed in a client computer includes card name, type, memory, speed, revision (or version), vendor ID, device, and ROM revision for each card, as well as the card’s slot location. Network Performance.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 14 File Search with File Search Result 12. Open selected items 11. Refresh button 10. Edit Task button 1. Attribute selector 2. Attribute qualifier 13. Delete selected items 14. Copy to me 16. Export 15. Print 3. Search term 4. View options 5. Cached report settings 6. Schedule task 7. Target computer list 9. Results view 8. Save task 1. Attribute selector.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 Offline Reporting SQL database All of the data for the hardware and software reports is stored in the included SQL database for fast and easy retrieval. System administrators can tap in to this database using any number of third-party SQL-aware tools to generate their own custom reports. Offline reporting is a new feature in Apple Remote Desktop 2.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 16 Remote Administration Apple Remote Desktop 2 gives you the tools to perform routine administration tasks without ever needing to leave your desk.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 Send UNIX Command Task 1. UNIX shell scripts or commands 2. Specify user 3. Schedule task 4. Target computer list 5. Save task 1. UNIX shell scripts or commands. Enter one or more UNIX commands or type in a UNIX shell script to be executed on target computers. You can use the two new included tools, systemsetup and networksetup, to configure the Network, Energy Saver, and Date & Time system preferences. 2. Specify user.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 18 Remote Boot Disk Selection NetBoot and Network Install services Mac OS X Server includes system imaging tools that streamline the support of Macintosh clients and reduce system administration costs. Administrators can use NetBoot to host a single operating system and application configuration on all desktop systems. Network Install is an ideal solution for installing and upgrading software on Mac OS X desktop and portable systems.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 19 Remote Assistance Powerful screen-sharing and text-messaging capabilities allow you to provide thorough technical assistance to the computer users in your organization. Screen sharing is also valuable when you need to observe or take control of remote computer systems.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 20 Remote Control 3. Toggle keyboard and mouse control 4. Fit in window toggle 5. Screen capture 6. Color depth 2. Toggle control mode 1. Remote computer 1. Remote computer. Control any Mac OS X screen or any VNC-enabled computer. 2. Toggle control mode. Toggle between control and observe mode. 3. Toggle keyboard and mouse control. Toggle between sharing the keyboard and mouse with a remote user or taking absolute control of the remote keyboard and mouse.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 21 Multi-Observe Apple Remote Desktop 2 lets you observe up to 50 screens simultaneously, so it’s easy to stay on top of what’s happening on your network. The new multi-observe window allows you to specify the number of remote VNC-enabled computer screens to display in one window—up to 50 screens simultaneously.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 22 Screen Sharing and Text Messaging Apple Remote Desktop 2 enables you to select a Mac screen and share it with other Mac OS X systems. This feature is useful for demonstrating specific tasks or training a group of computer users. Guest Access option The screen-sharing features of Apple Remote Desktop are frequently used in help desk settings.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 23 Product Details Package Contents Apple Remote Desktop 2 includes the following: • Apple Remote Desktop 2 CD • Getting started guide • Electronic documentation Licensing Options Apple Remote Desktop 2 is licensed per administrator and is available in two versions: a 10-client edition and an unlimited-client edition. The 10-client edition permits one administrator to manage up to 10 computers.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 24 Technical Specifications Software Distribution Package installation • Install single or multiple packages remotely on a group of Mac OS X systems. • Install packages in .pkg and .mpkg formats. • Schedule for specific dates and times. File copy • Copy single or multiple files and folders to a group of Mac OS X systems. • Copy single or multiple files and folders from a group of Mac OS X systems to administrator’s computer.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 25 File Search report • Search for files on groups of Mac OS X computers using name, parent path, full path, extension, date modified, date created, actual size, size on disk, kind, visibility, version number, version string, owner, group, permissions, and lock status file attributes. Software Version report • Select up to 10 applications and compare versions installed on administrator’s computer with a group of Mac OS X computers.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 26 FireWire Devices report • Manufacturer, Model, Device Speed, Software Version, Firmware Version Network Interfaces report • Network Overview: Name, Active, Primary, Configured With, Hardware Address, Interface Name, Flags • Active Interface: Domain, Router Address, IP Address, Broadcast Address, DNS Server, Subnet Mask, IP Addresses, Broadcast Addresses, DNS Servers, Subnet Masks • Network Statistics: Network Collisions, Network Input Errors, Network Input Pac
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 27 Empty Trash • Empty Trash files for all users on one or more Mac OS X systems. Set startup disk • Startup disk can be local disk or partition or selected from a list of NetBoot or Network Install images. • Optionally restart the computers after new startup disk is set. Rename Mac OS X computers • Append a unique number for each computer when multiple computers are selected. Log out current user • Log out current user for one or more Mac OS X systems.
Technology Overview Apple Remote Desktop 2 28 Additional Resources For more information, visit the Apple Remote Desktop 2 website at www.apple.com/remotedesktop. For technical articles about product issues, usage, and implementation, please see the Apple Remote Desktop 2 support website at www.apple.com/support/remotedesktop. *Apple Remote Desktop client software version 1.2 or later is installed automatically when you install Mac OS X v10.3 or later on a client computer. © 2004 Apple Computer, Inc.
