PeachPit Press labels Mac OS X Server 10.3 Panther as intended for those readers with intermediate to advanced OS X Server experience, but this is not accurate. The step-wise instruction provided by Regan and White is richly documented with screenshots, so even those new to OS X Server can follow this book. Intermediate or advanced server admins will find some nice “tips and tricks” to add to their arsenal of tools, and if they’re preparing to set up their first OS X Server or XServe, they’ll find this book a handy companion to “pre-lab” with and to use as a follow along guide.
In less than 20 pages, Chapter 1 takes the reader through planning his or her OS X Server deployment with an overview of partitioning options, various methods of installation and a tour of post-install logs. This is Regan’s “20-pages-of-prep/20-minutes-to-install” chapter; concise, exact and representative of the pace and caliber of the chapters that follow.
Chapter 2, “Server Tools”, covers the aftermath of the install; how to use the Server Administration software that comes with OS X Server to configure the server. The authors walk through language choices, network interfaces, administrator account setup, directory service and service startup options. The Server Admin and Workgroup Manager tools are also discussed in detail; how to customize Server Admin preferences, how to use Workgroup Manager preferences (resolve DNS, use SSL for sharing, show system users and groups) and how to add users to the local database. The Server Admin tool is the most used utility in OS X Server. It offers a well-designed GUI to manage all your services as well as preferences and advanced options. If you’re upgrading from AppleShare IP, you’ll want to look at the section on using the AppleShare IP Migration tool to ease the transition to OS X Panther Server. An overview of the Macintosh Manager follows, for support of Mac OS 9 user preferences. The chapter concludes with a brief introduction to additional server tools: MySQL Manager, using Server Monitor, the RAID Admin Tool, the Network Image Utility, the QTSS (QuickTime Streaming Server) Publisher and the QuickTime Broadcaster (the last two are discussed in greater detail in Chapter 12).
Implementing Open Directory is the focus of Chapter 3, but the actual implementation steps are prefaced by a strong discussion of directory services.
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The final chapter of the book concentrates on client management and how to implement managed preferences to workgroups, computer lists or individual user accounts. This, of course, is every administrator’s dream: to manage and control clients from a centralized environment! The authors show that OS X Server provides excellent management options and with a bit of planning and foresight, an administrator can properly configure their OS X Server tools to provide a balance of efficiency and control.
So what’s missing? Not much, really. VPN is not covered at all, though, and I would have liked a section on this. VPN is a real necessity not only for remote employees/students but also for the administrator. But sheesh — that’s a small complaint given the amount of information in this book, and I have to applaud the authors for their ability to combine such detailed instructions on nearly every aspect of OS X Server between two covers.
The book follows the classic Visual QuickPro Guide layout, with each page split into two columns to allow for instructional text situated alongside accompanying screenshots. This book is loaded with screenshots and icon graphics, so the reader will miss nary a step while following along on their test box or their production server. There are even pictures of the progress bar as configuration settings are being applied! (Well, sometimes patience needs to be encouraged.) Chapter subtopics are indicated on the binding of the book with gray thumb tabs. Extended information and digressions are highlighted in gray boxes as logical asides.
Everything about this book is designed to guide the reader through every aspect of the installation and configuration of OS X server. The authors provide clear explanations of each step using a task-based approach with extended discussions on the various choices the server presents the user with at appropriate intervals. There are plenty of real world “tips and tricks” that will save the administrator time and anguish over the course of setting up the server. Regan and White address some of the most difficult to comprehend topics and issues an admin will address: multi-platform environments and file sharing, DNS, Open Directory and security. Fully understanding these subjects is critical to making the correct choices while configuring the server. The authors’ thorough discourse provides the reader with the knowledge and tools to get the job done.
Mary Norbury-Glaser is an IT Director at a University of Colorado Health Sciences affiliate center in Denver. Working in a multi-platform academic environment dominated by Windows boxes, she sometimes feels like the Mac Maytag Lady.