Home Forums Software InstaDMG What MCX records do you change?

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  • #374263
    knowmad
    Participant

    (1 of 2 related threads search identifier: creating default settings)
    So I figure a bunch of us are in environments without apple servers, but with enough apple machines that we are using instadmg AND have a need to set certain default settings that end-users cannot change. I use workgroup manager and a guest computer account to set some of these defaults (many of which I got from http://managingosx.wordpress.com/ the writer of which frequents these forums so, thank you!).
    I know that much of this can be done using dscl to write mcx records during the instadmg process, I just don’t know enough of those commands to really make good use of them.
    I wanted to start this thread as a good place for people to note which MCX records they write OR which preferences they are managing with WorkGroup Manager so that all of us can learn.

    So far, I use mostly the basics already built into WorkGroup Manager, as well as those I learned from the aforementioned website.
    I am researching fine-grain printer control and a few other things.
    I am hoping eventually to flip all these items to MCX record writes so I can do them one at a time instead of as a monolithic single install.
    What is everyone else doing?

    #374269
    Greg Neagle
    Participant

    Rather than using a script and dscl to write mcx data to the local DS records, I’d take the approach of using WGM to create the MCX data for Computer Groups or Computer Records (though using Computer Groups allows a more modular approach). You’d then also use a startup script that adds the computer record for the current local machine to these Computer Groups. Finally, you would package these all up as Installer packages and drop them into your InstaDMG workflow.

    So you could have a LocalMCX.pkg that just contained the local_computer computer record (/private/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default/computers/local_computer.plist) and the script that adds the current machine’s MAC layer address to the local_computer record.
    Then you’d have a separate package for each computer group that contains MCX settings. The package would generally install a single file, for example:
    /private/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default/computergroups/loginwindow_mcx.plist
    or
    /private/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default/computergroups/timemachine_mcx.plist

    This way you can mix-and-match local MCX settings in your InstaDMG build: if in the future you want to add or replace some settings, you can add a new package, or replace an existing one, without touching the others. You can remove a group of settings (for example, you decide to stop managing TImeMachine), by removing just that package.

    #374326
    knowmad
    Participant

    got a script example for adding the mac address to the local record?
    knowmad

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