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Viewing 15 posts - 181 through 195 (of 201 total)
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  • in reply to: InstaDMG vs SIU #372166
    knowmad
    Participant

    please define for those of us who don’t know…. what is SIU?

    as for why to use IDMG… well, for one, it works, for two it allows the rapid creation of images with pre-installed software without tying up multiple machines, images that are hardware independent (mostly). I use it to let me create images for groups as small as 4 machines, where I would otherwise not waste the time and instead bludgeon a general purpose image into place. This way i get what I need where I need it without spending my whole day building the image.

    If SIU does the same thing for the same price…. link please?

    in reply to: Are snapshots possible? #372165
    knowmad
    Participant

    what you say makes sense, however (imo) I think it overlooks something.
    One of the major reasons for doing things the InstaDMG way is avoid having the system tied to specific hardware, as well as avoiding all the extra stuff that is auto created on first boot/login/etc. If you used a snapshot, you would lose those benefits.

    As for updates, order and necessity, its really not that hard nor that time consuming. I will post my screen grabs from my work process for figuring this out but…. Its really not bad at all.
    My process:
    Create my IDMG image using those updates I am certain of (like full point combo updates). Install to a ‘test’ machine, almost any will do. Run AU, screen grab the resulting list, maybe mark them all as download only, then run it again and let it install. Lather, Rinse, Repeat until there are no more.
    Now you have screen grabs listing which items were installed in what order, and a folder containing all your downloads. Note and remove the hardware specific items from the list and your done.
    I did the whole process once with 10.5.1 and once with 10.5.2 as starting points. Took a little less than 30 minutes each time. Between full point releases I simply note the new security fixes and add them as they come out. Usually they are rolled into the next combo update.

    Reading this over it sounds like more work than it is, I cannot stress enough how surprised I was to find it really was a short and painless process.

    If someone with far better programming skills than I were to either A) Automate the process including screen grabs and downloads, or B) Create a nice little program that simulates* the process and thereby speeds things up… that would be beyond cool…. but unexpected.

    *By simulate I mean a program that contacts AU and tells it ‘this is a 10.5.1 machine with these updates installed, what’s next’… then lists those as installed and does it again and etc without having to actually install them in between or even really have a 10.5.1 machine to begin with. I know it can be done, I just don’t think it is worth the effort.

    in reply to: createUser.pkg #372126
    knowmad
    Participant

    No one has said it here yet, so I will.
    Thank you!
    As soon as I get back to work (and back to a mac) I am going to tear this script apart and use it the best I can… I have been waiting for this for a while.
    THANK YOU!

    in reply to: UUIDs and Security #372049
    knowmad
    Participant

    ok, now I am REALLY interested in seeing this new tool of yours…..

    in reply to: Custom Package Library #372008
    knowmad
    Participant

    so… how do we get started?

    in reply to: help with my instauser script #372002
    knowmad
    Participant

    No, I am fully familiar with how instauser 10.5 works…. i just (for reasons I am not fully capable of voicing) don’t prefer that method….
    I think I will end up with the combination of dscl -f and placed hash file.

    in reply to: Custom Package Library #371994
    knowmad
    Participant

    I don’t have much to add just yet, but I would be happy to contribute what I can…. plus I would really like to see what other people are writing script wise to help with my very minimal script writing skills….
    So yeah, I would be interested…. If the guys at 548 cannot make the repository for some reason, maybe we can (with their blessing) find somewhere else (I might have a space)

    in reply to: help with my instauser script #371993
    knowmad
    Participant

    Ok, so I need to add more details….
    I am running this as a startup item, I really thought that was how it is supposed to run, how else would you run it?
    I am running it on leopard,I also thought the Netinfo reference was odd, but I took it as part of the script that I do not understand and did not remove it, i will.
    How would you run it if not as a startup item, assuming your running this on leopard and you don’t want to use the ‘copy’ system for setting up new users (ie the 10.5 specific version of the script)?

    Mostly I have been trying (admittedly only after I wrote this post) to use the DSCL -f version and do it NOT as a startup script….. but that has password issues all its own….
    (Edit below this line, forgot to add)
    Yes, the part that is necessary to ‘tweak’ is in the archive section, rather than mess with it in the existing package, I used the packagemaker project that is included to rebuild it with my script replacing the original.
    That part seems to work fine.

    in reply to: dscl and InstaDMG #371992
    knowmad
    Participant

    What if, instead of putting in a UUID, you let DSCL (in -f mode) generate a UUID and THEN set the password?
    I am not 100% clear on the series of events required to properly set a password via DSCL, but I get the feeling that in order to properly create a hash, it needs a UUID, theoretically if it were running locally it would just do that, but since it is running on a non booted machine, it does not create one (UUID) unless strictly told to do so, even when told to create a password, thus setting the password does not fully work….. of course that is conjecture as I am not even certain where to check my guess against reality except to try it…..

    and while looking that up (or trying to) I came across this in the DSCL man pages:

    [code] passwd
    Usage: passwd user_path [new_pasword | old_password new_pasword]

    Changes a password for a user. The user must be specified by full path, not just a username. If
    you are authenticated to the node (either by specifying the -u and -P flags or by using the auth
    command when in interactive node) then you can simply specify a new password. If you are not
    authenticated then the user’s old password must be specified. If passwords are not specified
    while in interactive mode, you will be prompted for them.
    [/code]
    Which, while not completely applicable, makes me feel that maybe I should be using an authenticated instance of dscl to work on a local node?

    Anyway, I was specifically looking for a list of keys, to see if you could generate the UUID by simply telling dscl to create a UUID without telling it what to set it to….
    I am off tot he apple KB for more info.
    (edited for typos)

    in reply to: dscl and InstaDMG #371984
    knowmad
    Participant

    Same Issue Here.

    This is what mine looks like:
    [code]#adds admin acct
    Adminacct() {
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Users/admin
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Users/admin home /private/var/admin
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Users/admin shell /bin/bash
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Users/admin uid 11
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Users/admin gid 11
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Users/admin realname “Administrator”
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Groups/admin
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -create /Local/Target/Groups/admin gid 11
    /usr/bin/dscl -f /Volumes/InstaDMG/var/db/dslocal/nodes/Default localonly -passwd /Local/Target/Users/admin “Password”
    }[/code]

    And then I call it between apple updates and custom packages.
    Account gets created, but cannot login….. suggestions?
    (UID and GID are fine… 11 is unused and I tested 501 and other random numbers just in case)

    in reply to: ARD enabling… #371958
    knowmad
    Participant

    [QUOTE][u]Quote by: thegooch49[/u][p]Hello, I have a post-install script that is placed during image creation. It’s in /Library/StartupItems, same as the instauser script. It’s just a 1 line kickstart, that turns it on for the pre-configured user that is setup by instauser. This works great for me.

    #Configure ARD
    /System/Library/CoreServices/RemoteManagement/ARDAgent.app/Contents/Resources/kickstart -activate -configure -access -on -users YOURUSER -privs -all -restart -agent -menu[/p][/QUOTE]

    Have you tried just adding that to the end of the instauser script?
    any effect?

    (I did put your line (un-credited as no one but me will ever see it…. mostly…. sorry) in my instauser script, but I think I messed up the rest of the script so i am not certain if it worked or not.)

    in reply to: dscl and InstaDMG #371953
    knowmad
    Participant

    [QUOTE][u]Quote by: Patrick+Fergus[/u][p]I’ve retooled our Instauser package using your tip. I was resisting the Leopard (Instauser 10.5) method since whacking admin.plist didn’t seem like a good idea. Now I use dscl -f and just add our local administrator.

    Thanks!

    – Patrick[/p][/QUOTE]

    Out of curiosity, where does this retooled instauser script reside? Do we have to wait for the next instadmg point release to see your work?

    in reply to: Basic Script Explanation #371797
    knowmad
    Participant

    akinspe –
    thank you… oddly ia m working with an unaltered copy of the script so ia m uncertain as to why it is NOT commented out…. had it been commented out I would like to think I would be smart enough to understand it… ok, I asked the question and got the answer, learned something. Thank you a ton for the quick answer

    EDIT: so after reading the WHOLE script I realized it is commented out, i just didn’t read far enough. Upon finishing the read through, I find the whole script easier to understand, I know why mine did not complete (could not eject…. I think something else might have been trying to access that image) and I understand better where and how to change things.
    Thanks again for the help.

    in reply to: 10.4.11 on Core 2 Duo wrecks PowerPoint #370767
    knowmad
    Participant

    a co-worker came up with this, so far it has fixed the issue:

    (can use root instead of single user mode if you feel like it)

    Step one: Copy OpenGL.framework from /System/Library/Frameworks on a known working machine to a USB stick, or something similar. Rename the copy to OpenGL.framework.old.

    Step two: Copy OpenGL.framework.old to your broken MacBook.

    Step three: Reboot in Single User mode.

    Step four: /sbin/mount -wu / to get write access to the root volume.

    Step five: cd to /System/Library/Frameworks

    Step six: mv OpenGL.framework to OpenGL.framework.bak

    Step seven: mv OpenGL.framework.new to OpenGL.framework

    in reply to: 10.4.11 on Core 2 Duo wrecks PowerPoint #370713
    knowmad
    Participant

    chip connection got blown just now, seems to happen on some Core 2 Duos and some Mac Pros (Xeons) but not others…. no common thread yet….

Viewing 15 posts - 181 through 195 (of 201 total)