User manual APPLE REMOTE DESKTOP 3.1 ADMINISTRATOR GUIDE

[. . . ] Apple Remote Desktop Administrator's Guide Version 3. 1 K Apple Computer, Inc. © 2006 Apple Computer, Inc. All rights reserved. The owner or authorized user of a valid copy of Apple Remote Desktop software may reproduce this publication for the purpose of learning to use such software. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes, such as selling copies of this publication or for providing paid for support services. The Apple logo is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. , registered in the U. S. [. . . ] You can manually or automatically get detailed information about every computer, install software, and maintain systems from a single administrator computer. This chapter describes Remote Desktop's capabilities and gives complete instructions for using them. You can learn about: Â "Keeping Track of Task Progress and History" on page 97 Â "Installing Software Using Apple Remote Desktop" on page 102 Â "Upgrading Software" on page 106 Â "Copying Files" on page 108 Â "Creating Reports" on page 113 Â "Maintaining Systems" on page 129 Â "Managing Computers" on page 137 Â "UNIX Shell Commands" on page 146 Keeping Track of Task Progress and History The task history area is on the left side of the Remote Desktop window (see "Remote Desktop Main Window" on page 29) with all computer lists and scanners. Every time you execute a task (generating a report, copying a file, restarting a computer), the task name, affected computers, task result, and time you execute it is stored in the Task History window (accessible via Window > Task History). The History list, in the main Remote Desktop window, shows the task name and result. You can select a task in the History list to see some information about it, and doubleclick it to view a more detailed description of the task, as well as the computers involved with it. Tasks in progress appear in the Active Tasks list, where you can stop and restart them. 97 Remote Desktop keeps track of three kinds of task progress: active, Task Server, and completed. Active tasks are those which are currently being processed by the client computers, and the client computers have not all reported back to the administrator console. Some tasks are so short that they only briefly appear in the list of current tasks; other tasks may take a long time and remain there long enough to return to the task and view the progress as it happens. The Active Tasks list is located in the left side of the Remote Desktop window, and has a disclosure triangle to expand or hide the list. Task Server tasks are those which have been assigned to the task server (either the one running on the administrator's computer, or a remote one) which have not yet completed for all the task participants. Completed tasks are those which have received a task status for all participating client computers. The task description and computer list then moves to the History list. The History list is located in the left side of the Remote Desktop window, and has a disclosure triangle for expanding or hiding the list. In addition to the task status and notification features of Remote Desktop, you can set a task notification shell script to run when any task has completed. This script is for all tasks, but it can be as complex as your needs require. Enabling a Task Notification Script When a task completes, Remote Desktop can run a script that you create. This script is for all completed tasks, and it must be a shell script. There is a default notification script provided, which you can customize for your needs. The script must be a shell script, but you can use various other scripting environments like AppleScripts with the osascript command. To enable a task notification script: 1 Make sure you are logged in as an administrator user. 5 Select "Enable task notification script. " 6 Choose the location of the script. The default notification script is located at /Library/Application Support/Apple/Remote Desktop/Notify. 7 Close the Preferences window. 98 Chapter 8 Administering Client Computers Getting Active Task Status When you get a task's current status, you see the progress of the task, the computers involved, and their feedback to the administrator computer. [. . . ] ELEMENTS contained by application. Appendix C AppleScript Remote Desktop Suite 183 rename computer task n [inh. PROPERTIES naming uniquely (boolean): Should each machine be forced to have a numerically unique name target name (Unicode text): The new name for the computer. PROPERTIES user can save changes or cancel (boolean): Is the user allowed to save changes or cancel the restart send message task n [inh. PROPERTIES message (Unicode text): Message to display on the screen(s). [. . . ]