How to setup a mac mini server

Have new Mac Mini Server, need to setup on a network that is primarily a windows environment, the PC Servers are 2008 R2. Is there a easy to follow step by step installation guide for this environment?

What function is the Mac Mini to perform on the network?
There is a forum for server software
https://discussions.apple.com/community/servers_enterprise_software/os_x_server
You may find better answers there.

Similar Messages

How do you setup a Mac Mini Server online? eg: no linked screen

I was told in a Mac Store you can set up a Mac Mini Server online. So no need to have a screen connected.
There's nothing in the paperwork that comes with it to say how to do so if you can. I have an iMac setup right next to it for going online or screen sharing etc.
Have I been misinformed or am I just being slow?!
Thanks in advance
Mark

Mark-THP wrote:
Bit late now as I have the screen, but out of interest how do you boot in FireWire Target Disk Mode with no screen?
Thanks
Second Mac is running 10.6.8 though.
You would have to plug a keyboard in to the Mac mini but would not need to connect a mouse or screen. You then hold down Command-T on the keyboard after turning the Mac mini on and before it boots. Keep those keys held down for about 10 seconds - that should be long enough. If you had a screen connected you would then be seeing the special FireWire symbol bouncing around the screen. This means the Mac is in FireWire Target Disk mode and is effectively a glorified external hard disk.
The fact the second Mac is itself running 10.6.8 is not important. As long as it can boot in to Lion it will be able to boot from the Mac mini which is acting as an external hard disk. On this second Mac you would plug a FireWire cable from the Mac mini. Then you would hold down the Option key and start the second Mac up. After a few seconds you should see it is in a new different mode which should list all the different bootable disks it can find, including the Mac mini which remember is acting as an external hard disk. You would then select the Mac mini disk to boot from.

Initial setup on mac mini server without monitor?

I have bought a mac mini lion server today. I do not have desktops in home, so no monitors.
How can I setup/login into it? I tried Server Admin Tools, but I do not have root password (tried blank and serial number).

I have a MBA late 2010. So, no thunderbolt.
I was hoping connect to it using ssh to execute initial setup to be abble to use remote admin tool.
The problem is that ssh do not accept root connection.
Since I do not have any display at all, the idea would be to turn the server on and setup it. Since it is a server I thought I could do this without any issue.
Linc. In your idea. How should I start mac mini in disk mode and how can I boot the MBA using mini internal drive?
Any ideas?

How many users on Mac Mini Server?

Good morning,
Apple's recent changes to the Mac Mini line have thrown a wrench in a project plan I've been working. One part of the project needs a quad-core computer (FileMaker Server) and so I'm having to either search for an older model or switch up to a Mac Pro.
The other part of the project involves bringing a Mac-based server in for directory and user services, including mail. I had planned to use the high-end Mac Mini Server but that option was removed. The office I'm supporting is about 15 people (usually a little less on the network) and most of their work will actually be done against the other computer running the FileMaker Server-based application. I was not expecting a big load against the Mac Mini Server. But these changes got me wondering, what are others' experiences with Mac Mini as a server for 12-15 people? I'm happy with qualitative and quantitative data, but I would like to know which is which. In general:
     For how many users have you provided directory and user services (built in to the OS) using a single Mac Mini?
     What were the specs of the Mac Mini (year or model, speed, CPU config, RAM)?
     Other thoughts?
In essence, I need to understand if people have successfully used dual core processors as Mac Mini servers in environments of 12-15 people. I've done it using a 2012 Mac Mini Server with 5-6 and the loading seems to support further growth, but would like real-world experience.
Thanks.

Dutch Apple employee told me that Mac OS X 10.6 Server has also Windows Terminal Services equivalent.
But this is not !
Not yet (?) available in Snow Leopard Server.

How can i access mac mini server from iPad?

how can i access my files in mac mini server using an ipad2? what apps do i need?

Hi,
I found an App called iTeleport. Have a look.

Where is the clear documentation to setup a Mac Mini server OS X Lion?

We have 3 option to setup a server:
1-Private
2-Privat with VPN
3-Public
Wher is the step by step information?

Step by step information for what?
There is no one-size-fits-all model for Mac OS X Server. It can do about three million and seven different things and there's no way Apple (or anyone else) know in advance what it is you want to do.
For most people it's a matter of running the initial, basic setup of up the server (IP address, admin accounts, etc.) and then you're on your own to enable/configure any services you want, and that's how the documentation is arranged - a number of chapters/documents based around each service - user administration, file sharing, web serving, etc., etc. It's up to you to decide which services you want, and therefore which documents are relevant to your needs. What am I missing?

Setup a Mac mini server for small business

Im trying to come up with a solution for a families small business.
theres two of them that operate it out of their home and need something central to access all the company data and documents.
one travels and one stays back, so the one traveling all they do is forward an email and thats the current documentation they have is in email, no database or file archiving.
we also want to get their old files and documents scanned in and accessible too, instead of digging through boxes of stuff.
they also would like remote access while on the road to access their data, i presume they may use macbooks and possibly iOS devices.
I was thinking a mac mini, and an airport/time capsule for backup purposes and remote accessibility.
any suggestions on file management and remote access?
thank you!

Thanks for those suggestions.
They need file sharing on the road, away from the home office. I think I understand the concept, but aside from my own personal set-up of OS X server and back to my mac type things, its not really business-y in my opinion to offer them.
Unless they believe it will good enough.
So how would i set-up dyDNS? i have a test system i can work with if there are steps you'd recommend?
I just want to offer them a way to access their documents while traveling to sites through the Apple ecosystem.
BackBlaze, i hear about this, my only concern is if this company disappears then what? yknow. Crash plan is a nice alternative, but I'm looking for inside the Apple box methods here if possible.
i really appreciate the ideas.

FTP Setup on Mac Mini Server

Hello:
First off, I am new to Mac OSX Server and servers in general. I am trying to set up FTP so I friends/family can upload to my server. Here is where I am at...
My server is connected to my Airport. My Airport is the DHCP server, distributing a range of IPs to the devices. I do not have a static IP, but am using dyndns to workaround this. Note that even though FTP services are not working, Web services are.
Created a user on the server
Updated the ACL so the user had permissions to the Share
Enabled FTP service on server
Configured Airport for port forwarding to send to server based on IP
The issue i am having is that when i use a client (filezilla) i get a permission denied error on the share. I can mount the share locally to my mac and edit with no issue. Just not thru FTP.

Thank you for the reply!
I did not have the permissions set up there. I made it so the user i created had group access. Then i still had no luck. The firewall is set up and i have port forwarding to the server on my router set up. Then i found my issue...
On the FTP service, when i set up the share permissions, i forgot select protocol options and go to the FTP tab to enable the service. Once i did that, i was golden.
Thank you for your help again!

Setup VPN on Mac Mini Server running OSX through a BT Hub Router

Hello everyone,
I know this question has been posted several times and I have looked at the suggested solutions, trying each of them. I think this is really down to my lack of knowledge hence hoping someone out there could point me to the right direction for more resources / information, please.
I am trying to setup a Mac Mini Server with VPN access. My server sits behind a BT Hub router. These are the steps that I have been through:
1. I am using the server app and after registering a free account with no-ip, I got myself a host name <myname>.ddns.net.
2. Then I setup the server using a domain name
3. I configured the DNS by first setting up a primary zone - zone: ddns.net. Then added machine record host name: <myname> pointing to my server which I have configured my router to assign a static ip address to it at 192.168.x.x
4. Then, I configured the VPN setting up for L2TP and PPTP, setup the shared secret, change the ip address range to match that of the DHCP range on my router. My router by default has a DHCP range between 64 - 253.
5. Then, I also configured my router to port forward 500, 1701, 1723, and 4500 to my server at 192.168.x.x (I selected both TCP and UDP).
6. Finally, setup a user account with account name test and password abcd12345
7. Gone on my "client" machine which is basically my Samsung S4 handphone, selected VPN -> PPTP -> server address: <myname>.ddns.net -> entered account name test and password abcd12345.
This didn't work.
Then, I read some post about manually configure DHCP on the server app. Went on the server app, turned on DHCP and setup a network named TestDHCP. Assigned ip address range between that of the default DHCP range on my BT Hub router.
This does not work either.
Could someone please kindly help me with it? I am completely lost.
Thank you in advance.

To run a public VPN server behind an NAT gateway, you need to do the following:
1. Give the gateway either a static external address or a dynamic DNS name. The latter must be a DNS record on a public DNS registrar, not on the server itself. Also in the latter case, you must run a background process to keep the DNS record up to date when your IP address changes.
2. Give the VPN server a static address on the local network, and a hostname that is not in the top-level domain "local" (which is reserved for Bonjour.)
3. Forward external UDP ports 500, 1701, and 4500 (for L2TP) and TCP port 1723 (for PPTP) to the corresponding ports on the VPN server.
If your router is an Apple device, select the Network tab in AirPort Utility and click Network Options. In the sheet that opens, check the box marked
Allow incoming IPSec authentication
if it's not already checked, and save the change.
With a third-party router, there may be a similar setting.
4. Configure any firewall in use to pass this traffic.
5. Each client must have an address on a netblock that doesn't overlap the one assigned by the VPN endpoint. For example, if the endpoint assigns addresses in the 10.0.0.0/24 range, and the client has an address on a local network in the 10.0.1.0/24 range, that's OK, but if the local network is 10.0.1.0/16, there will be a conflict. To lessen the chance of such conflicts, it's best to assign addresses in a random sub-block of 10.0.0.0./0 with a 24-bit netmask.
6. "Back to My Mac" is incompatible with the VPN service. It must be disabled both on the server and on an AirPort router, if applicable.
If the server is directly connected to the Internet, see this blog post.

How to set up my mac mini server to use two drives seamlessly?

I have a mid 2010 mac mini server, with OSX Lion installed. It has dual 500gb hard drives.
I've been moving all my important files to it, and I've always assumed that once I filled one disc, it would seamlessly transfer over to the other and continue backing up. This does not seem to be the case.
I'm at roughly 495gb of data, and when I try to move a 10gb file onto my server, it tells me that I don't have enough disc space to continue the operation.
What can I do to make use of both drives?
-Thanks

It sounds like what you're asking for is to have the two drives in a RAID 0, where the two 500 Gb drives look like a single 1 Tb drive. I'm not sure the exact procedure for installing RAID 0 on a mini's internal drives, but the process would involve backing up, reconfiguring for RAID (which destroys all data,) restoring data from the backup, and more risk than I would personally find acceptable. I'd expect to lose a full day with the backup and restore steps. I can guarantee, there will be pain.
Instead, I'd suggest looking at what's consuming the 500Gb, and seeing if there are particular folders that can be moved. For example, a shared folder is pretty easy. Copy it over. In file sharing setup, edit the share to point to the new location. Make sure remote users disconnect, and reconnect to the "new" share. When you're happy there is no data loss, delete the old location.
User's home directories can also move, but the process has a few more steps, and depends on how the accounts are built (local vs. OD)
If the majority of the data is in a single "your backup files" folder, shared or otherwise, then I would just set up a second folder on the second drive and write to it, leaving the first alone. If it is truly a backup, then you could make the first folder read-only at this point for extra protection. If you go the 2 folder route, keep in mind your boot drive is operating with 1% free space, I like my drives to have at least 15% free, and OS drives more like 25% (you'll find some range in recommended %-free, but most will agree 1% is too little) so move SOME stuff to the new folder, before closing the old.

How to use webmail address book on Mac Mini Server with Lion Server.

I have a Mac Mini Server with Lion Server installed; the webmail is setup and working but I can not get the address book to work.
I have followed an instruction from this website on how to activate the address book icon in webmail but can not add any addresses. Is there something that needs to be activatied before it will work?

No, I didn't solve the problem. The monitor still goes to sleep with WIndows but not with my Mac Mini. About 8 months ago I basically wore out the power switch on my monitor so I bought a wireless power switch to shut it off at the outlet. The VX2835wm monitor itself is now starting to fail as well-- a couple of times it's gone through a weird sequence of flashing screen colors on power up and ended up in an overscan mode (that took me for ever to figure out how to fix). I have decided to replace my VX2835wm with a Dell u2412m once it fails for good partly because I really want to keep the 16:10 resolution (very hard to find these days) and partly because I want to see if a different make of monitor will go to sleep properly based upon my Mac Mini power down settings.

How do I rename my mac mini server

How do I rename my late 2012 Mac Mini Server?
Processor 2.3 GHz Intel Core i7
Memory    4     GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Graphics   Intel HD Graphics 4000 1024 MB
Software    OS X 10.9.2
I was told that using the command line, type:
sudo -s enter password, next
csutil --set HostName example.com
scutil --set ComputerName whatever
scutil --set LocalHostName whatever
I was also told that this may work well on new installations, but there may be a different procedure for renaming.
Is anyone acquainted with these procedures?
Thanks Everyone.
KeithO Ep

See Transferring files between two computers using FireWire.
Boot the Mini into TDM. Boot the iMac normally. The Mini's startup volume should appear on the iMac's Desktop. You can then treat it as any other disk drive. You can use Disk Utility to erase the Mini's drive. If you boot the iMac from an installer DVD then the Mini's drive should become available in the installer as an available target for the installation.
See:
Prepare Your Mac for Sale
Boot from the OS X Installer Disc One that came with the computer. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select the startup volume from the left side list then click on the Erase tab. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled) then click on the Options button. Select the one pass Zero Data option and click on the OK button. Then click on the Erase button.
Note: You can skip the Zero Data option if you are not concerned about removing sensitive personal data from the hard drive. If you choose to skip this part of the process then it is possible for others to recover data from the hard drive. The Zero Data procedure will prevent others from getting access to your personal information.
This process will take 30 minutes to several hours depending upon the size of the hard drive. After formatting has completed quit DU and return to the installer. Now complete the OS X installation. At the completion of the installation do not restart the computer. Instead just shut it off. The next user will be presented with the Setup Assistant when they turn on the computer just as it would if new out of the box.

How To Set Up Mountain Lion Server/Point DNS to Mac Mini Server

Hello, First of all I have no experience with setting up servers whatsoever. Below is what I have
- Mac Mini with Mountain Lion Server
- Time Capsule as my router
- Comcast as my service provider
My goal is to set up my MacMini as a sharepoint for files and other data with my other partners.
- I have purchased a domaine name from NetworkSolutions. Does this mean that they are my DNS hosting as well? Not really sure. My biggest question is how to point my DNS to my mac mini server correctly.
1. How do you point the DNS to my mac mini server.
2. I've read somewhere to use the IP address from my mac mini server. The only IP address I see is from my Time Capsule (router). I know what my public IP adress is but I am not sure if that's the one to use. I think once I figure this DNS thing I can figure out the rest.
Thanks - Need lots of help.

Here's a detailed write-up on setting up internal (private) DNS on OS X Server, and no, you're probably not going to be setting up external DNS on your servers. Your public DNS service will be hosted on and served from the Network Solutions DNS servers.

How can I set-up my mac mini server to be a central file server for my windows boxes (they don't see the mac on the network), and how do I set-up a central iTunes server so that all my devices sync to the mac mini?

I am looking for step by step instructions to configure my mac mini server to support the following:
1. Central itunes server for all my devices (ipad, ipod, iphone, etc.)
2. Central file server so that my windows devices can save and retrieve data from the central system (the mac does not show up in the network for the windows systems - all running windows XP or 7)
Thanks,
Keith

You will need to enable file sharing in System Preferences
as well as setting up sharing and permissions for the
directories that you want shared. You may also want to
setup a non-administrative user or allow limited guest
access. The user would require entering a user name and
password to make the connection, but would allow remotes
to change files, if set up tat way.
As for serving iTunes media, better to post in the iTunes forum.

How can I create RAID 1 on Mac mini server just now from box.

I bought my Mac mini server two days ago and decided that 1Tb + 1Tb HDD are very good for RAID 1 (mirroring).
Thinking - doing ... Open Disk Utility, try to change and create RAID. Nothing. Try to reinstall OS X - recovery part are on disk all time.
Does anybody can help me to create what I want and how to do this with minimum energy. Thanks a lot.

Start from an Internet Recovery which boots you into it's own Recovery Partition. From there use Disk Utility to put your 2 drives into RAID 1. Reinstall OS X from the Internet Recovery once you have done that and install everything else as you need to.
Be aware that RAID volumes do not have their own Recovery Partition so you will need to either have an external drive with an RP to boot into else you will need to use Internet Recovery each time (which is around a 650MB download).

How to setup a mac mini server

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for