Setting up a Mac OS 10.6 Server as a gateway

I am completely new to servers, however I am the only one at my office who can do anything with computers, not so much because I'm so good, but everyone else is bad. Well, we decided to set-up a server. We currently have 3 Windows desktops and one Mac laptop as clients. I want to put the server as the gateway. We have a static IP address from Comcast. I want the set-up to be:
Internet->Comcast Business IP Gateway (Modem)->Mac OS 10.6 Server (Gateway with Static IP)->router->Clients
I tried to set it up last night using the Gateway Set-up Assistant, but after I did it, even the Server couldn't connect to the internet. I don't know if it changes this set-up, but after I set this up, I want to have the Mac server running as a File, Print, Web Hosting, and VPN Server.
Can anyone help?

If I may suggest a simpler answer for you, go get an Apple Airport Extreme and then use the 10.6 server to manage your firewall and VPN access to your internal network. It works way more easily than using the server as your gateway, IMHO.
I've done this with my own setup and am much happier.

Similar Messages

Setting up a Mac OS 10.6 Server for the first time

I'm new to servers, and I would like to set up a Mac Mini Server for my network. There would be 3 Windows clients running Vista Home Premium and 2 Mac OS 10.5 clients. I want to be able to log-in on any computer to an account from the server. Then I would like to have the server storing all of the files from all of the accounts. Also, I would like to be able to access these files from over the internet (I have a static IP address on my router). Also, I would like to host a website (I have a domain name through GoDaddy). How do I do all of those things? Also, do I need to upgrade to Windows Professional (Either Windows 7 or Vista)?
I'm really new to this, so please explain this in great detail. Thank you.

For file sharing, on the Mini, you just need to go to System Preferences -> Sharing and enable file sharing. You'll also want to create whatever accounts on the Mini that you want people to be able to log in with, that'll be in System Preferences -> Accounts.
I don't have a lot of experience with Windows and Snow Leopard (much less Mac OS X Server), but at my wife's small business, they have a Mini running Tiger, and none of the Vista machines were able to connect to it. After some digging, I discovered Microsoft had disabled something critical to connecting to Macs in this way, and with Home Premium, you can't access that setting without some arcane hackery. Here's how you do it, if it turns out to still be needed:
To set a Vista computer to access a Mac server:
Go to the Start menu and go to All Programs -> Accessories -> Run
Type "Regedit.exe" and press return
Go to HKEYLOCALMACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa
Select Lsa, then choose Edit -> New -> Key
Type "DWORD" (without quotes) as the name in the list
Double-click the text "(Default)" in the right-hand pane
Enter "1" (without quotes) as the value and press OK
Quit Regedit and restart the machine
Log in to the remote Mac using "ip_address\username" as the user name
As to hosting your own web server... I wouldn't advise that, unless it's purely for internal use and not something aimed at potential customers. You don't want the hassle of being on-call 24-7 to restart the server if something goes wrong, and what will you do if the hard drive dies and has to be replaced? Let someone else deal with those issues. (Of course, GoDaddy isn't known for their reliability... if ensuring the server is up and running 99.9% of the time, you will probably want to go with a more respected company, like [pair Networks|http://promote.pair.com/direct.pl?reedcorner.net+134126].*)
\* Note that clicking this link may give me compensation... if you wish to avoid that, just Google them.

Can I set up a Mac Pro as a server using OSX Server for my current Windows-based office?

I have a small business, and our office currently has a Windows-based network. I love my Mac and it's ease of use, and for now I have to use Remote Desktop to log on to my server, and then run my MRP/ERP business software from that. Is there an Apple solution (Mac Pro?) for my server, where other users could run parallels to access the MRP/ERP software? Thanks!

It is possible - even quite easy - to turn almost any current or recent model of Mac into a server by installing OS X Server. It is less clear, however, that this will do what you want.
What are the hardware and software requirements of your MRP/ERP software? If it will only run under Windows or any OS other than Mac OS X, then it will not work, and installing OS X Server will not change that.
You may be able to get the MRP/ERP software to run under Windows run on a Mac using Parallels or VMWare Fusion, but it would still be running under the Windows OS, just virtualized so that it runs inside the Mac OS. Thus it will not be any easier to use than your current system, and in fact may be harder, and might not work at all.
You could also run Windows under BootCamp, but again, while the Windows OS would be running natively, you lose any ease of use of the Mac OS.
Best of luck.

I transferred files from a NAS server to the Mac Mini Snow Leopard Server and now some of the files have Custom Access and can't be opened by some users. How do I fix this?

We're setting up our Mac Mini Snow Leopard Server, and in the process transferred files that had been stored and accessed from our Blackarmor NAS server over to the Mac. These files were all created on PC's and are Office Excel files, WordPerfect files or PDF's. When you look at the files on the Mac from the Mac and bring up Get Info for the affected file, it says that the file has Custom Access. The files that work properly don't have that configuration. I can access and open the files on some computers, but some users can't open the files from their computer even though they can see it. We're all using PC's and they get the Error: Access Denied-Contact your administrator--or something similar. I've seen on the web similar issues and it may have something to do with ACL permissions. I don't know enough about Mac OS to understand this, but what is baffling is that they can be opened from some PC's but not others, and all of the Users have the same accessibility to the files. Thanks for a solution!!

Oh, on the losing Internet, try this...
Make a New Location, Using network locations in Mac OS X ...
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2712
10.7 & 10.8…
System Preferences>Network, top of window>Locations>Edit Locations, little plus icon, give it a name.
10.5.x/10.6.x/10.7.x instructions...
System Preferences>Network, click on the little gear at the bottom next to the + & - icons, (unlock lock first if locked), choose Set Service Order.
The interface that connects to the Internet should be dragged to the top of the list.
Instead of joining your Network from the list, click the WiFi icon at the top, and click join other network. Fill in everything as needed.
For 10.5/10.6, System Preferences>Network, unlock the lock if need be, highlight the Interface you use to connect to Internet, click on the advanced button, click on the DNS tab, click on the little plus icon, then add these numbers...
208.67.222.222
208.67.220.220
Click OK.
PS. Your English is quite good & completely understandable.

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 do I set up my Time Machine and Mac Mini with Lion Server so i have one wifi loop in the house?

HELP!
So I have had a Time Machine wifi loop at the house for approx. 6 years. I run two Macbooks, 2 iPhones, 2 iTouch and a Samsung Smart Blueray on the loop.
I just bought a Mac Mini with Lion Server. When setting it up I'm not sure what or how I managed to do, but I now have 2 wifi loops, one doesn't lock and niether will support the Samsung BlueRay. Also, each time I want to go online with one of the other Mac devices i have to relog into the wifi loop.
Can someone please walk me through the fix. The mac Mini is plugged straight into the Time Machine to recevie its internet connection.
Thanks!
John

You often see this limit of 10 clients in wireless hotspots but I have yet to see it in an adsl modem.. most strange way to pay for a service that is really irrelevant how many clients you use.
Have a go .. I recently setup a TC to help a guy run his Roku.. and this setup worked well.. I have no idea if it can work in your case.
Lets say the IP you get is 192.168.2.1-10 .. doesn't matter what it really is. And the adsl modem is 192.168.2.254
(Assuming they are private addresses.. if they are public IP you can just use the DHCP and NAT. )
But go to the airport utility.. I think you need to run v5 at least to change DNS.. but you can do the same thing in v6 using static but no dns changes.
Now you set the IP of the TC manually.. This address might need to be in the dhcp range of the modem to work. You can set the DNS to same IP as the router address.. ie home address of the modem. Or you can use another DNS.. whatever you like.
Then set DHCP for clients that will join.. this can then expand the scope of addresses..
It worked without a NAT error.. although I am not sure exactly how.. on paper it should not be able to work but did.. have a go.. otherwise there is perhaps another way.. but it is complicated.
Give us an example from a computer plugged into the modem of what IP .. subnet mask .. Gateway and DNS you get. Then I can fine tune the values for it.

How do I get Mac Pro with Lion Server to restart at a set time when users are connected?

I have recently configured a Mac Pro with Lion Server, and have set it to restart automatically every morning at 3am. When I arrive in the morning, I notice that it has not rebooted, usually because it states there are users connected. Is there a way to automatically disconnect users so that the machine will reboot. No one is ACTIVELY connected at this time of the morning, but may still be logged in somewhere. I did see where I can log out users after a set period of time when using Workgroup Manager to manage a computer or computer group, but I don't use the server to manage all of the computers that have users log in.
Thanks!

Well, it doesn't necessarily have to be each and every night, but it was for the sole purpose of preventing sluggishness. We had it set up before, as Snow Leopard Server and it would restart every night. It would occasionally be slow and need rebooting, however a manual reboot was not possible by most people in the store as they did not have credentials to screen share and restart it - which would result in holding down the power button to shut it down.
The server is used for the sole purpose of logging in about 50 users just so they can customize their experience, as well as saving items to their own home folders. The store is closed during the night, and there is no reason anyone would be accessing it during the night.

Can I use Mac Pro for a server?

I hope this is the right place to ask this....
I have an older Mac Pro G5 (10.5.8) Desktop. I cannot update it past Leopard. So now I have a newer MacBook Pro. I was wondering if I could utilize my old Mac Pro as some sort of "server"?
It has the origninal smaller drive but I added an additional 1TB SATA drive that is just sitting there doing nothing.
I rip a lot of movies to my MacBook Pro so I am already out of storage on it. I keep moving movie files to my Time Capsule (1TB) in which I have partitioined off 300MB to use for media storage.
I have an Apple TV that I connect to my MacBook Pro but when I'm gone, the family can't use the ATV.
So, all that being said, can I somehow set up my older Mac Pro to use as a "server" and move all my media/photos/videos/songs to? Or should I just copy everything to the 1TB drive on the Mac Pro and just access it through ATV like I do my MBP?
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Ehren

You absolutely could use your old Mac Pro as a server, however you still won't be able to update it passed 10.5.8.
That said, you should be able to store your media on it, and share it to your AppleTV through iTunes, barring any incompatibilites with the older software. I haven't looked into the system requirements for home sharing in a while. You might want to take a quick check and make sure everything is good to go.

OS 10.4 clients cannot access Shared Mac folder on W2k Server - URGENT

We have a network of about 25 computers, 10 or so of them are Mac OS 10.4, the rest are Win XP Pro PCs. We have a server dedicated to file sharing. We basically have one main shared folder called "FILES". This is shared for PCs and Macs. Recently after a restart of the server (for regular maintenance), the Macs could not see the shared Mac volume (FILES), PCs could access the share without a problem. After a few minutes (15 or so) the Macs could all of a sudden see the share and
everything was fine.
However, we just restarted the server again and we're having the same issue again. The difference is, this time, after waiting for a few hours, the Macs still cannot see the Mac Share. The macs connect to the server via TCP/IP, the users use their usernames and passwords and can connect to the server, however, the only volume they see is the Micrsoft UAM volume.
When we created a different folder and shared it (through MMC), the Macs could see and access that one.
We get an Event ID 12061 in the System Event Log as the user tries to connect to the share. I found a Microsoft KB article, but no solution to the problem was given. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/q136300/
Here are some things I have tried to remedy the issue, please keep in mind we cannot change the name of the share (FILES) becuase of the thousands of file mappings in quark, etc.:
Again Restarted Server
Stopped Sharing the folder, then reshared it
Stopped sharing the folder
Uninstalled / Reinstalled Appletalk Protocol from network adapter
Uninstalled / Reinstalled File Services for Macintosh [Restarted]
Uninstalled / Reinstalled Appletalk Protocol from network adapter again [Restarted]
Reshared the folder
Created a new mac share called TEST (Macs could see and access)
Moved data from Files to TEST, now Macs could not see TEST
Moved data back to FILES
Created a folder called FILES2, moved data from FILES to FILES2
Stopped sharing FILES (PC and Mac), renamed FILES to FILES1
Renamed FILES2 to FILES (Macs could not see volume)
It seems as though the problem is with an individual file or two, which sort of corresponds the what Microsoft has written regarding the error.
Has anyone had any experience with this issue? Any insight or solution to this issue is greatly appreciated.
Thank you!

It's very important to be as specific as possible when discussion network service access. In your question, it sounds like you want the macs to attach to FILES using SMB/CIFS, but you also call it a Mac share, so it's not obvious if you mean an AFP share or just a share for Macs to use.
You should know that the Macs can connect to either AFP or SMB volumes, and they can browse for SMB over TCP/IP and AFP over both TCP/IP and Appletalk (Appletalk must be turned on and browsing active in Directory Access).
Connecting via SMB to a volume hosted on Windows2K or higher server will fail with the default settings, which require secure connections not supported by Mac OS X (because Samba doesn't support it). To overcome that problem, see this article:
http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20030922153448490&query=-5000
(scroll down to one of the top-level replies, which explains in detail how to deactivate secure connections)
You might also be able to improve reliability by editing the SMB settings in Directory Access and setting a WINS server, but it depends on your network.

Remote access to a single application on a mac os 10.4 server (vmware)

Hello all,
I need to give multiple users (all on mac's) access to a shared windows accounting application.
We have absolutely no windows servers in the organisation and i was wondering if it would be possible to load the accounting app as a vmware fusion (or parallels) session on one of our Xserve's and only give remote users (using remote desktop or vnc) access to that single application ..
I'm basically trying to "emulate some of the functionality of Citrix/Windows Remote Desktop on a MAC OS 10.4 server ?
Have anyone ever done anything similar ? Or have any hints in relation to solving this issue ?
Thanks in advance,

To give you a direction to go in, you might want to look at the possibility of having one dedicated PC that runs the application, and use Microsoft's Remote Desktop Connection to connect to it from the Macs. I think all you need is XP Pro to receive RDC connections. You might be able to use an emulator to set that up, but I don't know well how emulators handle RDC if at all. The problem is that you can only have one user connected to it at a time, but emulating it wouldn't do anything to help that.
Hope this helps.

Very new user needs help setting up a three user network plus server

Hi,
I'm an owner/manager of a recruitment company in the UK and we use three mac minis in our office to run our recruitment software (on a filemaker database) internet, mail and MS Office 2008.
We currently use one of the mini's as a 'server' in so much that it has a external HDD attached and shared across the network. We use Airport Extreme to share the internet.
Although to begin with this set up has served us well the amount of data travelling across the network and the prospect of a couple of new employees starting has made me think it's time to invest in a network and server of some description.
With my very limited knowledge i'm proposing the following but would greatly appreciate some assistance from the forum users!
Install OSX 10.5.3 Server on one of the Mac Minis
Get an ethernet switch and cable the three minis together
Use the external HDD as a time machine backup and store all files on the 'server' HDD
Continue to use the Airport Extreme to share the internet over airport.
I have a couple of questions:
Can the Server computer still be used as a desktop or do we need to buy a new mini
Does this set up make the airport base station redundant
As we grow I would envisage enlisting the help of a specialist Mac IT support company but in the mean time any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you again in advance.

I would get something better specified than a mini to be my Mac OS X based server, and although you can run it as a desktop I wouldnt advise it.
You ought to go out and buy the book Mac OS X Server 10.5 Essentials - The only Apple-certified book on Mac OS X Server - which Ive found to be a godsend of a book in getting Leopard Server going. Make sure you get the 10.5 version. Im in the UK and got it from Foyles in London.
Your approach is fine, but Leopard Server isnt as plug and go as the rest of Apples products. In particular it just doesnt function correctly if you do not have working DNS before you start. Period. If you dont understand DNS in your office or If having read the book you find its too technical you might be better off buying a no-brand Network File Store/Disk or even a Time Capsule from Apple if its mainly shared disk space that you need.
Angus

I want to use a mac mini as a server supporting storage. Can I pair my macair to it for when I need to perform updates and maintenance ?

I want to use a mac mini as a server supporting storage. I have other devices such as an iMac and iPad that will access information from the server. I do not want to purchase a monitor and keyboard as the unit will sit in a cupboard out of sight. Can I pair my macair to it for when I need to perform updates and maintenance ?

I have a 2010 Mac Mini running Yosemite and Server which I use
as a headless home server.
I have is set up to allow screen sharing and can connect to it and
control it with my iMac, Macbook Pro, iPhone, and a 2011 Mini Server
that I use as an HTPC.
You can check this out for all the Yosemite Server capabilities:
https://help.apple.com/advancedserveradmin/mac/4.0/
I have iTunes Home Sharing set up on it and have my entire iTunes
library on it. I can then use any of my Macs to play Movies or Songs
from it and only keep locally a select subset of that on my individual
devices.
Rather than and update server, I utilize Server's Caching Service. The caching
server will duplicate any update download (system or MacApp Store purchases)
any time a device that is connected to my network down loads one. The update will
then be stored locally and all other devices will download the update from it which
can be faster than from Apple directly. This has the advantage of only having to download
once with limited bandwidth internet connections. There is also an Update Server service
available, but it is some what more involved in setting up. However, it will download
and store all available updates.
There is another thing as well if you do not care for syncing things like Contacts, Calendar, etc.
to iCloud, you can set Server up to sync these items across devices locally.

Help on MAC OS 10.4 Server, I'm a newbie...

I've read the documentation and have managed to get it working to a certain extent. Please excuse my lack of terminology and wording on some of these issues. What I'm trying to accomplish is we are a Windows / MAC environment. I've setup a MAC OS 10.4 Server so it can help better manage our MAC users trying to authenticate to the Windows Active Directory. I'm able to bind the MAC clients to AD. I've been able to add the 10.4 OS Server to AD and can pull the domain accounts in Workgroup Manager. The OS 10.4 server is set in Open Directory as " Connected to a Directory System" according to the Apple documentation. Joined Kerberos also with local admin. account. Can't seem to find documentation or figure out how to get the clients to utilize the OS 10.4 server for authentication instead of AD. Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

www.afp548.com is your friend. They have a bunch of articles, tips about OD & Active Directory integration.
HTH
- Leland
DP G4 Mac OS X (10.4.5)

I want to install Snow Leopard Server on our MacPro (2.66) using Mac Mini Snow Leopard Server disks? I kept getting an error for backwards compatibility. Is this possible or do I need to purchase another copy of Snow Leopard Server?

I want to install Snow Leopard Server on our MacPro(2.66) using Mac Mini Snow Leopard Server disks? I kept getting an error for backwards compatibility. Is this possible or do I need topurchase another copy of Snow Leopard Server?

The OS disks that are shipped with a particular product
are set up so that tey will only install on that product.
It will install on any Mini of that exact vintage, but that
is all.
This is to prevent people from doing exactly what you
are trying to do. The license for OSX shipped with any
is only valid for that product. Also, Snow Leopard,
including Server, is only permitted to be run on one
computer at a time. Bottom line, unlike Lion, legally
you cannot install the same copy on multiple
computers unless some "family pack" or site license
is purchased.
Yes, you need to purchase another copy.
The copy of Snow Leopard license is here:
http://images.apple.com/legal/sla/docs/macosx_snowleopard.pdf

How to make a SL Mac Mini a VPN server?

I'd like to set up my Mac Mini at home as a VPN server. I have read online that it can be done in non server SL, but I see in network where to add a VPN, but that looks more like a connecting into one rather than setting one up. Is there a way to set up a VPN server on this Mini, and at that, for free?

If you have a new enough Mac mini you could use Mountain Lion and Server.app however for Snow Leopard you can in theory do it also so.
For Snow Leopard (client) you can try following various howto guides on setting up the included VPN server software via the command-line. The user version of OS X has always contained the same basic server software such as DHCP, DNS, http, and in this case VPN but does not include the Apple tools for making it easy to setup.
Here are some links
http://dreaming-artemis.com/2011/07/18/setting-up-vpn-on-the-imac-osx-snow-leopa rd-10-6-8/
http://stormrook.com/2010/05/31/setting-up-a-vpn-server-on-osx/#more-39
There is also the option of buying a relatively cheap GUI utility which does the setting up for you, see
http://macserve.org.uk/projects/ivpn/

Setting up a Mac OS 10.6 Server as a gateway

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