MacProduct Key Finder reveals the serial numbers in use on a machine. This will help you find which machines have clashing serial numbers and to reconcile software purchases with installations

MPKF doesn’t work with many applications yet but it’s still very useful and is a real time-saver. It’s such an obvious idea I am surprised there isn’t a network-aware version built into Apple Remote Desktop

Mac Product Key Finder

This is part of the process of moving MobileMe users to iCloud

Some years ago a client had a break-in in which their server was stolen. To make things worse, the backup tape was still in the drive, and the drive disappeared with the server. They had four magazines going to press that month. The loss of that data might lose them four contracts and could have meant the end of the company

Fortunately they backed up every day, each backup was to a separate tape, and the other tapes were locked away in a safe. This wasn’t a lucky break – the backup system was designed to have multiple, redundant backup media and to backup daily. We sourced a new server, reinstalled the relevant software, restored the backup and in less than 48 hours they were working normally again with the loss of only eight hours work

A simple story – what can we conclude from it?

• The backup system was backing up the correct files
• The backup system offered enough redundancy to recover from a worst-case situation
• It was possible to replace the hardware in a short enough timescale not to affect the client’s business
• It was possible to restore the files quickly enough not to affect the client’s business
• The backup system met the needs of the client
• The backup system was fit for purpose

Being fit for purpose is key here: whatever backup system you choose must meet your criteria and suit your business. To ensure this we break down backup into two stages

• Backup Policy
• Backup Strategy

Backup Policy defines what the business needs. It states which files are to be backed up, how often, whether backups are kept offsite and what the data retention policy is – ie, for how long old versions of files are kept. Properly written, a backup policy will ensure that the correct files are backed up in such a way as to safeguard the business in the event of data loss. The Policy should be written by the company, based on their needs and their experience

The Backup Strategy defines how the policy will be implemented. Backup systems vary a lot in scale and complexity. Some companies require Terabytes of storage, some just a few Gigabytes, and this makes a huge difference to how quickly the backup can be performed, what media to use and how offsite backup can be provided. Working out an appropriate strategy is a task for an IT professional

Given an accurate policy it’s possible to develop and implement a strategy relatively quickly. The stumbling block usually is whether the strategy falls within budget. Frequently it’s not and this can lead to compromises being made. Whether these compromises are acceptable goes back to the policy, so either rewrite the policy to accept the compromises and bring the system within budget or increase the budget to satisfy the policy and your requirements

Whatever you do, don’t compromise the strategy to save money. Otherwise, when the backup tape that goes missing is your only backup, you’ve lost your data. Not only that but your backup budget has been completely wasted

Apple’s Mail application has a hidden feature which allows multiple sender addresses under one account. So, rather than setting up multiple accounts in Mail.app, you create additional addresses in one account

If you have multiple email addresses, each of which sends & receives lots of email, separate accounts may be preferable, but this is the ideal setup for rarely-used accounts

To setup additional addresses, do this:

• Launch Mail.app
• Go to Preferences > Account > Account Information tab
• In the Email Address field type the multiple addresses separated by commas
• Close & save changes to preferences

When creating a new email, or replying to an incoming email, multiple “send” addresses will now be accessible via a drop-down menu in the From: field

Once out of contract (or within contract, by paying a financial penalty) it’s easy to swop phone providers and change phones. Your existing provider will be happy to “upgrade” you to a new smartphone, on a new contract, and lock you in for 12-24 months. Alternatively you can jump ship, take your phone number to a new provider and setup a new contract. This is where it can get messy

Transferring your number requires your existing provider to give you a PAC code. The PAC code is then used by the new provider to transfer your number to their network. This is a pretty painless procedure and can usually be actioned next-day with the transfer done in 24-48 hours. The action of issuing & using a PAC code terminates your contract (if any). A final bill will be sent by your old provider, generally within 14 days of the PAC code being used. Your old contract is now dead

Your new provider or phone store will supply a new phone with an existing SIM card & phone number. This will work out of the box. Once the PAC code is used the phone number supplied with the new phone will die and “your” number will be ported over to it

Now you have a new phone, a new contract, your old number and 14 days to decide if you like the service & network. If you do, great – you’re all set. If you decide to leave things get complicated. Your number is now on the new network and can only be released by generating a PAC code. The PAC code cancels your contract. Even though you are within the 14 day period the provider considers this a cancellation within the term of the contract and they will tell you they want payment of the full contract – normally about £1200. You’ve signed a Direct Debit agreement, so you are liable

The only way to exit the new contract gracefully is to return the new phone, box, sim, packaging, etc, in perfect condition to where you bought it. Once returned, and logged into the returns system, the contract will be terminated within 24 hours or so. Only then will the network issue a PAC code without demanding or threatening a demand for payment. If the PAC code is used on a Friday your number won’t be returned to you till the next Monday – this Billion-Dollar business doesn’t work weekends

To avoid problems I’d recommend doing the following:

• buy the new phone & contract in a dedicated shop that is local to you
• sign up the new contract with a new phone but keep your old contract live while you test the new network
• If switching networks, only use the PAC code when you are 100% sure the new network meets your needs
• keep all the packaging and documentation
• cancel unwanted Direct Debits as soon as possible

There’s another alternative that suits the current financial climate very well: Exit your contract, retain your phone and sign up for a SIM-only contract with the correct balance of call time, data and texts to meet your needs. This can be done at any time after your contract expires. If you’re still paying £50-odd a month, call your provider and jump to a new contract paying £15 a month for the same package

A few more notes:

• if you have an iPhone 3GS with IOS 5 you can back it up in iTunes and restore all your data to an iPhone 4S. All you will need to input are your email & Apple Store passwords. Your texts, apps & etc will all be retained. This means upgrading from one model of iPhone to another is painless
• the only provider in the UK to support visual voice mail on the iPhone is 02
• once you hand a phone back you will lose your texts & voicemail for that phone. Your voicemail will still be accessible remotely till the contract ceases. It is best to activate voicemail and set a PIN before handing back the phone
• when keeping your handset and changing providers, once your new provider goes online your stored visual voicemail & texts from the old network will disappear from your phone
• stores that sell all networks (Apple Store, for example) will give better advice about local network quality than single-network stores
• UK network provider coverage maps are useless
• 3G is a “breathable” network so your signal will vary all the time. Often you’ll be able to connect to 3G but then lose connectivity – this is because the network has bumped you off in favour of someone else closer to the antenna
• the 4G network, starting in 2012, should give better reception than 3G. 4G will require a new handset
• a PAC expires in 30 days if not used. Further PAC codes can be issued
• issuing a PAC code when out of contract does nothing. The move is actioned when the PAC code is used by the new network
• issuing a PAC code when in contract ceases the contract immediately
• SIM-only contracts usually allow upgrades during the contract period
• Retaining your old smartphone, even temporarily, can be a smart move
• unwanted smartphones can be sold to offset the cost of a new phone
• usually you don’t own “your” number
• Networks change over time. The provider you liked two years ago will be different when you return
• 3G network coverage is patchy, variable and will deteriorate as smartphone usage increases

Lion is downloaded via the App Store and there is no product available on DVD. Lion is an upgrade for Snow Leopard and requires Snow Leopard to be installed on the target machine

Lion Server requires Lion to be installed first. Server is then downloaded and installed on top. It seems that a previous version of OS X Server is not required to qualify to buy Lion Server – so the cost of OSXS has dropped from around £600 to £45

As before, to work effectively, Lion Server requires a well-planned network infrastructure with a static public IP address and a properly-configured DNS

Links:

• How to Buy Lion http://www.apple.com/macosx/how-to-buy/
• Lion Server http://www.apple.com/macosx/server/
• Lion Server Specs http://www.apple.com/macosx/server/specs.html
• Lion Server Admin https://help.apple.com/advancedserveradmin/mac/10.7/

Vuescan is a third-party scanning application that supports more than 1750 scanners. It has versions for Windows (2000, XP, Vista, 7), Linux and Mac OS X  (10.3.9 to Lion). It costs $39.95 for the Standard edition and $79.95 for Professional, the difference being that Professional qualifies for unlimited free upgrades. Both versions have no expiration or time limit and will work for as long as you like – but the Standard version will get out of step with new OS versions over time

There is a downloadable demo version here

Back in 2002 Apple released the Xserve - their first server hardware to run OS X. Housed in a neat 1U box (one rack unit is 1.75″ in height) it was designed for small businesses, video post-production, music studios, data centres and anywhere that wanted a compact server to run OS X

The Xserve was the first dedicated server product from Apple since the gigantic Apple Network Servers. Before that they sold versions of desktop machines, some bundled with Retrospect and a tape drive, that ran a primitive server version of System 7. These early AWS servers like the AWS6150 (based on the Quadra 6100) were useful, neat boxes which did their job well. The inclusion of an internal tape drive was a good move, and at that time Retrospect was a robust backup solution, so the combination made for a useful server

As OS X changed the Macintosh, so the Xserve changed Macintosh servers. The original device, powered by one or two G4 processors, was hardly a powerhouse but it did support four internal hard drives and came complete with FireWire, USB and a video output as well as a slot for an optional FibreChannel card

FibreChannel was the link to the Xserve RAID, which is where things got interesting. Launched a year after the Xserve, the 3U RAID had fourteen hard drive bays arranged in two banks of seven and gave capacities up to 10.5 TB using 750 GB drives. Using RAID 5 this resulted in two volumes each of just over 4 TB. The Xserve RAID was a beautifully-constructed device with dual redundant power supplies, memory backup batteries, redundant cooling units and twin (but not redundant) RAID controllers connected via Fibrechannel

The Xserve RAID lasted just five years. It was discontinued in early 2008 and Apple left the storage market to RAID vendors such as Promise. At times during its brief reign the Xserve RAID was the cheapest RAID per-Terabyte in its segment and it was robust and reliable

The Xserve continued but the pace of development slowed. Late models had twin quad-core Intel Nehalem processors. As with the desktop machines, the Intel-based Xserves were conspicuously quicker than previous G4 and G5-based units, but the last Xserves really flew

On January 31st 2011 the Xserve was discontinued. No migration path was outlined by Apple. The Mac Pro and Mac Mini-based servers continue but they’re not suitable for rack mounting and they lack server-grade hardware for 24×7 use. That leaves existing Xserve users with no upgrade path and with a problem. Given time it will possible for most Xserve users to work out how they will replace their hardware. For many a change in server OS seems likely but this brings a host of other issues – issues that have not been planned or budgeted for

An option chosen by one client of ours was to buy three second-hand, late-model, Intel-based Xserves and a spares package. Two will go into service to replace a G5 Xserve and a Mac Pro and the third will be setup as a spare. They are used to getting long life out of their hardware – their G5 Xserve has been in service since 2005 and is three years out of extended warranty. Their existing Intel Xserve replaced a G4 Xserve four years ago. The G4 is redundant but the G5 will live on doing other tasks

Our experience with the Xserve and Xserve RAID has been uniformly good. The hardware was well-constructed and reliable and ongoing costs for maintenance and software updates have been minimal. It’s difficult to compare it to directly competing hardware in other market areas but in terms of total cost of ownership the Xserve has been a big success for our clients

I’d expect to see the new/old Xserves in use, and reliable, for another 3-4 years and would not be surprised to see them there far beyond that. Stability and low ongoing support requirements outweigh performance considerations in most installations so there will be no clamour to upgrade for speed reasons. So why change?

Photos © Pete Welsch & NASA

• dealing with email on the train
• working from home part-time during maternity leave
• working onsite or with clients when out of the office
• catching up with admin on the weekend

Each of these uses has different requirements. The most common technical requirements are

1. access to email when out of the office
2. access to files when out of the office
3. access to databases / accounts / etc when out of the office
4. access to office calendars when out of the office

Access to email (1) is generally straightforward. If you have your own mail server it’s simple to allow access to it from outside the building. If you are using the mail service provided by your ISP no changes need to be made – just configure your email client appropriately. There are significant caveats regarding POP mail at multiple locations and we strongly recommend switching to IMAP mail. If your service provider does not support IMAP consider changing provider or installing your own mail server. See Email & Spam Strategies for more details

Access to files while out of the office (2) is more complex. The quick & dirty way is to take a copy with you on a memory stick, copy it to your laptop or email it to yourself. Another way is copy files to a Cloud system such as MobileMe (aka .Mac). MobileMe is convenient for Macintosh users. It provides online iDisk storage with public and private, password-protected areas. Your iDisk is accessible directly from any iPhone, iPad, MacBook or PC laptop with an internet connection. All these options suffer from the same problem – these are copies and will be out of date as soon as the originals are modified

Access to database and accounting systems (3) and office calendars (4) can’t reasonably be made by using remote copies – it’s too prone to errors caused by using the wrong versions of files. It’s possible to allow direct access to these services via the internet but this quickly becomes complex, hard to manage and difficult to secure

The best solution to options 2, 3 & 4 is to use a Virtual Private Network. A VPN allows a direct connection to your office network via the Internet. A VPN creates a secure, encrypted connection between two points, typically your office network router and the VPN client software on a remote user’s laptop. The VPN connection allows a remote user to become a part of the office network and to access most services as though sitting in the office. This makes access to office services like shared calendars, accounting systems & Filemaker databases simple – once the VPN is connected there are no additional steps needed

One big benefit of a VPN is the level of control you have over user access. It’s possible to restrict access on a per-person basis to specific machines or services. By combining this with your existing file server user / password setup it is possible to allow client access to specific folders or shares, restrict freelancers to specific areas or allow free access to the network for remote IT support

We setup VPNs using Cisco routers & client software and use a partner company to configure, test & support the VPN.

More reading: VPN and VPN Technologies, Cisco Press

Managing a network of Macs is made much simpler with the use of a few tools.

Apple Remote Desktop (ARD) is our #1 management tool and it is useful with networks of any size. ARD enables virtually all tasks to be done remotely. It allows a suitably-configured Mac to be accessed & controlled remotely, from a machine on your own network or, via a VPN, from outside

Software Update Server is a great add-on to OS X Server which makes software updates much quicker & more convenient

Virtual Private Networks enable your staff, IT personnel and clients to connect to your network via a secure Internet connection. They can be configured to allow restricted access to defined areas, file server shares or any desired level of access. A VPN is ideal for allowing remote access to the network from home or when mobile

We use outside Cisco specialists to setup & maintain VPNs for our clients and use them extensively for secure remote access to manage machines