The power of Mac OS X Server is a reflection of Apple's operating system strategy, one that favors open industry standards over proprietary technologies. It begins with an open source core and BSD networking architecture—delivering the capabilities you expect of a UNIX operating system, such as fine-grained multithreading, symmetric multiprocessing, and protected memory. Mac OS X Server provides a stable, high-performance platform for deploying groundbreaking enterprise applications and services.

Apple extends the capabilities of Mac OS X Server by building on the best open source projects, such as Samba 3, NFS, OpenLDAP, MIT Kerberos, Postfix, and Apache. In fact, Mac OS X Server version 10.5 integrates more than 100 open source projects and enhances them with a unified management interface. This means you can deliver industry-standard network services virtually as soon as you open the box—without the complexities inherent in other UNIX solutions.

While Mac OS X Server has the same robust core as Mac OS X, it adds industrial-strength features required for business-critical server deployments. Designed for "headless" operation, Mac OS X Server enables you to install and configure services without needing to connect a monitor to the server. Powerful remote management tools allow you to securely manage services from anywhere on the network or over the Internet, and support for SSH provides secure access from the UNIX command line. To keep your systems up and running, Mac OS X Server has built-in tools for monitoring systems, preventing accidental shutdown, and recovering services quickly in case of network or power failure.

Easy Setup and Configuration

With Leopard Server, it's now easier than ever to install and configure a server. The redesigned Server Assistant walks you through the initial setup, helping you quickly configure server applications, define networking information, set up user accounts, and choose the services you want to deliver to your organization. Server Assistant even runs a built-in network health check to verify network settings and Internet connectivity.

With the new Server Assistant, you have a choice of typical server configurations: Standard, Workgroup, and Advanced. Both Standard and Workgroup configurations feature automated setup and simplified server administration using Server Preferences. Choose the Standard configuration to set up an independent server for a small organization and to enter user account information. Or, if your workgroup needs to integrate with an existing directory server, choose the Workgroup configuration. The Advanced configuration gives experienced system administrators complete control of service configuration, accommodating a wide variety of business needs. After performing a basic initial setup with Server Assistant, you can use Server Admin, Workgroup Manager, and command-line tools to configure advanced services such as DNS, DHCP, and NAT, Open Directory, Podcast Producer, and Xgrid.

Advanced Services

Mac OS X Server now includes a complete calendaring platform that makes it easy for individuals and groups to share calendars, coordinate events, schedule meetings, reserve resources, and use their time more effectively. The first commercial calendar server to support the open CalDAV standard, iCal Server enables integration with popular CalDAV-based calendar programs without requiring client access licenses—so businesses and schools can add users freely as they expand, at no additional cost.

With Leopard Server, it's easy for anyone to create collaborative web pages, called wikis, complete with group calendar, blog, and mailing list. Wiki Server includes 20 Apple-designed themes for wiki-powered websites, where group members can create blog entries, tag and cross-reference material, upload files and images, add comments, and perform keyword searches—all with just a few clicks. And there's no need to worry about mistakes, because the wiki maintains the complete history, so you can always revert to a previous version of any page.

Podcast Producer is a complete, end-to-end solution for producing professional-quality podcasts. It is ideal for product training, sales presentations, university lectures, or employee updates. With the Podcast Capture application in Leopard, users can capture audio and video, record onscreen actions, or submit existing QuickTime content to the server. Once it's uploaded, Podcast Producer automatically publishes content in formats optimized for playback on almost any device, from HD video to iPod, Apple TV, or any multimedia-enabled cell phone.

Spotlight Server is the fastest way to search and find content on servers. Spotlight Server is designed for workgroups with shared documents, projects, and file archives. It works with Mac OS X Leopard clients to deliver lightning-fast searches of content stored on shared volumes across the entire network. And with the Quick Look feature in Leopard, you can use Cover Flow to scan hundreds of files in just seconds—without ever needing to open them.

Mac OS X Server is now an "Open Brand UNIX 03 Registered Product." This means it conforms to the SUSv3 and POSIX 1003.1 specifications for the C API, Shell Utilities, and Threads. Since Leopard Server can compile and run all existing UNIX 03-compliant code, it can be deployed in environments that demand full conformance. New kernel process and scheduling enhancements provide optimal performance on the latest generation of Intel multicore processors. In addition, many services in Leopard Server—including Apache 2, MySQL 5, Postfix, Podcast Producer, and QuickTime Streaming Server—are 64-bit, able to take maximum advantage of the processing power and addressable memory of 64-bit system hardware. And since Leopard Server is also 32-bit compatible, 32-bit and 64-bit applications can run side by side at native performance.

Getting Started with Mac OS X Server

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Updated: 2007-10-26