Desktop Maintenance

There are a number of options available for quickly re-imaging Macintosh computers.

Some software options are designed to re-image multiple computers over a network, others can be used to re-image computers one at a time using an external HD.

Other software specialises in creating a base image and then adding "packages" as required for different faculties in the school.

All options though generally require a "master" image, which can be used as a base image throughout the school, and can be easily deployed to all computers in the school.

A "master image" is a copy of the software installed on one computer that can be "cloned" to other computers on your network, so that all computers in your school have a similar look and feel.

Ideally it would be great if just one "image" could be used throughout your whole school, but this is always difficult to manage in most school environments. There are many variables to consider, including site licensing, age of fleet, 3rd Party software requirements, etc.

The list below provides an overview of the base OS / processor / RAM parameters and the appropriate Mac OS that schools should be using with that hardware. At the time of writing (late 2009) schools should probably be aiming for a minimum of Leopard across the site, and disposing of (or upgrading) any hardware that doesn't support Leopard.

A number of options exist for the re-imaging of Macintosh computers.

Although Mac OS X 10.6 Server has a "built-in" system imaging utility, the process still has a number of shortcomings, and is rather obtuse. (It is expected that these Apple image-restoration tools will become more polished over time.)

The 3rd-party DeployStudio provides a useful (free) solution for schools to deploy a common image to large numbers of desktop and laptop computers across a network, while Disk Utility provides a simple system of re-imaging small numbers of computers from an external HD.

Below is a link to some introductory Quickstart notes to assist K-12 teachers to get started with re-imaging computers using Apple's Disk Utility and DeployStudio.

These documents are basic in nature and do not include in-depth or "advanced" implementations of either application.

Mac Re-imaging: Quickstart Notes >>>

See also:
Superceded NetRestore Notes