Panther server can be used as a Primary Domain Controller and host both Macintosh and PC clients. This is an excellent solution for small offices looking to support a mixed-client environment with limited resources, for large installations using mostly Mac clients or for any installation that does not have a PC server in place.
Enterprise computing with OS X: Panther server and Active Directory
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Eugenia Loli
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We just bought a new Xserve at my university department with 10.3.5 and tried our best to wrap it into our existing campus AD structure as a member server. Everything seems fine until you have to authenticate on the Windows boxes using Kerberos and NTLM2…and that’s the rub…Panther just doesn’t support all these important protocols yet…maybe Tiger will. The Windows systems just cannot login without proper pass thru. Anyways…after about pulling out our hair and searching countless internet forums, we just ordered ADmit Mac 2 by the Thrusby folks and it appears to have all the needed tools to accomplish the mission. Check out this chart that shows the differences…<http://www.thursby.com/products/admitmac-vs-panther.html>
Hope this helps someone else out there…don’t buy all the marketing about Apple and AD…yet.
😉
http://www.thursby.com/products/admitmac-vs-panther.html
Apple could have partnered our purchased them even when the classic OS was out! Hello Apple! These guys have been at it longer. I would love to be able to see this functionality included with the OS.
It’s also good for any office that wants to save money versus purchasing Windows Server 2003. There are no client access licenses required with Panther Server, and it’s cheaper than Windows Server 2003 as well.
Bludgeoned Sparrow wrote:
It’s also good for any office that wants to save money versus purchasing Windows Server 2003. There are no client access licenses required with Panther Server, and it’s cheaper than Windows Server 2003 as well.
—
Wait, everyone knows Apple is more expensive than Linux and Microsoft says they are cheaper than Linux. That must mean Microsoft is a bunch of liers.
We just bought a new Xserve at my university department with 10.3.5 and tried our best to wrap it into our existing campus AD structure as a member server. Everything seems fine until you have to authenticate on the Windows boxes using Kerberos and NTLM2…and that’s the rub…Panther just doesn’t support all these important protocols yet…maybe Tiger will. The Windows systems just cannot login without proper pass thru. Anyways…after about pulling out our hair and searching countless internet forums, we just ordered ADmit Mac 2 by the Thrusby folks.
The question I have for you, for an apparent computer admin, why are you using NTLM? its a depreciated authetication protocol, move on, there are better methods provided by Microsoft than trying to keep with a piece of crusty, problem proned authetication method.
Support for active directory is provided via Active directories pathetic implementation of LDAP, which is very basic at best. Do the university a favour and buy a copy of SUN Directory server, a pure LDAP server which scales quite nicely without too many hassles.
“That must mean Microsoft is a bunch of liers.”
Oh, this is ONLY your opinion. (sarcasm: ON) X-D
A Nobel for this guy, please. :-*
It would be better to just add a OSX client software to the windows machines. Novell used to do that for years!
It’s also good for any office that wants to save money versus purchasing Windows Server 2003. There are no client access licenses required with Panther Server, and it’s cheaper than Windows Server 2003 as well.
Of course, you need to actually do the sums to make sure the higher cost of purchasing a Mac with OS X server is less than the CALs for Windows 2003.
Not to mention attaching a value to the other cool stuff you lose out on, like GPOs and Shadow Copies, the ability to expand into thin clients via TS in the future, whether or not Remote Assistance is workable without a real Windows DC, whether you’ve got (or will get) Exchange, etc.
AD enables a tad more functionality than just LDAP, despite the beliefs of many.
Basically, it’s not just as simple as looking at the up front cost of the server OS. Indeed, for most places, the up front cost of most software is only a tiny proportion of overall costs.
“It’s also good for any office that wants to save money versus purchasing Windows Server 2003. There are no client access licenses required with Panther Server, and it’s cheaper than Windows Server 2003 as well.”
any office huh?
okay i have an office of 5 people.
xserve with apple os x server is: $3000 base with no monitor
has the following:
one 2GHz PowerPC G5
512K L2 cache
1GHz system bus
512MB DDR400 ECC SDRAM
80GB Serial ATA drive
Mac OS X Server (Unlimited Client)good for that 1,000,000th client even though i only have 5 clients
Dual Gigabit Ethernet
No video card, no keyboard, no mouse
CD ROM drive
just one year warranty
compare to pc server:
http://www.ztgroup.com/config.asp?model=x9158 for $2951
includes:
2 x Intel® Xeon® Processor (533FSB) at 2.80GHz w/512K
Microsoft® Windows® Small Business Server 2003 w/5 CAL
Supermicro X5DAL-TG2 Intel® 7505 chipset Server Board
1.0GB ECC registered DDR266 SDRAM (2 X 512MB)
2 x Seagate 120GB Serial ATA/150 Hard Drive
Seagate®/Certance Travan 5 10/20GB Internal ATAPI/IDE Tape Drive w/SW
1.44MB Floppy drive
Sony 4X DVD±RW & CD-RW Universal Combo Drive
U.S. Robotics 56K V.90 Hardware Fax Modem
Dual Intel 82540 Gigabit Ethernet controller
Super Micro MID Tower Chassis w/450W power supply
Logitech® Internet Keyboard
Logitech® Optical Wheel Mouse
3-year Limited Warranty
windows server does not have monitor either but does have this over the mac:
keyboard
mouse
double the ram to 1gb
300% more storage capacity or the option to do raid 1 and still have 50% more storage and security if the raid backup
a dvd burner over plain cd rom drive
a tape backup drive
dual cpus
300% longer warranty
a fax modem for fax services that are included in small biz server 2003
a floppy drive
a video card
more expansion capability
a substantially more feature rich server os
add all that to the mac and you get to $4700 and the dvd burner and fax modem and tape drive arent even options…add several hundred more dollars for that. the mac xserve very quickly becomes at least a $5000 server to be well outfitted and still doesnt have the dual cpus either. i can buy a lot of software or licenses for that price difference.
and os x server cant hold a candle to windows small biz server either.
apple isnt even in the race.
this is what you get from apple for $4697…go to apple store and config for yourself:
Xserve G5 2GHz $3,649.00
Mac OS X Server, Unlimited License
1GB DDR400 ECC SDRAM – 2×512
Accessory kit 065-4580
250GB ADM (1x250GB Serial ATA)
2GHz PowerPC G5 065-4572
CD-ROM 065-4577
PCI video card (upper slot) 065-4845
AppleCare Premium Service and Support for Xserve (3 years) $950.00
Apple Mouse $49.00
Apple Keyboard $49.00
Still don’t have–
No raid
No tape backup
No dvd burner
No fax modem
One cpu
No floppy drive
So you are wrong to say “any office”
JayJay: Are you a retarded inbred, backwoods redneck? because you sure seem like it…lol
Found this on Apple’s site while checking out 10.4 Tiger Server:
“Tiger Server makes it a snap to upgrade your aging Windows NT network to a Mac OS X server. The new NT Migration Tool automatically extracts all of your user and group account information from an existing Windows Primary Domain Controller and moves it into Open Directory. Tiger Server can then take over as your Primary Domain Controller for your Windows clients and even host your Windows users’ home directories, group folders, roaming profiles and shared printers.”
Sounds pretty neat.
Unfortunately, its comparisons like the one between the pc and xserve that continue this misconception. You aren’t comparing same class machines. The Xserve is a 64bit datapath 1u enterprise level server, not a onesy, twosey server installation. I believe you were comparing the Xserve to a “tower” pc server, were you not.
You’re comparing apples and oranges. If you a doing simple file sharing, buy a cheaper server. If you bought a standard G5 for the $2000 range, and added the accessories I believe you would have everything you’d get in a standard pc server.
However, you don’t even really have to buy the server software to make the G5 a server. Any OS X capable box can be a server. Remember, its unix, and all or at least most, of the open source stuff out there is available for the mac.
There are web, groupware, domain, file and authentication services for the mac, at a much reduced price. All you have to do is give up the GUI, for some.
It does require someone with real Unix knowledge, but it is available on the Mac and not on a Windows based system. Also, there is the little problem of patches, viruses and other little creepies. Early on Microsoft did too good a job of drawing a target on their operating system, hence the issues with viruses. Mac and Unix don’t have the same issues. Security is also less of an issue. Its much more difficult for someone to break in on a Unix based system and do real damage than on a Windows system.
So, for a “bang for your buck” I think the Unix based systems have a serious advantage over Windows based systems. Windows boxes will be around for a long time as desktop units, but I think they are facing real competition in the server world.
As for my small business clients. I initially recommended SBS, but now we are seriously considering switching to a Mac OS X system to serve as an email and file services machine.
Good luck to each of you on whichever system you support. Its the difference that keeps us all working!!!!!