• Mac OS X Server

    Programatically Manage DNS In macOS Server

    DNS is DNS. And named is named. Except in macOS Server. Sometimes. The configuration files for the DNS services in macOS Server are stored in /Library/Server/named. This represents a faux root of named configuration data, similar to how that configuration data is stored in /var/named on most other platforms. Having the data in /Library/Server/ makes it more portable across systems. The current version of BIND is BIND 9.9.7-P3 (Extended Support Version). This has been the case for a number of macOS Server versions, and can easily be located by doing a cat of the /Library/Server/named/.version file.  Traditionally, you would edit this configuration data by simply editing the configuration files, and that’s absolutely still…

  • Mac OS X,  Mac OS X Server,  Mac Security

    Get the OS X Server Version

    You can find the version of the Server app that an OS X Server is running using the serveradmin command. To do so, run the serveradmin command followed by the -version option: sudo /Applications/Server.app/Contents/ServerRoot/usr/sbin/serveradmin --version The output would be as follows: Version 15S5127

  • Ubuntu,  Unix

    See Version Information In Linux

    There are a number of ways to see information about what version of Linux that you’re running on different cat /etc/lsb-release Which returns the distribution information, parsed as follows: DISTRIB_ID=Ubuntu DISTRIB_RELEASE=12.04.5 DISTRIB_CODENAME=precise DISTRIB_DESCRIPTION="Ubuntu Precise Pangolin (LTS)" LSB_release can also be run as a command, as follows: lsb_release -a Which returns the following: No LSB modules are available. Distributor ID: Ubuntu Description: Ubuntu Precise Pangolin (LTS) Release: 12.04.5 Codename: precise lab_release can be used as a command as well: cat /etc/issue.net Which returns: Ubuntu Precise Pangolin (development branch) In Debian, you can simply look at the version file: cat /etc/debian_version Which returns the following: wheezy/sid Or Red Hat Enterprise can also…

  • Mac OS X Server

    Obtain Information About OS X Server Using serverinfo in Yosemite Server

    OS X Yosemite running the Server comes with the /usr/sbin/serverinfo command (introduced in Mountain Lion Server). The serverinfo command is useful when programmatically obtaining information about the very basic state of an Apple Server. The first option indicates whether the Server app has been downloaded from the app store, which is the –software option: serverinfo --software When used, this option reports the following if the Server.app can be found: This system has server software installed. Or if the software cannot be found, the following is indicated: This system does NOT have server software installed. The –productname option determines the name of the software app: serverinfo --productname If you change the…

  • Mac OS X

    Lion's Versions Feature

    In Mac OS X Lion, applications can make use of a feature to auto-save and version files. This feature locks files that are inactive for editing and when the file is unlocked then starts automatically saving versions. If you have a problem with the file you can then always step back to a previous version of the file. The feature is manifested in the title bar and the file menu of applications that make use of it. When you open a file, it can be locked. Viewing the file in the Finder also shows that it is locked. Clicking on locked provides the option to unlock. Once unlocked you can…

  • Mac OS X

    Perl Control

    There are a lot of versions of the popular perl scripting language out there, and depending on what version you may have written a script with you might find that using a different version than the one that comes with an OS by default can have a drastic impact on a script. In Mac OS X you can change the default version of perl that the perl and a2p command will use. Before doing so you should check the version of perl being used by default, which can be done using the perl command, followed by the -v option: perl -v By default, the OS currently uses version 5.10.0. To…

  • Mac OS X,  Mass Deployment

    What Version of Mac OS X Am I Running?

    Ever need to have a program check a file to tell you what version of Mac OS X you’re running to do a quick sanity check?  In /System/Library/CoreServices/SystemVersion.plist you’ll find a key for ProductVersion.  The value in this key is the version of Mac OS X you’re using.  Keep in mind that the path should be relative to the volume that houses the operating system.  Therefore, if you’re using a volume during imaging and you’re running a postflight or preflight script make sure you check the path relative to the operating system you’re augmenting.