• Mac OS X Server,  Mac Security

    Configure The Adaptive Firewall In macOS Server 5.4 for High Sierra

    macOS Server 5.4 running on High Sierra (macOS 10.13) has an adaptive firewall built in, or a firewall that controls incoming access based on clients attempting to abuse the server. The firewall automatically blocks incoming connections that it considers to be dangerous. For example, if a client attempts too many incorrect logins then a firewall rule restricts that user from attempting to communicate with the server for 15 minutes. If you’re troubleshooting and you accidentally tripped up one of these rules then it can be a bit frustrating. Which is why Apple gives us afctl, a tool that interacts with the adaptive firewall. To enable the adaptive firewall, use the -f…

  • Mac OS X Server,  Mac Security

    Managing Lion Server's Adaptive Firewall From the Command Line

    Previously, I had done an article on using the adaptive firewall in Mac OS x Server. But I hadn’t looked at controlling it from the command line yet. In Lion Server, the firewall automatically blocks incoming connections that it considers to be dangerous. For example, if a client attempts too many incorrect logins then a firewall rule restricts that user from attempting to communicate with the server for 15 minutes. If you’re troubleshooting and you accidentally tripped up one of these rules then it can be a bit frustrating. Which is why Apple gives us afctl, a tool that interacts with the adaptive firewall. The most basic task you can…