Apple Remote Desktop - Manual (Page 16)

16 Chapter 1 Using Apple Remote Desktop
Distributing Installer Packages
You can distribute and automatically install packages in .pkg and .mpkg formats.
Apple Remote Desktop lets you install software and software updates on one or more
client computers without user interaction or interruption, or even if no user is logged
in. After installation, Apple Remote Desktop erases the installer files. If the computers
need to be restarted, as they do following an operating system update, you can restart
them from Apple Remote Desktop.
For example, you can use Apple Software Update to download an iCal update or an
operating system update to a test computer. If the update works as expected and
introduces no compatibility issues, copy the installer package to the administrator
computer to distribute to computers that need upgrading. Note that this approach
conserves Internet bandwidth, because only one copy of the package needs to be
downloaded.
You can also use Apple Remote Desktop to deploy new versions of computational
software to Xserve computers in a cluster node.
You can use the PackageMaker tool (included on the Apple Remote Desktop
installation CD and with Apple’s developer tools) to create your own installer packages,
such as when you want to:
 Distribute school project materials or business forms and templates
 Automate the installation of multiple installer packages
 Deploy custom applications
Before performing remote installations, you can send an Apple Remote Desktop text
message to notify users, perhaps letting them know that you’ll be using Apple Remote
Desktop to lock their screens at a particular time before you start the installation.
Using NetInstall Images
You can also distribute and install software, including the Mac OS X operating system,
by using NetInstall images.
On Mac OS X Server, use the Network Image Utility to create a NetInstall image. You
can create the image by cloning a system that’s already installed and set up, or by
using an installation disc or an image downloaded using Apple Software Update. If you
choose to auto-install, you won’t have to interact with each computer. On the Apple
Remote Desktop administrator computer, set the startup disk of remote client systems
to point to the NetInstall image, and then remotely reboot the clients to start
installation.
Before initiating installations that require computers to be restarted afterwards, send
an Apple Remote Desktop text message to client users to notify them of a pending
installation. For example, tell users you’ll log them off at 5:00 p.m. to install an
operating system update.