Friday morning, my boss sent me an email telling me that Apple had finally released the successor to Network Assistant, Apple Remote Desktop. I told my class of Mac OS X system administrators, and they actually cheered. Well, first they stared at me in disbelief, as if they had woken up on Christmas morning expecting to find a cheese log and a pair of socks under the tree and instead found a Porsche in the driveway. They asked, “Is this really what we think it is?” Yes, I replied. Then they asked, “Does is also support older machines?” Yes, I replied. Then they cheered. One student actually ran — not walked — down to his car to call his boss and tell him the great news.
When I got back home last night, I did a brief glance around my selective cross-section of the weblogging community, and I saw a lot of uninformed opinion about Remote Desktop. “Wah, it’s $500.” “Oh, I can just use VNC (or Timbuktu).” At the risk of sounding rude, none of you people have the slightest idea what you’re talking about, because none of you are Macintosh system administrators, and none of you have used Network Assistant. Network Assistant is a Porsche, Timbuktu is a Stanley Steamer, and VNC is a tricycle with two broken wheels.
For those who have never used it, Network Assistant is a Macintosh system administrator’s best friend. Once the client software is installed on each client, the system administrator can run the management program from their office and see all the computers on the network. They can remote control any desktop (like Timbuktu or VNC). They can generate reports of which software is installed on each client — including differential reports, i.e. unauthorized software installed on clients that is not on a master disk image. With one click, they can remove such unauthorized software. They can install new software on every client on their network. All without standing up.
Class after class, system administrators ask me when Network Assistant will be available for OS X. I always tell them the same thing: “I wish I knew.” Administrators in positions of power tell me they will not under any circumstances upgrade to OS X until they can get Network Assistant. Administrators who have had OS X forced upon them have told me they would give their first-born child to have Network Assistant for OS X. Now all they need is a PO. $500 is nothing to these people. Nothing. As an added bonus, Apple Remote Desktop supports older clients (all the way back to OS 8.1), so you don’t have to upgrade your clients to OS X all at once, and you don’t need two separate management programs.
So I’ll modify my original analogy: Network Assistant is a 10-year-old Porsche, Timbuktu is a Stanley Steamer, and VNC is a tricycle with two broken wheels. And Apple Remote Desktop is a brand new Porsche, sitting in the driveway, with the engine running.
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