Streamlining Computer Configuration

Kopmanis took delivery of the first batch of iMac G4 computers at the end of May in 2003. Since then, the math department has converted all of its six computer labs to the Mac platform, and has added an Xserve G5 with dual 2.0 GHz processors running Mac OS X Server. While the idea of loading and configuring over 100 new computers was daunting, Kopmanis says that server-based NetBooting and Workgroup Manager in Mac OS X Server made quick work of the process.

Those who used to be Mac detractors now consider the computers a godsend.

— Jeff Kopmanis

“Our Apple team was true to their word,” recalls Kopmanis. “They booted the first lab of 24 iMac computers and had them ready for students’ login, in about two minutes — our jaws absolutely dropped. All of the machines were booted at the same time off of the shared disk image on the NetBoot server. And it turns out we didn’t even have the server hardware in yet — at the time we were using a Mac G4 desktop computer! These days, our NetBoot image has tripled in size and we have four times the number of workstations … but the iMac computers still boot up in about two minutes.

“Apple also showed us how Workgroup Manager could help us manage our workstations,” Kopmanis adds. “Workgroup Manager can control everything on the workstations, including login access, printer defaults, and even what applications can and cannot be run. Apple Remote Desktop (ARD) also allowed us to completely control and monitor our labs, installing software or rebooting entire collections of workstations. ARD really helps our instructors, as they can share screens from one workstation to all, copy files back and forth, and even lock the screens for the entire lab while lecturing.”

Once the initial conversion to the Mac was complete, Kopmanis says it was simple to replicate the process. “We emptied a second, 19-machine Solaris lab one afternoon, and the following morning we had a 30-machine iMac lab online, ready to go,” Kopmanis confirms. “Thanks to Mac OS X Server and NetBoot, we were able to unpack, inventory, and set up each additional lab in only four hours. Plus, the small size of the iMac computers has allowed us to achieve a 1-to-1 student-to-workstation ratio in our labs. Since this directly impacts the quality of mathematics education that UM can deliver, this new lab model was welcomed by our faculty and administration.”