Catalog and Manage Organization Resources

With Snow Leopard Server 10.6, Apple does a great job of integrating historical methods of resource tracking and management. They also do a nice job of documenting how to connect legacy systems to the latest Open Directory technologies offered in the 10.6 release.

Practically missing in action, are instructions for setting up and using asset tracking and scheduling for those with no legacy systems from which to import. Small organizations or those just getting started with server technologies, the target audience for the Mini Server, may have difficulty figuring out how to do this. Asset tracking is not as nearly as easy to use as it should be. Same things are only found out the hard way. This is one of those things.

Directory is Gone

The "Directory" application was what the 10.5 version of Leopard Server called the tool for entering new resources into Open Directory. Included then, and still included in 10.6 is the Directory Utility tool which is NOT a tool for entering new resources.

The iCal Server Utility is the new name in the 10.6 release of Snow Leopard Server. Documentation regarding the application and how to use it is sketchy. The current page on the Apple site for server admin tools does not even mention it! UPDATE - Documentation is getting better. Move up one level to view Apple resources current as of May 2010.

The iCal Server Utility and Diradmin

When the server admin tools package is installed, iCal Server Utility installs with little fanfare. Firing it up the first time and clicking the + sign prompts for login credentials. For a first time server admin the purpose and the required credentials are downright opaque.

Login in as the diradmin user, create resources, tie these resources into iCal to gain powerful scheduling and management capabilities. The user "diradmin" is an automagically created account for administering open directory services. The account begins life at the same time, and with the same password, as the server administrator account. When prompted for login credentials, the user diradmin with the admin password should work.

Locations, Resources, Google Maps, Pictures and Descriptions

After login credentials are accepted, the iCal Server Utility unfolds as the design location for entering organizational assets. Locations and resources are the top level categories. Locations entered here integrate seamlessly with Google Maps when a valid address is entered for the location. Images may be included with resources with a tiny hack of this same mapping functionality.

After locations and resources are catalogued into Open Directory, scheduling them with iCal is far from effortless. As of May 2010, it requires working at the command line.

The old way in 10.5 was to make a resource "reservable" in the GUI. The new way is to use the command line calendar_server_manage_principals app. It has a man page on the server.

Usage example..

#mini3:zones dougbrethower$ sudo calendarserver_manage_principals --add-write-proxy users:dougpad resources:mini3

Which tells the ical server that user dougpad should have delegate responsibility for the resource mini3. Verify in iCal by visiting Preferences->Accounts->Delegation. Mini3 should be an option for user dougpad.

User dougpad delegation tab shows mini3

It is not going to be easy in other words to just start adding and scheduling resources via standard ical and ical server utility. There is much to an ical server, and it is oriented for the enterprise, rather than the home user. Read and understand the ical admin pdf document for 10.6, and realize it is not going to be simple, before diving in.

Wiki to the Rescue

The wiki in Web services provides a quick kludge that can be made to work for scheduling resources. In the wiki settings is a checkbox to use a calendar. Check off that box.

Then create a custom calendar for each resource. Each user in the workgroup then has visibility and scheduling capabilities for the resource. Just that simple, but not nearly as powerful.

1. Restrict wiki access to a group.

Restrict Access to a Group

2. Checkmark Calendar.

Be sure "Calendar" gets checkmarked

3. Shared resources each get their own calendar.

Each Resource is a Calendar

More Pictures..