Setup

The Mini Server arrives with Snow Leopard Server pre-installed, ready to setup.

If attaching your own keyboard, mouse, and display, a wizard style format walks a new user through server setup, step by step. Other than the two things below, nothing more to add. For embedded systems or if you do not want to attach peripherals, see the notes re "Headless Setup".

Two things to keep in mind when setting up Snow Leopard Server on the Mini Server..

• Setting it up as a user workstation, and setting it up as a server are two almost entirely distinct activities. Typically neither one difficult. But they are distinctly separate. In a dual use scenario, setup the the mini first as a server which is the default out-of-the-box setup wizard. Then go back and set it up just like any other Mac for the user who will log in locally. Double-check to be certain the local user settings will not power down the system during a period of inactivity.
• Use a non standard TLD for DNS if setting it up for a home system behind a firewalled router. TLD - Top Level Domain, DNS-Domain Name Server. TLD's are the letters after the "dot". .com, .net .org, .edu these are standard TLD's. Rather than using a standard TLD, or even .local or .private, try using something descriptive that the machine will not try to resolve any other way. .house, .family, .office .fun. This advice seems trivial, and is, until the first time you do not use it and spend half a day troubleshooting DNS problems.

Re-installation

Scroll to the bottom for any needed help with re-installation. Don't go out and buy an external firewire optical drive just to support the mini server without reading below. Apple makes it easy to share optical drives for machines that ship without them!

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