Archive | October, 2009

Apple Server Diagnostics 3X106 Released

Apple released Apple Server Diagnostics 3X106 yesterday to support for Snow Leopard Server and the Mac mini. If you’ve still got 3X104, you’ll need to grab the new version if you’re running Snow Leopard Server.

The tests it performs include:

  • Boot ROM
  • Ethernet controller
  • Fan
  • Hard drive
  • Memory
  • Power supply
  • Processor
  • Sensor
  • USB ports
  • Video controller

[Via TUAW]

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State of the Mac mini

macminicolo.net has posted their 2009 state of the Mac mini, including their test drive and photos (un-boxing & take-apart) of the new Mac mini w/Snow Leopard Server. Interesting tidbits I was unaware of are:

  • The new Mac minis will accept 8GB of RAM and the now-previous ones only need a firmware upgrade to do so.
  • AppleCare covers GUI-based server & network management issues for the Mac mini w/Snow Leopard Server, but “isn’t the case if you buy a Mac mini and Snow Leopard Server separately.”
  • Approximately 70% of their customers use Mac OS X client. I shouldn’t be surprised due the former pricing, but I think the killer combination of Snow Leopard Server only costing $499 for unlimited clients and bundling it with a Mac mini configuration will change all of that.

They also remind the naysayers who complain about lack of additional Ethernet ports “that Apple’s USB Ethernet Adapter works fine on a mini. Just plug it in and you’re set.”

[Via Daring Fireball]

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OpenDNS Expands with Deluxe & Enterprise Offerings

As of today, OpenDNS has added Deluxe & Enterprise plans to it’s free Basic service. I’ve been using OpenDNS’s free service for quite some time now and it does a good job of offering reliable, fast DNS with a few added bonuses such as phishing & botnet protection, typo correction, content filtering (if needed), and stats.

The Deluxe plan starts at $9.95/year, is ad-free, and includes the following features above and beyond Basic:

  • Up to 50 whitelist/blacklist domains (up from 25)
  • A whitelist-only mode
  • Advanced customization options
  • Archived stats & logs for 1 year (up from 2 weeks)
  • Email technical support 9-5 (Pacific) on weekdays (in addition to opendns.com/support)

According to the press release, “Notable features included in OpenDNS Enterprise include”:

Malware Site Protection to secure networks from online threats, Delegated Administration to allow multiple administrators across multiple locations to administer accounts, Block-Page Bypass functionality, which makes OpenDNS cloud-based Web content filtering more flexible and allows administrators and trusted individuals to bypass filtering when necessary, and more comprehensive reporting and statistics offerings, including a daily PDF report of network activity delivered via email.

Obviously, that’s in addition to the Basic & Deluxe features. You’ll have to call for Enterprise pricing.

[Via OpenDNS]

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Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server

Along with other new products and a refresh of the Mac mini line, Apple has now come to their senses and is offering a Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server! For $999 you get a Mac mini w/2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 4GB RAM, and—get this—the optical drive has been ditched to make room for a second hard drive, so two 500GB 2.5″ 5400-RPM SATA hard drives. Oh, and Snow Leopard Server, of course.

It seems like this is going to be a great deal, especially assuming that the $599 Mac mini is spec’d with 2.26GHz processor, 2GB RAM, and $160GB hard drive, and SuperDrive. I’ve been using a Mac mini as a server for years and would love to add one of these to my network.

Update: They note that you can use the MacBook Air SuperDrive (USB) if you need an optical drive. I’ve always found a MacBook in FireWire Target Disk mode to be more than adequate, in a pinch.

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