Lab Computer Setup

The lab Macs keep their software current on their own. About once an hour, each one quietly asks the lab server what it should have installed and installs anything that's missing or out of date. These steps turn that on for one computer. They take about five minutes, most of it waiting for a restart, and you'll repeat them on every Mac in the lab.

You don't need to know anything about the server to do this. You need the username and password for the computer's administrator account, and the computer needs to be on the lab network (plugged in to Ethernet, or on the lab Wi-Fi).

Before You Start

You know the administrator account's username and password
The Mac is on the lab network
Nobody else is logged in to the Mac (restart it if you aren't sure)

Install the Munki Client

Log in with the administrator account, not a student account.
Open Safari and go to github.com/munki/munki/releases/latest. Scroll to the Assets list and click the file whose name ends in .pkg. It looks like munkitools-6.6.5.4711.pkg (the numbers will be different). Safari downloads it.
Open the downloaded file. Click Continue through the installer, then Install, and type the administrator password when asked. When it finishes it will say the computer must restart. Click Restart.
After the restart, log in with the administrator account again.

Point It at the Lab Server

Open Terminal. Press Cmd+Space to open Spotlight, type Terminal, and press Enter.

Your screen should look like this: a small window with a line of text ending in % or $ and a blinking cursor. That's where you'll paste commands.
Copy the command below (hover over it and click the copy icon at its right edge), click in the Terminal window, paste with Cmd+V, and press Enter.
```
sudo defaults write /Library/Preferences/ManagedInstalls SoftwareRepoURL "http://engineering.local"
```
Terminal asks for a password. Type the administrator password and press Enter.

The Password Is Invisible

Nothing appears while you type the password, not even dots. That's normal. Type it and press Enter. If you make a mistake it says Sorry, try again and lets you retry.

Check that it took. Paste this and press Enter:
```
defaults read /Library/Preferences/ManagedInstalls SoftwareRepoURL
```
Your screen should look like this: it prints exactly http://engineering.local on its own line. If it prints anything else, or an error, repeat step 6.

Run the First Check

Paste this and press Enter. It may ask for the password again.
```
sudo managedsoftwareupdate --checkonly
```
A few lines scroll by as the Mac talks to the server. The two acceptable endings are a list of items under The following items will be installed or upgraded, or the line No changes to managed software. Either one means the Mac reached the server.
If step 8 listed anything to install, paste this and press Enter, then wait for it to finish. A large program like Fusion can take several minutes with nothing on screen; don't close the window.
```
sudo managedsoftwareupdate --installonly
```
Quit Terminal (Cmd+Q) and log out of the administrator account.

Done

From now on this Mac updates itself. You can see what it manages by opening Managed Software Center in the Applications folder, but you don't need to.

If Something Goes Wrong

What you see	What it means	What to do
`command not found` at step 8	The Munki installer didn't finish, or the Mac wasn't restarted	Repeat steps 2 through 4
`Could not retrieve manifest` or a `-1001` / `-1004` error	The Mac can't reach the server	Check the network cable or Wi-Fi; try again in a minute. If it persists, tell Mr. Willis
`Sorry, try again` three times	Wrong password	You need the administrator password, not a student's
Anything else		Leave the window open and show Mr. Willis