How do I manage Macs in a Remote office half way across the country?

Mac Write · Feb 2, 2013, 09:43 PM

Really not sure where I should post this so it gets the attention it requires.

I work for a charity and we are going to purchase 3 Mac mini's for our Toronto office as "Data Entry" computers. I live and work on Vancouver BC. We barely have the funds for these new computers, so I need to come up with a solution to handle this Mac minis from half way across the country.

My ideal solution would be a VPN+Apple Remote Desktop, but a server for that office isn't on the books at present (we will be getting a mini server for our head office this month though).

I need to remotely manage these computers and since we most likely won't get a mac mini server, I need other solutions.

"Back to my Mac" is another option, but that means I need a "office" iCloud account and have to change user accounts on my MBP. The other issue is, reliability. I personally feel Back to my Mac isn't reliable enough for having to manage Macs in a remote office.

Any ideas on how best to do this? We are using a Time Capsule or Airport Base Station (not sure which one). I just realized since they are data entry systems we should go with Reburbs. will save us close to $500 on all 3 systems.

Intell · Feb 2, 2013, 09:49 PM

SSH. Each Mini can be it's own server. Setup port forwarding on the router to forward a high public port to the Mini's port 22. Setup a SSH only account that has a good strong password or use public key authentication. Allow only that account to be used for remote access/SSH. Then forward the Apple Remote Desktop ports and VNC ports to the local machine. You can even use SSH compression to make it a bit faster and you can use only Mini to act as a server for the others if you want.

Mac Write · Feb 2, 2013, 11:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intell

SSH. Each Mini can be it's own server. Setup port forwarding on the router to forward a high public port to the Mini's port 22. Setup a SSH only account that has a good strong password or use public key authentication. Allow only that account to be used for remote access/SSH. Then forward the Apple Remote Desktop ports and VNC ports to the local machine. You can even use SSH compression to make it a bit faster and you can use only Mini to act as a server for the others if you want.

Thanks. We are going to get the 2011 Mac minis with 2GB RAM as they are refurbs.

The other issue is, right now I just have are volunteer computers at the head office use a limited user guest user account so it auto resets on logout.

Tell me more about how to use ARD with port forwarding. I assume that in the group I would call "Toronto Volunteer Computers" That I would enter IP:Port and that would be good enough to get through via SSH?

Adz76 · Feb 3, 2013, 03:36 AM

Just thought I'd say that if you are using those machines with that amount of RAM the performance would not be great. I have a 2011 and bumped it to 8Gbs of RAM, think mine came with 4 and even that amount still felt at times sluggish.Lion is fairly resource hungry.

Also we have used Teamviewer across multiple platforms and I have to say it's superb, the free versions are not meant to be used for commercial use but you could give it a try and see what you think and then buy if you decide its worth it.

Mac Write · Feb 3, 2013, 03:41 AM

We are a Charity/NonProfit. As for the RAM. Basically the Mac minis will be used to access Safari and then do Data Entry via Web forms. 99.99% of the work done on these Mac minis will be in Safari. Maybe I will say we should through 8GB of RAM in them. I doubt each year I will upgrade the OS on them as I am in Vancouver and they are in Toronto and…well good luck getting approval for that trip.

Mojo1 · Feb 3, 2013, 11:03 AM

2GB RAM is a non-starter if you plan on using Lion or Mountain Lion. You need at least 4GB to do the basics; I know this from personal experience. 8GB RAM should be sufficient based on what you plan to do with the Minis.

palebluedot · Feb 3, 2013, 12:05 PM

Why get Macs at all if you are only going to have 2GB of RAM? You can get PCs at the same power for a cheaper price and Windows 7 and OS X are pretty much comparable now in terms of usability (and before I get flamed, I use both).

Moreover, I forget the name of the site but there is some site that allows 501c3s (I assume, in Canada, too) to register and get mega-discounts on software and hardware.

Mac Write · Feb 3, 2013, 02:09 PM

Maybe a Linux Terminal would be a good idea, but Windows is out. That's what we have now and we require low maintenance. I am not going to support Windows (have enough trouble getting the president off of Windows 7 on her 27 iMac we bought for her 2-years ago!.

I will definitely look to upgrade the RAM. Now I need to find cheap Keyboard, Mouse, 24" Monitors.

laughjimbo · Feb 3, 2013, 03:07 PM

I have used back to mac reliably from a mobile phone connection to my mac book pro to support a number of macs before with no real problems.

Intell · Feb 3, 2013, 03:10 PM

For you needs, 4GB of ram is plenty. A simple Pentium 3 box running a stripped down version of Linux would do very well as a server box for you to SSH into. If you can find an old x86 laptop that would be even better as they tend to use less power than a desktop of similar vintage.

initialsBB · Feb 3, 2013, 03:38 PM

If Safari is the only needed app, who not go for iPad/minis ?

chrise2 · Feb 3, 2013, 06:08 PM

Check out logmein.com. You can use the free version or pay for a full version. Works very well for remote control.

FreakinEurekan · Feb 3, 2013, 07:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mac Write

My ideal solution would be a VPN+Apple Remote Desktop, but a server for that office isn't on the books at present

Why would you need a server for that office to use ARD? Can't you just use a VPN tunneling router?

It's quite possible you can't; I've not tried that with ARD... but I've used VPN tunneling routers to support remote computers using VNC so I would expect it to work OK with ARD.

Holmes093 · Feb 4, 2013, 10:29 AM

Could you not do the following:

Grab a Raspberry PI.
Setup the Raspberry Pi as a VPN server using Hamachi.
Use ARD over Hamachi VPN.

I am going to be buying a Raspberry Pi come payday, I will try this method.

Holmes093

DarthMoops · Feb 4, 2013, 08:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrise2

Check out logmein.com. You can use the free version or pay for a full version. Works very well for remote control.

logmein is great, if they will be inside your WAN look at VNC as well.

Feb 2, 2013, 09:43 PM	#1
Mac Write macrumors newbie Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Vancouver British Columbia	How do I manage Macs in a Remote office half way across the country? Really not sure where I should post this so it gets the attention it requires. I work for a charity and we are going to purchase 3 Mac mini's for our Toronto office as "Data Entry" computers. I live and work on Vancouver BC. We barely have the funds for these new computers, so I need to come up with a solution to handle this Mac minis from half way across the country. My ideal solution would be a VPN+Apple Remote Desktop, but a server for that office isn't on the books at present (we will be getting a mini server for our head office this month though). I need to remotely manage these computers and since we most likely won't get a mac mini server, I need other solutions. "Back to my Mac" is another option, but that means I need a "office" iCloud account and have to change user accounts on my MBP. The other issue is, reliability. I personally feel Back to my Mac isn't reliable enough for having to manage Macs in a remote office. Any ideas on how best to do this? We are using a Time Capsule or Airport Base Station (not sure which one). I just realized since they are data entry systems we should go with Reburbs. will save us close to $500 on all 3 systems.
	0

Feb 2, 2013, 09:49 PM	#2
Intell macrumors G4 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Inside	SSH. Each Mini can be it's own server. Setup port forwarding on the router to forward a high public port to the Mini's port 22. Setup a SSH only account that has a good strong password or use public key authentication. Allow only that account to be used for remote access/SSH. Then forward the Apple Remote Desktop ports and VNC ports to the local machine. You can even use SSH compression to make it a bit faster and you can use only Mini to act as a server for the others if you want. __________________ Last edited by Intell; Yesterday at 11:50 AM.
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 03:07 PM	#9
laughjimbo macrumors newbie Join Date: Jun 2012	I have used back to mac reliably from a mobile phone connection to my mac book pro to support a number of macs before with no real problems. __________________ 13" Mac Book Pro 2.3ghz i5, 256gb Samsung 830 SSD, 8gb RAM / Mac Mini 2.3ghz i5, 256gb Crucial M4 SSD, 8gb RAM / iPad 2 16gb WiFi / iPhone 4S 64gb / Apple TV 3 / iPod Touch 4th GEN 32gb.
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 03:10 PM	#10
Intell macrumors G4 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Inside	For you needs, 4GB of ram is plenty. A simple Pentium 3 box running a stripped down version of Linux would do very well as a server box for you to SSH into. If you can find an old x86 laptop that would be even better as they tend to use less power than a desktop of similar vintage. __________________ Last edited by Intell; Yesterday at 11:50 AM.
	0

Feb 4, 2013, 10:29 AM	#14
Holmes093 macrumors 6502 Join Date: Sep 2010	Could you not do the following: Grab a Raspberry PI. Setup the Raspberry Pi as a VPN server using Hamachi. Use ARD over Hamachi VPN. I am going to be buying a Raspberry Pi come payday, I will try this method. Holmes093 __________________ - iPhone 5 32GB / White & Aluminium / 3 / iOS 6 - New iPad 32GB / White / 3 / iOS 6 - Mac Mini 2.5GHz / 8GB ram / 120GB SSD & 500GB HD / 10.8.2
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 03:36 AM	#4
Adz76 macrumors member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Dagobah System	Just thought I'd say that if you are using those machines with that amount of RAM the performance would not be great. I have a 2011 and bumped it to 8Gbs of RAM, think mine came with 4 and even that amount still felt at times sluggish.Lion is fairly resource hungry. Also we have used Teamviewer across multiple platforms and I have to say it's superb, the free versions are not meant to be used for commercial use but you could give it a try and see what you think and then buy if you decide its worth it.
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 03:41 AM	#5
Mac Write Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Vancouver British Columbia	We are a Charity/NonProfit. As for the RAM. Basically the Mac minis will be used to access Safari and then do Data Entry via Web forms. 99.99% of the work done on these Mac minis will be in Safari. Maybe I will say we should through 8GB of RAM in them. I doubt each year I will upgrade the OS on them as I am in Vancouver and they are in Toronto and…well good luck getting approval for that trip.
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 11:03 AM	#6
Mojo1 macrumors 65816 Join Date: Jul 2011	2GB RAM is a non-starter if you plan on using Lion or Mountain Lion. You need at least 4GB to do the basics; I know this from personal experience. 8GB RAM should be sufficient based on what you plan to do with the Minis.
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 12:05 PM	#7
palebluedot macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jun 2008	Why get Macs at all if you are only going to have 2GB of RAM? You can get PCs at the same power for a cheaper price and Windows 7 and OS X are pretty much comparable now in terms of usability (and before I get flamed, I use both). Moreover, I forget the name of the site but there is some site that allows 501c3s (I assume, in Canada, too) to register and get mega-discounts on software and hardware.
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 02:09 PM	#8
Mac Write Thread Starter macrumors newbie Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Vancouver British Columbia	Maybe a Linux Terminal would be a good idea, but Windows is out. That's what we have now and we require low maintenance. I am not going to support Windows (have enough trouble getting the president off of Windows 7 on her 27 iMac we bought for her 2-years ago!. I will definitely look to upgrade the RAM. Now I need to find cheap Keyboard, Mouse, 24" Monitors.
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 03:38 PM	#11
initialsBB macrumors 6502a Join Date: Oct 2010	If Safari is the only needed app, who not go for iPad/minis ?
	0

Feb 3, 2013, 06:08 PM	#12
chrise2 macrumors regular Join Date: Sep 2012	Check out logmein.com. You can use the free version or pay for a full version. Works very well for remote control.
	0

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