Advice on Meeting Server Needs

[erichighley]

I own and manage a psychology practice and we are in need of a dedicated server for secure, remote usage. Ideally, I would like to have a server that would allow multiple users to simultaneously be logged in working on a single physical device. While I think OS X Server is a great tool, and something we will eventually implement, I'm not sure it fits my needs here. I also was considering just using Apple Remote Desktop, but I am not convinced that would allow multiple simultaneous users.

We are a completely Mac centric office, and would like to keep it that way. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like Apple offers a solution to match a true Windows Server where multiple users can log into a single machine simultaneously.

Any ideas of whether my ideal situation is feasible with Apple?

 

[sevoneone]

I own and manage a psychology practice and we are in need of a dedicated server for secure, remote usage. Ideally, I would like to have a server that would allow multiple users to simultaneously be logged in working on a single physical device. While I think OS X Server is a great tool, and something we will eventually implement, I'm not sure it fits my needs here. I also was considering just using Apple Remote Desktop, but I am not convinced that would allow multiple simultaneous users.

We are a completely Mac centric office, and would like to keep it that way. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like Apple offers a solution to match a true Windows Server where multiple users can log into a single machine simultaneously.

Any ideas of whether my ideal situation is feasible with Apple?

Sounds like you're looking for a virtual desktop solution, also known as a thin client setup. Basically where all the files and applications live and are executed on a central server and the user interacts with them through a "dumb" terminal.

Unfortunately, Apple really doesn't have anything that competes in this area. Since 10.7 multiple users can login to different desktops remotely on a Mac, but it leverages Screen Sharing which isn't ideal.

There are all kinds of solutions out there for this, each with their own pros and cons. I'll yield to someone a little more experienced with them than I to elaborate, but will say the primary pro is security.

You could use OS X Server to setup network accounts and remote home directories to get there on the data storage side. NetBoot could help with security and the idea of having a highly controlled desktop environment for your users.