How do I disable the dock hiding option?

[dvd1138]

Hi. I'm the computer teacher at a school and I'm trying to lock down the computers somewhat so that the kids don't mess with settings. When they inevitably do, I waste time restoring them to normal so that other kids aren't confused.

I've used software like TinkerTool and Deeper to prevent modifications to the dock icons. The main accounts used by the students are parental controlled so that they can't access System Preferences. I turned Dock Hiding off in there. However, they can still click on the option area (the lines) in the dock and turn it back on there. I know it doesn't seem like too big a deal, but when the older kids do this and a 1st grader sits down, they get confused and have to ask for help. If a dozen ask for help, it wastes time in class.

So is there a way to disable the ability to have that option available? I'd actually like to get rid of of the Hide, Magnification, and Position options in that little menu.

Thanks for any help.

 

[calderone]

Parental Controls should be able to fix this.

You can limit them to Simple Finder and certain Applications. There is also an option "Can modify the Dock." I haven't tested these options.

One thing you may want to consider is Mac OS X Server. With it you can manage the machines globally with more refined control of the preferences. Of course this costs money, but it would save you lots of time in the future.

One of the things I can do for you is create those Managed Preferences and send you the plists and instructions on how to set the up. If you want to send me a list of the things you would like Managed I can create those for you.

 

[MacsRgr8]

This looks a strange way, but could also work:

Download the Server Admin Tools, open WorkGroup Manager, connect to your Mac (i.e. 127.0.0.1) and enter an admin username and password.
Click on the Preferences icon, select a user (on the left) and select Dock (on the right).
Then fiddle around with the options.

 

[dvd1138]

Parental controls do not prevent the items. And the Server Admin tool just brings up the same options as would be found in the System Preferences. I guess the benefit is being able to manage that remotely, but that doesn't solve my issue.

And yes, OS X Server is not an option due to money.

Now, please excuse my ignorance, but what would the Managed Preferences be for? I didn't quite follow what you were suggesting there.

Thanks for the help. It's appreciated.

 

[bocomo]

one of the schools i used to teach at used deep freeze to reset everything once the user logs off.

http://www.faronics.com/html/deepfreeze.asp

 

[calderone]

Parental controls do not prevent the items. And the Server Admin tool just brings up the same options as would be found in the System Preferences. I guess the benefit is being able to manage that remotely, but that doesn't solve my issue.

And yes, OS X Server is not an option due to money.

Now, please excuse my ignorance, but what would the Managed Preferences be for? I didn't quite follow what you were suggesting there.

Thanks for the help. It's appreciated.

Managed Preferences are what Mac OS X Server uses to manages clients. Parental controls use the same format (for the most part) and they go to the same place on the machine.

To do this yourself, use the hint below. In Workgroup Manager you get many more options for managing than you do with Parental Controls.

My original idea was to just create these for you with my Server and send them to you. See the screenshot for more details on how this will look.

If you have just one user account that is used by all, just manage the user.

If there are many users, create a group with all the users.

In the screenshot, I am authenticated to the Local DS and managing the Dock options for a user.

This looks a strange way, but could also work:

Download the Server Admin Tools, open WorkGroup Manager, connect to your Mac (i.e. 127.0.0.1) and enter an admin username and password.
Click on the Preferences icon, select a user (on the left) and select Dock (on the right).
Then fiddle around with the options.

You are indeed correct. I haven't personally done it. I always forget about since I actually run WGM on a server.

 

[dvd1138]

Unfortunately I don't think I can justify spending any money on the situation. While I do find it really annoying and problematic for the younger students, it's not that big a deal in the grand scheme of things. I was just hoping there was some relatively easy or free way to accomplish this.

Thanks though.

 

[calderone]

Unfortunately I don't think I can justify spending any money on the situation. While I do find it really annoying and problematic for the younger students, it's not that big a deal in the grand scheme of things. I was just hoping there was some relatively easy or free way to accomplish this.

Thanks though.

The Server Tools linked above are free. You simply connect to the local directory rather than a server.

 

[dvd1138]

Oh, sorry, I was responding to bocomo about DeepFreeze when you responded in between my reading his post and sending my reply.

 

[dvd1138]

Ah, I figured it out with the Server Admin tool. Now when I click on there, the only option is Dock Preferences, which is also locked down.

Many thanks! I'm very grateful.