Mac OS X Server 1.x: About Installation Applications

These notes are for the Mac OS X Server installation process, including the installation tools used to boot the system from a CD, install a base system, and install packages and updates to the system.

Note: This document was installed by Mac OS X Server in /System/Documentation/ReadMe. For a list of other release notes see:
Article 30925: "Mac OS X Server: Release Notes"
Note: This article pertains to Mac OS X Server versions 1.x, which were released prior to May 2001.

Mac OS Tools

The Mac OS X Server CD includes an installer application, as well as System Disk Control Panel and Extension. System Disk, which allows you to switch between booting into Mac OS and Mac OS X Server, replaces Multibooter of previous releases. For information on these tools, consult the Read Me files on the CD.

Installing Multiple Languages

The Mac OS X Server includes French, German, and Japanese localization packages. These add localized resources to certain core applications, such as the Workspace Manager, Installer, NetworkManager, and TextEdit. More complete localizations will be part of Japanese, French, and German versions of Mac OS X Server, which will be released this Spring. Note that the localization these application display depends on the order of languages the user has chosen in the Localization User Preference.

These packages can be selected as optional languages at installation time, and are available on the Mac OS X Server CD in System/Installation/Packages/languageEssentials.pkg if you want to install them at a later time. Their contents can also be removed, like other packages, by opening the receipt in /Local/Library/Receipts.

Choosing optional languages at install time also determines which localized MacOS.app startup disk images are installed. This is not the case if you install a language after the OS installation process. If you want to install a new localized disk image, reinstall the package System/Installation/Packages/BlueBox.pkg on the Mac OS X Server CD, and select that language.

If you've installed the Mac OS X Server SDK, and are interested in developing localized applications, consult the Localization Read Me for more information.

Mac OS X Server Installer application

The Installer application (located in /System/Administration/Installer.app) is the tool used by administrators to install and remove software in Mac OS X Server.For information on how to create packages, see the Read Me Creating and Installing Packages.

Known Issues

* During installation of multi-package bundles, such as the Mac OS X Server SDK, the Installer may show alert panels referring to an unnamed log file. This file is located in:

/tmp/filename.installerLog

where filename is the name of the multi-package bundle being installed (without the .mpkg extension).

* Version information for multiple package bundles isn't displayed anywhere in the Installer UI.

* The Installer fails to indicate when individual packages in a multiple package bundle have already been installed. Also, there is no facility for deleting installed multiple package bundles: you have to delete the individual installed packages.* Installer now uses the pax tool to create and read packages. OpenStep packages created with tools that predate the Rhapsody Developer Release do not work with the Installer application included with Mac OS X Server. Packages created in Developer Release 2, which used the gnutar tool, can be installed by Installer, although the application fails to give feedback on each individual file as it is installed.
Published Date: Feb 18, 2012