10.5: Modify the login window with Workgroup Manager

Oct 06, '08 07:30:02AM

Contributed by: magnamous

I have always liked the result of this hint (and others like it in 10.4) that allowed me to customize the login window, but a quick search of the archive seems to show that no such hint exists for 10.5 (although I grant that I didn't try this one in 10.5). The existing hints for Workgroup Server don't address the login window specifically. However, I have figured out how to make all sorts of modifications to the login window by using Apple's free Server Admin Tools.

To modify your login window, follow the instructions in this hint to download and install the Server Admin Tools and open Workgroup Manager. (Note that the link I provided in the previous paragraph will download the version for OS 10.5.5. There are other versions as well. Search for "server tools" if you need a different version.)

Now that you've set up Workgroup Manager, here's how to view and change your local settings:

  1. There are five tabs on the left side of the window: a person, several people, a rectangle, two rectangles, and a bullseye. They correspond to users, group's computers, computer groups, and "all records." (Your configuration may not show the bullseye. I may have turned that on in the app's preferences, but I can't remember.)
  2. Click the computers tab (rectangle). Click the lock button on the far right side of the window to authenticate so that you can do some editing. Once you've authenticated, the New Computer button in the toolbar should become clickable. Click it. It'll add a computer to the list called Untitled.
  3. On the right side of the window, in the General tab, give your computer a name and a short name (I chose Mac Mini and mini, respectively).
  4. In the Network tab, fill in the fields with your computer's ethernet MAC address and IP address. (I'm on a LAN, so I used my LAN IP address: 192.168.100.1). In the lower-right corner of the window, click Save.
  5. Now, in the toolbar, click Preferences. Make sure that your computer (mini) is still selected in the computer list. The right side of the window should show several icons with labels. Click the one that says Login. That part of the window should change to a set of tabs with options. Select the Window tab.
  6. From here, you can change all sorts of settings. Change the Manage setting to Always. Be aware that Workgroup Manager does not necessarily import your current settings. Check all settings in the current tab, even the ones you didn't plan to modify, to make sure that they correspond to how you want them set.
  7. To change the login window so that it displays the time, change the Heading menu to Time. Click Apply Now, then click Done. That's it.
There are all sorts of other goodies in here that can be changed, but the standard disclaimer naturally applies: you can really mess up your system using Workgroup Manager, so don't change something unless you know what the effect will be (or you're feeling brave). It may be possible to edit only the settings you're interested in by clicking the Details tab when you're back to viewing all the preference icons, choosing the com.apple.loginwindow plist from the list, and deleting the keys in the plist that you didn't intend to modify (the list was empty before I altered anything). But I haven't tried that.

Comments (4)


Mac OS X Hints
http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20081002143315920