Mac OS X Lion Server For Dummies®

Prerequisites

In most chapters of the book, I include a Prerequisites section to let you know some things you might have to do in order for the setup to work. This section is no less important for installing Lion Server and doing your initial configuration.

Collecting and understanding info

It's a good idea to gather some information about your server Mac and your network before you start installation and configuration. You may speed up your setup time by having the info in front of you. You'll also have a record of how you set up the server. And the process of gathering the information will help you understand what type of setup you need. This section describes information you may collect or later need to enter during the setup process. It also explains some of the terms that the installer software asks you about.

Hardware ID numbers

There are two hardware identification numbers that are useful to record if your network contains multiple servers: the MAC address and the serial number. If you're using remote management software for multiple clients and server, this information may help you configure that software.

The MAC address doesn't refer to the Macintosh; it's the acronym for Media Access Control. The MAC address is a unique hardware identifier that specifies each Ethernet port or wireless network card. In general, if a Mac has two Ethernet ports, it will have two MAC addresses. (The exception is the Xserve, which has a built-in Ethernet port that has two MAC addresses — ...