Server Admin 10.4 Help

Setting Up an Automountable AFP Share Point for Home Directories

You can use Workgroup Manager to set up an AFP share point for home directories.

Home directories for user accounts stored in shared directory domains, such as the LDAP directory of an Open Directory master, can reside in any AFP share point that the user's computer can access. This share point must be automountable—it must have a network mount record in the directory domain where the user account resides.

An automountable share point ensures that the home directory is visible in /Network/Servers automatically when the user logs in to a Mac OS X computer configured to access the shared domain. It also lets other users access the home directory using the ~home-directory-name shortcut.

1. On the server where you want the home directories to reside, create a folder that will serve as the share point for home directories.

   Because of the way home directory disk quotas work, you may want to set up home directory share points on a partition different from other share points. See Setting Disk Quotas for more information.

2. In Workgroup Manager, connect with the server in step 1 and click Sharing.
3. Click All (above the list on the left) and select the folder you created for the share point.
4. In the General pane, select "Share this item and its contents."
5. Specify the share point owner and group names by typing names into those fields or by dragging names from the drawer that opens when you click Users & Groups.
6. Set Owner permissions to Read & Write, set Group permissions and Everyone permissions to Read Only, and click Save.
7. Click Network Mount and authenticate as an administrator of the directory domain in which the user account resides.

   Use the Where pop-up menu to choose the directory domain in which the user account resides. Then click the lock and authenticate as an administrator of the directory domain.

8. Select "Create a mount record for this share point" and "Use For User Home Directories."
9. Make sure the Protocol pop-up menu is set to AFP, and click Save.
10. Set up guest access to the share point so that users with home directories on different servers can access the home directory using the ~home-directory-name/Public shortcut.

    Click Protocols, choose Apple File Settings from the pop-up menu, and make sure "Share this item using AFP" and "Allow AFP guest access" are selected. (They are selected by default.)

    In Server Admin, make sure AFP guest access is enabled. Connect to the home directory server and select AFP in the Computers & Services list. Click Settings, then click Access, and make sure "Enable Guest access" is selected. Also make sure the AFP service is running.