macOS Tools/Features Flashcards
Time Machine backups
- Automatic and easy to use
- Familiar Finder UI
- Dates along the right side
- Files in the middle
• Mac OS takes snapshots if the
Time Machine storage isn’t available
• You can restore from the snapshot
Image recovery
- Build a disk image in Disk Utility
- Creates an Apple Disk Image (.dmg) file
- Mount on any Mac OS X system
- Appears as a normal file system
- Copy files from the image
- Use the restore feature in Disk utility
- Restore a disk image to a volume
Disk Utility
- Manage disks and images
- Resolve issues
- File system utilities
- Verify and repair file systems
- Erase disks
- Modify partition details
- Manage RAID arrays
- Restore a disk image to a volume
- Create, convert, and resize images
- Manage the image structure
Terminal
- Command line access to the operating system
- Manage the OS without a graphical interface
- OS access
- Run scripts, manage files
- Configure OS and application settings
Screen sharing
• Integrated into the operating system
• Can also be viewed with VNC
(Virtual Network Computing)
- Available devices appear in the Finder
- Or access by IP address or name
Force Quit
- Stop an application from executing
- Some applications are badly written
- Command-Option-Esc
- List application to quit
• Hold the option key when right-clicking
the app icon in the dock
• Choose Force Quit
Scheduled backups
- Time Machine - Included with Mac OS X
- Hourly backups - The past 24 hours
- Daily backups - The past month
- Weekly backups - All previous months
- Starts deleting oldest information when disk is full
Scheduled disk maintenance
- Disk Utility - Disk maintenance
- Rarely needed - No ongoing maintenance
- Verify disk
- Every few months
- Similar to Windows Check Disk
System updates / App store
- Centralized updates - For both OS and apps
- App Store application - The “Updates” option
- Automatic updates - Or manual install
• Patch management - Install and view previous
updates
Driver/firmware updates
- Almost invisible in Mac OS X
- Designed to be that way
• System Information - Detailed hardware list
- View only
- No changes to settings
- By design
Anti-virus/Anti-malware updates
- OS X does not include anti-virus
- Or anti-malware
- Many 3rd-party options
- From the usual companies
- An emerging threat
- Still doesn’t approach Windows
- It’s all about install base
- Automate your signature updates
- New updates every hour / day
Mission Control and Spaces
- Quickly view everything that’s running
- Spread out the desktop into a viewable area
- Spaces
- Multiple desktops
- Add Spaces inside of Mission Control
Keychain
- Password management
- Passwords, notes, certificates, etc.
• Integrated into the OS - Keychain Access
• Passwords and Secure Notes are encrypted with
3DES
• Login password is the key
Spotlight
- Find files, apps, images, etc.
- Similar to Windows search
- Magnifying glass in upper right
- Or press Command-Space
• Type anything in - See what you find
• Define search categories in
System Preferences / Spotlight
• Enable/disable categories
• Change the order of categories
Finder
- The central OS file manager
- Compare with Windows Explorer
- File management
- Launch, delete, rename, etc.
- Integrated access to other devices
- File servers, Remote storage, Screen sharing