Mac Support

Welcome to SCS Computing Facilities Mac support. We are an authorized Self-Service-Provider for Apple Computer. Our trained technicians are Apple certified and are able to perform on-site service repairs for all Apple computer hardware.

Warranty parts are ordered directly from Apple and in most cases we can complete hardware repairs in one business day with Apple overnight shipping policy.

Do You Support Leopard (10.5)?

SCS Computing Facilities is not officially supporting Mac OS Leopard at this time. We have been diligently working on identifying compatibility issues with Leopard and our current recommended baseline software. To date, we have confirmed that most of these applications are compatible. However, there are some critical things to consider before upgrading to Leopard:

• iPass: works but crashes when exiting the program (officially not supported through the vendor)
• Norton Anti Virus: works after updating definitions from Symantec Live Update to version 4.0.4

Early adopters who have a need for or simply wish to upgrade are welcome to request a Leopard installation by sending email to help@cs.cmu.edu

Things To Know Before Upgrading to Leopard

Additional support information can be found on the Campus Computing website: http://www.cmu.edu/computing/news/status/leopard/index.html

Additional information regarding compatibility issues with Leopard and wireless: http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/2007/10/leopard_upgrade_kills_wireless.html

Requirements for Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)

• A Mac computer with an Intel, PowerPC G5, or Power PC G4 (867 MHz or faster) processor.
• 512 MB memory or more.
• A DVD drive for installation.
• 9 GB of available disk space or more.

Notes from Apple:

Computers with processor upgrade cards are not supported with Mac OS X. Although Mac OS X may install and appear to work normally on some computers with third-party microprocessor upgrade cards, Apple does not provide technical support or assistance for Mac OS X when used in this way. Contact the manufacturer of your microprocessor upgrade card for support information.

Check out the Mac OS X Leopard Technical Specs website for additional details on Leopard requirements: http://www.apple.com/macosx/techspecs/

You should also read the Before You Install document included on your Mac OS X installation disc.

Can I Get Microsoft Office 2008? Is it Supported?

Although Office 2008 is now available, we are not ready to support it. CMU is still awaiting the arrival of the media which is expected by early March 2008. Once we receive the media we will begin testing for compatibility issues.

Mac users wanting to upgrade to Office 2008 should be aware of significant UI changes with Office 2008 at minimum.

When we have confirmed compatibility an announcement will be made and upgrades/media will be available by sending email requests to help@cs.cmu.edu

What Apple Hardware and Software Do You Support?

To be eligible for Mac support services, your Mac must be CMU owned and covered under our SCS Computing Facilities monthly support charges.

Any Mac capable of running OS X (ver. 10.x and higher) can be supported. All supported Mac running an OS prior to OS X will only receive our est effortattempt for repair of both hardware and software problems. Note: If you are using a supported Mac with an OS prior to OS X, we strongly recommend upgrading to a more current version. You can send email to help@cs.cmu.edu if you need help or have questions about upgrading.

We do not support personally owned equipment. You should contact Apple directly for all personally owned Apple computer problems.

I Want to Upgrade My Mac to the Latest OS How Can I Do This?

One of our Apple certified technicians can do this for you. Simply email help@cs.cmu.edu with your request and someone will contact you within one business day or less. Be sure to include the CMU Asset number of the Mac you want to upgrade in your request.

Note: We do not immediately support the most recent Mac OS version or third party software once released. Before officially supporting a new OS or application, extensive testing needs to be completed.

What Apple Computer Do You Recommend I Buy?

We can support any late model (Intel based) Apple computer. Our recommended Apple products are available at the CMU Computer Store: http://www.cmu.edu/stores/computer/apple.html

To purchase a new Mac email your request to purchase@cs.cmu.edu with a valid Oracle String and one of our purchasing consultants will contact you.

How Do I Setup Printers in Mac OS X

Detailed instructions for printer setup can be found on our SCS Help Pages Printing section: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~help/printing/index.html

What Software Do You Support for the Mac?

All facilitized and supported Macs will be deployed with the following baseline software in addition to the latest supported OS:

• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Microsoft Office (latest supported version)
• Choice of Email client
  • Entourage
  • MAIL
  • Thunderbird
• Symantec Anti Virus software
• Stuffit Expander
• Oracle Calendar
• CMU Web Certificates
• FUGU
• Firefox
• Tibs backup client (if requested)
• iPass and VPN client (installed on laptops)

Backups & Restores

See the Mac backup documentation for details on our Mac backup system and the limitations on what we can back up. Note that most Mac will not be put into the backup system (and thus will not receive backups) unless specifically requested. http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~help/backups_restores/index.html

How to

Macintosh Patch Archives

• February 2008 Patch Information
• March 2008 Patch Details