Software:macOS Server

macOS Server
	An OS X Yosemite server
Developer	Apple Inc.
Written in	C, C++, Objective-C, and HTML for settings
OS family	Macintosh; Unix;
Working state	Discontinued on April 21, 2022
Source model	Closed-source (with open-source components)
Initial release	March 16, 1999; 25 years ago
yes\|Final release\|Latest release}}	5.12 / December 8, 2021
Available in	English, Japanese, French, German, Simplified Chinese, Dutch, Italian, Korean, Spanish, Traditional Chinese
Platforms	x86-64; (Formerly PPC, IA-32);
Kernel type	Hybrid (XNU) (mostly monolithic)
Default user interface	Aqua
License	Commercial proprietary software
Official website	www.apple.com/macos/server

Short description: Server software for macOS

macOS Server, formerly Mac OS X Server and OS X Server, is a discontinued series of Unix-like server operating systems developed by Apple Inc., based on macOS and later add-on software packages for the latter. macOS Server added server functionality and system administration tools to macOS and provided tools to manage both macOS-based computers and iOS-based devices.

Versions of Mac OS X Server prior to version 10.7 “Lion” were sold as complete, standalone server operating systems;^[4] starting with Mac OS X 10.7 “Lion,” Mac OS X Server (and its successors OS X Server and macOS Server) have been offered as add-on software packages, sold through the Mac App Store, that are installed on top of a corresponding macOS installation.^[3]^[5]

macOS Server at one point provided network services such as a mail transfer agent, AFP and SMB servers, an LDAP server, and a domain name server, as well as server applications including a Web server, database, and calendar server. The latest version of macOS server only includes functionality related to user and group management, Xsan, and mobile device management through profiles.

On April 21, 2022, Apple announced it would be discontinuing macOS Server and that future versions of macOS would drop support for it.^[2]

Overview

Mac OS X Server was provided as the operating system for Xserve computers, rack mounted server computers designed by Apple. Also, it was optionally pre-installed on the Mac Mini and Mac Pro and was sold separately for use on any Macintosh computer meeting its minimum requirements.

macOS Server versions prior to Lion are based on an open source foundation called Darwin and use open industry standards and protocols.

Versions

Box artwork for Mac OS X Server versions 10.1–10.6

Mac OS X Server 1.0 (Rhapsody)

Main page: Software:Mac OS X Server 1.0

The first version of Mac OS X was Mac OS X Server 1.0. Mac OS X Server 1.0 was based on Rhapsody, a hybrid of OPENSTEP from NeXT Computer and Mac OS 8.5.1. The GUI looked like a mixture of Mac OS 8's Platinum appearance with OPENSTEP's NeXT-based interface. It included a runtime layer called Blue Box for running legacy Mac OS-based applications within a separate window. There was discussion of implementing a 'transparent blue box' which would intermix Mac OS applications with those written for Rhapsody's Yellow Box environment, but this would not happen until Mac OS X's Classic environment. Apple File Services, Macintosh Manager, QuickTime Streaming Server, WebObjects, and NetBoot were included with Mac OS X Server 1.0. It could not use FireWire devices. The last release is Mac OS X Server 1.2v3.

Mac OS X Server 10.0 (Cheetah)

Released: May 21, 2001

Tagline: Industrial-strength server with Macintosh ease of use.

Mac OS X Server 10.0 included the new Aqua user interface, Apache, PHP, MySQL, Tomcat, WebDAV support, Macintosh Manager, and NetBoot.

Mac OS X Server 10.1 (Puma)

Released: September 25, 2001

Tagline: Industrial-strength server with Macintosh ease of use.

Mac OS X Server 10.1 featured improved performance, increased system stability, and decreased file transfer times compared to Mac OS X Server 10.0. Support was added for RAID 0 and RAID 1 storage configurations, and Mac OS 9.2.1 in NetBoot.^[6]

Mac OS X Server 10.2 (Jaguar)

Released: August 23, 2002

Tagline: UNIX power. Open standards. Apple ease of use.

The 10.2 Mac OS X Server release includes updated Open Directory user and file management, which with this release is based on LDAP, beginning the deprecation of the NeXT-originated NetInfo architecture. The new Workgroup Manager interface improved configuration significantly. The release also saw major updates to NetBoot and NetInstall. Many common network services are provided such as NTP, SNMP, web server (Apache), mail server (Postfix and Cyrus), LDAP (OpenLDAP), AFP, and print server. The inclusion of Samba version 3 allows tight integration with Windows clients and servers. MySQL v4.0.16 and PHP v4.3.7 are also included.

Mac OS X Server 10.3 (Panther)

Released: October 24, 2003

Tagline: Open Source made easy.

The 10.3 Mac OS X Server release includes updated Open Directory user and file management, which with this release is based on LDAP, beginning the deprecation of the NeXT-originated NetInfo architecture. The new Workgroup Manager interface improved configuration significantly. Many common network services are provided such as NTP, SNMP, web server (Apache), mail server (Postfix and Cyrus), LDAP (OpenLDAP), AFP, and print server. The inclusion of Samba version 3 allows tight integration with Windows clients and servers. MySQL v4.0.16 and PHP v4.3.7 are also included.^{[citation needed]}

Mac OS X Server 10.4 (Tiger)

Released: April 29, 2005

Tagline: Open source made easy.

The 10.4 release adds 64-bit application support, Access Control Lists, Xgrid, link aggregation, e-mail spam filtering (SpamAssassin), virus detection (ClamAV), Gateway Setup Assistant, and servers for Software Update, iChat Server using XMPP,^[7] Boot Camp Assistant, Dashboard, and Weblog Server based on the open-source Blojsom project (Java).^[8]

On August 10, 2006, Apple announced the first Universal Binary release of Mac OS X Server, version 10.4.7, supporting both PowerPC and Intel processors. At the same time Apple announced the release of the Intel-based Mac Pro and Xserve systems.

Software	10.4	10.4.11
PHP	?	4.4.9
MySQL		4.1.22
Apache		1.3.41
BIND		9.3.6-P2

Mac OS X Server 10.5 (Leopard Server)

The Mac OS X Leopard Server running Server Admin on Desktop

Released: October 26, 2007

Tagline: Simply powerful.

Leopard Server sold for $999 for an unlimited-client license.^[9] Mac OS X Server version 10.5.x ‘Leopard’ was the last major version of Mac OS X Server to support PowerPC-based servers and workstations such as the Apple Xserve G5 and Power Mac G5.

Features

RADIUS Server. Leopard Server includes FreeRADIUS for network authentication. It ships with support for wireless access stations however can be modified into a fully functioning FreeRADIUS server.^[10]
Ruby on Rails. Mac OS X Server version 10.5 ‘Leopard’ was the first version to ship with Ruby on Rails, the server-side Web application framework used by sites such as GitHub.^[11]

Software	10.5	10.5.3	10.5.4	10.5.5	10.5.6	10.5.7	10.5.8	10.5.8 2010-007	10.5.8 2011-004
PHP	5.2.4	5.2.5		5.2.6		5.2.8	5.2.11	5.2.14
MySQL	5.0.45				5.0.67		5.0.82	5.0.91
Apache	2.2.6	2.2.8			2.2.9	2.2.11	2.2.13	2.2.14
BIND	9.4.1-P1		9.4.2-P1			9.4.3-P1	9.4.2-P3
Ruby									1.8.6
Ruby on Rails									1.2.6

Mac OS X Server 10.6 (Snow Leopard Server)

Released: August 28, 2009

Tagline: New features. New ways to collaborate. Simpler than ever.

Snow Leopard Server sold for $499 and included unlimited client licenses.^[9]

New Features:

Full 64-bit operating system. On appropriate systems with 4 GB of RAM or more, Snow Leopard Server uses a 64-bit kernel to address up to a theoretical 16 TB of RAM.^[12]
iCal Server 2 with improved CalDAV support, a new web calendaring application, push notifications and the ability to send email invitations to non-iCal users.
Address Book Server provides a central location for users to store and access personal contacts across multiple Macs and synchronized iPhones. Based on the CardDAV protocol standard.
Wiki Server 2, with server side Quick Look and the ability to view wiki content on iPhone.
A new Mail server engine that supports push email so users receive immediate access to new messages. However, Apple's implementation of push email is not supported for Apple's iPhone.
Podcast Producer 2 with dual-source video support. Also includes a new Podcast Composer application to automate the production process, making it simple to create podcasts with a customized, consistent look and feel. Podcast Composer creates a workflow to add titles, transitions and effects, save to a desired format and share to wikis, blogs, iTunes, iTunes U, Final Cut Server or Podcast Library.
Mobile Access Server enables iPhone and Mac users to access secured network services, including corporate websites, online business applications, email, calendars and contacts. Without requiring additional software, Mobile Access Server acts as a reverse proxy server and provides SSL encryption and authentication between the user's iPhone or Mac and a private network.

Software	10.6.0	10.6.1	10.6.2	10.6.3	10.6.4	10.6.5	10.6.7	10.6.8 (10K549)
PHP	5.3.0	?	?	?	5.3.2	5.3.3	5.3.4	5.3.15
MySQL	5.0.82				5.0.7	5.0.91		5.0.92
Apache	2.2.11				2.2.14	2.2.15	2.2.17	2.2.22
BIND	9.6.0-P2				9.6.0-P2			9.6-ESV-R4-P3

Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion Server)

Released: July 20, 2011

Tagline: The server for everyone.

In releasing the developer preview of Mac OS X Lion in February 2011, Apple indicated that beginning with Lion, Mac OS X Server would be bundled with the operating system and would not be marketed as a separate product.^[13] However, a few months later, the company said it would instead sell the server components as a United States dollar 49.99 add-on to Lion, distributed through the Mac App Store (as well as Lion itself).^[14] The combined cost of an upgrade to Lion and the purchase of the OS X Server add-on, which costs approximately US$50,^[9] was nonetheless significantly lower than the retail cost of Snow Leopard Server (US$499).

Lion Server came with unlimited client licenses as did Snow Leopard Server.

Lion Server includes new versions of iCal Server, Wiki Server, and Mail Server.^[15] More significantly, Lion Server can be used for iOS mobile device management.

Starting with Apple Mac OS X Server Version 10.7 “Lion,” PostgreSQL replaces MySQL as the database provided with Mac OS X Server, coinciding with Oracle Corporation’s acquisition of Sun Microsystems and Oracle’s subsequent attempts to tighten MySQL’s licensing restrictions and to exert influence on MySQL’s previously open and independent development model.^[16]

Software	10.7	10.7.1	10.7.2	10.7.3 11D2001	10.7.4 11E53	10.7.5 11G63
Server.app	?	?	?	1.3.1	1.4.3	1.5.0
PHP				5.3.8	5.3.10	5.3.15
Postfix				2.8.4
Python				2.7.1
PostgreSQL				9.0.5
Apache				2.2.21		2.2.22
BIND				9.7.3-P3		9.7.6-P1

OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion Server)

Released: July 25, 2012

Tagline: Just like that, your Mac is a powerful sever.

Like Lion, Mountain Lion had no separate server edition. An OS X Server package was available for Mountain Lion from the Mac App Store for US$19.99, which included a server management application called Server, as well as other additional administrative tools to manage client profiles and Xsan.^[17]^[18]

Mountain Lion Server, like Lion Server, was provided with unlimited client licenses, and once purchased could be run on an unlimited number of systems.

Software	10.8.0	10.8.2	10.8.4	10.8.5
PHP	?	?	5.3.15	5.3.29
Python			2.7.2
PostgreSQL			9.2.1
Apache	?	?	2.2.22	2.2.29
BIND			9.8.3-P1	?
OpenLDAP			?	2.4.28