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Verify Startup Disk and Options for Alerting Users

  • October 6, 2008
  • 3 replies
  • 34 views
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Does anyone know if version 6.01 added any options for displaying messages using the jamf displayMessage command before running a policy?

I'd like the ability to force a dialog box to the front of the screen and not go away until the policy is complete (no "OK" button).

We want to "Verify Startup Disk" on all our managed Macs once a month. Of course when this runs it feels like the Mac is stalling so we want to warn users to relax for 5 minutes AND let them know when the verification is complete. Has anyone created a policy to do this? It sounds simple but I've run into two problems...

1) I can't get two messages (before and after) to appear. Only one at a time seems to work.
2) I can't verify that "Verify Startup Disk" is actually working on Tiger Macs. The log files shows it working in Leopard, but no information is displayed in Tiger. See details below.

POLICY IN QUESTION
This policy is set to Once Every Month
This policy is triggered by everyHour
This policy is assigned to 4 computers
<I did have a script here that would display a message to the user, but if the message was displayed then the Reboot Options message (see below) would NOT appear so I removed it.>
Run Script Script-MonthlyMaint.sh
Verify Startup Disk
Display message 'Your disk has been verified. If any problems were found you will be contacted.' to end user.
Reboot immediately if nobody is logged in
If rebooting, display message 'Your disk has been verified. If any problems were found you will be contacted.' to end user.

TIGER LOG RESULTS
/usr/sbin/jamf is version 6.01
Executing Policy Maintenance - Monthly...
Mounting afp://myserver/CasperShare to /Volumes/CasperShare 1...
Running Script Script-MonthlyMaint.sh...
Verifying Disk mounted at '/' <NO RESULTS SHOW!?>
Unmounting file server...
Displaying message to end user...

LEOPARD LOG RESULTS
/usr/sbin/jamf is version 6.01
Executing Policy Maintenance - Monthly...
Mounting afp://myserver/CasperShare to /Volumes/CasperShare...
Running Script Script-MonthlyMaint.sh...
Verifying Disk mounted at '/'
Result of disk verification:
Started verify/repair volume (filesystem) on disk disk0s3 Macintosh HD

Performing live verification
Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume
Checking Extents Overflow file
Checking Catalog file
Checking multi-linked files
Checking Catalog hierarchy
Checking Extended Attributes file
Checking volume bitmap
Checking volume information
The volume Macintosh HD appears to be OK

Finished verify/repair volume (filesystem) on disk disk0s3 Macintosh HD
Unmounting file server...
Displaying message to end user...

Thanks,

Ben Greiner
Forget Computers
312 602.5345
ben at forgetcomputers.com

    3 replies

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    • ernstcs
    • Contributor
    • October 6, 2008

    Hi Ben,

    No there aren't more options in the new version to add a message at the beginning of a policy action, but I can see how this would very useful. I have the same problems with not being able to specify some really basic command line commands to run at the start of a policy, and not just the end. In general I think the policy engine lacks enough control of the order and number of events. I have an idea of how I'd do it that I'll put in JAMF's email box this week.

    You did it the only way possible right now, and removed it of course because of the limitations.

    There are no published options in 6.01 to NOT have an OK button, or an OK button that isn't the default button for an Enter key press (unless that did change and I missed it)

    As far as the Tiger startup disk, perhaps no news is good news? =) I'm not sure, I can try to check on this on my end to help.

    Craig E

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    • ben_greiner
    • Author
    • Contributor
    • October 7, 2008

    To add one more bit of frustration to this problem... even though the policy is configured and log confirms that the message prompt (warning users of the pending disk verification) occurs BEFORE the disk verification, the message doesn't actually appear until AFTER the disk verification. Any ideas how I can make a message prompt appear BEFORE the disk verification?

    /usr/sbin/jamf is version 6.01
    Executing Policy Maintenance - Monthly...
    Mounting afp://myserver/CasperShare to /Volumes/CasperShare...
    Running Script FC-MessagePrompt-Monthly.sh...
    Verifying Disk mounted at '/'
    Result of disk verification:
    Started verify/repair volume (filesystem) on disk disk0s3 Macintosh HD

    Thanks,

    Ben Greiner
    Forget Computers
    312 602.5345
    ben at forgetcomputers.com

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    • ernstcs
    • Contributor
    • October 7, 2008

    Now that's a little odd...

    What if you add the command for verify into the script after the display message?

    diskutil verifyDisk "/"

    Craig

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