Target Mode Imaging

k12techman
New Contributor

If someone out there has already posted an answer to the following scenario, I apologize for the repeat. I could not come up with a search of JAMF Nation that revealed anything like that.

I'm getting ready to deploy a few hundred MacBook Airs. They present a particularly interesting problem.

Without a built-in NIC, and a next to useless USB dongle option, it appears that my only real option is to use TMI for imaging these computers. At face value, that seems reasonably easy.

The issue I'm struggling with is how to make the process as hands free as I have it now with Macs that use a wired connection to image and then receive policy and such after imaging that finishes up what I need done.

I also heavily rely on PreStaging to get new computers into my JSS quickly and easily.

So far, I cannot find a way to make TMI work in as nearly as easy a fashion.

I generally just place an OS onto my machines, maybe a few other packages, and then push profiles to them to get them onto the correct wireless networks and such.

TMI does not appear to make this nearly as easy as a traditional network imaging process.

What am I missing?

3 REPLIES 3

rtrouton
Release Candidate Programs Tester

Are these new MacBook Airs? If so, why not use a Thunderbolt Ethernet adapter? That would provide a gigabit ethernet interface for imaging.

k12techman
New Contributor

These will be brand spanking new MBAs.

When I've used the USB NICs in the past, I've had trouble with PreStaging. It seems that the JSS "remembers" that MAC address of the NIC, associates it with the computer that used it and then won't PreStage anymore.

I believe there is a setting somewhere in the JSS that will defeat that, but I cannot remember where it is now.

k12techman
New Contributor

Duh. Disregard the part about removable MAC addresses in my previous post. It's in Settings->Inventory Options.

But, I'm still interested in hearing how people handle PreStaging and such with the MBAs.