Mac Apps, App Installers, Jamf Apps, Jamf App Catalog… whatever name you know it by, the feature found in your Jamf Pro server at Computers – Mac apps – Jamf App Catalog is a great tool for deploying and patching many commonly used Apps which aren’t available through Apple’s App Store. For the sake of clarity, I will refer to them as App Installers for the remainder of this post. App Installers do have some caveats which are documented here. Being aware of those is well and good, but even the most experienced admins can make mistakes. Jamf Pro will not alert you if you have done something like overlapped scopes for different deployments of the same App Installer title.If this occurs, that App Installer will likely cease to recalculate its deployment as more Macs are added to the Computer Group it is scoped to. If you toggle the “stuck” app’s deployment off and back on again, it’ll force it to recalculate and the Macs it was missing will begin to receive it.This overlapping scope behavi

Introducing the MacAdmins Definitive Resource DirectoryOne of the greatest difficulties I found when I began my career as a Mac Systems Administrator was not learning the technology or the tools, but rather finding out where I should be looking. The MacAdmins community holds a vast amount of information and resources, however, due to the sheer volume and the fact that there is so much spread around the web, it can become quite intimidating, especially for newbies.This is why I decided to create the MacAdmins Definitive Resource Directory: https://github.com/maccy10/definitivemacadmins Reasons for Building This ProjectOf course, there are already other very good, curated collections of links, and it would be unfair not to mention the projects that inspired this one:* Community is Valuable: A List of My Favourite Community Resources: https://community.jamf.com/tech-thoughts-180/community-is-valuable-a-list-of-my-favorite-community-resources-53430* https://github.com/JordyThery/bookmarksJ

Last year, I had the extraordinary privilege of travelling to Zimbabwe to meet and teach some of the most driven, curious students I've ever encountered — the cohort at the MATTER Career Readiness Institute (MCRI). If you're not familiar with MCRI, let me explain why it matters. You may already know the Matter Innovation Hubs (MIH): tech-forward, student-centred environments designed to foster active learning and creativity for children who often lack access to critical educational resources. MCRI takes that mission further. It's a post-secondary workforce training program with a bold goal — equip young Zimbabwean students with the skills needed to become software engineers and secure remote employment with Western companies. In an environment where opportunity can be rare, MCRI is opening doors that were once closed, helping students turn potential into power.  How the program worksStudents apply from local secondary schools, go through a rigorous selection process, and dive into a cu

There’s a certain irony in traveling 3,500 miles to Leiden only to feel like I was heading home.I’m a New Yorker now, living in Yonkers—a city that owes its very name to the Dutch. It comes from the title Jonkheer (or “Young Lord”), the nickname for Adriaen van der Donck. Back in the day, the area was simply known as “The Jonkheer’s land.” As the years passed and the English took over, “Jonkheer” evolved into “Yonkers.” So, when the opportunity came to attend MacAdmins-EU in Leiden, Amsterdam, it was an immediate “yes.” I wasn’t just visiting the “Old World”; I was tracing a line back to where the story of my hometown began. The Jordy Factor The spark for this trip started when ​@Jordy-Thery told me to “save the date” for the end of April. He couldn’t say much more at the time, but I was already sold. I’ve followed Jordy on the #macadmins Slack and LinkedIn for years, finally meeting him in person at an event in Nashville a few years back. He represents the soul of this community—a lea

In April, I had the opportunity to attend MacAD.UK in Brighton for the first time. It was the conference’s ninth year and the tenth anniversary of the very first gathering, which made it feel like a special moment to be part of. Even more importantly, it was my first professional conference presentation, made possible by the Charles S. Edge New Speaker Grant from the Mac Admins Foundation. The MacAD.UK team also played an important part in making it possible for me to speak at the conference, and I’m incredibly grateful for that support. I had applied earlier in the year and, to be honest, almost forgot that I had done it. So, when I received the email from Chris Dawe saying I had been selected, I could hardly believe it. The excitement was quickly followed by nerves, because I knew I would soon be meeting with Chris and Diego Laconelli and later with ​@rebecca_latimer. Speaking English does not always come naturally to me, so I spent a lot of time getting ready for those conversations

The Dinner Table Tech DeskLet’s be honest, we’ve all been there - so let me paint the picture. It’s the holidays, everyone is gathered around the table, you’ve managed to dodge most of the argument inducing conversations and you’re about to take that first mouthwatering bite out of <insert your favorite festive food here>. Suddenly someone pulls out their iPhone and says one of these (or many other) nightmare inducing phrases; ”Hey can I ask you a question about iCloud real quick?” or “Hey, how many Apple IDs should I have?” These questions are par for the course when you are the designated tech person both at work and at home. I’m having a little fun here and I know that we all do our best to help out that relative to the best of our ability and get them not only back up and running ASAP but hopefully also feeling good about their tech. It’s likely the reason we keep getting asked for help, because we are good at it (and be honest, you enjoy it at least a little)! This article i

There are hundreds if not thousands of Terraform examples and walk throughs on the internet today. Most of them start in a clean environment. They assume a brand new account. No history. No surprises.But that’s rarely the situation most of us inherit.More often, we’re working on something that’s been evolving for years:Resources created manually in a GUI Naming conventions that shifted over time Temporary fixes that became permanent Configurations that “just work,” but nobody is entirely sure whyApplying Infrastructure as Code (IaC) using Terraform in an existing, already-provisioned environment is often called Brownfield Terraform.You’re not building from scratch.You’re (very carefully) translating the current reality into code. What Does Success Actually Look Like?Before getting into mechanics, it helps to define the goal. In a brownfield migration, success is not:Rebuilding everything Refactoring immediately “Cleaning it up” on day oneSuccess is simpler. You run: terraform planAnd T

I joined Jamf as a training instructor in March of 2022. It was a strange move for me. Prior to that, I was a mostly lone-wolf Jamf Pro admin, enjoying my days in relative solitude with a CodeRunner window and my ticket queue open, communicating mostly by typing words into a document or a chat window. When I did have to hook my laptop into a projector or share a screen during an online meeting, the majority of the time I was meeting with colleagues that I knew well already. For an introvert, not really too big of a lift, I think. So jumping into a job role where I would not only be speaking, but managing a class full of a dozen different people, mostly not-colleagues, but customers, nearly every week for four days straight, was as you can maybe imagine, a bit of a shock to the system. There were a lot of lessons I had to learn very quickly, and some new problems to try and solve, though most of them are rather specific to this job I know few readers share. But there are a few I think a

I found out on a Monday evening in July, riding the subway home from work. I opened Gmail on my phone somewhere under Manhattan and saw I'd won the Jamf diversity scholarship, and I couldn't stop smiling the rest of the ride. I texted my partner right away. I'd applied because my department couldn't afford to send anyone, and JNUC had always lived in my head as this glowing space from the way senior engineers at old jobs talked about it. JNUC was in Nashville that year. I'd been to the city before for work, but never really gotten to enjoy it. Walking into the venue I just thought, wow, this is huge. I loved the vendor floor, finally putting faces to the account people I'd only ever emailed, and I got to meet up with an old coworker from a previous job, which made the whole thing feel less like a solo trip. One moment I keep coming back to: I was heading up the escalator and a woman struck up a conversation with me. Turned out she was also from NYC, and we ended up talking tech and Jam

For over 16 years, Apple admins have gathered at the Jamf Nation User Conference (JNUC) to learn, connect and discover better ways to manage and secure Apple devices. In its tenth year, the JNUC Diversity Sponsorship awards 10 individuals a full conference registration, a meet-and-greet with Jamf leaders, a networking happy hour and a $500 stipend to help cover expenses. We're looking for passionate people eager to learn and bring fresh perspectives to the tightest community in high tech.Applications close at 5 p.m. CST on May 1, 2026. Apply now!Read further to get all the details about Scooter and Alan's first-hand experience as scholarship recipients. SCOOTER’S STORYMy name is Scooter Kohler and I currently work at Alhambra ESD in Phoenix, Az. My journey with Apple hardware didn't start in a server room; it started in my daily life. I’ve been a MacBook user for the entirety of my adult life, drawn in by the clean hardware and stayed for the intuitive nature of the software. When the

Apple Intelligence is finally here now that iOS 18.1 and macOS 15.1 has shipped. However, many people and organizations want to know how they can block it.Apple Intelligence is an Opt-In service from Apple, so unless you Opt-In, there’s no concerns about AI, on or off device.Officially, Apple has provided the following configuration profile keys for the X.1 OSes for the preference domain com.apple.applicationaccess.allowWritingTools allowMailSummary allowGenmoji allowImagePlayground allowImageWandAnd DDM management of Math Notes.There’s also the key allowAssistant to disable Siri, which has become more intelligent with Apple Intelligence.Currently in the X.1 OSes, these are the features which are available and able to be restricted: Siri, Writing Tools and Mail Summary, even though there are controls for the other features not yet implemented.This will allow you to fully block those features. But is that it? …the answer is …No. So even if you implement all the Apple supplied restrictio

A complete, step-by-step deployment guide - including macOS Onboarding and Jamf ConnectAuthor: Meir ElimelechWith contributions from: Omer Ninyo / ​@Ninyo Why this guide exists – and who should read it Jamf’s move to make Self Service+ mandatory for macOS has prompted many organizations to re-evaluate their deployment and enrollment workflows. While Jamf’s documentation covers the supported installation and migration paths, real-world environments often include a mix of enrollment models, identity integrations, and timing-sensitive workflows that are not always addressed in isolation.This guide exists to provide a single, practical reference for migrating to Self Service+ across all common macOS scenarios — from brand-new enrollments to existing fleets, with or without Jamf Connect.It is intended for Jamf administrators, partners, and consultants who want to understand not only how to deploy Self Service+, but when different approaches are appropriate. In particular, it highlights a cr

 In any technology job across industries there’s an evident gender gap. As a young professional, I was fortunate enough to find role models who shared their tips on claiming a seat at the table, which helped me overcome imposter syndrome. When I think about “men’s overrepresentation” in technology, I’m always reminded that community and networking is one of the most powerful tools to make your mark.I wrote this article to celebrate International Women's Day, but even better to bring up this topic in April. Celebrating women is never wrong to do beyond the month of March. I connected with leaders I admire in the Mac Admins space about the moments which defined their career, the advice that spurred them on to pursue their dreams, and the big wins defining their career so far. Kim Trojanowski, ​@ktrojano Systems Administrator II - School District of Waukesha & Admin - Women in Tech Apple AdminsJamf GroupThe “oh no” moment:It was my first day at a new job and I was shadowing my new co-

As a Jamf trainer, there are two questions I’m asked time and time again:How much scripting is involved in the Jamf certification courses? How can I prepare before attending a remote instructor-led course?If you’re planning to take a Jamf certification course and want a clearer idea of what to expect, and how to set yourself up for success, this guide is for you.The Jamf Pro Training PathThere are three core Jamf Pro instructor-led courses, each designed to build on the previous one as your skills develop:Jamf 200 – Core understanding of Jamf Pro, as well as an enterprise-focused examination of the macOS and iOS platforms Jamf 300 – Deeper understanding of the macOS and iOS management capabilities within Jamf Pro Jamf 400 – Automation and APIsLet’s take a look at what scripting knowledge is expected at each level, and how you can prepare. Jamf 200The Jamf 200 course provides a solid introduction to Jamf Pro, along with an enterprise-focused overview of macOS and iOS device management.

Mac Admins Europe is a new conference built by and for the European Apple Admin community, bringing together admins from education, enterprise, and beyond to share knowledge, swap war stories, and find their people closer to home. Organizers ​@mischavdbent , ​@rob_potvin, ​@Armin and me reflect on what's driving the growth of the community, why now felt like the right moment and what success looks like.When you look at the European Mac admin community today versus a few years ago, how has it changed, and what made you feel the time was right for a dedicated European event?A few years ago, the European Mac admin community felt more fragmented. There were great people doing great work, but a lot of it happened in smaller pockets — local meetups, Slack channels, or at events outside Europe.What’s changed is confidence and scale. macOS and Apple platforms are now firmly embedded in education and enterprise across Europe. That’s created more Mac admins, more diverse roles, and more shared c

Before we get too far into this I want to say one thing. I am not a medical or mental health professional. I’m a Jamf Engineer who has thought a lot about this but by no means am an authority on the subject. The following article is my reflections and not any type of mental health treatment. Now that that’s out of the way…here we go! Nobody goes to school to be a Jamf Engineer or Admin. The vast majority of us ended up in this field because we like to tinker with things, eventually break them and are forced to fix them without any help or education. For a lot of us, we ended up in this field by doing other things in a job where we do have formal training.When you fix what you’ve broken, you feel great. But when you can’t fix it, some of us give up, others seek advice, some keep plugging along to find the solution.  But what happens when you end up in a corporate environment and you have to tackle things that you inherited, need an upgrade or you just need to do maintenance, most of it

 On Wednesday, February 18, 2026, the New York City Jamf User Group (NYC JUG, or simply “the JUG” to its members) celebrated its 12th anniversary. The date marked exactly 12 years since the group’s first meeting.Meeting an average of four times a year, NYC JUG has built a long tradition of bringing together the Apple admin community in New York City. In the dozen years since its inception, more than 400 admins have participated in the group. Along the way, the community has helped launch several spin-off groups including Women in Tech, MacAdmins LATAM, and MacAdmins NYC, all started by NYC JUG members.How It StartedBack in 2014, as a longtime member of the Apple admin community and a Jamf customer, I posted on Jamf Nation to see if there was interest in getting a group together to share ideas and build a sense of community. Apple admins were often the minority at the companies where we worked, so the idea of getting together to help each other was something I felt strongly about.   Wit

A Read-only Friday post by William Smith Only those in IT would ever get it. My dad loved listening to a radio broadcaster named Paul Harvey. Wow could that man tell a story! (I’m referring to the radio broadcaster, but my dad knew how to draw a crowd of listeners too.) Paul Harvey ended his daily broadcasts with a segment called “The Rest of the Story”. He would generally start with a seemingly simple and banal story about something or someone. But as he told the story, the details would take on some life, and the tale would grow bigger until he revealed the one key element he’d been holding back that tied everything together. A really weak glue was of no use at all ‘til an office secretary found a use for it… “And that’s how Post-It Notes were invented!” Or an author was shaving one morning and thought of a story but for years no one would buy it… “Until one day Frank Capra decided to produce it as It’s a Wonderful Life.” Harvey would end every one of these stories with his signature

As MacAD.UK approaches its ninth year, and the tenth anniversary of its very first gathering, the conference has become a fixture in the Mac admin community. What began as a small, ambitious idea from a handful of passionate techs has grown into one of the most recognizable Apple admin events in Europe. This year marks another milestone: a move to the iconic Brighton Dome, a venue that has hosted musical legends To understand how MacAD.UK evolved, what makes it different from a typical tech conference, and why the community keeps coming back, we sat down with the organizers, Liam Donnelly, Ade Leader, and Alex Hawes to talk origins, ethos, and the moments that remind them why they do this work.  Macaduk is now in its 9th year. What was the spark that started it all, and did you ever imagine it would grow into what it is today?  The event was started by a couple of senior techs at Amsys, including David Acland, who was our CTO at the time, and Dean from Jamf, if I recall correctly. They

Overview This document walks through how to configure and use temporary privilege elevation on macOS using Self Service+.End users can request temporary local administrator rights directly from the Self Service+ app, authenticate via Touch ID or password, provide a business reason, and receive time-limited elevation, all without IT intervention.The elevation duration, reason requirements, authentication requirements, and permitted reasons are all administrator-controlled via a Jamf Connect configuration profile deployed through Jamf Pro.PrerequisitesUpdated: 3/6/25- To add clarification to Prerequisites Before following this guide, ensure the following are in place:Self Service+ v2.0 of greater installed on the target Mac. Jamf Pro access to create and deploy configuration profiles. The target Mac is enrolled in Jamf Pro. A valid Jamf Connect licence assigned to the device or user. Walkthrough Step 1: Configure the Jamf Connect Preference Domain in Jamf Pro In Jamf Pro, create a new co

I’d wanted to understand for a while how Apple structures its own support approach and what really lies behind the Apple Certified Support Professional certification. So I decided to take the exam myself. In this post, I’ll share how I prepared, which learning resources helped me most, and what I’d recommend to anyone planning to do the same. The Apple Certified Support Professional (ACSP) certification validates comprehensive knowledge in supporting and administering Apple devices. It’s designed for IT professionals, help desk staff, and administrators who regularly work with macOS, iOS, or iPadOS and provide daily end-user support. “This course introduces you to the knowledge, skills, and tools used to support and troubleshoot Apple devices in a large organization as a level 1 or 2 help desk professional.”  Learning Resources and Preparation   Apple offers free official learning modules on the Apple Training platform. These cover all topics included in the exam, such as user manageme

You might know Sagar Rastogi (@rastogisagar123) from his helpful replies in Jamf Nation, or from some of his Tech Thoughts blogs (here, here and here). He’s a technical architect at TCS, and he was recently named a winner in the TCS Global AI Hackathon, the world’s largest AI hackathon with more than 280,000 participants across 58 countries. It’s a huge honor, so naturally we wanted to celebrate Sagar and share more info on his great achievements.  Standing Out in a Crowd of 280,000 The scale of the hackathon alone is impressive, but what stood out even more was how Sagar approached it. His winning submission was a completely self‑driven project: an end‑to‑end AI product roadmap designed to solve real‑time challenges across healthcare, finance, and energy. His ideas weren’t just creative, but they were grounded in scalability, ethics, compliance, and practical feasibility. However, according to Sagar, innovation isn’t a solo act. It’s the shared momentum of a community pushing boundari

 From mid-November through the final weeks of the year, many IT teams shift into a different rhythm. Projects wrap up. User demand slows. Emergency tickets still happen, but the pace usually lightens. This quieter stretch creates one of the best opportunities to build new skills, strengthen existing ones, and earn certifications that keep you growing.  Technology does not slow down when the calendar does. Platforms update, security threats evolve, and new tools enter the stack faster than most teams can adopt them. Staying sharp takes intention. If you wait for the “perfect time” to learn something new, it rarely comes. But late Q4 offers a natural runway that is easy to miss if you are not looking for it.  Using this time for learning sends a clear signal to yourself and your team. It shows that continuous upskilling is not a checkbox, but a habit. Whether you manage devices with Jamf, work in security, support end users, or build infrastructure, the problems you solve tomorrow will n

 We’re a year into Apple shipping Apple Intelligence (though technically still in Beta) but Apple hasn’t shipped a clear matrix of which features are on-device vs. require Private Cloud Compute (PCC). If you haven’t read part 1, then click here and go back and read it. And then follow up and read part 2, by clicking here. But what if… all that information was hiding on your very Mac in a system diagnostics, your Mac quietly generates a Model Catalog inside sysdiagnose that lists feature availability, languages, and — critically — which resources are server-side! For those that do not know, you can run a system diagnostics and explore the zip file created to potentially find some interesting tidbits about your Mac.Open Terminal.app and typesudo sysdiagnose -f ~/*** Disclaimer, system diagnostics bundles can potentially contain sensitive information *** Follow the prompt and this will create a system diagnostics zip bundle eventually in your home directory. Double click the zip file crea

🎉 Happy New Year! 🥳 It is traditional to use the beginning of the year to make plans. Conferences and the associated travel require quite a bit of planning. I keep an overview of the larger conferences in the Mac and wider Apple management and security community on my website, but thought a bit of a more detailed overview might be useful.Whether you want to "just" attend or even hand in a proposal for a talk, here is a list of conferences this year with links to their websites. MacAD.UK: Brighton, UK, April 21–22This conference in Brighton on the British coast, south of London, has been bringing together Apple management professionals from the United Kingdom and all over Europe for several years. This year, they are moving to a new venue in Brighton. ACES Conference: Minneapolis, MN, USA, May 12–13ACES focuses more on the business side of providing IT services in the Apple space and as such, is quite interesting for partners and service providers. This year, they have a new track ded