Apple is finally phasing out its venerable macOS server, directing users who still stick with Profile Manager to a mobile device management solution.
This move can be said to be long overdue. Much of what made macOS Server a server was deprecated in 2018, as the company announced plans to discontinue features like DHCP and DNS in its products and directed users to use convenient open-source alternatives.
Apple Open Directory and Profile Manager still exist, the latter used for configuration management of Apple devices in an organization. Now, however, that last feature is considered obsolete, with Apple warning that while many bits of macOS Server will exist on macOS, Profile Manager will not. So it’s time to dodge mobile device management (MDM).
From our archives: Apple signs Xserve death warrant
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If you really want to, you can still go ahead and download the app and use it with macOS Monterey.
Apple expressed a lack of interest in the server business in 2010 after the company abandoned its Xserve line of rack servers. Still, it’s not the end of the world. You can choose a Mac Mini with macOS Server installed. While not quite as powerful as rack-based products, it gets the job done and is relatively full-featured. Until Apple started moving its toys into macOS and axed the ones it didn’t like.
It should be so different. Up until version 10.7 (Lion), Mac OS X Server was a separate product that came into use after Apple acquired NeXT. Beginning with Mac OS X Lion, server components become macOS add-ons and are distributed through the App Store. Its price dropped from $499 to $49, then dropped further when Apple cut its features. As such, the app received more attention than the odd compatibility update before its parent threw in the towel.
For all its fancy and expensive hardware, Apple hasn’t been a major player in the server space for a while (the company acknowledged Xserve’s demise a decade ago).
On the other hand, there are tons of open source products that, combined with what exists in the desktop and a bit of MDM magic, can do everything macOS Server does and more. However, for the convenience of having all the tools in one place, coupled with the low price, macOS Server will be missed. ®
