
Chapter 2 Getting Started With User Management 39
Using Mobile Accounts
Mobile accounts are network accounts which have been set up to be accessible even
when the user is not connected to the server where the account resides. The mobile
account user is provided a local home directory on the system they are logged into.
This functionality reduces network traffic and improves overall performance.
Determine whether mobile accounts might be useful before implementing them.
Mobile accounts are well suited for users who carry their computers from location to
location. They’re useful for users who don’t require ongoing access to the server for
their day-to-day work. Using mobile accounts reduces network traffic by minimizing
the need to mount network resources (such as network home directories).
Mobile accounts are documented in Chapter 3, “User Management for Mobile Clients.”
Portable Home Directories
A mobile account can be configured to use a Portable Home Directory (PHD). Portable
Home Directories replicate files across both local and network home directories. This
way, your content follows you everywhere and is always up-to-date.
Administrators can choose which content will be replicated on a per user, per group or
per computer list basis.
Devising a Home Directory Strategy
Determine which users need home directories and identify the computers on which
you want user home directories to reside. For performance reasons, avoid using
network home directories over network connections slower than 100 Mbps.
A user’s network home directory doesn’t need to be stored on the same server as the
directory containing the user’s account. In fact, distributing directory domains and
home directories among various servers can help you balance your network workload.
“Distributing Home Directories Across Multiple Servers,” on page 112, describes several
such scenarios.
You may want to store home directories for users with last names from A to F on one
computer, G to J on another, and so on. Or you may want to store home directories on
a Mac OS X Server but store user and group accounts on an Active Directory or LDAP
server.
Portable Home Directories pose further strategic consideration as to which mobile
users you designate to have portable accounts. There are additional limitations
discussed in “Portable Home Directories,” on page 52, that have to be taken into
account.
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