[MacTUG] A Golden Triangle Question -- resolved!

[Donald Duff-McCracken]

After doing a little experimenting, reading a bit, and talking so some of
you, I have figured out why non-env students were not able to log on to my
macs.

It is because their network home folder location is not a fully qualified
name ‹ e.g.,  in Active Directory it is likely currently set at
³\\facultyfileserver\username² and it should be
³\\facultyfileserver.uwaterloo.ca\username²

I have verified this. We experimented first by binding a Mac to AD and (in
the binding process) told it not not to grab the ³UNC path from Active
Directory². With the test Mac set up this way our non-env volunteer could
finally log on. This proved it was the network home directory that was an
issue. We then changed her network home folder location in AD to be fully
qualified, and she could now log on to our lab Macs!

So the solution is to ensure that users have their network home locations in
AD be fully qualified. Talking with folks in our unit, it sounds like this
is the way we should be going anyhow as it would smooth migration to Win7.
In a bit of a Œpot calling the kettle black¹ we are as guilty as others as
our home locations are currently not fully qualified. (Since our lab Macs
are same subnet as the file server, Œ\\envfile\Accounts\username¹ could be
resolved.) At any rate, we will be updating the home folder locations of our
users, and it would be good to encourage this happening in other Faculties
(as I said, it is something that will likely help in Win7 migration as
well).

In the meantime, at least I know what to do if non-env users cannot log on ‹
get their home folder location updated to be fully qualified. I am hoping
that WNAG can address this as it really is the way we should be identifying
home folder locations, and it looks like Windows would like it as well. I
hope we can address this before next term (or I will need to manually get
this updated for our non-env students)