Apple Remote Desktop - Manual (Page 84)

84 Chapter 3 Administering Computers
Shutting Down a Computer
Apple Remote Desktop can shut down a client computer. This has the same result as
choosing the Shut Down command from the client computer’s Apple menu.
Note: If you shut down an ARD client, you cannot start it up using ARD.
This command is especially useful when used with Energy Saver preferences. You can
set your client computers to start up every morning at a designated time, and use ARD
to shut them down at night. The next morning, they will start up and be ready to
administer.
To shut down a computer:
1 Select a computer list.
2 Select one or more computers in the Remote Desktop window.
3 Choose Manage > Shut Down.
4 Select the type of shutdown.
You can choose to allow users to save files or cancel the shutdown, or you can force an
immediate shutdown, which will cause the users to lose unsaved changes to any open
files.
5 Click Shut Down.
Automating Functions
You can automate any command or function in Apple Remote Desktop. Additionally,
ARD gives scripting-savvy administrators tools (either UNIX or AppleScript) to help
automate their client management.
Setting the Data Reporting Policy
To speed up reporting and allow reporting from offline clients, Apple Remote Desktop
uses saved client system and file information. You can automate the collection of this
information for reports by setting the data reporting policy. This schedule determines
how often the client updates its system and file information for reports.
In accordance with the collection schedule you set, each client computer connects to a
central reporting database, and uploads the information you designate. There are
certain trade-offs to the frequency of these updates. If you require all the clients to
update their information too often, you run the risk of added network traffic and slower
client performance during updates. If you don’t require the clients to update often
enough, the report data that you receive may be out of date. You should take care to
balance your reporting needs and your network and client performance needs.