How do I use Jamf?

Managing Packages

Packages in the following formats can be administered using Jamf Pro:

• DMG
• PKG
• MPKG

Note: There are special instructions for managing macOS Installers, and Adobe Updaters and Installers for CS3 or CS4. For more information, see Managing macOS Installers or Administering Adobe CS3 and CS4.

Before you can deploy a package, it must exist on the distribution point you plan to deploy it from and in Jamf Pro. There are three ways to achieve this:

• Add the package to Jamf Admin—This method adds the package to the master distribution point and Jamf Pro. You can then add the package to other distribution points via replication.

• Upload the package directly to Jamf Pro—This method is only available if your master distribution point is the cloud distribution point. It adds the package to the master distribution point and Jamf Pro. You can then add the package to other distribution points via replication.

• Manually—This method is only available if your master distribution point is a file share distribution point. It involves manually copying the package to the distribution point and then entering information about the package in Jamf Pro.

Each of these methods also involves configuring settings for the package. When you configure settings for a package, you can do the following:

• Add the package to a category. (For more information, see Categories.)
• Choose a priority for deploying or uninstalling the package.
• Fill user templates with the contents of the home directory in the package’s Users folder.
• Fill existing user home directories with the contents of the home directory in the package’s Users folder.
• Allow the package to be uninstalled.
• Specify whether computers must be restarted after installing the package.
• Choose whether the package must be installed on the boot drive after imaging.
• Specify operating system and architecture type requirements for deploying the package.
• Only allow the package to be installed if it is available in Software Update.

You can also index packages. Indexing creates a log of all the files contained within a package. This allows you to uninstall the package and view the contents of the package from Jamf Pro. Packages can only be indexed using Jamf Admin.

In addition, you can validate packages using the checksum. (For more information, see Calculating a Checksum.)

When you add, edit, or delete a package in Jamf Admin, the changes are reflected in Jamf Pro and vice versa.

Requirements

To manage packages, you need a distribution point set up in Jamf Pro. (For more information, see About Distribution Points.)

Adding a Package to Jamf Admin

Adding a package to Jamf Admin automatically adds the package to the master distribution point and Jamf Pro.

1. Open Jamf Admin and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. Drag the package to the main repository in Jamf Admin.
   The package is displayed in blue text in the Unknown category until you add it to a category.

3. Double-click the package in the main repository.

4. Click the General tab and configure basic settings for the package, including the display name and category.

   

5. Click the Options tab and configure additional settings for the package, including the priority, and operating system and architecture type requirements.
   Note: Package Limitations options do not apply when installing a package during imaging.

   

6. Click OK.

Uploading a Package to Jamf Pro

If your master distribution point is the cloud distribution point, you can upload the package directly to Jamf Pro. This adds the package to the master distribution point and Jamf Pro.

1. Log in to Jamf Pro.

2. In the top-right corner of the page, click Settings  .

3. Click Computer Management.

4. In the “Computer Management” section, click Packages  .

5. Click New  .

6. Use the General pane to configure basic settings for the package, including the display name and category.
   Note: If you do not add the package to a category, Jamf Admin displays the package in blue text in the Unknown category.

7. Click Upload Package and upload the package.

8. Click the Options tab and configure additional settings for the package, including the priority.

9. (Optional) Click the Limitations tab and configure limitations for the package, including operating system and architecture type requirements.

10. Click Save.

Manually Adding a Package to a Distribution Point and Jamf Pro

If your master distribution point is a file share distribution point, you can manually copy a package to the distribution point and then enter information about the package in Jamf Pro.

1. Copy the package to the Packages folder at the root of the file share on the distribution point.

2. Log in to Jamf Pro.

3. In the top-right corner of the page, click Settings  .

4. Click Computer Management.

5. In the “Computer Management” section, click Packages  .

6. Click New  .

7. Use the General pane to configure basic settings for the package, including the display name, category, and filename.
   Note: If you do not add the package to a category, Jamf Admin displays the package in blue text in the Unknown category.

8. Click the Options tab and additional settings for the package, including the priority.

9. (Optional) Click the Limitations tab and configure limitations for the package, including operating system and architecture type requirements.

10. Click Save.

Editing or Deleting a Package Using Jamf Admin

1. Open Jamf Admin and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. In the main repository, select the package you want to edit or delete.

3. Do one of the following:

   • To edit the package, double-click it and make changes as needed. Click OK. Then click File > Save.

   • To delete the package, click Delete  and then click Delete again to confirm.

The edit or delete action is applied immediately on the master distribution point. The action is applied to your other distribution points when replication occurs.

Indexing a Package

Indexing a package creates a log of all the files contained within the package. This allows you to uninstall the package and view the contents of the package from Jamf Pro.

Packages can be indexed using Jamf Admin only. The time it takes to index a package depends on the amount of data in the package.

1. Open Jamf Admin and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. In the main repository, select the package you want to index and click Index at the bottom of the pane.

3. If prompted, authenticate locally.

When the indexing process is complete, Jamf Admin defaults back to the main repository.

Viewing the Contents of an Indexed Package

1. Log in to Jamf Pro.

2. In the top-right corner of the page, click Settings  .

3. Click Computer Management.

4. In the “Computer Management” section, click Packages  .

5. Click the package you want to view the contents of.

6. Click Contents.

A table that contains the package contents is displayed.

Calculating a Checksum

The checksum is calculated when a package is uploaded to Jamf Pro. The checksum ensures authenticity when the package is downloaded.

The checksum can also be calculated manually using Jamf Admin:

1. Open Jamf Admin and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. In the main repository, select the package you want to calculate checksum for.

3. Control-click (or right-click) and select Calculate Selected Package Checksum(s).

Installing Packages

When you install a package, you can do the following:

• Fill user templates.

• Fill existing user home directories.

• Add the package to Autorun data.

• Specify a distribution point for computers to download the package from.

There are two ways to install a package on computers: using a policy or using Jamf Remote.

Note: You can also install packages during imaging. For more information, see Configurations.

Requirements

To install a package on computers, the package must exist on the distribution point you plan to deploy it from and in Jamf Pro. (For more information, see Managing Packages.)

Installing a Package Using a Policy

1. Log in to Jamf Pro.

2. Click Computers at the top of the page.

3. Click Policies.

4. Click New  .

5. Use the General payload to configure basic settings for the policy, including the trigger and execution frequency.
   For an overview of the settings in the General payload, see General Payload.

6. Select the Packages payload and click Configure.

7. Click Add for the package you want to install.

8. Choose "Install" from the Action pop-up menu.

9. Configure the settings for the package.
   To add the package to each computer's Autorun data, select the Update Autorun data checkbox. For more information, see Autorun Imaging.

10. Specify a distribution point for computers to download the package from.

11. Use the Restart Options payload to configure settings for restarting computers.
    For more information, see Restart Options Payload.

12. Click the Scope tab and configure the scope of the policy.
    For more information, see Scope.

13. (Optional) Click the Self Service tab and make the policy available in Self Service.
    For more information, see Making Items Available to Users in Jamf Self Service for macOS.

14. (Optional) Click the User Interaction tab and configure messaging and deferral options.
    For more information, see User Interaction.

15. Click Save.

The policy runs on computers in the scope the next time they check in with Jamf Pro and meet the criteria in the General payload.

Installing a Package Using Jamf Remote

1. Open Jamf Remote and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. Click Site  and choose a site.
   This determines which items are available in Jamf Remote.
   Note: This button is only displayed if you have a site configured in Jamf Pro and are logged in with a Jamf Pro user account that has full access or access to multiple sites.

3. In the list of computers, select the checkbox for each computer on which you want to install the package.

   

4. Click the Packages tab.

5. In the list of packages, select the checkbox for the package you want to install.

   

6. Choose "Install" from the Action pop-up menu.

7. Configure the settings for the package.
   To add the package to each computer's Autorun data, select the Update Autorun data checkbox. For more information, see Autorun Imaging.

8. If you want to change the distribution point that computers download packages from, click Override Defaults  and choose a distribution point.

   

9. Click the Restart tab and configure settings for restarting computers.

   

10. Do one of the following:

    • To immediately perform the tasks on the specified computers, click Go .

    • To schedule the tasks to take place at a specific day and time, click Schedule and choose a day and time. Then click Schedule again.

Uninstalling Packages

There are two ways to uninstall packages that were installed using Jamf Pro: using a policy or using Jamf Remote.

When you uninstall a package, you can remove the package from Autorun data.

Requirements

To uninstall a package from computers, you need:

• The package indexed in Jamf Admin (For more information, see Managing Packages.)

• The package configured so that it can be uninstalled (For more information, see Managing Packages.)

Note: If the package is an Adobe CS3/CS4 installation, it does not need to be indexed or configured so that it can be uninstalled.

Uninstalling a Package Using a Policy

1. Log in to Jamf Pro.

2. Click the Computers tab at the top of the page.

3. Click Policies.

4. Click New  .

5. Use the General payload to configure basic settings for the policy, including the trigger and execution frequency.
   For an overview of the settings in the General payload, see General Payload.

6. Select the Packages payload and click Configure.

7. Click Add for the package you want to uninstall.

8. Choose “Uninstall” from the Action pop-up menu.

9. Configure the settings for the package.
   To remove the package from each computer's Autorun data, select the Update Autorun data checkbox. For more information on Autorun data and Autorun Imaging, see Autorun Imaging.

10. Use the Restart Options payload to configure settings for restarting computers.
    For more information, see Restart Options Payload.

11. Click the Scope tab and configure the scope of the policy.
    For more information, see Scope.

12. (Optional) Click the Self Service tab and make the policy available in Self Service.
    For more information, see Making Items Available to Users in Jamf Self Service for macOS.

13. (Optional) Click the User Interaction tab and configure messaging and deferral options.
    For more information, see User Interaction.

14. Click Save.

The policy runs on computers in the scope the next time they check in with Jamf Pro and meet the criteria in the General payload.

Uninstalling a Package Using Jamf Remote

1. Open Jamf Remote and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. Click Site  and choose a site.
   This determines which items are available in Jamf Remote.
   Note: This button is only displayed if you have a site configured in Jamf Pro and are logged in with a Jamf Pro user account that has full access or access to multiple sites.

3. In the list of computers, select the checkbox for each computer from which you want to uninstall the package.

   

4. Click the Packages tab.

5. In the list of packages, select the checkbox for the package you want to uninstall.

   

6. Choose "Uninstall" from the Action pop-up menu.

7. Configure the settings for the package.

8. Click the Restart tab and configure settings for restarting computers.
   

9. Do one of the following:

   • To immediately perform the tasks on the specified computers, click Go.

   • To schedule the tasks to take place at a specific day and time, click Schedule and choose a day and time. Then click Scheduleagain.

Managing macOS Installers

Adding a macOS Installer to Jamf Admin is the first step to installing a clean copy of macOS on computers.

Requirements

To manage macOS Installers, you need a distribution point set up in Jamf Pro. (For more information, see About Distribution Points.)

To add a macOS Installer to Jamf Admin, the installer must be a .app file from the Mac App Store or a DMG.

Adding a .app File for macOS to Jamf Admin

Adding a .app file for macOS to Jamf Admin adds it to the master distribution point and Jamf Pro.

1. Open Jamf Admin and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. Drag the .app file to the main repository in Jamf Admin.
   Jamf Admin extracts the InstallESD.dmg file from the .app file and then analyzes the contents of the InstallESD.dmg file.

   

   The InstallESD.dmg file is displayed in blue text in the Unknown category until you add it to a category.

   

3. Double-click the package in the main repository.

4. Click the General tab and choose a category for the package.

   

5. Click OK.

Adding a DMG of a macOS Installer to Jamf Admin

Adding a DMG of a macOS Installer to Jamf Admin adds it to the master distribution point and Jamf Pro.

1. Open Jamf Admin and authenticate to the Jamf Pro server.

2. Drag the DMG to the main repository in Jamf Admin.
   The DMG is displayed in blue text in the Unknown category until you add it to a category.

3. Double-click the DMG in the main repository.

4. Click the General tab and configure basic settings for the DMG, including the display name and category.
   Be sure to select the Item is a DMG with an OS X Installer, or Adobe Updater/Installer for CS3 or CS4 checkbox.
   

    

5. When prompted, click OK to continue.
   Jamf Admin analyzes the contents of the DMG.

   

6. When the Options pane appears, choose a default language for the installation from the Language pop-up menu.

   

    

7. Click OK.