Workshops

The MacAdmins Conference registration includes a day of workshops, held the first day of the conference. In 2024, this will be July 9th!  Breakfast, lunch, light snacks, and dinner will be served during the day. These workshops are built to help attendees gain a solid foundation in a focused aspect of system administration.

Full Day Workshops:

Half-Day Workshops: (Offered once either in the morning or afternoon, actual times TBD)

Create AutoPkg recipes for software from scratch – James Stewart
Half Day Workshop (150 min) – Intermediate – Hands-on
Learn how to create AutoPkg recipes for software from scratch. Autopkg can distribute software updates from vendor websites to your distribution tool of choice, saving thousands of dollars a week.

Being comfortable on the command line is recommended, but previous knowledge of AutoPkg is optional.

While AutoPkg is written in Python, writing Python code is not required to write recipes and will not be covered. Recipes use YAML text files.

Any prerequisites: Yes – but optional. A laptop with Visual Studio Code and Python 3.9+ (Mac or Win or Linux)Watch previous talk ( Using AutoPKG for Windows Software 2.0 ) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDdcXtjv6y4

Dive into PowerShell on the Mac – John Welch
Full Day Workshop (300 min) – Intermediate – Hands-on
A workshop that will help you learn about Microsoft’s cross-platform scripting language, PowerShell, and how Mac admins can make use of its features to make their day so much easier

Any prerequisites: Yes – it’s required.  A reasonably current MacBook, Visual Studio Code, and the current version of PowerShell for macOS. Scripting experience, especially in non-Mac environments is a big help.

Get started with deploying Apple devices – Apple Education
Half Day Workshop (150 min) – Fundamental – Presentation
This session is ideal for admins who are new to deploying and managing Apple devices, expanding from a pilot, or needing a refresh in IT best practices. Join us to learn the basics of zero-touch deployment, device configuration, federated authentication, managing software updates, and more.

Any prerequisites: None needed.

Git for Mac Admins – Weldon Dodd
Half Day Workshop (150 min) – Fundamental – Hands-on
Git is the most popular distributed version control system on the planet for software development. It also has broad application for Mac admins to use with managing scripts, configuration profiles, AutoPkg recipes, munki configs, and other files that form the backbone of admin tooling. In this workshop you’ll learn the basics of installing git on your computer, using git locally to manage version control, and using git with remote repositories (think GitHub, GitLab, etc.).

Any prerequisites: Yes – but optional. Attendees will need a computer with the latest release version of Xcode installed and should be conversant with using Terminal.app. Familiarity with Bash or ZSH will be helpful.

Homelab 101: the alchemy, art, and science of a home lab – Adam Wickert, Bryan Heinz
Full Day Workshop (300 min) – All Levels – Hands-on
In this workshop, we’ll work through setting up a small lab environment for testing out new software and services. We’ll work through different virtualization environments such as XCP-ng, Proxmox, Apple’s hypervisor framework, and containerization. We’ll discuss hardware and networking. Finally, we’ll be working through setting up a service or two using these methods.

Any prerequisites: None needed.

ITIL 4 – Is It Right For Me? – Pam Lefkowitz
Half Day Workshop (150 min) – All Levels – Presentation
Because you don’t have enough certifications yet, we give you ITIL 4. Normally taught over 20-ish hours, ITIL is a hefty course of study. In this workshop we will do a high-level overview of the framework. NOTE: this workshop is NOT an official ITIL 4 Foundations training course.

Any prerequisites: None needed.

Learn How You Manage Mac Clients with GitOps – a Hands-On Walkthrough – Henry Stamerjohann, Éric Falconnier
Full Day Workshop (300 min) – Intermediate – Hands-on
Are you GitOps curious? In this hands-on workshop we will walk you through your own, fictional rollout of a Mac client based on GitOps workflows: Complete with patch management, software updates and compliance checks. By the end of day, you will have a first-hand impression about what it’s like to enroll and manage Macs with GitOps automations. As we go along, you can learn useful techniques and tools you can apply to your day-to-day, whether GitOps or not.

Any prerequisites: Yes – but optional. You do not need to be an expert in Git to follow along, but familiarity with this tool will definitely help. We will edit text files and run some commands in the Terminal, so bring a Mac if you want to participate in the hands-on parts of the workshop. It would be great if you could bring macOS or iOS test devices.

Managing Macs for n00bs – Damien Barrett, Robert Hammen, Adam Anklewicz
Full Day Workshop (300 min) – Fundamental – Presentation
New to managing Macs? This is the workshop for you. We’ll discuss and share basic, intermediate, and some advanced management techniques, tools, and best practices. While there will be info relevant to everyone, this workshop’s audience is for people new to Mac administration.

Any prerequisites: None needed.

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