How to uninstall Lion Server?

Great guide, Sir! I, like many others, installed the Server layer by mistake on my laptop, when all I wanted to do is run the server.app for managing my home server. Thanks a lot for your help! My MBP is a lot happier now 🙂

You're welcome.

Hope it was useful for you

Hi mmb63,

It's great. I managed to uninstall Lion Server from my MBP and claimed back a lot of system memory. Minor issues:

1) TrashMe costs $8, and I used TrashIt for free.

2) Typo on your step 12:

12- Stop the PostGRESQL database server :

sudo launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/org.postgresql.plist

should be:

sudo launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/org.postgresql.postgres.plist

3) Though from About This Mac shows Mac OS X Version 10.7.3 instead of 10.7.3 Server, but the App Store is still showing "OS X Lion Server" as "Installed".

Thanks.

You could call this an unintedned uninstall: Maybe I did something wrong, but when I had a failing journalling replay, I had to format my server system disk and restore it from Time Machine. After the restore, the server software (Server, Server Admin, Workgroup manager, System Image Utility) was gone. I did retain the user and groups settings though.

After this experience, I use CCC to back up the system disk and have a bootable disk image to restore with the recovery disk on a USB stick.

Hi Ivan H

Thank you for feedback.

on 1) I didn't use Trashit but no matter what app you use, the important point is deleting related files or folders like *.plist

on 2) It seems I mistyped!

on 3) I have no idea coz I copied my purchased lion server installer to another MAC Lion that its App Store authenticates with different ID. so as soon as I can I'll check.

Regards

I reinstalled the Lion and Lion Server as a virtual machine in Fusion 4.

For those people like me who paid for the Lion Server or want to see if any improvement in Lion Server updates, can install the Lion Server as a virtual machine.

It works well and I can shut it down any time now. (Lion must not be a pre-installed version; I re-downloaded them from Mac App Store.)

That is an heroic set of instructions. Thank you, so much.

Unfortunately, it does not remove all the components of Lion Server. For one, when using System Preferences… > Startup Disk the disk in question will still be listed as "Server".

Another telltale sign is Apple File Sharing does not present OS X's client defaults to remote users, which is my main beef with Server. I really, dislike the ugly shifting presentation of the "Shared Folder' banner just below the the toolbar in Finder windows for Shared Folders.

If there is discreet Mac-like way to disclose shared folders in Finder windows (for server admins no less!), Apple has not yet gotten around to implementing it.

Thank you mistersquid.

I confirm this problem and will try to solve it when I return to my country.

I'm in a business travel now.

Please leave me message if you find a solution.

I'm interested in cleaning my devices from all MacOSX server components.

TOO COMPLICATED!

I like the post by MMB36 with scripts to DISABLE the Lion Server. I vote for doing a backup and restore with Time Machine.

However, the VERY EASY way of doing this is to:

1. Make a backup via Time Machine to an external disk, Time Capsule, or your REAL Lion server with the "Time Machine Sharing" service enabled. Alternatively, a bootable backup withusing SuperDuper should also work (also nice to have in case of the worst).

2. Check the backup is correct and complete.

3. Do a CLEAN install of Lion (Start from the USB pendrive, format the disk, install)

4. Complete the install WITHOUT importing any data because it has a bug in it. Set up an initial user called "migrate" that has a DIFFERENT name than ANY of the other accounts you want to restore

5. Log in as this "migrate" user (it has admin rights) and update the system using Software Update

6. Login in as this user and open the "Migration Assistant" located in /Applications/Utilities

7/ Import all you accounts.

8. Restart and log in as your user - check to make sure all data is restored

9. If you want, run another Software Update to make sure all updates are applied to any newly imported software.

10 DONE. The icons for "SERVER.app" and other tools will show with question marks because they are NO LONGER in the Applications folder. :-)

Exceptions - the only bug I found so far is that Network "Locations" are not stored. This is likely a BUG. I had to re-create mine as well as VPN connections. If you're doing this, MAKE SURE you have passwords to wifi networks, VPN, etc. just in case.

Let me know if this helps you. :-)

Tyrel McMahan

MacPomoc.pl

Hi Ty The Tech Guy,

Time Machine gives a kind of continuous backup for occasional restoration only, in my experience. Unlike other backup method, Time Machine repeatedly verifies backups and when failed to do so, the old backups are distroyed automatically. My Time Machine backups have never exceeded 2 months before a verification error happens. There is always a higher risk with your restore-migration approach.

Network "locations" not restoring is a network security measure. I don't think it's a bug.

IvanH,

It seems your reply is BIG on opinion and LIGHT on fact. When something is marketed as a way to "RESTORE" your system, you better believe people are counting on it for an ENTIRE restore. I want to make this clear for other readers. Time Machine essential has 2 components:

1. A way for the system to make automatic backups "snapshots" of changes in your system and files at predetermined (by time machine) intervals to an external disk or "Time Machine Server".

2. Time Machine is ALSO a way to RESTORE your system in the even of tragedy. Thus, the option when booting from an install CD, DVD, pendrive, HDD, to RESTORE your system to a previous state. This implies that EVERYTHING will be put back to the way it was. Who would NOT imagine it doing that?

So, I consider it a HUGE bug that Time Machine does NOT restore network locations. I can't imagine ANY user that does not need to connect to a WiFi or other network and the associated credentials, password, WEP key, etc. to do so. Even the default "automatic" location stores all those wifi spots you've been using or your USB modem to connect to the net.

Further, there is NO SECURITY in the fact network details are copied or not. If someone steals your computer or time machine disk, you do not have security UNLESS those data are protected by encryption. PERIOD.

So IvanH, your argument that this BUG is a security feature is a hollow one at that. I have to dig deeper, but I do believe that restoring network locations worked in previous versions of Time Machine before 10.7, but I need time to check it or to test it myself.

In conclusion, I, like others here were looking for the quickest, lest painful way to REMOVE Lion Server from our systems. Disabling with a script form the command line is VERY GOD EFFORT, but only turns SOME things off, not ALL. In my experience, the BEST way to curently remove Lion Server.app without loosing all your data and a LOT of time is via Time Machine backup, clean install, and restoring settings/data via Migration Assistant. It's that simple and quite painless, all things considered.

The world is not perfect. I just share my personal experience. I respect your strong view. Nevermind.

I like sharing ideas on technical matter, thank you for your points of view.

I still prefer to use my own way for removing MacOSX components.

One suggestion:

If you want to re-install MacOSX and restore your files via Time Machine to get rid of server components, stop discussing about uninstalling server. You can start a new discussion with a topic like "how to re-install osx without loosing data"

Not it's many other files and folder like /library/webserver, next /private/empty etc...

This app download 2Gb size of file but where it is? hah.

This was very helpful. Thanks!

You may also want to check out this thread to free up disk space from Software Update Server...

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3887098