Questions about upgrading our server computer

Question

Level 1

9 points

Questions about upgrading our server computer

I work for a small architectural firm, which has 8 Mac computers (with OSs ranging from 10.8.5 to 10.11) and 3 printers networked through a server computer that is running OS 10.7.5.

The cloud backup service we use, SpiderOak, no longer works with 10.7.5, so, I have to upgrade it. I can only upgrade as far as 10.8, however, because our architects use very expensive drafting software, ArchiCAD, which resides on the server. They each work directly from and save directly to the server. ArchiCAD does get upgraded frequently by the manufacturer, but it has not been upgraded for compatibility Mac OSs for awhile. (They seem to only care about Windows users these days.) It will not work with 10.10 or 10.11 and is iffy on 10.9. Thus, 10.8 is as far as I can safely upgrade the server computer.

Luckily, SpiderOak Tech Support sent me a link to an older, unsupported version of their software that will work with 10.8, which I will have to make do with for the time being. Apple still sells 10.8 online, but needless to say, I am afraid to do anything that might render the drafting software unusable.

My questions:

(1) Are there different versions of OS software for servers and individual computers?

(2) If so, how do I know which one I need? I'm not certain our "server" is really a server, or if it is just a central hub in our network. It is the only computer that is directly connected to the internet. When we print, we do it through the server, and we all have access to the files on the server. If someone could help clarify this for me, I will be most grateful.

Thank you.

iMac, OS X Yosemite (10.10.1)

Posted on Feb 9, 2016 1:38 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Feb 9, 2016 3:18 PM in response to WCALinda

You're likely getting in trouble due to the down-revision transport layer security (TLS) / secure sockets layer (SSL) network encryption software present in older OS X versions. More than a few folks running older OS X versions have been blocked by their banks and financial institutions for similar reasons. Older versions of TLS are known to be insecure.

No, there are not separate versions. That ended at 10.6. OS X 10.7 and later have a separate and add-on purchase Server.app. Now can you mix the versions, between clients and servers? To a degree, yes. Some services can be problematic with mixed versions, others will work.
OS X 10.7 and later are servers, when Server.app is installed.

With the exception of the most recent Server.app version 5, Server.app is specific to a particular version of OS X and must be re-purchased after an OS X upgrade.

It is rare for an OS X Server box to be configured as a router, which is what you're describing. OS X and OS X Server make for a very expensive router, slow, slightly tricky to get configured correctly, potentially problematic if exposed to the Internet without an external firewall of some sort, and generally not a configuration that I'd recommend.

You're likely going to end up making a whole lot of backups and either prototyping on a weekend, or acquiring a second server and prototyping with that and a client or two in parallel with your production configuration.

You're going to be migrating to a different CAD package and/or migrating to Windows here (either entirely, or via a VM), if the current CAD vendor is not keeping current with OS X. Or to a different backup provider, if you must stay on 10.8 due to that CAD package. Or fund the CAD vendor to upgrade the software. Unfortunately, Apple isn't going to wait for the CAD folks to upgrade, and there's no reason to assume that there won't be an OS X release arriving after 10.11; a follow-on to the most current version. That only leaves your configuration further behind, unfortunately.

Reply

Answer 2

WCALinda Author

Level 1

9 points

Feb 12, 2016 11:47 AM in response to MrHoffman

Thank you, MrHoffman! This helps me a lot. It sounds like we need to call in a computer person to determine exactly how our "server" setup is configured, then determine how and where to go from there.

Unfortunately, changing CAD software isn't a viable option at this point. We are way too busy right now to even consider moving to another program. It takes months, sometimes a year or more, to get acceptably proficient in CAD programs. However, I will begin urging my bosses to think about what to do about ArchiCAD's incompatibility issues, since, as you pointed out, that will eventually force a change anyway. At the very least, they should be bugging GraphiSoft, which makes ArchiCAD, to make their software compatible with Macs.

Reply

Answer 3

cdhw

Level 4

3,588 points

Feb 12, 2016 5:48 PM in response to WCALinda

Are you sure that ArchiCAD is not compatible with OS X 10.11 ? This webpage:

http://www.graphisoft.com/support/

suggests that OS X 10.11 is being supported.

C.

Reply

Answer 4

Sep 14, 2016 10:15 AM in response to WCALinda

Hi Linda,

We are similar to you - 8 person office running all macs and ArchiCAD. We have currently configured one mac mini as our data server and another as our CAD server, where teamwork files reside (and are backed up on a schedule).

We are currently in AC19, running iMacs in our office on OS X versions from 10.10-10.11. Our main Mini is running Server 3, with OS 9 Mavericks, and we have no compatibility issues with AC19 or our cloud backup.

We keep our teamwork projects and our Network (multi-seat) key on our designated CAD server (the second Mac Mini), but use the iMacs to run ArchiCAD at each desktop.

I'm currently looking to upgrade our server's OS to 10.11 and therefore our Server.app version to 5, thanks to some shares being dropped, but have had generally good luck with AC19, mac minis, and up-to-date OS versions. Just thought you'd like to know that there IS a way!

Reply

Answer 5

Sep 15, 2016 7:09 AM in response to cdhw

cdhw wrote:

Are you sure that ArchiCAD is not compatible with OS X 10.11 ? This webpage:

http://www.graphisoft.com/support/

suggests that OS X 10.11 is being supported.

C.

I have to agree with you, Archicad 20 does support El Capitan 10.11.x., BIM Server also supports El Capitan, so does BIM Cloud and BIM Desktop. Even Codemeter is listed as supporting 10.11.2. The one thing I could find that might be a problem was the WibuKey drivers which only list support for Yosemite, however it might be possible to get Graphisoft to swap you to Codemeter instead.

See http://www.graphisoft.com/support/system_requirements/AC20/

and http://www.graphisoft.com/downloads/protection_key.html?_ga=1.155316344.29737741 2.1426683283#CMforAC

Reply