Mac System Library User Template Download
Mac System Library User Template Free

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Sep 03, 2011 Customize The User Template on your Mac Leopard and Snow Leopard systems September 3, 2011 Leave a comment If you’re like me then you probably strive to provide a consistent user experience across multiple systems.
Default profile config in macOS Sierra. TIL how to setup a default user profile in macOS Sierra. Everything must be done as root. Even sudo doesn't grant enough rights to get into the /System/Library/User Template/ folder. Setup the account as desired. Dock icons, Finder prefs, etc. This is for the Mac computers, not iOS devices.

Practically speaking, this means that you have to manually grant access to your apps in order to let them work with the user`s files. With the recent macOS 10.15 Catalina version, security rules have become more stringent. The system provides notifications of any attempts to access your data.

If you’re like me then you probably strive to provide a consistent user experience across multiple systems. This helps in facilitating training and minimizing troubleshooting time. I do this on macs by modifying the default account so each new user account created on a system has a standardized environment which is designed for my organizations needs.

At the heart of this practice is a default set of user data, carefully designed around the needs of the group and applied to each account when it’s first created. For Windows that data is typically stored in C:Documents and SettingsDefault User, while Unix systems have traditionally used /etc/skel. Mac OS X keeps its user template deep within the /System hierarchy, but while finding it can be difficult, customizing it to your needs is quite easy.

Start with a new account created specifically for this purpose. Choose the system preferences, dock items, browser bookmarks, server shortcuts, and application settings appropriate to your user base, leaving out anything you can instead control via Open Directory’s managed preferences. If you install individual applications or fonts on a per-user level, include those in ~/Applications and ~/Library/Fonts (where the tilde represents the user’s home directory).

Once you’ve finished, open Keychain Access from the /Applications/Utilities folder and delete the “login” keychain (both references and files when prompted) so new users will get their own keychain file created for them. You’ll also want to delete the cache files stored in ~/Library/Caches, clear out the “Recent Items” from the Apple menu, and (if you’ve used the Terminal) discard the ~/.bash_history file.

Now log out of the template, and log in to an Admin account. From here, you’ll be clearing Apple’s existing user template and copying your new template user in its place. In Leopard, that work can’t be done using the sudo command, and instead must be performed as the root user, meaning you run the risk of doing serious damage if you don’t understand what you’re typing. If you’re at peace with that, just open the Terminal, and very carefully type:
su -
After prompting you for a password, this will let you assume the role of root, the Unix “superuser”. This allows you to modify and delete any file on the machine.
rm -r /System/Library/User Template/English.lproj/*
This removes everything inside the English-speaking template folder. If you’re utilizing another language, you’ll need to change this to the appropriate template.
cp -R /Users/TEMPLATE/* /System/Library/User Template/English.lproj/
In the command above, replace TEMPLATE with the actual name of the template account you’ve created. This copies your prepared user environment into the template location. After which you can:
exit
Now, when you add a new user account, it’ll be created with your customizations already in place. You can then delete the original account from the install you built it on, but be sure to back up the home directory. The process can be repeated on multiple machines, deployed on your server, or incorporated into a system image, all using the same template.

Mac System Library User Template Download

Published: Feb 17, 2010 · Last Updated: Jan 17, 2018

10 Comments

Mac System Library User Template Free

Jalapeno
Kelly526 Aug 23, 2012 at 12:18pm
We started using the default template last year in some of our labs and we love it; it's saved our techs an incredible amount of time. This year we'd like to tweak the template. Is there a way to tweak one and distribute the updated template throughout the lab? We also use ARD and WGM for management.
Thanks!
Pimiento
SeeryN Jan 22, 2013 at 04:48pm
Kelly526,
Using ARD's Copy function, simply specify the full-path of the destination. (drop down in the copy window)
Full destination should be '/System/Library/User Template/' without the quotes.
This will place/replace where it needs to go. Reboot computers to ensure it took.
Pimiento
donmontalvo Apr 28, 2013 at 06:11pm
I would use a modular approach. Script any changes (defaults, launchd, etc.) rather than going down the monolithic snapshot road.
How to open a photo library mac. Import the photos into the new library.Move Your iPhoto Library to a New Location/MacEven though you can use the multiple libraries tricks to move your photos to a different location, you can also move it by using a simple drag and drop. First, quit iPhoto.
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james shipman Jul 25, 2013 at 05:28pm
Will this work on network accounts as well in 10.8?
Habanero
Gandalf50 Aug 8, 2013 at 09:28am
I have this working on domain account in 10.6 . havent tested 10.8
Please wait patiently.Method 2: Move iTunes Library to Other Location (External Hard Drive)The other way you can free up your Mac is to move your iTunes Library to an external hard drive. How to move itunes library to another mac pro. The process may take a while.
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steuaceb Nov 15, 2013 at 02:59pm
@ donmontalvo: The approach using scripts changing the defaults would make it much easier to apply to different machines. Could you provide a 'how to', since I don't know where to start with.
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SeeryN Jan 13, 2014 at 10:49pm
@steuaceb
How to remove multiple songs from spotify library mac. If you have trouble uninstalling Spotify on Mac, you'll find these tips helpful.Manually Uninstall Spotify on iMac/MacBookStep 1. Quit SpotifySome user were unable to uninstall the app because it is still running.
Here's where I got started on mine: https://github.com/mathiasbynens/dotfiles/blob/master/.osx
This is a massive file that makes all kinds of changes to the system defaults.
He's commented it very well, so if there's something you don't want, put a '#' at the beginning of the line.
If he's hidden something you do want, remove the '#' and it'll run.
There's many many more things that can be changed, it's just a matter of digging it up.
Jalapeno
Kelly526 Feb 25, 2014 at 05:02pm
Thanks so much, Nathan. We use DeployStudio, and have come to realize it's cleaner and faster in the long run to reimage the machines. Our images have the edited default template. We're using it in Mavericks with great success!
Pimiento
stephenfrater May 26, 2014 at 02:06am
I had this working for a few weeks, but the default profile has somehow reverted to Apple's original, complete with the icons for programmes like PhotoBooth that I originally hid by turning off their flags.
The iMacs are connec