OS X (Apple)

This looks like the best way to invoke the applescripts I'm building, tlarkin. I can keep the original applescripts, build a shell script to run before the applescripts in order to invoke the commands to execute properly. The key for me is making sure that these scripts are copied to the user template so that any user who authenticates into the machine sees the same customizations. This is the goal I'm trying to achieve.

Well, if you are using Open Directory you can use MCX to set those, if not you can also modify the user template in /System/Library/User Template so that every time a user account gets created it will pull those preferences from the template.

Any other scripts you want to run you can use launchd to automate them.

Yeah, like here is an example of a post image script I am using to force an admin log in after image, since some of the stuff I install post imaging requires that a user be logged in.

Code:

/usr/bin/osascript <<EndOfMyScript
  tell application "System Events"
      keystroke "$admin1_short"
      keystroke return
      delay 3.0
      keystroke "$admin1_passwd"
      delay 3.0
      keystroke tab
      keystroke return
      keystroke return
  end tell
EndOfMyScript

The $admin1 variables are the variables I hard code at the beginning of my shell scripts to create the local administration accounts. So, when I update the script to change passwords or change accounts, it will still use whatever I hard code at the top.

This is really cool because now after I image a Mac, the post image script automates everything for me and I can sit back and relax and let it do it's job for me. The alternative is manually logging into 6,000 Macbooks, no thanks.