[UniMacTech] Samba server string

[Andrew Wellington]

Justin,

On 30/06/2008, at 1:18 PM, Justin Young wrote:
> I am setting up Samba sharing in OS X 10.5 and need to manually edit  
> the smb server string.
> Under 10.4 I could edit /etc/smb.conf and remove the line ;Using the  
> Computer Name to compute the NETBIOS name. Remove this comment to  
> override, and then change the server string and NetBIOS name entries  
> in smb.conf to what was needed.
>
> This no longer exists in 10.5.
>
> The problem we have with using the Computer Name is that we a want a  
> standardised way for computers to show up in the Workgroup list in  
> Windows. We use a ID number for the computer name, and then the  
> server string to show the department and user name of the computer.
>
> I can set the NetBIOS name okay in Network prefs, but the only way  
> to get the server string correct is to change the Computer Name in  
> Sharing Prefs. Unfortunately we also want the Macs to show up in the  
> OS X network browser identified by the Machine ID number. So the  
> Computer Name and server string are at odds with each other.
>
> I can temporarily get everything right by editing /var/db/smb.conf,  
> but that gets reset if I make any changes in Network Prefs.
>
> /var/db/smb.conf seems to override /etc/smb.conf. I can't find any  
> documentation on how I should be manually set the smb prefs properly  
> so any help would be appreciated.

The comment at the top of /etc/smb.conf on Mac OS X 10.5 explains what  
you need to do.

------------------------------
; BEGIN required configuration

; Parameters inside the required configuration block should not be  
altered.
; They may be changed at any time by upgrades or other automated  
processes.
;
; Site-specific customizations will only be preserved if they are done
; outside this block. If you choose to make customizations, it is your
; own responsibility to verify that they work correctly with the  
supported
; configuration tools.
------------------------------

To make changes that won't be overwritten, or overridden by /var/db/ 
smb.conf simply place them after this line:

; Site-specific parameters can be added below this comment.
; END required configuration.

In your case just add the following lines after that comment:
[global]
	server string = MyCoolServerStringHere

Regards,
Andrew

=======================================
Andrew Wellington
Mac OS X Systems Administrator
Systems & Desktop Services
Division of Information
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