Using the Launchpad with a Mac computer

You can connect a Mac® computer running Mac OS X® 10.5 or later to Windows® Home Server 2011 by downloading and installing the connector software. When you finish installing the connector software, you can choose to automatically start the Launchpad at startup.

The Launchpad is a small application that provides authenticated users with access to key features of the server, including shared files and media, add-ins, and Remote Web Access. Users can access these features from either domain-joined computers or non-domain joined computers. The Launchpad also provides real-time information and notifications about the health of the computer.

Note

Server administrators cannot use the Launchpad or Remote Web Access on a Mac computer to open the server Dashboard and manage the server

Backup

Click Backup to set Time Machine up to backup up your computer and to change Time Machine settings. For more information about Time Machine, see the documentation from the manufacturer of your computer.

Remote Web Access

Click Remote Web Access to open the web browser to the Remote Web Access site. The Remote Web Access enables you to access the shared files and folders on the server from any remote location with an Internet-enabled computer. You can upload files, play music and videos on the web-based Media Play, and view pictures and play slide shows. For more information, see Use Remote Web Access.

Shared Folders

Click Shared Folders to open Finder to the location of the shared folders on the server. For information about sharing files and folders, see Understanding and using Server Folders for centralized storage.

Computer Health Alerts

Alerts that appear on the Launchpad provide a quick status about the immediate health of the computer. To view information about a health alert, click an alert indicator to open the alert viewer. Health alerts appear in the viewer based on level of severity. The most severe alerts appear first in the list. Less severe alerts appear later in the list. For more information about computer health alerts, see Understanding alerts.