Remote Access and Security-Minded Thinking

Chapter 21. Accessing and Controlling Tiger Remotely

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Remote Access and Security-Minded Thinking

• Running Shells and Commands Remotely Using SSH

• Accessing Mac OS X Remotely Using Apple Remote Desktop

Apple advertises that with Mac OS X, you now have the power of Unix. With the power of Unix also come some unfamiliar security issues. Many Unix machines run various types of services, such as Telnet, that increase your machine's vulnerability to attacks from crackers. In general, crackers are interested in either wiping your machine or installing a packet sniffer that saves passwords transmitted on your network for future devious uses. To keep your machine most secure, you should not hook it up to the Internet. That solution is rather impractical in an age in which Internet communication is one of the many reasons why people buy computers. Therefore, it becomes your responsibility to pay attention to security issues, if not for yourself, for the other machines on your network.

Fortunately, Apple realizes that Macintosh users are not used to worrying about security issues. In fact, Macintosh users have always had the luxury of knowing that their Macintosh is practically impenetrable. So, unlike some Unix operating systems, Mac OS X ships with all the services turned off. You have to decide, as you start using your machine more, which services, if any, you should try to turn on. Remember that the more services you turn on, the more vulnerable your machine becomes.

In this section, we will look at the Secure Shell suite and Apple Remote Desktop as ways to access and control your machine remotely.