In-house app development for deployment (jamf)

[dgsmith]

We have a rather old deployment of sibelius on our jamf, that was a custom built package several years ago (as it's not available in the app store). I am unsure quite how this was done and looking at the apple enterprise deployment info suggests certain minimum requirements and an associated cost to develop in-house app packages.

 

How else could I look to create a deployable jamf package (I think pkg format?) from the default application download (which is dmg format), without any associated license/software costs?

[georgeescott]

With Jamf, you have several options for deploying macOS apps:

 

• Apple App Store Apps (using VPP) - https://learn.jamf.com/bundle/jamf-100-course-current/page/Lesson_35.html
  
• Jamf App Installers - https://learn.jamf.com/bundle/jamf-pro-documentation-current/page/App_Installers.html
  
• Jamf Packages (dmg, pkg, mpkg) - https://learn.jamf.com/bundle/jamf-pro-documentation-current/page/Packages.html
  
• Jamf Patch Management - https://learn.jamf.com/bundle/jamf-pro-documentation-current/page/PatchManagement.html
  
• Jamf Title Editor (although this hasn't had an update in a while) - https://learn.jamf.com/bundle/title-editor/page/About_Title_Editor.html
  

I've got a fair few Jamf Packages in our Jamf repository where I've extracted a pkg from a dmg, or I've had to repackage the original installer with Jamf Composer.

I've only ever come across one app that I couldn't get to work through Jamf. I try to avoid using the Snapshot feature of Jamf Composer as much as I can.

Pacifist is a really helpful tool when inspecting/repackaging macOS apps too!

 

I typically encounter 3 different types of installer from vendors, so I have different processes I use:

• Standalone pkg - import the pkg in to Jamf
  
• DMG or ZIP with pkg inside - extract the contents and then import the pkg in to Jamf
  
• DMG (with .app inside) - while something like munki supports these installers natively, Jamf does not. You can use TwoCanoes Repackage or use Jamf Composer to repackage these to copy the .app to /Applications at install.
  

 

Sibelius isn't available through the App Store or through Jamf App Installers. Sibelius is a DMG with pkg inside, so you'll need to use Jamf Packages by uploading the pkg to Jamf Pro and then deploy it at part of a policy.

 

Below are my simplified personal notes on deploying 'Sibelius Ultimate Multiseat (Network)' via Jamf (but would work with most MDM's):

1. Log in and download the latest Sibelius Mac dmg from https://my.avid.com/products#MyProducts
   
2. Mount the DMG on macOS
   
3. Inside the DMG you'll find 'Install Sibelius.pkg'. Extract the .pkg to your Downloads folder.
   
4. Rename 'Install Sibelius.pkg' to a suitable name.
   I use the following format "-.pkg". E.g. "AvidSibelius-23.11.1.2251.pkg"
   
5. If you're using a local Jamf repository, move/save the .pkg there.
   You may need to compress (zip) this .pkg as sometimes Jamf struggles to download/install large packages.
   
6. Open Jamf Admin and import the .pkg, categorise it, calculate checksum and save.
   Jamf Admin will be deprecated this year so there may be a new tool that replaces this step at some point.
   
7. In Jamf Pro, create a new script that will set the network licence server
   


1. Give the script a descriptive name
   
2. Enter the following bash script and update the server name to your own:
   

   #!/bin/bash
   Server=$"sibelius.domain.com:7312"
   
   if [ ! -d "/Library/Application Support/Avid/Sibelius/_manuscript/" ]; then
      mkdir -p "/Library/Application Support/Avid/Sibelius/_manuscript/"
   fi
   
   if [ -d "/Library/Application Support/Avid/Sibelius/_manuscript/" ]; then
      LicenceServerInfo=$"/Library/Application Support/Avid/Sibelius/_manuscript/LicenceServerInfo"
      touch "$LicenceServerInfo"
      chmod 775 "$LicenceServerInfo"
      echo "$Server" > "$LicenceServerInfo"
   else
      # fail as the folder was not created
      exit 1
   fi

   
   

 

[*]Create a new computer policy to install the Sibelius .pkg and to run the licence script afterwards.

[*]Additionally, you may want to create a Configuration Profile to allow the Avid Link notifications.

The Bundle ID is 'com.avid.link'.

Edited January 16, 2024 by georgeescott

[dgsmith]

Many thanks for this, I hadn't appreciated with Sibelius that the pkg file is already present within the dmg and that it can just be directly extracted without the need for any 3rd party intervention. Suffice to say, it imported directly as-is into jamf without too much hassle, and certainly much easier than me thinking I needed something to pre-compile the package. This was an upgrade (app replace) rather than a fresh app creation. We're using jamf school, rather than pro, but I know my way around (ish) the app management, though easy to figure it out.