When users save files in network home folders, the files are stored on the server. Additionally, when users access home folders, even for common tasks like caching webpages, the users’ computers must retrieve these files from the server.
Using network home folders provides complete control over a user’s managed preferences. When users are not connected to the network, they can’t access their accounts or home folders.
ÂUsers with mobile accounts have both local and network home folders, which combine to form portable home directories.
When users save files, the files are stored in a local home folder. The portable home directory is a synced subset of a user’s local and network home folders. You can configure which folders to sync and how frequently to sync them.
Mobile accounts also cache authentication information and managed preferences. If you sync key folders, a user can work on and off the network, and experience a seamless work environment.
If you choose not to sync portable home directories, mobile accounts are then very similar to local accounts, except that mobile accounts have managed preferences.
ÂUsers with mobile accounts who access their accounts on computers running Mac OS X v10.5 or later can use portable home directories with an external drive. When users connect external drives to a computer (including computers off of the network), they can still access their accounts. These types of mobile accounts are called external accounts.
An external account stores its local home folder on the external drive and doesn’t create a local home folder on the computer it’s accessed from.
Except for the location of the local home folder, external accounts are treated like mobile accounts, with the same kinds of syncing, cached authentication, and managed preference benefits.
Note: If a user’s mobile account is hosted in an Active Directory domain, the mobile account does not have a portable home directory. However, it does have a local home folder and a network home folder, and caches authentication.
Mobile accounts and external accounts are described in detail in Chapter 8, “Managing Portable Computers.”
Devising a Home Folder Distribution Strategy
Determine which users need home folders and identify the computers where you want these home folders to reside. For performance reasons, avoid using network home folders over network connections slower than 100 megabits per second (Mbit/s).
Chapter 2 Getting Started with User Management
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