4 ms·

Now that almost all non-tech-applications are web-based, is there any need for IT to admin your system like they used to?

Tsiklon 4y ago
Usually in many organisations it’s a case of enforcing compliance across the fleet as opposed to actively administering the machines; enforcing browser profiles, software deployments and configurations, OS patch revisions, directory services integrations, that sort of thing. But yes many computer workers effectively use their systems like chromebooks. Hell I’m in an operations role and aside from my terminal and mail client, I use my system like a glorified chromebook hah
kriro 4y ago
Well basically in the Windows world you have user management, files and printing, security/patching and then taking care of programs on the user's computers and infrastructure (servers, setting up a VPN etc.). Depending on the organization, there are many non web-based programs that are run. Think about an engineering company. They'll probably have some sort of CAD like SolidWorks and something like Matlab etc. Even if everything would be web based you still have to handle licensing/logins somehow. But yeah in theory the users need less hand holding because less stuff is actually installed.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- chrisseaton 4y ago
  Vast majority of the things you list seem like a very legacy way to do things. If you have to list 'printers' to give an example then you know it might not be as relevant these days.
  - greedo 4y ago
    Any decent sized organization, even ones that don't have regulatory compliance to worry about, has to deal with the majority of things listed. My company has roughly 200 Macs in use, around 5% of the total endpoints in use. The admins who specialize in this have to worry primarily about patch management, application deployment, and security. Authentication is through AD, so any changes that might affect this have to be done carefully. And yes, printing is still a big deal.
    - chrisseaton 4y ago
      > worry primarily about patch management Don’t the OS and app prompt for their own updates these days?
      - plonk 4y ago
        You don't want the whole office to be out of work for a day because the last Nvidia update broke some professional software your techs are using. This lets you test the patch on some machines before rolling it out to your whole org.
      - rejectfinite 4y ago
        Sure but users can decline them and never reboot
      - namdnay 4y ago
        There’s no way an enterprise can follow the consumer cadence for patches and updates. There are dozens if not hundreds of custom apps that could break
      - itisit 4y ago
        Hoping for the best is not how compliance works.
        chrisseaton 4y ago
        I'm not being obtuse - but if you can't trust your employees to run the updates they're asked to, then what are you able to trust them with?
  - zrobotics 4y ago
    I hate printers with every fiber of my being, but for certain companies they are unavoidable. We run our own fulfillment center rather than use 3rd party logistics, and there is absolutely no way we could operate without them. If the printers in the warehouse go down, then I have to explain why customers aren't getting orders fulfilled and we have hourly employees waiting for me to fix things. Not everyone works in an office. That being said, if the printer in the office has issues I may not even hear about it for a month...
rejectfinite 4y ago
KaiserPro 4y ago
Security. Like VPNs, app store policies, user-creation, All of this needs a decent understanding of the OS and a config management system to implement it. The problem with OSX is that most release change things, often in undocumented ways. Like breaking how AD integrates (thanks 10.6)

Tsiklon 4y ago

Usually in many organisations it’s a case of enforcing compliance across the fleet as opposed to actively administering the machines; enforcing browser profiles, software deployments and configurations, OS patch revisions, directory services integrations, that sort of thing. But yes many computer workers effectively use their systems like chromebooks. Hell I’m in an operations role and aside from my terminal and mail client, I use my system like a glorified chromebook hah

kriro 4y ago

Well basically in the Windows world you have user management, files and printing, security/patching and then taking care of programs on the user's computers and infrastructure (servers, setting up a VPN etc.). Depending on the organization, there are many non web-based programs that are run. Think about an engineering company. They'll probably have some sort of CAD like SolidWorks and something like Matlab etc. Even if everything would be web based you still have to handle licensing/logins somehow. But yeah in theory the users need less hand holding because less stuff is actually installed.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
chrisseaton 4y ago
Vast majority of the things you list seem like a very legacy way to do things. If you have to list 'printers' to give an example then you know it might not be as relevant these days.
- greedo 4y ago
  Any decent sized organization, even ones that don't have regulatory compliance to worry about, has to deal with the majority of things listed. My company has roughly 200 Macs in use, around 5% of the total endpoints in use. The admins who specialize in this have to worry primarily about patch management, application deployment, and security. Authentication is through AD, so any changes that might affect this have to be done carefully. And yes, printing is still a big deal.
  - chrisseaton 4y ago
    > worry primarily about patch management Don’t the OS and app prompt for their own updates these days?
    - plonk 4y ago
      You don't want the whole office to be out of work for a day because the last Nvidia update broke some professional software your techs are using. This lets you test the patch on some machines before rolling it out to your whole org.
    - rejectfinite 4y ago
      Sure but users can decline them and never reboot
    - namdnay 4y ago
      There’s no way an enterprise can follow the consumer cadence for patches and updates. There are dozens if not hundreds of custom apps that could break
    - itisit 4y ago
      Hoping for the best is not how compliance works.
      - chrisseaton 4y ago
        I'm not being obtuse - but if you can't trust your employees to run the updates they're asked to, then what are you able to trust them with?
- zrobotics 4y ago
  I hate printers with every fiber of my being, but for certain companies they are unavoidable. We run our own fulfillment center rather than use 3rd party logistics, and there is absolutely no way we could operate without them. If the printers in the warehouse go down, then I have to explain why customers aren't getting orders fulfilled and we have hourly employees waiting for me to fix things. Not everyone works in an office. That being said, if the printer in the office has issues I may not even hear about it for a month...

rejectfinite 4y ago

KaiserPro 4y ago

Security. Like VPNs, app store policies, user-creation, All of this needs a decent understanding of the OS and a config management system to implement it. The problem with OSX is that most release change things, often in undocumented ways. Like breaking how AD integrates (thanks 10.6)