WMI equivalent for Mac?

Mark Juric

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Mar 13, 2003, 11:05:53 AM3/13/03

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I'm new to the Macintosh platform and was wondering if there is a
MacOS equivalent to the Windows WMI (Windows Management
Instrumentation) for system management. Specifically, I'm looking for
a way to remotely obtain information about installed software and
system hardware resources. Where should I start looking? Thanks.

-Mark

Jeff Boone

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Mar 13, 2003, 11:36:21 AM3/13/03

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I did some contract work about 7 years ago for Intel, involving the DMI
(Desktop Management Interface) software stack. Our work was strictly
Win32-based, but part of it was eventually integrated into what finally
became WMI. One of the guys I worked with there, left Intel to go work for
a company called Smart Technology Enablers, when they took over support for
the stuff we had done at Intel. They are, among other things, sort of a
clearinghouse for DMI-related information. Check out their web site at
www.enablers.com. There might some Mac information there.

Jeff Boone

"Mark Juric" <googl...@juric.org> wrote in message
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Mark Juric

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Mar 14, 2003, 8:12:04 PM3/14/03

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Isn't there anything native to MacOS? In other words, what API are
applications like the Apple System Profiler built to?
(http://developer.apple.com/testing/docs/TNsystemprofiler.html) What
OS hooks are there so that I can generate equivalent system
configuration reports?

-Mark

"Jeff Boone" <je...@nwea.org> wrote in message news:<v71csus...@corp.supernews.com>...

Sean McBride

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Mar 15, 2003, 7:30:54 PM3/15/03

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In article <80d890a3.03031...@posting.google.com>,
googl...@juric.org (Mark Juric) wrote:

> Isn't there anything native to MacOS? In other words, what API are
> applications like the Apple System Profiler built to?
> (http://developer.apple.com/testing/docs/TNsystemprofiler.html) What
> OS hooks are there so that I can generate equivalent system
> configuration reports?

Here's some keywards to search for: Gestalt Manager, I/O Registry, Name
Registry.

Chris Hanson

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Mar 15, 2003, 9:24:28 PM3/15/03

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In article <80d890a3.03031...@posting.google.com>, Mark
Juric <googl...@juric.org> wrote:

> Isn't there anything native to MacOS? In other words, what API are
> applications like the Apple System Profiler built to?
> (http://developer.apple.com/testing/docs/TNsystemprofiler.html) What
> OS hooks are there so that I can generate equivalent system
> configuration reports?

Apple is just doing a file search and using FSGetCatalogInfo and some
heuristics ("if the folder is structured as a bundle, its name has a
.app suffix, and it has these entries in its plist, it's an
application") to determine whether something is an application, a
framework, etc.

So far as I know, there has never been any "system management" API on
the Macintosh and Mac OS X is no different.

-- Chris

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Chris Hanson, bDistributed.com, Inc. | Email: c...@bDistributed.com
Custom Application Development | Phone: +1-847-372-3955
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