Mountain Lion updates for OS X Server, Xcode, Remote Desktop hit Mac App Store

Mountain Lion Server

OS X Server version 2.0 is now available for download on the Mac App Store. It's an application that users can add to Mountain Lion, quickly turning a Mac into a server that can be used for home offices, businesses, schools, and hobbyists.

OS X Server 2.0 is a 134-megabyte download from the Mac App Store that requires OS X 10.8 or later. Features of OS X Server for Mountain Lion, as highlighted by Apple, are:

• File Sharing
  • File sharing for Mac, PC, and iPad
  • Standards-based AFP, SMB, and WebDAV file services
  • Flexible file permissions
  • Spotlight searching

• Point-and-click page editor to change formatting and insert images, movies, and attachments
• Access controls
• Tags and comments
• Revision history
• Document sharing
• Quick Look previews

• Configuration and management for OS X and iOS
• Over-the-air enrollment
• Mobile device management
• Web-based administration console
• Self-service user portal for clearing passcodes, remote lock and wipe

• Provide a backup destination for Mac computers on your network
• Deliver backup support for OS X

• Standards-based SMTP, IMAP, and POP server
• Push notifications
• SSL encryption
• Adaptive junk mail filtering
• Virus detection and quarantine

• Share calendars, schedule meetings and events, and book conference rooms
• Standards-based CalDAV server for access from Mac, iPad, iPhone, and PC
• View availability with free/busy lookups
• Email invitations and notifications
• Push notifications

• Contacts Server
  • Synchronize contacts with Mac, iPad, and iPhone
  • Allow multiple users to access and update contacts
  • Standards-based CardDAV server
  • Push notifications

• Secure encrypted instant messaging for your organization
• Persistent chat rooms
• Store-and-forward for sending messages to buddies who are offline

• Highly secure remote access for your network services
• Encrypted VPN connections for Mac, iPad, iPhone, and PC

• Block-level SAN file sharing with concurrent read/write access
• Xsan volume hosting and configuration
• Volume management, storage pools, stripping, and volume mapping
• Real-time monitoring, graphs, and event notifications
• Metadata controller failover and file system journaling

• Local or remote setup
• Users and groups settings
• View real-time graphs of server usage and activity

• NetInstall to automate OS X installations and upgrades across your network
• Web server for hosting multiple websites
• Software Update Server automatically downloads Mac software updates and cache them locally

Xcode 4.4

The latest version fo Xcode is a 1.46-gigabyte download that runs in both OS X Lion and OS X Mountain Lion. Features included in Xcode 4.4, according to Apple, are:

• SDKs for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion and iOS 5.1.
• Enhanced for the MacBook Pro with Retina display.
• Code completion persists your selections to give more accurate suggestions.
• Objective-C @synthesize command is generated by default when using properties.
• Objective-C adds literal syntax for numbers, arrays, dictionaries, and expressions when developing for OS X.
• Apple LLVM compiler supports additional C++11 features, including lambdas.

• Assistant editor tracks caller or callee for the current selection.
• New localization workflow can share a single base .xib file for multiple locales on OS X.
• Source control can commit individually selected changes.
• ARC migration tool converts both retain/release and garbage collected code.
• Fixes an issue where code completion could fail, requiring the user to delete derived data.
• Additional bug fixes and stability improvements.

Apple Remote Desktop

Finally, Apple Remote Desktop was also updated to version 3.6 on Wednesday. The 10.3-megabyte download costs $79.99, and requires OS X 10.7 Lion or later, meaning Snow Leopard users will not be able to upgrade.

Version 3.6 of Apple Remote Desktop addresses several issues related to overall reliability, usability and compatibility, according to Apple. It is also said to provide new attributes in the System Overview Report, and support for IPv6.