Sample DNS Zone Record File for iCal in Lion Server
Because DNS for iCal can be tricky if you’re editing by hand, a sample may come in handy. These references are to Lion Server, but you can adopt the procedure to other DNS servers.
In Mac OS X Server (and some Linux/Unix servers), the DNS zone file that you edit is in the /var/named directory. The file has the form db.domainname, such as db.ourserver.macwindowsco.com. To access it in the Finder, choose Go→Go to Folder and then type /var/named. Open the file and type your additions after the line that begins with $INCLUDE /var/zones/db. Do not delete or change this line.
This INCLUDE line inserts your additions into another similarly named file in /var/named/zone. Although you don’t edit this file directly, here’s a sample of the file in /var/named/zone to give you an idea of what the final looks like. This file contains the DNS entities called A records that are referenced in the SRV records. The text after the semicolons represents in-code comments.
;GUID=<GUID here>
$TTL 10800 ; default expiration time of a record
abc.com. IN SOA ns.abc.com. username.abc.com. (
2009031903 ;Serial
86400 ;Refresh
3600 ;Retry
604800 ;Expire
345600 ;Negative caching TTL
)
abc.com. IN NS ns.abc.com. ;ns.abc.com is the name server for abc.com
abc.com. IN A 10.0.0.1 ;this is the IP address of abc.com
ns A 10.0.0.2 ; IP address of ns.abc.com
name CNAME ns ;"name.abc.com" is another name for "ns.abc.com"
calendar IN A 10.0.0.12 ; the IP address for "calendar.abc.com"
TXT "The iCal Server that we're using"
ical IN CNAME calendar.abc.com. ;"ical.example.com" is another name for "calendar.example.com"
_caldav._tcp.abc.com. 86400 IN SRV 0 0 8008 calendar.abc.com.
If you have a backup server to use when the first is down, add another calendar line:
calendar2 IN A 10.0.0.13
Then add another SRV line at the end:
_caldav._tcp.abc.com. 86400 IN SRV 1 0 8008 calendar2.abc.com.
For SSL, the CalDAV line(s) is
_caldavs._tcp.abc.com. 86400 IN SRV 0 0 8443 calendar.abc.com.
_caldavs._tcp.abc.com. 86400 IN SRV 1 0 8443 calendar2.abc.com.

Macs and OS X Glossary
802.11x wireless
A protocol for connections to your Ethernet network and your Apple TV unit.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Address Book
The place for addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses on the Mac. You can also add a picture and note about the person.

Macs and OS X Glossary
alias
A pointer to another application of folder.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Bluetooth
A short-range wireless technology that lets your Mac communicate with other compatible gadgets, from up to 30 feet away.

Macs and OS X Glossary
ColorSync
A printer setting that lets you add black and white, blue tone, sepia, or other filters.

Macs and OS X Glossary
cookie
A small file that a web site automatically saves on your hard drive. It contains information that the site will use on your future visits. For example, a site might save a cookie to preserve your site preferences for the next time or ¯ in the case of a site such as Amazon.com ¯ to identify you automatically and help customize the offerings that you see.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Dashboard
A translucent screen that lays on top of your desktop and houses clever little applications called widgets.

Macs and OS X Glossary
desktop
The whole of your Mac’s computer screen. Also called the Finder.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Discoverable mode
Helps other Bluetooth devices find your Mac.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Dock
The colorful bar on the bottom of the Mac screen. It’s a rough cross between the Windows taskbar and the Start menu.

Macs and OS X Glossary
double-clicking
Left-clicking twice in rapid succession while keeping the cursor in the same location.

Macs and OS X Glossary
dragging
Positioning the cursor on top of a symbol or icon and then holding down the mouse button and rolling the mouse across your desk, which moves the symbol or icon to a new location.

Macs and OS X Glossary
driver
A software program provided by the printer manufacturer that tells Mac OS X how to communicate with your printer.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol; DHCP
A protocol that enables a computer to automatically get connection information for communicating with a network or your ISP.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Exposé
A Mac feature that, with a click of a button, organizes your Mac desktop.

Macs and OS X Glossary
FileVault
A Mac feature that automatically scrambles, or encrypts, the data in your Home folder.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Finder
The application that Mac OS X runs to display the operating system’s menus and windows.

Macs and OS X Glossary
FireWire
A speedy connector often used with digital cameras.

Macs and OS X Glossary
FTP
Part of the TCP/IP protocol suite; (the hoary acronym FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. FTP is one of the oldest methods for sharing files between computers

Macs and OS X Glossary
function keys
Housed on the top row of the Mac keyboard, the keys with the letter F followed by a number.

Macs and OS X Glossary
iCal
The Mac’s built-in calendar.

Macs and OS X Glossary
iDVD
The application that lets you burn movies onto a disk.

Macs and OS X Glossary
iMac
A Mac desktop computer.

Macs and OS X Glossary
iPhoto
The application where you store and touch up digital images.

Macs and OS X Glossary
iSync
The application that keeps your calendar, Address Book, and Internet bookmarks synchronized across multiple devices.

Macs and OS X Glossary
iTunes
Apple’s renowned musical jukebox.

Macs and OS X Glossary
iWeb
The tool that lets you create personal Web sites, blogs, and podcasts.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol; LDAP
With LDAP, you can search a central company directory from anywhere in the world as long as you have an Internet connection.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Lightweight Extensible Authentication Protocol
An encryption protocol developed by Cisco Systems for superior security in the business world.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Mac Mini
Apple’s budget desktop computer. Weighing less than 3 pounds, it’s portable, but not in the same sense as a notebook.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Mac OSx
The operating system that Apple included with all new Mac computer systems since 2002.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Mac Pro
A Mac desktop intended for professionals facing demanding graphics and other computing tasks. Its arrival completed the transition of the Mac line to Intel processors.

Macs and OS X Glossary
MacBook Air
Apple’s super-thin Mac. Encased in aluminum with a 13.3-inch display, Air measures just 0.16 inches at its skinniest point and just 0.75 inches at its thickest. But it still boasts a full-size keyboard and very good battery life.

Macs and OS X Glossary
MacBook, MacBook Pro
Apple’s successor to the PowerBook.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Mail
Apple’s built-in calendar.

Macs and OS X Glossary
MobileMe
The application that keeps your e-mail, contacts, and calendar synchronized, no matter what device you’re using.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Network interface card
A hardware device that your computer uses to talk to the rest of the network.

Macs and OS X Glossary
operating software
The software that makes a Mac work.

Macs and OS X Glossary
parental controls
Safety features that let you place limitations on your child’s computer use.

Macs and OS X Glossary
partition
A formatted section of a disk that contains data.

Macs and OS X Glossary
PDF
A special document display format developed by Adobe; they display like a printed document but take up minimal space.

Macs and OS X Glossary
phishing
A form of Internet fraud where identity thieves, posing as a respectable financial or Internet company, tries to dupe you into clicking phony links to verify personal or account information.

Macs and OS X Glossary
RAID set
A group of multiple separate disks, working together as a team.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Safari
The Mac’s Web browser.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Smart Groups
A way to group contacts in your Address Book.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Smart Mailboxes
Searches for e-mail that matches specific search criteria.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Spotlight
The Mac’s search technology.

Macs and OS X Glossary
start-up disk
The boot drive that contains the Mac OS X system you’re using at the moment

Macs and OS X Glossary
thread
Contains an original message and all related replies, which makes it easy to follow the flow of an e-mail discussion without bouncing around within your Inbox, searching for the next message in the conversation.

Macs and OS X Glossary
trackpad
The smooth surface below your Mac keyboard that’s your laptop’s answer to using a mouse.

Macs and OS X Glossary
USB port
The place on your Mac where you plug in devices you want to connect, such as printers, scanners, digital cameras, and more.

Macs and OS X Glossary
Voiceover
A screen reader designed to make using a Mac easier by speaking the contents of the screen.

Macs and OS X Glossary
wireless network
A network that isn’t connected by wires but uses radio waves, instead.