Enterprise Connect: Mac

Information related to installing and using the Enterprise Connect application on WCER Mac computers.

ATTENTION:

Enterprise Connect has been deprecated and is not compatible with macOS Monterey and above.  Users may experience erratic behavior if Enterprise Connect is running on Macs with incompatible versions of macOS.

It has been replaced by Apple's new kerberos Single Sign-on (SSO) Extension.

If you have upgraded or plan to upgrade your WCER managed Mac to Monterey, please contact WCER Tech Services for assistance with removing Enterprise Connect and/or getting the SSO Extension installed.


  • What is Enterprise Connect?
    • Enterprise Connect is an application developed by Apple that enhances Active Directory integration for Mac computers. It performs two main functions— WCER Password Management and WCER Network Share Management.
          Enterprise Connect application iconEnterprise Connect icon 2021

      Enterprise Connect is only available on WCER-owned Mac computers.



  • Prerequisites
    • GlobalProtect VPN Connection
      Unless your Mac is plugged in with an Ethernet cable in your WCER office (for example, an iMac workstation), you must have the GlobalProtect VPN client installed and connected. Enterprise Connect will still open, but it needs a secure connection to Active Directory to sign-in and do anything.
      Please see the following WCER Knowledgebase article for VPN help — Palo Alto GlobalProtect VPN Instructions



  • Install Enterprise Connect
    • Enterprise Connect can be installed on WCER-owned Macs via the Managed Software Center application by clicking on the INSTALL button.

      Enterprise Connect install via MSC

      Please Note: Beginning in early 2019, all new Macs will come with Enterprise Connect pre-installed by WCER Tech Services prior to issuance.
      Enterprise Connect is not available for personally-owned machines.



  • Getting started (Signing In)
    • 1) Sign-in to the GlobalProtect VPN client (unless plugged in with Ethernet at a WCER campus location).

      2) Launch Enterprise Connect.
      This can be done either by searching for "Enterprise Connect" with a Spotlight Search, or by browsing to the Applications folder.
      Note: After you sign-in for the first time, Enterprise Connect will automatically launch at login, unless you sign-out of the application.


      3) You will be presented with the Enterprise Connect sign-in window.
      Enter your WCER username and password.
      Click on the Sign In button.

          Sign In to Enterprise Connect


      Note: The first time you sign-in to Enterprise Connect, a message will appear instructing you to click Connect in order to continue. Click the Connect button.
      You are seeing this message because Enterprise Connect is configured to auto-mount the WCER Projects drive (smb://may/projects$) at sign-in, and the Mac's built-in security requires this step.

          Continue to connect



  • Additional Features

    • Select Open Enterprise Connect... from the Enterprise Connect icon located in the menu bar.

          Open Enterprise Connect menu item


      Click on the disclosure triangle at the bottom left corner of the resulting window to reveal the General, Shares, and Statistics tabs.

          Click the disclosure triangle



          General:

      If you check Keep my Mac login and Active Directory passwords in sync, Enterprise Connect will notify you and prompt you to change this Mac's login password to match your WCER (aka Active Directory) password if they ever become different.
      This is very useful if you have multiple Macs and want to keep all their login passwords the same as your WCER password.
      We encourage you to do this so that you have fewer passwords to remember. Plus, it has the added benefit of keeping your login keychain synced.

          Keep passwords in sync



          Shares:

      By default, Enterprise Connect auto-mounts the WCER Projects drive (projects$) whenever you sign-in, but you have the option of adding additional WCER network file shares, which will then also auto-mount.
      Repeat the following steps for each additional share you wish to have auto-mount:
          1) Click on the "+" button.
          2) Type the path of your desired network share in the "Share URLs" field.
          This is smb://may/tempspace in our example.
          3) Press the return key.


          Adding additional network shares



      Once you have all the shares you want, select Reconnect from the Enterprise Connect menu bar icon.

          Reconnect



      You should now see any additional file share drive icons mounted on your Mac's desktop. They will continue to auto-mount unless they are removed from the "Share URLs" list.

          Desktop mounted shares



          Statistics:

      The Statistics tab is where you can see the status of your WCER network account, with the information gathered from Active Directory.
      You can easily see when you last changed your password, and when you will need to change it again.

          Statistics tab





  • Changing your WCER Password
    • Another useful feature of Enterprise Connect is the ability to quickly and easily change your WCER password from the application itself.

      Select Change Password... from the Enterprise Connect icon in the menu bar.

          Change WCER password menu selection



      In the window that appears, enter your current password in the field labeled "Old Password", then enter your desired password in the field labeled "New Password".
      You will notice that as you type in your new password, once all requirements are met, you will be able to verify the password and finally click the Change Password button.
          Meeting password requirements



      NOTE: If you have checked the option to "Keep my Mac login and Active Directory passwords in sync" under the "General" settings tab of the "Open Enterprise Connect..." menu item, you will be notified that your Mac's login password has also been updated to match your new WCER password.

          Password successful & synced








Keywords:Enterprise, Connect, Mac, Apple, laptop, password, share, manager, management, keychain, sync, network, mount, drive mapping, map   Doc ID:88816
Owner:Dave P.Group:WCER Technical Services
Created:2019-01-03 11:08 CDTUpdated:2023-03-02 10:09 CDT
Sites:WCER Technical Services
Feedback:  1   3