Installing Power Manager

Power Manager needs to be installed before it can perform a schedule.

The key steps for installing Power Manager are:

An Installer package (.pkg) version of Power Manager is also available. We recommend using the Installer package when deploying on multiple computers.

Downloading Power Manager

To install Power Manager, you need a copy of the latest version of Power Manager from DssW. The latest version can be downloaded from the DssW web site at https://www.dssw.co.uk/powermanager/.

The downloaded file is a disk image and, once downloaded, will appear in your Downloads folder.

Once you have a copy of the Power Manager disk image, you do not need to be connected to the Internet to complete the installation.

Back Up Before Installing New Software

Always back up before installing any new software on your Mac. If something should go wrong, or if you experience problems, a recent back up is essential to returning your Mac to a known state.

Installing Over Older Versions

It is safe to install Power Manager over the top of an existing installation.

Always Update

We recommend keeping your software up-to-date. We regularly release updates and improvements to Power Manager. Updates can be downloaded and installed automatically through the Power Manager application, or you can manually download and install the latest version yourself.

Mounting the Power Manager Disk Image

Power Manager is distributed as a disk image. A disk image is a virtual disk that contains a collection of folders and files. To use a disk image, open the file from the Finder. You can double-click the disk image file to open it.

A disk image is ‘mounted’ once it has been opened. The mounted disk image will appear alongside your other devices in macOS’s Finder, much like an external drive or USB stick.

The mounted Power Manager disk image contains the Power Manager application and the latest release notes. Please take the time to read the release notes. The notes contain comments about last minute changes or additions to Power Manager. They may also contain specific instructions about the latest version of Power Manager.

Setting Up Power Manager

To complete the installation, you will need administrator privileges for your Mac. These privileges are required to place files in locations outside of your home folder. Power Manager affects everyone who uses your computer, so only users with administrator privileges are allowed to install Power Manager.

To install Power Manager’s scheduler, a copy of the Power Manager.app application must be copied into your computer’s Applications folder.

Running Outside of /Applications

You can run Power Manager from the disk image or another location on your computer. You will be able to connect to and manage the scheduler running on remote computers but not on the local computer.

Installing the Scheduler

Power Manager needs to install a tiny number of files within your Mac’s Library folder. This allows the Scheduler to performing events and making sure your schedule happens even when you are not logged in.

How to Install the Scheduler

  1. Run the Power Manager application.
  2. Select the menu item: Scheduler > Install Scheduler….
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions.

After Installing

After installing, Power Manager is ready to start saving you time and energy.

Unlock the Scheduler

The Scheduler is locked by default, use your login credentials to prove you are an administrator of the computer, see Securely Locked.

The schedule is the core concept of Power Manager and a schedule is made up of events. Power Manager starts with an empty schedule; so it is doing nothing until you create your first event.

Your first task after installing is to explore what Power Manager can do for you. For inspiration, see A Better Inactivity Triggered Sleep, Shut Down at Night to Save Energy, and Sleep During Breaks to Save Energy.

What is Installed?

We install the minimum possible number of files. Where possible, supporting files are contained with the Power Manager application.

When the Scheduler is installed, a single file is created at /Library/LaunchDaemons/uk.co.dssw.powermanager.pmd.plist. This file is responsible for running the Scheduler when the computer is powered on.