There are two kinds of scripts you can execute via the command line. First, and most common with command lines, is a shell script. A shell script is a file containing a collection of UNIX commands that are all executed in sequence. Shell scripts can have normal programming procedures like loops, conditionals, and variables. Shell scripts are text files with UNIX line endings. Shell scripts are interpreted using the bash shell.

The second kind of script you can execute, and the most common in the Mac OS X environment, is an AppleScript. AppleScripts are files that contain English-like commands, using the AppleScript programming language and they are created using the Script Editor application.

Running a UNIX command as the current user will fail if the target computer is at the login window, since there is no current user at that point. You can use root user for tasks by entering root in the specified user field of the task dialog. You don't actually need to have the root account enabled on the client computer to specify the root user. You should never use sudo or su to do tasks as the root user. They are interactive and expect further input and response from your script. Instead, run your script as root or whatever user you were planning on.

See:

• Executing Shell Scripts with Remote Desktop.
• Executing AppleScripts with Remote Desktop.