In the corporate world, a shortfall in Mac management can have real impact on worker productivity. Swapping a 20-terabyte file sharing system with one that isn't native to the Mac, for instance, can spell disaster for Mac folks who suddenly are locked out of critical files.

Such tech nightmares surely will become more common as the Mac makes its way to the enterprise. Earlier this week, Apple unleashed a hardware refresh, including a rare . , and its popular .

In a recent survey of some 700 companies by Information Technology Intelligence, a whopping 68 percent of respondents said they will allow Macs in their environment within the next 12 months. The survey also found that nearly one out of four companies had at least 30 Macs in their businesses.

"Although Mac's market share in business is still extremely small, it's been growing," says . Now Macs are at a tipping point: Many companies are having to hire a Mac engineer for the first time to manage the swelling ranks of Macs. Last year, Gartner began formally evaluating Macs for enterprises.

So what is Gartner's Mac analysis? "We don't really recommend Apple," says Kitagawa, adding, "Apple doesn't provide standard enterprise support like image service and lifecycle support nor has a global account-management umbrella."