Scrapps, Microsoft is licensing the PPTP protocols from US Robotics,
to-wit: (note the 3/04/96 release date, and that USRX is the sole
developer for the NT PPTP driver).
BusinessWire Press Release:
SKOKIE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 4, 1996--U.S. Robotics
(NASDAQ: USRX) today announced a powerful new feature for access to
NT enterprise networks, PPTP (Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol).
PPTP is a new specification developed as a joint effort by a
group of remote access server hardware vendors and Microsoft.
Based on U.S. Robotics' expertise in enterprise-wide remote
access server technology, Microsoft selected U.S. Robotics as the
sole developer for the Windows NT PPTP driver, which will be included
in Microsoft's upcoming Windows NT Server 4.0. Under an agreement
with Microsoft, U.S. Robotics will license a variety of software
components for PPTP to Microsoft.
PPTP will be added as a standard feature to Microsoft's Windows
NT Server and U.S. Robotics' Total Control NETServer remote access
server platform.
In a recent analysis of market research from IDC, Forrester and
other sources, U.S. Robotics estimates that 80 percent of
individuals accessing the Internet and online services subscribe to
providers who use the Total Control Enterprise Network Hub as their
high-speed access platform. In the last two years alone, U.S.
Robotics has shipped more than 350,000 ports to its service provider
customers. PPTP is one of the enabling technologies U.S. Robotics
will use to allow these customers to extend their networks to new
applications.
U.S. Robotics to Work Closely With Microsoft as Vendor for
PPTP Development
"We're pleased that U.S. Robotics is working on the development
of the driver software that will be included in the next version of
Windows NT Server," said Jawad Khaki, development manager for
Windows NT Server internetworking, Microsoft Corporation. "PPTP is
another example of the tight integration of Windows NT Server with
the Internet, and we're pleased that U.S. Robotics will support this
technology in its NETServer remote access server products."
The PPTP specification has been under development since June,
1995. Recently, U.S. Robotics has had a team of engineers working
at Microsoft's Redmond, Wash. campus, and demonstrated the Windows
NT PPTP driver at Microsoft in December. Microsoft and U.S.
Robotics will demonstrate PPTP at the upcoming Networld+Interop trade
show in Las Vegas, April 2- 4, 1996.
The drivers for PPTP will be available in Microsoft's Device
Developer Kit for Windows NT Server 4.0, which is scheduled to ship
in mid-1996.
NETServer Remote Access Server Gains Intelligent Access to
NT Enterprise
The PPTP protocol expands the capabilities of U.S. Robotics'
NETServer remote access server platform in NT enterprise networks.
Running on U.S. Robotics' NETServer remote access server and
Microsoft's Windows NT Server, PPTP greatly streamlines access in NT
networking environments, and allows NT network clients to take full
advantage of the services provided by Microsoft's RAS (Remote Access
Services).
For remote access, over analog or ISDN, PPTP creates a "tunnel"
directly to the appropriate departmental NT Server on a network --
even if there are hundreds of NT Servers. U.S. Robotics NETServer
remote access servers supporting PPTP provide a distinct advantage
for NT network managers, because access to the enterprise may be
managed and secured at a single centralized point, while specific
network resource access can be managed at the departmental level.
And, U.S. Robotics' Enterprise Network Hub's fault tolerant
design, which incorporates NETServer remote access server technology,
provides redundancy at that access point, allowing centralized
access, security and management, yet ensuring that there is never a
single point of failure.
This benefits NT users by allowing them to consolidate equipment,
decrease management costs and increase network security. The
Enterprise Network Hub also allows users to scale and expand their
remote access solution, with the flexibility to accommodate analog
and ISDN access for a few users or for several hundred users,
depending on the need.
PPTP will also be included in U.S. Robotics' NETServer branch
office products, for smaller networks that need the same secure,
centralized access to NT servers in a smaller, cost-effective
platform.
PPTP Technical Features
The PPTP specification builds on standards such as PPP and
TCP/IP. PPTP 'tunnels' a remote user's PPP packets from the
NETServer to a Windows NT server. By terminating the remote user's
PPP connection at the NT server, rather than at the remote access
hardware, PPTP allows network administrators to standardize security
using the existing services and capabilities built into Windows NT
security domain. Using PPTP, network administrators can extend a
virtual private network from their Windows NT server throughout the
Internet and still retain control of their user passwords and
accounts.
NT provides its own knowledge of enterprise users, databases,
allowed access and network addressing integrated into its RAS
capabilities. With PPTP, users accessing their NT-based network will
utilize these services, including DHCP and WINS, for access. This
greatly simplifies the management of mobile and telecommuting users
accessing an NT-based network..
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