Okay, so they need a little work here.
--
Samba Bests Compaq and Syntax --
Management features lag across the
board, but the open source Samba
shows strengths in other features to
make up for this shortcoming, and
the price is right.
CMP Media Inc. - Saturday, March 04, 2000
Mar. 03, 2000 (Network Computing - CMP via COMTEX) -- Samba 2.0.6
Network Computing Editor's Choice
Grade: B+
Created in 1991 by Andrew Tridgell, Samba 2.0.6 edged out Compaq's Advanced Server for Unix
on the basis of platform support, performance, ease of configuration and ease of debugging. Its
support for login control and a WINS (Windows Internet Name Service) client and server also put it
ahead of the competition. During our tests, we had Samba perform the major functions of a
Windows NT server, including authentication, and we were very impressed with the results. Samba
surpassed Syntax TotalNet Advanced Server in the speed of both reads and writes. Finally, for those
who must have a GUI, there are several available for Samba. The lack of licensing costs is another
plus.
Regarding features, the first difference we found between Samba and its competitors was in how it
is configured. Samba is the only SMB server that asks users to edit configuration files manually
instead of issuing commands to alter the state of the server. This could be somewhat painful for
novices, but we found it to be a more reliable method than those used in the other packages.
When we made a change, all we had to do was to restart the SMB server (don't worry, all the clients
reconnect seamlessly), and our configuration was available. With the other two products, we were
presented with commands that left us uncertain as to how the system was configured. The syntax of
Samba's configuration file isn't terrible either, and the default configuration file has many helpful
comments to make configuring Samba surprisingly painless.
One of the slight disadvantages we found while testing Samba was in its ACL (access control list)
support. Samba will map ACLs only onto Unix permissions, which restricts your options for the kinds
of security you can place on files. However, we doubt this would be much of a hindrance on a
regular basis. And it's one of those features for which "improvement" would result in portability
being impeded.
Ironically, because Samba operates on many platforms, it doesn't offer the same level of ACL
support as Compaq Advanced Server for Unix. Compaq's product uses a special field in the Tru64
file system to store the ACLs, but it's unlikely to be portable to any other platform.
Both Samba and Compaq Advanced Server for Unix let Windows NT member servers (additional
servers in a Windows NT domain that are neither primary domain controllers nor backup domain
controllers) join their Windows NT domains when the Unix servers are acting as the PDC (primary
domain controller). Samba's Windows NT domain support isn't as refined as that of Compaq
Advanced Server.
With Samba, you'll need to make sure all your users have a local entry in the password file, so each
user can map to a UID (user ID) correctly. Compaq Advanced Server not only is an authentication
server, but also can ask other domain controllers for authentication requests, even from the Unix
side. That means you can create and control all your Tru64 Unix accounts on your normal PDCs
and your normal BDCs (backup domain controllers).
Samba has a handy tool called smbstatus that provides real-time connection details, such as a list
of files that are open or files that are locked on the server. All three products we tested perform
similarly in this area, but Samba is the most straightforward in giving you a clear idea of the state of
your server.
Samba 2.0.6, open source and available under Gnu General Public License. www.samba.org
Compaq Computer Corp. Advanced Server for Unix 4.1
Grade: B
Compaq's Advanced Server for Unix 4.1 is an integrated system that's well-suited for enterprise-level
SMB services. However, though it provides more advanced features for Windows NT than Samba
does, it came in a hair behind that open source software. Compaq Advanced Server has one major
flaw: It runs only on Tru64. Because of this, we recommend the Compaq product only if you have a
Tru64 server. In addition, its licensing costs are relatively high. But like Samba, Compaq Advanced
Server provided us with very convincing Windows NT-less SMB installation and domain services; it's
so smooth that your users will never know they aren't using Windows NT servers. The administration
of Compaq Advanced Server is done primarily through its net command, which is based on the
Windows NT net command but is much more powerful. Through this interface, we were able to
create volumes and share them, as well as get status reports.
Compaq Advanced Server for Unix boasts quite a few features found in neither Samba nor Syntax
TotalNet, including a built-in Windows-style registry, and the ability to promote and demote servers
between PDC and BDC on the fly. This will enable you to have your Windows NT PDCs or BDCs
coexist with Compaq Advanced Server PDCs or BDCs.
Another unique characteristic of Compaq Advanced Server for Unix is its tight integration with the
OS on which it runs, Tru64. But this is a double-edged sword: To use Compaq's software, you must
be using a Compaq server. During our tests, we found some positive aspects that might mitigate this
limitation, depending on your site.
For example, when we created or deleted users through Compaq Advanced Server's interface, they
were automatically entered into or removed from our NIS (Network Information Services) domain.
Additionally, Compaq Advanced Server let us specify that the Tru64 machine should ask an SMB
server, or even an NT server, for its authentication instead of its /etc/password entries. Neither of the
other two contestants offers this handy feature.
Because Compaq Advanced Server for Unix runs only on Tru64, its integration with the operating
system is as smooth as a baby's bottom. We were impressed with the product's ACL support. It was so
well integrated that all the normal Unix tools would show us the extended ACLs along with the
corresponding Unix permissions. This let us set any permissions we desired, and they would be
followed, even on the Unix side. Finally, if you have Tru64 for your Alpha machine, you already
have two licenses; Compaq includes two licenses for every server. But the flip side is obvious: If
you're not using Compaq servers and Tru64, this package isn't for you.
Compaq Advanced Server for Unix 4.1, starts at $990 for a 10-user license, Compaq Computer
Corp., (800) 345-1518; fax 281-518-1442. www.compaq.com
Syntax TotalNet Advanced Server 5.4
Grade: C
Syntax TotalNet Advanced Server supports not only SMB, but also Novell NetWare and Apple
Computer Apple- Talk services, neither of which we tested. Due in part to its broader scope,
TotalNet Advanced Server fell behind the competition in most areas. Overall, our testing showed
that the Syntax product lacks polish compared with Samba and Compaq Advanced Server for Unix.
But Syntax officials claim that many of the current release's shortcomings will be solved in the next
version, which is slated to be available by the time you read this.
There wasn't much we liked in Syntax TotalNet Advanced Server, but we did find some pluses.
Unlike Samba and Compaq Advanced Server for Unix, TotalNet Advanced Server provides a
built-in HTTP/ HTML interface for easy Web administration. (Samba supports an HTTP/HTML
interface, but it's available separately and requires a Web server to be set up.)
During our tests, we found TotalNet Advanced Server's HTTP/ HTML interface easy to configure and
access, but it's definitely lacking in a few areas. For example, the only section of the HTTP/HTML
process that's encrypted is the login authentication, which makes passwords secure. This could be a
problem, especially if you're administering a machine over a WAN or the Internet.
We also found the GUI difficult to use, and it took some time to learn how to navigate it. Then, as
we tried sharing file systems, we discovered that troubleshooting was impossible from the HTML
GUI. Syntax claims these problems will be solved in the upcoming version.
TotalNet Advanced Server does boast fairly solid ACL support. While not tied as tightly to the file
system as in Compaq's Advanced Server for Unix-for obvious reasons-the ACL support here
functioned well. We did learn the hard way that if you're moving files around from the Unix side,
you'll need to use the ACL mover utility as well, or the ACLs you set on the files will disappear. The
ACLs are stored apart from the files, in a hidden file in the directory, and are updated only when
you move files through the Syntax system.
In general, we determined that resolving problems in TotalNet Advanced Server was much more
difficult than in the other two products. It was tough to get TotalNet Advanced Server to give any
detailed status or error information. Obtaining generic operational information was easy enough,
but when it came to debugging information, forget about it. In addition, we found the learning
curve for Syntax's product to be much higher compared with that of its rivals. Using the other
products, we could establish a share without much fuss, but with TotalNet Advanced Server it was a
rather lengthy process.
TotalNet Advanced Server 5.4, server with 15 clients: $2,595; additional servers: $2,295; additional
clients: $195, Syntax, (877) 4 SYNTAX, (253) 838-2626; fax (253) 838-9836. www.syntax.com or
sales@syntax.com
Jeff Ballard is a systems programmer for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Send your comments
on this article to him at jballard@nwc.com.
How We Tested...SMB Servers
Our tests of Samba 2.0.6, Compaq's Advanced Server for Unix 4.1 and Syntax's TotalNet Advanced
Server 5.4 were performed in our Real-World Labs(r) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, using
Coffee Computing's FileMetric 1.1.
We employed two different servers for our trials. Compaq Advanced Server for Unix was tested on a
Compaq AlphaServer running Tru64. Samba and Syntax TotalNet Advanced Server ran on a
dual-processor Hewlett-Packard Co. L-class server under HP-UX 11.00.
We conducted one reading and one writing test for each SMB server, each test lasting 10 minutes.
For clients, we used a battery of 12 Dell Optiplex Pentium III workstations running Microsoft
Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 6. Each workstation ran three instances of the FileMetric client,
simulating 36 clients in all. The clients were connected over a switched 100-Mbps network with a
1-Gbps backbone.
To test performance consistently across all three products, we attempted to set up a performance
test using Tru64. However, having discovered that no easily accessible precompiled version of
Samba for Tru64 exists, after a four-day marathon we gave up. In talking to many SMB users, we
decided that in this technology area, you're most likely going to purchase the package that works on
your existing hardware and offers the closest match in terms of features. To that end, we determined
that Samba's main advantage is that it runs everywhere and has no licensing cost. For Tru64 shops,
Compaq's Advanced Server for Unix is a no-brainer. And for sites with numerous Apple Macintosh
and Novell NetWare clients, Syntax's TotalNet is the way to go, despite its weaknesses. If it's speed
you need, NFS is probably a better solution for you.
Web Links
"How To Implement SMB on Unix" (Network Computing, April 5, 1999)
www.networkcomputing.com/1007/1007ws1.html
"NFS Gateway Products for NT: A New Spin on NFS to the Desktop" (Network Computing, June 1,
1998) www.networkcomputing.com/910/910r2.html
"Making NFS Work On Your Network" (Network Computing, Network Design Manual)
www.networkcomputing.com/netdesign/nfs1.html
"Network Operating Systems: Linux Targets the Data Center" (InternetWeek, Nov. 15, 1999)
www.internetwk.com/reviews/rev111599.htm
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