Novell
By Rich Neves
Although the various versions of Novell's NetWare still make it the leading network operating system (NOS), there has been much grumbling and many complaints about it over the past few years. With market and mind share slipping in the face of the giant from Redmond, Wash., Novell is counting on NetWare 5 to once again solidify its leadership role in the networking industry by addressing the shortcomings of previous versions.
Analysis
NetWare 5 builds on everything resellers and network administrators love about NetWare 4.x. Novell Directory Services (NDS), the premier enterprise-level, cross-platform directory, is enhanced to support features such as LDAP v3, Dynamic DNS and DHCP, Single Sign-On, and WAN traffic management and transitive synchronization.
No longer is it necessary to rely on the proprietary IPX protocol. NetWare 5 now runs native TCP/IP, a long-awaited and much-anticipated feature. Of course, IPX is still supported, and NetWare 5 even supplies a Compatibility Mode and the Migration Gateway, which helps run both protocols on the same network.
Bundled with the product is Oracle8 Server for NetWare, Netscape FastTrack Server for NetWare and Novell's Zen Works for NetWare Desktop Management Suite. Each of these products adds an immense amount of depth and flexibility to the rock-solid, file-and-print services NetWare is known for.
Novell even improved these services by adding Novell Storage Services (NSS), which provides a 64-bit file interface that shatters file-size limitations and volume-mount times. Also improved is Novell Distributed Print Services (NDPS), which allows for intelligent bidirectional communication between print server and users.
However, the features resellers will notice first are the enhanced user interfaces. NetWare has finally joined the GUI age. With the help of Java and one of the fastest Java Virtual Machines out there, Novell has added a friendly and usable graphical interface to NetWare called Console One.
Shortly after starting the installation and seeing the familiar blue screen of NetWare installations past, it was a pleasant surprise to see an X-Windows-type interface that takes a reseller through the configuration process. This includes defining the NDS tree name, server name, organizational units, network protocols and the administrative users' organizational units and passwords.
Once the server is running, Console One allows the reseller to perform several tasks at the server that once could only be done from a workstation. This includes adding/configuring users and groups; file management; server configuration; and monitoring and editing NCF files. Third-party vendors can create Java-based applications that snap into Console One for added functionality.
Commentary
While the installation suffered from the usual pains of a beta, such as limited driver support, the CRN Test Center at PC Expo was impressed with the robustness and stability of the product. While the company has taken some hits financially, the core engineering is still very much apparent.
Novell has been promising something new and revolutionary to resellers for some time, and it looks as if it is on the verge of delivering the killer upgrade. The addition of Console One and the graphical interface combined with the core NOS improvements make NetWare 5 one of the products to watch for in 1998.
Novell NetWare 5
Price: 5 users, $1,095; 10 users, $2,095; 25 users, $3,695; 50 users, $4,995, 100 users, $6,995; 250 users, $12,495; 500 users, $24,995; 1,000 users, $47,995
Status: Beta
Distributors/Integrators: DistribPro, Gates/Arrow, Globelle, Inacom, Ingram Micro, Merisel, Pinacor, SED, Synnex, Tech Data
Authorization Requirements: None
Novell Inc.
Provo, Utah
(800) 453-1267
www.novell.com
Copyright r 1998 CMP Media Inc. |
