Enabling Self-Managing Applications

Simplify software management with self-installing, self-updating applications

Reduce the cost and complexity of delivering and maintaining applications across devices, platforms, and networks

Distribute and update applications across the intranet, extranet or Internet with the most advanced security options such as authentication, encryption, and code signing

Control the delivery of software and information to corporate users, business partners and customers

Minimize network traffic with leading application update features, including byte-level differential downloads

Integrate easily with existing or new applications

With Castanet software, businesses can deliver applications to employees, business partners, and customers. It scales from hundreds of users on the corporate network, to millions of users on the public Internet. The Castanet system effectively leverages the Internet as a platform for the delivery of self-managing applications and services.

Contents

Introduction

Why the Castanet Solution?

Expand Your Enterprise with State-of-the-Art Security
Reduce Software Installation and Maintenance Costs
Improve Brand Loyalty and Customer Satisfaction
Provide Up-to-Date Software and Services
Castanet Benefits at a Glance

What is the Castanet Solution?

How Does Castanet Software Work?

Creating Channels
Distributing Channels
Receiving and Executing Channels
Maintaining and Updating Channels
Capturing Channel Feedback
Personalizing Channels
Minimizing Cross-Firewall Traffic
Scaling to Millions of Subscribers

Castanet Components At-a-Glance

Castanet Transmitters
Castanet Clients
Castanet UpdateNow SDK
Castanet Proxy
Castanet Repeater
Castanet Transmitter Gateway

 

Introduction

The CastanetTM software solution from MarimbaTM manages applications and information across intranets, extranets and the Internet. A complete client/server suite of products, Castanet software works across platforms to ensure that users always have the latest application version and the most up-to-date data. It supports applications written in popular programming languages, including C, C++, Java, and more. It is also the only offering of its kind to combine the highest level of security, bandwidth efficiency, and administrative control features for managing software outside the firewall. And it is extremely fast and easy to implement and deploy.

Today, the Castanet solution is helping address software management challenges for many types of organizations around the world, including:

Corporate enterprises that want to slash administrative costs while securely delivering applications and services to an ever-widening circle of users, both inside and outside their firewalls, with the most advanced security and efficiency features. The Castanet solution allows businesses to reach networked and mobile employees on their intranet, as well as customers and prospects over the Internet. It is also the perfect tool for streamlining supply chain processes over the extranet with new or existing suppliers, vendors, distributors and retailers.

Independent software vendors (ISVs) who want to decrease their time-to-market, reduce the cost of goods sold, and improve brand loyalty and customer retention. Castanet software enables iterative development, and allows ISVs to incrementally provide product updates and software fixes to consumers over the Internet, instead of waiting for a collection of updates for a major new product release. This not only reduces time-to-market, but costs associated with packaging, distribution and marketing. Because the Castanet solution is able to provide ISVs with continuous user feedback such as individual usage patterns, ISVs are able to dramatically improve customer service. And importantly, Castanet allows ISVs to personalize their offerings on a user-by-user basis for a high-level of product differentiation.

Electronic device manufacturers who want to add value to their products, provide built-in self-updating features to reduce the cost of maintenance, and offset the risk of further commoditization from increased global competition. Designers and manufacturers of components, peripherals, and systems such as cell phones, all types of computers, PDAs, and other Net-enabled appliances are under constant pressure to compress hardware development cycles, avoid obsolescence and increase customer loyalty. Manufacturers can easily add value and differentiate their products by integrating the Castanet UpdateNowTM library into their offerings. The Castanet UpdateNow library, with a footprint of 60 Kbytes, is extremely small and easy to integrate.

Marimba's Castanet family is used by leading companies such as Lehman Brothers, TV Guide Online, a wholly owned subsidiary of News Corporation; Bentana Technologies, an Aetna-funded company; Alain Pinel Realty; Ericsson, CNNfn, MECA Software, a consortium of banks including Citicorp, Bank of America, and Nations Bank; Cypress Research, and Encanto Networks.

Why the Castanet Solution?

Expand Your Enterprise with State-of-the-Art Security
With Castanet software, businesses can confidently expand the enterprise and deliver applications and services to mobile users, business partners and customers outside the firewall. It offers the most advanced security offering-including SSL encryption, server authentication and code signing-available from any vendor for controlling software distribution over the extranet and the Internet. Corporations can now establish secure connections with suppliers, dealers, agents, and other important business partners. In addition, new customers can be reached, and relationships with existing customers can be nurtured on a one-to-one basis. No other solution can provide the security, efficiency and flexibility of the Castanet system for communicating with people over the extranet and Internet.

Reduce Software Installation and Maintenance Costs
The Castanet system addresses the number-one issue for corporate IS departments: reducing the cost of PC ownership by decreasing the cost of software installation and maintenance. Using Castanet software, IS administrators can automatically distribute and maintain applications over the intranet. This not only ensures employees have up-to-date software, but also eliminates the time and cost of manual installations and upgrades. In short, using Castanet means fewer support calls, freeing IS personnel to focus on creating the best possible products and providing the highest level of customer service.

Improve Brand Loyalty and Customer Satisfaction
The Castanet solution allows companies to deliver engaging, high-impact applications and content that take full advantage of the Internet as a platform. And products can easily be personalized for each user, such as providing more assistance to novice users and more capabilities to experienced users. Castanet software also enables companies to gather detailed feedback about how subscribers use and react to their products and services. This continuous connection to customers provided by Castanet allows businesses to continually fine-tune and enhance their service, and better customize and market their products.

Provide Up-to-Date Software and Services
By subscribing to a Castanet application, users are guaranteed to always have the most recent versions of software, and the most up-to-date information--automatically or "on-demand," depending on the wishes of the Castanet application creator. With Castanet software, developers can send out bug fixes, new features and other improvements whenever they want, not just every 12 to 24 months as mandated by more expensive, traditional delivery mechanisms. Internal corporate departments such as human resources and sales can develop inviting, easy-to-use Castanet applications that automate vital internal business processes. And companies can streamline external, business-to-business processes with key suppliers, dealers, and contractors.

 Castanet Benefits at a Glance
Enables self-installing, self-updating applications for simpler software management Supports disconnected portable computers and dial-up users
Distributes and maintains software securely across intranets, extranets, and the Internet Provides guaranteed, complete updates
Employs the most advanced security features in the industry such as authentication, encryption and code signing Enables personalization on a subscriber-by-subscriber basis
Helps control the delivery of software and information to corporate users, business partners and customers Scales to millions of users
Reduces the costs of software installation and maintenance Integrates easily into existing or new applications, systems and devices
Supports applications written in any popular programming language Extremely fast and easy to deploy
Provides administrative control features to better manage deployment Embedded in every copy of Netscape's Netcaster product for easy, seamless access to the Castanet system
Reduces network traffic with leading application update features, including byte-level differential downloads Cross-platform
Provides continuous user feedback to application creators Open, published API, and compliant with industry standards

What is the Castanet Solution?

The Castanet system includes client and server software, as well as a flexible, easy-to-deploy software developers kit (SDK). It consists of four main components:

How Does Castanet Software Work?

The Castanet system can be used with existing or new applications, and supports every step of the application life cycle. Using Castanet software, you can create, distribute, and install an application; maintain and update that application; capture subscriber feedback; and provide personalization on a business-by-business, department-by-department or subscriber-by-subscriber basis.

Creating Channels
Castanet channels are simply applications and information. These applications can be created with virtually any programming language, including C, C++, Java, and Microsoft Visual Basic, from a variety of vendors, such as Marimba, Symantec, Microsoft, Lotus, Borland, and many others.

Since they are full applications, channels can have their own unique user interfaces; a channel creator is not confined by the limitations of Web pages or browser interfaces, and is able to create branded, customized user environments.

The Castanet Transmitter server and clients support the Java Development Kit (JDK) version 1.1. This enables channel developers to take advantage of the latest Java features for internationalization, distributed computing (through Remote Method Invocation), and printing.

Distributing Channels
Once an application or channel is created, it is published to a Castanet Transmitter running on a network server. The Transmitter server then communicates with Castanet clients to automatically distribute the channel's content. Channel creators need only update channels in one place--on the Transmitter server--and those changes are automatically distributed to all channel subscribers.

The Castanet Transmitter server includes the following features:

Receiving and Executing Channels
There are four ways to receive and run applications or channels sent by the Transmitter server:

Castanet Tuner Client
Running on a PC or laptop, the Castanet Tuner subscribes to a Castanet channel or application. When a channel subscription is first requested, the Transmitter server delivers the channel's files to the Tuner client, which automatically installs them on the local hard drive. A channel can be launched from the Tuner or, like any other application, from a desktop icon or the desktop programs menu. Because channels reside locally on subscribers' hard drives, they launch and run at top speed--regardless of whether the computer is connected to the network.

The Castanet Tuner Client includes the following features:

The Castanet SecureTM client security feature protects user resources from malicious or accidental damage by tightly controlling how and where channels can read and write information. If authorized by the Tuner user, Castanet Secure relaxes its controls when a "Trusted Channel' is received, allowing this digitally "signed" channel additional privileges like the ability to execute native code. Castanet Secure also supports "secure Transmitters." A secure Transmitter uses SSL encryption to safeguard the communication between Transmitter and Tuner. In addition, a secure Transmitter can be authenticated by subscribers, enabling a subscriber to identify the Transmitter hostname. Castanet Secure also supports access-controlled Transmitters, which allows administrators to control access to applications by requesting usernames and passwords.

For added control, the Castanet Tuner Administrator feature allows IS personnel to create a customized Tuner that updates itself from a location specified by the IS staff, rather than updating from Marimba's main Transmitter: "trans.marimba.com". The administrator can also specify the channel that starts up when the user first launches the Tuner.

The Castanet FileBrokerTM feature helps channels share common files and prevents changes to shared files from breaking channels. If two channels need the same file--such as a class library-Castanet FileBroker ensures that the Castanet system keeps only a single copy of the file on the user's hard disk, and allows the two channels to share that file. This minimizes the hard disk space required for Castanet channels. If one channel upgrades to a later version of the shared file, Castanet FileBroker gets the new file and makes sure that each channel is using the right version.

The Castanet Tuner client option provides enterprises with a high level of security and administrative control, while giving ISVs an inexpensive and efficient way to distribute and maintain new applications.

Castanet UpdateNow Client
The Castanet UpdateNow client provides basic updating and delivery services (without an user interface). It allows administrators to provide controlled, automatic delivery of the latest software versions, files, and documents to internal employees. The UpdateNow client consists of an administrative client and user client. Administration does not require programming or advanced technical expertise, and an administrator can manage updates centrally or from any workstation on the network.

The person in charge of distributing specific files simply creates an UpdateNow (".upd") command file that defines which folder on the users' systems the updated files should go into, and which Castanet Transmitter and channel they should come from. Users simply double-click on the UpdateNow command file or Web link. This launches the UpdateNow client, which follows the command file's instructions for retrieving or updating an application or document. Command files can even be placed in the computer's start-up folder so that they will be launch every time the system is turned on.

Stand-alone Application with Embedded UpdateNow Library (SDK):
The Castanet UpdateNow SDK is ideal for ISVs and in-house developers with existing applications. Once "Castanet-enabled," these existing applications become self-managing and self-updating over intranets, extranets, and the Internet. ISVs and in-house developers can distribute their applications in ways they are accustomed to-- through CD-ROMs or floppies. With the UpdateNow library embedded, these applications no longer need to be manually maintained or updated, and can instead support point-of-use updates over the network (even down to the byte-level), capture user feedback, provide personalization, and support disconnected use.

The Castanet UpdateNow SDK has an extremely small footprint (60 Kbytes) and is extremely easy to integrate. With UpdateNow SDK, no Tuner is required. Instead the library is integrated into Windows or Java applications so they work directly with the Transmitter.

Net-enabled device with embedded UpdateNow Library (SDK):
Device manufacturers can also take advantage of Castanet UpdateNow SDK to add value to their devices, be they components, peripherals, or systems like PDAs, NCs, or cell-phones. By integrating the UpdateNow library, devices become instantly smarter--able to self-update themselves and associated services automatically. Castanet UpdateNow provides manufacturers the solution they need to increase brand loyalty, reduce time-to-market, support automatic upgrades at the point-of-use, and avoid commoditization.

With its extremely small footprint, the Castanet UpdateNow SDK is remarkably portable and easy to integrate.

Maintaining and Updating Channels
The Castanet Transmitter server and clients work together to automatically keep channels current. When the client discovers that a channel has been updated, it requests the update from the Transmitter. Castanet software is uniquely efficient, sending only those parts of a channel that have changed. It can even send changes as small as a single byte.

For example, a productivity application could be distributed as a Castanet channel. Then, as features are added and bugs fixed, channel subscribers would receive those updates automatically or on demand, ensuring that they always have the latest, complete application.

The Castanet Tuner is itself a Castanet channel, and is also automatically maintained and updated.

Capturing Channel Feedback
Through the BackChannel Transmitter feature, the Castanet system makes it easy for channel creators to capture subscriber feedback. For instance, a company might want its channel to log and return information about subscriber preferences or about which channel features subscribers are using most.

Personalizing Channels
The Castanet Transmitter can be extended with plug-ins, allowing channel creators to personalize channels and content on a subscriber-by-subscriber basis. A plug-in is a piece of code that provides arbitrary server-side analysis or processing. Any channel can be extended with a plug-in.

Plug-ins can be used to access a corporate database, to perform complex calculations, or to change a channel's capabilities or information on the fly for each subscriber. An internal expense-report channel could use a plug-in to save each expense report to a central database, while a human-resource benefits channel could be personalized to display only the information relevant to each individual employee.

Plug-ins communicate with Castanet Transmitter servers through the Plug-in API Transmitter feature.

Minimizing Cross-Firewall Traffic
Castanet Proxy software minimizes the load on corporate firewall machines, thus maximizing performance for subscribers inside the firewall. Like an HTTP proxy, the Castanet Proxy caches frequently requested channels to minimize cross-firewall traffic and provide prompt response to subscribers inside the firewall who are receiving channels from the Internet.

Scaling to Millions of Subscribers
Castanet Transmitters can be scaled to accommodate millions of subscribers through the use of Castanet Repeater servers. Repeaters can be located wherever the need is greatest: locally, to support a heavily used Transmitter; or geographically dispersed, to better serve subscribers in multiple regions. A Transmitter and its Repeaters automatically work together, with no administrative burden. A Transmitter can have any number of Repeaters.

Castanet Components At-a-Glance

Castanet Transmitters are server software that sends Castanet channels to clients efficiently and reliably. Version 2.0 is available for Windows NT 4.0, Windows 95, and Solaris 2.5 systems. Requires 16 MB of memory and a minimum of 10 MB of hard disk space, plus additional disk space for your channels.

Castanet Clients receives and manages channel subscriptions requested by subscribers.

Castanet UpdateNow SDK
The UpdateNow SDK lets in-house developers, ISVs or device manufacturers build automatic or on-demand update capabilities into their software products.

Castanet Proxy
Reduces the burden on firewall machines and improves performance for systems inside the firewall. Version 2.0 is available for Windows NT 4.0, Windows 95, and Solaris 2.5 systems. It is also available as a Netscape Proxy Plug-in.

Castanet Repeater
Provides increased transmission capacity for local or remote subscribers. Version 2.0 is available for Windows NT 4.0, Windows 95, and Solaris 2.5 systems.

Castanet Transmitter Gateway
Enables a Castanet Transmitter to share port 80 with an HTTP server on a single machine. Version 2.0 is available for Windows NT 4.0, Windows 95, and Solaris 2.5 systems.

 

Copyright Marimba, Inc. All rights reserved. 440 Clyde Avenue, Mountain View, CA 94043, www.marimba.com, 1996-1997. Marimba, the Marimba logo, Castanet, UpdateNow, Castanet Secure, Castanet FileBroker are trademarks of Marimba, Inc. Windows and Visual Basic are registered trademarks and Windows NT is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. Solaris is a registered trademark and Java is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. All other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies.