"NetWare 4.1 has been optimized to provide enhanced network access, to lower the costs of ownership, and to improve networking productivity. In the remainder of this section, we'll discuss the specific additions, improvements and enhancements introduced in NetWare 4.1.
COST OF OWNERSHIP IMPROVEMENTS
When looking at the cost of owning a network, NOS software accounts for only 2-3 percent of the overall cost. Even including total hardware and software components for a network, these make up less than 30 percent of all costs (Gartner Group Research Note, 2-7-94). This leads to Gartner's overwhelming conclusion that the most significant costs over a network's life cycle come from network administration and management. In fact, Gartner estimates that 73 percent of a network's life cycle cost is associated with administrative and other personnel costs. For this reason, Novell has addressed lowering the ownership costs of NetWare networks with NetWare 4.1 in a variety of ways.
At the hardware level, NetWare 4 increases the capacity of existing server storage subsystems with a background disk compression utility. Optimized for retrieval, this utility doubles the capacity of a hard disk. Because compression occurs in the background, storage is optimized so that retrieval time is unaffected by the decompression routines. This means users experience no delays owing to compression. Unlike DOS-based schemes which compress the entire drive, NetWare 4.1 uses a file-by-file technique that is inherently more efficient and reliable. For enhanced use of storage space, NetWare 4 also includes block suballocation technology, which lets small files, or the tail ends of large files, share disk pages. This reduces the amount of disk that may be wasted by so-called 'slack space.' Some early NetWare 4 adopters report that the savings in disk space afforded by NetWare 4 more than repaid their upgrade costs.
To lower the associated costs of working with heterogeneous clients, NetWare 4 now includes complete support for the Macintosh, formerly available from Novell as an added-cost option. Novell includes the same client software and server modules with the core NOS that used to be included with the NetWare for Macintosh product. This offering includes full AppleTalk routing and protocol support, AppleTalk print services, as well as client protocol software which affords the ability to use both AppleTalk and IPX protocols from workstations.
To improve NetWare 4.1's manageability, the product supplies optional access to SNMP management information for workstations and servers. This capability is available for use with either Novell or third-party SNMP-based management systems, supplying improved graphical access to server-specific characteristics, and monitoring data from any workstation on the network.
Even though price accounts for only two to three percent of the overall cost of a network operating system, Novell has lowered the price of NetWare 4.1 to equal NetWare 3.12. And Novell has implemented additive licensing which allows customers to easily match (in increments of five) the number of simultaneous user connections needed.
Evaluating the impact of NetWare 4.1's enhanced Directory Services, a recent study by the META Group ('Workgroup Computing Strategies: NetWare 4.X Cost Model' 6-8-94), concludes that NetWare 4.1 lowers the cost of network administration by an estimated 25 percent primarily through the use of a single, centralized directory service to organize, maintain, and administer PC-based networks. NetWare 4.1's administrative utilities have been significantly re-engineered to provide simpler, better consolidated tools and controls for managing NetWare networks. Better integration with older bindery-based NetWare versions NetWare 2 and NetWare 3 lets NDS do more to manage older servers, allowing organizations to migrate to NteWare 4 as their needs and budgets dictate, without losing the advantages of the newer NetWare technology. In its development of NetWare 4, Novell stresses solutions that lower human costs. Analysts such as Gartner Group and META appear to endorse this philosophy, given that the life cycle costs for a network are heavily weighted toward administration and management. If their analyzes are accurate, the saving inherent in this approach could more than cover the costs of NetWare itself.
For more information on cost of ownership improvements, please contact your local Novell office or reseller and ask for the NetWare 4 Reducing Cost of Ownership White Paper (part number 462-000468-001).
EASE OF USE
NDS provides a set of management and administration utilities that allow an entire organization to be controlled from a single point. Because the NDS database can be replicated and distributed, it also supports multiple simultaneous administrators active in the database, with full concurrency control. Administrators can manage the portions of the network for which they are responsible without having to worry about conflicts or update inconsistencies. Studies from Gartner and META stress the importance of centralized management for distributed environments. Novell has tried to embody this function in a simple, straightforward implementation in NetWare 4.1.
With NetWare Directory Services' tree management tools, administrators can change directory structures easily and quickly. This greatly lessens the effort required to design a directory, because it allows time and experience to help shape the resulting structures. It also grants the flexibility to let the directory change with the organization.
With NDS, connecting to printers, locating fax machines, scanners, or other peripherals, using host or telephone connection is possible as the application issues a basic request for such connections or services. Applications which can ask the network for and receive what they need to make locating and supplying references to fonts, printers, drivers, etc. a thing of the past.
NetWare 4.1 adds direct support for networked CD-ROM volumes to its resources. In addition to speeding installation, this lets users get access to CD-ROM based information across the network.
The new DynaText viewer for search and perusal of electronic manuals offers quicker response time for scrolling and searching, an enhanced graphical user interface including a toolbar, viewers for Windows, Macintosh, OS/2, and UnixWare, inline graphics to fully mimic printed manuals, and the capability to insert public or private 'sticky' notes and bookmarks into online manuals. Relevant help information and manual references are only a keystroke away whenever operating inside the NetWare environment.
NetWare 4 requires administrators to learn only 60 percent of the utilities present in previous versions. NDS made so many function consolidations possible that despite the introduction of new utilities for storage management, added protocols, and optical devices, NetWare presents a more consistent, easier to learn interface to its operators.
The NetWare 4 installation process has also been greatly streamlined, beyond the convenience of CD-ROM-based software loading. Smaller networks or installations using default configurations may be almost automatic. More complex installations are supported by questionnaires and planning guides which walk administrators through the process before getting started. Multiple products and services may be installed together from a simple menu of options.
Existing NetWare installations now have multiple options, including a NetWare Migration utility and the NetWare In-Place Upgrade NLM. The workstation-based migration utility lets administrators transfer network information from a NetWare 2 or NetWare 3 server to an existing NetWare 4 server on the same network with very little effort. The server-based, In-Place Upgrade utility allows administrators to transform a server running NetWare 2 or later versions into a NetWare 4 server by working through an interactive upgrade procedure. Integrity checks require the software to report on newer versions of files and components, allowing administrators to choose the appropriate items to be used in assembling a new NetWare version.
A new set of powerful graphical utilities browse the NDS directory and support transparent connections to authorized network resources and services. This greatly simplifies network use and nearly eliminates the need for explicit network navigation.
Through the auto-reconnect capability, client workstations can be dynamically reconnected to networks or servers when a connection is lost. At present, NDS directory access is available to DOS, Windows, OS/2, Macintosh, Windows NT, and UnixWare clients.
NetWare 4.1 also supports a NetWare Bindery Synchronizer, called NetSync, which provides centralized administration of mixed NetWare 4 and NetWare 3 networks. This also allows easy, gradual migration from NetWare 3 and NetWare Name Service (NNS) software to NetWare 4. NetSync is a set of NetWare Loadable Module (NLM) programs that allow a network supervisor to use NetWare 4 administrative utilities to manage bindery objects on up to 12 NetWare 3 servers using a NetWare 4.1 server. NetSync automatically synchronizes updates to user and group objects made on a NetWare 4 NDS server to the NetWare 3 servers. Both environments are kept current and consistent automatically.
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS
NetWare 4 includes protocol enhancements that offer significant performance improvements (as much as 400 percent over some types of long-haul connections, like VSAT or X.25). IPX service advertisements that normally occur at 60-second intervals quickly become burdensome on narrow-bandwidth long-haul connections, where every bit counts. To this end, Novell has introduced a restriction mechanism for service advertisements in NetWare 4, which prevents unnecessary traffic from incressing over slow links.
NetWare 4.1 also includes support for a new routing protocol, called the NetWare Link Services Protocol (NLSP), which adds state-of-the-art routing capability to IPX. Unlike the older IPX RIP protocol, it uses a dynamic update mechanism so that router update traffic is generated only when routers enter or leave the network. NLSP also supports multiple routes between networks and can preferentially route traffic over lower-cost links. This new protocol can support much larger and more complex networks effectively.
For more efficient data transfer over both local- and wide-area links, NetWare 4 includes support for transfer of large IPX packets (LIP) and a sliding-window IPX protocol (PBURST). Increasing packet size improves the overhead ratio for data transfer and reduces transit time. Sliding window protocols reduce the number of acknowledgments necessary to manage data transfer over the network by allowing a single acknowledgment to cover multiple packets.
NetWare 4.1 includes installation options to support AppleTalk and TCP/IP protocols, including routing, making it the most powerful multiprotocol NOS available today. NetWare 4.1 also includes Macintosh NDS client software, to augment built-in AppleTalk with access to NetWare's Directory services.
NetWare 4.1 includes a collection of revised and improved client software, supporting connectivity for workstations running DOS, Windows, OS/2, and Macintosh. Any of these can connect to the same NetWare server and share information and networking services, including NDS.
NetWare 4.1 also offers a new and improved device driver architecture, called the NetWare Peripheral Architecture (NPA). NPA allows broader driver support for host adapters and connected hardware devices. NPA separates NetWare driver support into a Host Adapter Module (HAM) component and a Custom Device Module (CDM) component. NPA's advantages include better scalability, especially for devices like RAID drive arrays and optical juke boxes. NPA also performs boot time scanning for devices and, given the presence of an appropriately loaded HAM, will automatically load the corresponding CDM. This driver architecture offers significant performance improvements for large-capacity storage devices. Developers will also find NPA easier to implement since building CDMs require less effort than conventional drivers, and works with standard pre-defined HAM components.
Finally, NetWare 4 detects the latest generation of Intel processors. It is the only version of NetWare (and the only commercially available NOS) that can take advantage of the Pentium's 4 MB block memory transfer capability, for faster memory access, and faster system I/O. All of these performance enhancements add further capability to a NOS that is widely regarded as a champion in servicing large numbers of users.
SECURITY & RELIABILITY
NetWare 4 is unmatched in its security and reliability. It includes industry-leading password key encryption and digital signature technology licensed from RSA Data Security, Inc. NetWare 4.1 also offers greater options for fault tolerance than any other commercially available NOS.
After login, NetWare 4 users obtain a private key that is used in tandem with a public key to request and obtain additional network resources. The keys are assigned using RSA session-specific public-private key technology, thereby removing the risk that network traffic could be captured and used for break-ins.
NetWare 4 also includes an RSA-based digital signature capability which authenticates user identities for financial and other electronic transactions. This ensures that targeted individuals have authorized particular network transactions or information exchanges. Many experts view this technology as essential to extending the ability of individuals and organizations to conduct business electronically.
NetWare 4.1 also offers the first directory-aware implementation of NetWare that is fully fault tolerant. It incorporates technology developed for Novell's NetWare SFT Level III with the power and capability of NetWare 4. Failure of a primary network server automatically causes a backup server to take over, and auto-reconnect and session integrity management mechanisms virtually guarantee that no data gets lost. No other NOS offers this functionality.
NetWare 4 offers other levels of fault tolerance that include duplicate file allocation tables to protect file and directory structures from damage, and support for redundant storage subsystems to safeguard valuable data resources. Organizations can simply balance these costs against the value of their data and pick an appropriate level of protection, while Novell's advanced system reliability features ensure that power or component failures cause minimal or no downtime, with a very low probability of outright data loss.
CONNECTIVITY & SERVICES
NetWare 4.1 offers built-in support for Macintosh and IPX client protocols, added to support for DOS, Windows, OS/2, and UNIX, to provide the richest cross-platform networking environments available today.
Novell's NetWare for SAA offers unparalleled access to IBM host environments, with add-on products for NetView-based network management, host communications, file transfer, terminal emulation, and distributed host applications that even IBM cannot match. Novell offers support for TCP/IP-based networks, including native NFS, FTP, and other IP-based application services, and the ability to use TCP/IP as NetWare's own basic transport, through the inclusion of Novell's NetWare/IP with NetWare 4.1. Third-party implementations can extend NetWare's reach into the OSI, LAN Server, Banyan VINES, and Windows NT environments.
In partnership with AT&T, Novell is also readying NetWare Connect Services for delivery to the business marketplace. This service includes an IPX network registry to guarantee unique network identification and addresses and ensure global connectivity for all participants. AT&T is working to deliver the infrastructure necessary to let organizations internetwork together using NetWare so that a worldwide IPX Internet can be created, resulting in the ability of NetWare users anywhere to interact with other NetWare users to exploit global information and communications resources.
Building on the powerful capabilities of Novell's collection of core services, these enhanced services extend the capabilities of NetWare networks. As computing becomes truly pervasive, NetWare will be the hub for networking, data management, communications, and operational and environmental controls of all kinds.
PARTNERSHIPS
NetWare 4.1 boasts third-party support for numerous additional services and resources. NetWare has also created a market for numerous add-on system components:
- Server hardware management systems are available from vendors like Compaq, Dell, and ALR; these systems make it as easy to manage server hardware through NetWare management facilities as it is to manage server software today.
- UPS management systems are available from companies like American Power Conversion and Minuteman; these systems can report on power fluctuations and failures, and even page system administrators in the event of serious power interruptions.
- Hierarchical storage systems are available from companies like Palindrome, Micropolis and Storage Dimensions, and add the ability to greatly extend NetWare's storage capacity to 100 GB and beyond, with automatic migration of files from faster media to slower ones as they age, and with automatic retrieval when requested.
- Continuous backup systems available from companies like Arcada, Legato Systems, Palindrome, and Cheyenne Software, make it easy to archive all files from the network, and to retrieve them on demand, in addition to providing more straightforward backup/restore operations.
This by no means exhausts NetWare 4.1's third-party support, but should give readers a small taste of what's available.
One of Novell's strengths as a company, and of NetWare as a platform, is the support it enjoys from third parties. Novell's Developer Programs currently serve over 30,000 registered NetWare Developers, including some of the largest corporations in the world. The number of applications available for NetWare is greater than the 3,000-plus products currently included in one of Novell's 'Yes, It Runs with NetWare' registration or certification programs. Membership in these programs requires developers to adhere to development guidelines and to warrant their products' workability with NetWare. Membership in the Tested and Certified category requires vendors to submit their products for independent verification. Vendors assure users that their products will perform as expected and take steps to back up those claims.
In this section, we've tried to explore and explain all the features of NetWare 4.1 that make it beneficial to use in your organization. Throughout, we've stressed capabilities and products that are available today. Novell believes that when building a network for use today, the features and functions currently available are the most important consideration. In the next section, we'll take a look at how the competition stacks up against NetWare 4.1."
