Novell’s Open Enterprise Server (OES) is a secure, highly available information platform that provides powerful networking, communication, collaboration, and application services in an open environment.
As network operating systems have increasingly become commodities, Novell has recognized that the way to provide value to its customers is not to lock them into a single technology foundation. To that end, OES incorporates the best of both open source and enterprise network operating systems—NetWare 6.5 and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9 (SLES)—with a common set of services, applications, and management tools.
With the release of OES, organizations can choose NetWare, SUSE Linux, or a combination of both platforms, as dictated by real business needs. Moreover, common management, directory, and upgrade utilities enable organizations to manage both platforms with a single set of tools, simplifying daily administration.
With OES, Novell demonstrates its commitment to its traditional NetWare customers while embracing the power and new opportunity represented by Linux and the open source movement.
OES enables you to deploy any combination of NetWare-based and Linux-based technologies. Core OES components include
The NetWare 6.5 support pack 3 operating system and all related NetWare 6.5 services
SLES 9 operating system, based on the Linux v2.6 kernel, and all SLES 9-related services
The latest Novell Nterprise Linux Services
Common management tools that enable seamless coexistence and management of the two operating systems
Given that NetWare and Linux are very different operating systems, it’s not surprising to find a certain amount of variation of the services available between the platforms. Novell has provided a broad set of common services, but there still exist some specific differences.
Table 1.1 lists major OES services and the platform on which they are offered, as well as the sections of this book in which they are addressed. Because most of the services are available on both platforms, organizations can freely pick and choose services and implement them on the platform that makes the most sense for their specific environment.
Table 1.1. Platform support for OES Services
|
OES SERVICE |
PLATFORM |
DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|---|
Imanager |
Both |
Web-based OES administration console |
Novell Remote Manager |
Both |
Web-based NetWare and Linux operating system management console |
Imonitor |
Both |
Web-based eDirectory monitoring and maintenance console |
Novell Client |
Both |
Client utility used to access NetWare and Linux NCP services |
NetIdentity |
Both |
Service that provides background eDirectory authentication to those services that require it, without user intervention |
NMAS Client |
Both |
Provides client support for advanced authentication and security methods |
ConsoleOne |
NetWare |
Java-based NetWare management console (Linux version is available for download.) |
NetWare |
File redirector used to map local drives without the full Novell Client |
|
Native File Access |
NetWare |
Service that provides connectivity to NetWare server resources for Windows, Apple, and Unix clients (Linux provides similar functionality through NFS and Samba.) |
Package Management |
Linux |
OES components managed via YaST |
Novell eDirectory |
Both |
Comprehensive, LDAP-enabled directory service |
DNS/DHCP services |
Both |
Suite of IP address management utilities |
Nsure Identity Manager Bundle Edition |
Both |
User password synchronization services |
Novell Storage Services (NSS) |
Both |
Robust, journaling file system format |
Cluster support |
Both |
High availability and manageability of critical network resources |
Multiprocessor support |
Both |
Hardware with a threaded architecture that enables processes to run on multiple processors simultaneously |
Console Utilities |
Both |
Granular configuration and management options for the NetWare and Linux operating systems |
Novell International Cryptographic Infrastructure (NICI) |
Both |
Foundation for robust cryptographic and security features in eDirectory |
Novell Modular Authentication Service (NMAS) |
Both |
Service that provides desktop support for a robust set of authentication and security methods |
Nsure Audit |
NetWare |
Centralized, cross-platform auditing service |
Open WBEM CIMOM |
Linux |
Web-based Linux management infrastructure |
Linux |
eDirectory-enabled Linux user management |
|
NCP Server |
Linux |
NetWare Core Protocol services available on Linux; core component of NetWare |
iPrint |
Both |
Internet Printing Protocol (IPP–based printer management |
iFolder |
Both |
Individual, server-based file storage and synchronization service |
Storage Management Services (SMS) |
Both Advanced backup, restore, and data migration services |
|
iSCSI support |
Both |
IP-based SCSI storage network |
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) Server |
Both Traditional method for accessing files on the Net |
|
NetStorage |
Both |
Secure file storage and Internet-based access |
Distributed File System (DFS) |
NetWare |
eDirectory-based access to distributed NetWare file structure |
Nterprise Branch Office |
NetWare |
Robust “appliance” servers completely manageable from the central office |
Samba |
Linux |
Open source implementation of Microsoft SMB/CIFS protocol (NetWare provides this service via Native File Access component.) |
Apache Web Server |
Both |
Extremely powerful and popular open source web server |
Tomcat Servlet Engine |
Both |
Web application container used to provide Java Servlet and Java Server Page support in the Apache Web Server |
Java Virtual Machine (JVM) |
Both |
Java interpreter used by OES web-based management consoles |
Both |
Web-based eDirectory query tool, typically used for directory-based white pages |
|
Virtual Office |
Both |
Web-based workgroup collaboration environment |
Quickfinder |
Both |
Website indexing server |
MySQL Database |
Both |
Open source, structured query language (SQL) database |
OpenSSH |
Both |
Secure shell server used for remote server access |
Perl and PHP |
Both |
Powerful scripting languages |
The remainder of this book discusses each of the NetWare-supported services that are noted in Table 1.1. Common administrative information for each service is provided, including installation, configuration, and ongoing maintenance/troubleshooting.