Novell has been undergoing a significant evolution since the release of NetWare 6.5 in September 2003. The acquisition of open source software leaders Ximian and SuSE has committed Novell to an open source–friendly strategy that promises a whole new world of possibilities for Novell products and services. Open Enterprise Server (OES) is the first major integration of Novell’s open source strategy with its existing proprietary software business, and it provides an extremely flexible platform for delivering information services for today’s complex network and information environments. Embracing the open source movement and Internet standards is a logical step in fulfilling Novell’s One Net vision, in which users are empowered through robust, integrated, and secure identity services to get what they need, when they need it—regardless of location.
Fortunately, you NetWare faithful need not despair, because Open Enterprise Server is all about adding open source options such as SuSE Linux to your network arsenal, and not replacement of NetWare. The result is a tightly integrated solution that provides you even more flexibility and choice for delivering One Net. You have the ability to use NetWare where it makes sense for you, use Linux where it makes sense for you, and then administer services on either type of server through a common set of management tools.
Regardless of the platform you decide upon to deliver your critical network services, delivering a transparent Net for your users will make things more complex on the back end. As an OES administrator, particularly if you are not already familiar with NetWare 6.5, you will be faced with a host of new features and technologies that are extending the applicability and value of NetWare like never before. For you, the question is not only how to make these technologies work, but how to keep your network running smoothly as these capabilities are introduced. To do this you can arm yourself with information from many different resources: architecture manuals, online documentation, magazines, books, technical websites, and even the phone numbers of your most knowledgeable acquaintances. With the powerful capabilities and web-friendly focus of OES, you will likely tap all these resources at one time or another to make sure you have a handle on everything you need to manage your network properly.
But you don’t always need all of this information. When you are administering a network, there are three principal tasks that occupy most of your time: installation, configuration, and maintenance. You don’t want to wade through periodicals, websites, or product docs searching for that one detail that you can’t quite remember. You just need quick access to the information about a technology, concept, or utility so you can get the job done. Novell Open Enterprise Server Administrator’s Handbook, NetWare Edition has been written with those needs in mind.
Filled with concept overviews, installation procedures, configuration options, and reference materials, this handbook can be your quick reference to the daily tasks associated with OES on the NetWare platform. The Instant Access pages at the beginning of each chapter help you immediately identify the information, utilities, and commands necessary to perform common tasks. So keep this book handy and spend less time looking for information and more time managing your network.
OES continues down the NetWare path first blazed by NetWare 6 and then matured by NetWare 6.5, so if you have been working with either of these products you will likely be comfortable with where OES is going. If you are coming from a world of NetWare 5.1 or prior, or from a non-NetWare background, you are going to be exposed to a paradigm of web-based network management. OES is a powerful web-oriented platform that delivers a consistent, location-independent view of a user’s data and resources—One Net. OES capabilities are designed around three main value propositions:
Virtual office
Secure business infrastructure
Powerful web services
Your virtual office enables you to have consistent access and views of the data and systems your users need to do their jobs, regardless of location, time, or access method. Virtual office capabilities of OES include
eGuide
iFolder
iPrint
Instant messaging
Virtual teams
Quickfinder
A secure business infrastructure keeps your business flowing in the face of constant change and an uncertain world. OES helps you prepare for nearly any eventuality, physical or electronic. Secure business infrastructure features in OES include
iSCSI storage networks
Snapshot backup
Patterned deployment
Secure remote administration and upgrade
Environment integration
“Web services” is probably one of the most overused phrases you will run into, but the fact remains that there is tremendous value in being able to harness the World Wide Web to your business strategies. OES has several capabilities that will help you do just that:
Apache Web Server 2
MySQL database
Perl and PHP scripting languages
Remote, web-based support and management tools
The major components and features of OES NetWare are explained in the chapters and appendixes of this book. To help organize the chapters for a logical flow, easier for you to navigate, they have been organized into four parts.
Chapter 1 provides a high-level introduction and review of OES and its major components.
Chapter 2 explains the various installation options available with OES NetWare, including new server installation, server upgrade, and the new patterned deployment.
Chapter 3 explains the install and upgrade procedures for the various Novell clients that ship with OES. As you will see, there is less focus on the traditional Novell Client in favor of new web-friendly ways to access the network.
Chapter 4 introduces the suite of management tools used in Novell Networks. This includes the legacy ConsoleOne management tool along with the new generation of web-based management tools, including iManager, iMonitor, and Novell Remote Manager (NoRM).
Chapter 5 introduces OES NetWare console-based utilities and commands that are available for server management. It also presents valuable information for optimizing and maintaining your NetWare servers as part of your OES infrastructure.
Chapter 6 introduces Novell eDirectory and the basic administrative tasks and maintenance operations that will keep the directory running smoothly. It also discusses the LDAP and DNS/DHCP capabilities of eDirectory.
Chapter 7 explains how eDirectory is used to manage network users and groups effectively. It also presents the fundamentals of network security and presents the options available to you for making your network safe from attack, including NetWare’s powerful Nsure Audit system.
Chapter 8 explains the ins and outs of OES NetWare multiprocessor support, including installation, configuration, and available multiprocessor services. It also introduces NetWare clustering services with support for up to 32-way clustering.
Chapter 9 discusses Identity Manager Bundle Edition, which enables you to start synchronizing data between the different directories you might be using, including Novell eDirectory, Microsoft Active Directory and NT Domains.
Chapter 10 introduces Novell Storage Services, NetWare’s Distributed File System (DFS), and the new iSCSI-based storage area network capabilities of OES. It also describes the default OES NetWare Backup/Restore capabilities with Storage Management Services (SMS).
Chapter 11 introduces Novell Distributed Print Services (NDPS) and iPrint services that leverage the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) to deliver true print capability from anywhere to anywhere.
Chapter 12 introduces the many ways to access files and data on your OES servers, as well as making web data much more accessible. Features include iFolder, NetStorage, and FTP server.
Chapter 13 introduces the foundation for powerful OES web services: the Apache Web Server and the Tomcat Servlet engine.
Chapter 14 describes the Web Services available from OES, including Virtual Office, eGuide, and Quickfinder. It also introduces additional OES NetWare services, including MySQL database, and support for popular scripting tools such as OpenSSH, Perl and PHP.
In addition to all the material covered in the chapters, there are several appendixes that provide a valuable reference for NetWare administrators:
Appendix A comprises a comprehensive discussion of login script syntax and construction rules.
Appendix B lists the DS Trace options available from NRM. It also describes the most common eDirectory error codes and provides information on how to troubleshoot these errors.
Appendix C provides information on a variety of additional resources you can turn to for more help or information.
Novell Open Enterprise Server Administrator’s Handbook, NetWare Edition is not designed to introduce you to the world of data networking. To cover the broad feature set in OES we have to assume that you, as an IT professional, are familiar with the underlying concepts, technologies, and protocols upon which today’s networks are built. You will see some brief introductions to concepts as necessary to introduce features, but this is not a reference work for network theory, protocols, or architectures.
You most likely have an existing network of some sort into which you are, or will soon be, introducing OES. You know the network architectures, topologies, protocols, and clients with which you will be working. Novell Open Enterprise Server Administrator’s Handbook, NetWare Edition helps you understand how to integrate the benefits of OES into your existing environment.
This book focuses on the implementation of OES on the NetWare platform. Due to the sheer amount of information involved, implementing OES on SuSE Linux will be the topic of a separate book.