Definition of NetWare in the Network Encyclopedia.
What is NetWare?
NetWare was a network operating system from Novell that wass widely used in local area networks (LANs). NetWare was created by Novell in the early 1980s.
NetWare versions 2 and 3 were essentially used for LAN-based file and print servers running the Internetwork Packet Exchange (IPX) protocol that were administered by menu-driven MS-DOS-based utilities such as syscon, filer, fconsole, pconsole, and monitor. NetWare 4 offers a more scalable solution by providing Novell Directory Services (NDS). The hierarchical NDS allows users to locate and access shared resources anywhere on the network regardless of their physical location.
NDS supports the TCP/IP protocol and the Windows-based administration tool nwadmin, which replaced most of the menu-driven MS-DOS–based administration tools for managing an entire NetWare 4–based network from a single location. NetWare 4 also supports single-network logon, in which users log on once to the NDS tree, are authenticated, and can then find and access all resources on the network for which they have appropriate permissions. Other internal system enhancements enable NetWare 4 to provide improved performance for file and print services.
NetWare 5, the latest version, includes support for native Internet Protocol (IP), Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), Domain Name System (DNS), and a new multiprocessing kernel with virtual memory support.
Windows NT and Windows 2000 services for NetWare
Microsoft Windows NT and Windows 2000 offer many services for interoperating with and migrating from NetWare servers and networks, including the following:
- NWLink IPX/SPX-Compatible Transport
- Gateway Service for NetWare (GSNW)
- Client Services for NetWare (CSNW)
- File and Print Services for NetWare (FPNW)
- Migration Tool for NetWare
See Netware v3.12 working
See also:
