Logo of NetWare, this variant introduced with NetWare 4.x. The symbol is a tilted rendition of Novell's "teeth" logo used until 1996.
Developer
Novell, Inc.
Working state
Discontinued
Source model
Closed source
Initial release
1983
Final release
6.5 SP8 (last) / 6 May 2009; 14 years ago (2009-05-06)
Available in
English
Platforms
x86, MIPS, DEC Alpha, SPARC, PowerPC[1]
Kernel type
Hybrid kernel
Default user interface
Command-line interface, text user interface
License
Proprietary
Succeeded by
Open Enterprise Server
Official website
novell.com/netware
NetWare[2] is a discontinued computer network operating system developed by Novell, Inc. It initially used cooperative multitasking to run various services on a personal computer, using the IPX network protocol.
The original NetWare product in 1983 supported clients running both CP/M and MS-DOS, ran over a proprietary star network topology and was based on a Novell-built file server using the Motorola 68000 processor. The company soon moved away from building its own hardware, and NetWare became hardware-independent, running on any suitable Intel-based IBM PC compatible system, and able to utilize a wide range of network cards. From the beginning NetWare implemented a number of features inspired by mainframe and minicomputer systems that were not available in its competitors' products.
In 1991, Novell introduced cheaper peer-to-peer networking products for DOS and Windows, unrelated to their server-centric NetWare. These are NetWare Lite 1.0 (NWL), and later Personal NetWare 1.0 (PNW) in 1993.
In 1993, the main NetWare product line took a dramatic turn when version 4 introduced NetWare Directory Services (NDS, later renamed eDirectory), a global directory service based on ISO X.500 concepts (six years later, Microsoft released Active Directory). The directory service, along with a new e-mail system (GroupWise), application configuration suite (ZENworks), and security product (BorderManager) were all targeted at the needs of large enterprises.
By 2000, however, Microsoft was taking more of Novell's customer base and Novell increasingly looked to a future based on a Linux kernel. The successor to NetWare, Open Enterprise Server (OES), released in March 2005, offers all the services previously hosted by NetWare 6.5, but on a SUSE Linux Enterprise Server; the NetWare kernel remained an option until OES 11 in late 2011.
The final update release was version 6.5SP8 of May 2009; NetWare is no longer on Novell's product list.[3] NetWare 6.5SP8 General Support ended in 2010; Extended Support was available until the end of 2015, and Self Support until the end of 2017. The replacement is Open Enterprise Server.[4]
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The NetWare Core Protocol (NCP) is a network protocol used in some products from Novell, Inc. It is usually associated with the client-server operating...
NetWare Lite and Personal NetWare are a series of discontinued peer-to-peer local area networks developed by Novell for DOS- and Windows-based personal...
Features To Advanced Netware". InfoWorld. pp. 1, 8. DiDio, Laura (1988-05-16). "Novell unveils LAN gear, new version of NetWare". Network World. pp. 4...
performed with a specialized command, like "NCOPY" in DOS clients for Novell NetWare. The COPY command in some versions of DR-DOS since 1992, has built-in support...
2000 and higher, the root user is the Administrator account. In Novell NetWare, the superuser was called "supervisor", later "admin". In OpenVMS, "SYSTEM"...
other directories. A NetWare kernel module is referred to as a NetWare Loadable Module (NLM). NLMs are inserted into the NetWare kernel by means of the...
and mid-1990s because it was used by Novell NetWare, a network operating system. Due to Novell NetWare's popularity, IPX became a prominent protocol for...
different userlands. OES-NetWare is NetWare v6.5 equipped with NetWare Loadable Modules for various Novell services (such as NetWare Core Protocol, Novell...
Server, Novell NetWare, LANtastic, Solaris or Linux. RIPL is similar to Preboot Execution Environment (PXE), but it uses the Novell NetWare-based boot method...
related to the hardware change or by coincidence, Apple also abandoned its NetWare on PowerPC development (codename: Wormhole) at this time. The general logic...
token of the PROMPT command, as set up by f.e. login scripts for Novell NetWare. See also the similarly named pseudo-variable %LOGIN_NAME%. %MDOS_EXEC%...
includes an implementation of NetBIOS atop IPX/SPX. NWLink packages data to be compatible with client/server services on NetWare Networks. However, NWLink...
Before SCO licensed UnixWare in 1995, Novell had also announced a project to create a "SuperNOS" based on NetWare 4.1 and UnixWare 2.0 technologies in the...
traffic ran over "raw" 802.3 carrying IPX. Since NetWare 4.10, NetWare defaults to IEEE 802.2 with LLC (NetWare Frame Type Ethernet_802.2) when using IPX. Some...
NetWare, OpenVMS and Unix environments. Deduplication of backup data is provided by integration with Dell EMC Data Domain products. A central NetWorker...
Apple Filing Protocol (AFP), NetWare Core Protocol (NCP), and OS/400 File Server file system (QFileSvr.400). SMB and NetWare Core Protocol (NCP) occur more...
NetWars (originally called LiteYear) is an IPX-based 3D vector-graphics computer game released by Novell in 1993 for DOS to demonstrate NetWare capabilities...
NetWare Link Services Protocol (NLSP) is a routing protocol for Internetwork Packet Exchange based on the Intermediate-System-to-Intermediate-System (IS-IS)...
for classic applications. NetWare, which is a network-oriented operating system, used cooperative multitasking up to NetWare 6.5. Cooperative multitasking...
As strictly an API, NetBIOS is not a networking protocol. Operating systems of the 1980s (DOS and Novell Netware primarily) ran NetBIOS over IEEE 802.2...
Services. NDS was initially released by Novell in 1993 for Netware 4, replacing the Netware bindery mechanism used in previous versions, for centrally...
platforms, including Linux and Windows for the server software (support for NetWare was discontinued in GroupWise 2012). Client software is supported on Windows...
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