Press Release

Novell Raises Bar for Software Industry, Elevates NetWare Customers

Networking Leader Leaps Ahead with NetWare 5 Beta 3, including World's Fastest Java Virtual Machine, Oracle8 Database, and Java Console

BRAINSHARE, SALT LAKE CITY — March 23, 1998 — The intelligent network server platform belongs to Novell. That is the message as the networking leader kicks off its annual developer conference here today with platform product news that raises the bar of network performance, scalability, and manageability across the entire software industry. Focusing this first day of the conference on Novell's NetWare® server platform and its support for intelligent network solutions enabled by Novell Directory Services™ (NDS™), Novell today announced:

  • The world's fastest Java Virtual Machine (JVM) for running server-based Java applications and services will be included with NetWare 5
  • The best-selling database, Oracle8, and the most widely used network platform, NetWare, will be in the same box
  • The third and final beta of NetWare 5 will be available by the end of April, keeping the new server platform on schedule for mid-year release and delivering scalable networking services using open standards
"The products are shipping, the benchmarks are in, and the results are clear," said Eric Schmidt, chairman and CEO of Novell, Inc. "Novell is delivering the network server platform against which all others will be measured. By listening to our customers and focusing on networking, the thing we do better than anyone else, we have brought into sight our goal of leadership in Internet software by the end of 1998. Our customers will continue to rely on a platform that elevates them above their industry counterparts, enabling new kinds of solutions and giving them an even broader competitive edge."

Fastest Java Virtual Machine

NetWare 5 will ship with the world's fastest Java environment. Independent tests by Key Labs, using the VolanoMark benchmark, certified the NetWare 5 JVM is more than twice as fast as the nearest contender, Microsoft's JVM on Windows NT Server. These benchmarks were measured using 200 connections running on Intel 300 MHz Pentium II hardware with 128 MB RAM. Preliminary results also indicate that Novell's JVM is many times faster than Java implementations for leading UNIX systems running on similarly priced hardware.

This breakthrough in JVM performance positions NetWare as the best server platform for running Java applications, providing users with fast access to applications and data by eliminating a significant amount of the performance penalty historically associated with Java applications. In addition, NetWare's server- side Java will allow developers to meet the performance requirements of large networks and mission- critical applications. The Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 1.1.5, including the JVM, is included in NetWare 5 Beta 3 and is also a part of Novell's Open Solutions Architecture™ (OSA) SDK.

"Novell's JVM is incredibly fast and provides an excellent server platform for our 100 percent Java-based suite of office information management applets," said Pete Grillo, president of PlusFactor Software, a leading developer of Java applications for small businesses (www.plusfactor.com). "Our initial experiences also show Novell's JVM to be very reliable. This breakthrough performance will definitely help Java applications like our Office Pack suite gain fast acceptance among Novell's huge base of over 70 million customers."

The Best of Both Worlds

Novell customers will get an integrated, directory-enabled database application solution offering superior performance and management starting with NetWare 5 Beta 3. With a complete five-user version of Oracle8 included in every box of NetWare 5, customers will automatically receive a high performance and scalable integrated application platform for deploying applications, including Java.

Shipping NetWare 5 Beta 3

The new features in the final phase of beta for NetWare 5 enhance its capabilities for developing, deploying and managing network solutions. The features work in concert with NDS to make NetWare 5 an IP-based enterprise network server platform for managing heterogeneous network resources such as applications, printers, files, databases, the company intranet and more. Novell will also continue to support IPX in NetWare 5 for customers who require a mixed environment. New elements in NetWare 5 Beta 3 include the following:

  • ConsoleOne — Code-named "Houston" during development, Novell ConsoleOne brings graphical user interface (GUI) management to the NetWare server console. By leveraging NDS, ConsoleOne provides administrators with flexible, role-based administration. This common framework is 100 percent Java and integrates Java applets and snap-ins allowing developers to build network management solutions with a common look and feel.
  • Enhanced NDS — NetWare 5 incorporates an enhanced version of NDS, Novell's industry-leading directory service. This new version includes support for the LDAP v.3 (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) standard to ensure customers of interoperability with other LDAP directories. Also new are directory catalog services to help administrators search the directory and more quickly access network information. NetWare 5 also provides improved directory performance and reduced network traffic to speed performance in wide-area networks.
  • New Installation and Migration — A new server setup routine reduces the time customers must spend preparing their server for a NetWare 5 installation. The Novell Migration Wizard has also been updated and included in NetWare 5 Beta 3 to provide customers automated migration for their move to NetWare 5.
"We're currently evaluating NetWare 5 on a test network as part of the NetWare 5 beta program," said Keith G. Momberg, lead network analyst at Lockheed Martin. "Although we have a mix of IP-only and token ring protocols, the most interesting NetWare 5 features we've seen so far are pure IP and Novell Storage Services (NSS). We have servers on our production network with multi-gigabyte disk arrays and we hope NSS will help ensure our maximum access to that data."

NetWare 5 Training and Certification

More than 290,000 Certified Novell Administrators (CNA) and 135,000 Certified Novell Engineers (CNE) will be able to upgrade their skills with new NetWare 5 CNA and CNE certifications. Courses will be available concurrent with product launch at more than 1,450 Novell Authorized Education Centers (NAEC) worldwide.

Prior to the availability of certification courses, individuals have two opportunities to learn about NetWare 5: a free two-hour product seminar or a one-day hands-on course available at select NAECs and Novell sales offices worldwide this Spring. For more information or to locate an NAEC, visit the Novell Education website at http://www.novell.com/education/.

Pricing and Availability

NetWare 5 Beta 3 will be available worldwide in April through an open beta program. Customers will be able to register to receive the NetWare 5 beta 3 CDs from Novell's Web site at http://www.novell.com/netware5/ for a fee of $20 (US) to cover handling and materials.

About Novell

Founded in 1983, Novell (NASDAQ: NOVL) is the world's leading provider of network software. The company offers a wide range of network solutions for distributed network, Internet/intranet and small business markets, as well as the network computing industry's most comprehensive education and technical support programs. Information about Novell and its complete range of products and services can be accessed on the World Wide Web at http://www.novell.com.

Novell and NetWare are registered trademarks and Open Solutions Architecture, Novell Directory Services and NDS are trademarks of Novell, Inc. All other registered trademarks and trademarks are the property of their respective holders.

Press Contacts:
Jason Werner
Novell, Inc.
Phone: (801) 861-4009
Internet: jwerner@novell.com

Danielle Epstein
Cunningham Communication, Inc.
Phone: (650) 858-3745
Internet: depstein@ccipr.com