2.2 Meeting Hardware and Software Requirements

NetWare 6.5 SP8 runs on server hardware that has been approved by the manufacturer for running the NetWare 6.5 operating system. For more information on system specifications, contact the hardware manufacturer.

2.2.1 Meeting System Requirements

NetWare 6.5 runs on the minimum system requirements listed below. For optimal performance, the computer should meet the recommended requirements.

Minimum System Requirements

NetWare 6.5 has the following minimum system requirements:

  • A server-class PC with a Pentium* II or AMD* K7 processor

  • 512 MB of RAM

  • A Super VGA display adapter

  • A DOS partition of at least 200 MB and 200 MB available space

  • 1 GB of available, unpartitioned disk space outside the DOS partition for volume sys:

  • One network board

  • A bootable CD drive that supports the El Torito specification

Recommended System Requirements

For optimal performance, NetWare 6.5 has the following recommended system requirements:

  • A server-class PC with two-way Pentium III, Pentium III Xeon*, Pentium 4, or Intel* Xeon 700 MHz or higher processors

  • 1 GB of RAM

    Some NetWare 6.5 installation options (patterned deployments) have specific processor and RAM requirements. See Section 4.6, Choosing a Server Pattern for individual pattern requirements.

  • A VESA 1.2-compliant, high resolution display adapter

  • A boot partition with 1 GB of available space

    To determine the optimal size of a boot partition, add the amount of server memory to the minimum amount of the available disk space. The minimum amount of available space is 200 MB, so a server with 1024 MB RAM has an optimal boot partition of 1224 MB (1024 MB + 200 MB = 1224 MB). This size allows you to do a core dump to the disk drive if required.

  • 8 GB of available, unpartitioned disk space outside the boot partition for volume sys:

  • One or more network boards

  • A bootable CD drive that supports the El Torito specification

  • A USB or PS/2* mouse for navigating the NetWare server’s graphical user interface

2.2.2 Preparing the NetWare Installation Software

The installation procedures described in this manual assume you are installing NetWare 6.5 SP8, which is the same as NetWare 6.5 SP8.

You should download the NetWare 6.5 SP8 Operating System and Products CD overlay ISO images and burn them to CDs for use when installing or upgrading to NetWare 6.5. Alternatively, you can download the NetWare 6.5 SP8 DVD overlay ISO image and burn it to DVD. This eliminates swapping CDs in the middle of the server installation when you are installing from physical media.

Use third-party CD/DVD burning software to create the CDs or DVD from the ISO images you download.

Label your NetWare installation CDs or DVD as shown in Table 2-2.

Table 2-2 NetWare 6.5 SP8 Installation CD/DVD Labels

ISO Image

Label

NW65OSSP8.iso

NetWare 6.5 SP8 CD 1 (Operating System)

NW65PRODSP8.iso

NetWare 6.5 SP8 CD 2 (Products)

NW65SP8_OVL_DVD.iso

NetWare 6.5 Support Pack 8 DVD

For more information on downloading these image files, see the Novell Open Enterprise Server 2 Download Instructions.