As an open standard, pure IP offers flexibility and interoperability, now available to users of NetWare®. Although many customers may use both IP and IPXTM on their networks, a pure IP network is easier to administer and more easily integrated with other systems, such as UNIX* and Windows NT*. New IP migration tools and services in NetWare 6TM make migrating to a pure IP network managable, even for the largest networks. Whether you choose to migrate from IPX to IP will largely depend on the goals of your organization.One of the biggest advantages of migrating a network from IPX to IP is reduced administrative costs. Migrating from IPX to IP will be most beneficial for customers already supporting both protocols, and for those expending a significant portion of their Information Services (IS) budget managing IPX.
Migrating the network from IPX to IP is not necessary to take advantage of the increased connectivity of NetWare 6. If you are satisfied with your existing network infrastructure, but would like to make NetWare services available to IP clients, you can upgrade servers and clients to NetWare 6 and load both protocol stacks.
NetWare® has traditionally used IPXTM and its protocols for network communication. NetWare 4 supported IP networks through NetWare/IPTM. The release of NetWare 6 allows a choice of running networks with just IPX, with both IP and IPX, or with pure IP.
The Internet Protocol comprises a set of publicly available protocols that provides the means by which computers communicate on the Internet.