Novell Inc’s announcement this week of NetWare Connect 2 is the first major release of its remote access package for more than 18 months. The NetWare Loadable Module-based system has been enhanced with increased communications options, and now supports up to 128 users – twice the previous maximum. Mike Dowling, Novell’s international marketing manager for networking infrastructure, said that ultimately Novell wants to enable remote users to work transparently as if they were in the office, although he admitted that it will take some steps to get to this point. The increase in the maximum number of users, he said, is because major corporations are starting to trust remote communications. Security is their biggest worry, which is why Novell has also added several new security features: these are both global and service-specific, enabling network managers to choose the appropriate level for their requirements. Also new is an extended security interface, which is said to enable third-party challenge-response systems to be integrated with the system. In terms of the other enhancements, perhaps the most significant is that Novell has now integrated Connect with NetWare 4.1 and NetWare Directory Services, enabling network managers to administer remote access rights and security on an enterprise level. In this way, remote users’ privileges can now be included in the director database – the only remote access product that has this, says Novell. Also new with version 2 is an expanded Enterprise Management remote access audit system, designed to give network administrators a global view of communications resources and activities. It is said to display hardware and usage information, including line conditions and system alerts. Still on the management front, Novell has also introduced ConnectView, a new Windows-based module that Novell claims is unique in that it provides enterprise-wide trend analysis and cost-accounting information, enabling network managers to optimise resources and charge back costs. For inbound and outbound access, Novell has added support for the Point to Point protocol, enabling users to dial in from Windows, while there is also a new phone book and call-scripting tool, enabling users to program in routing procedures. Both the Internet Protocol and Internet Packet Exchange protocol stacks are included, and Novell has also now added support for the Apple Computer Inc Macintosh. NetWare Connect will ship in mid-July, in two-, eight- and 32-port versions, costing $500, $2,000 and $6,000 respectively. Special upgrade prices are available for those wanting to add more users at a later date, although there is a slight price premium for this.
