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NetWare was a high-performance client-server platform created by Novell in 1983. It provided efficient file, print, and database services for multiple clients. NetWare versions were designed for Intel processors and included features such as software RAID and system fault tolerance. Novell lost market share to Microsoft due to lack of TCP/IP support and a preference for Microsoft’s graphical interface. Novell’s kernel is now included in Open Enterprise Server, which can run on NetWare or Linux-based servers.
NetWare® was the most popular network operating system (NOS) for servers and personal computers (PCs) for much of the 1980s and 1990s. Originally created by Novell, Inc. in 1983, it is a very high performance client-server platform. Unlike Microsoft Windows® and UNIX® based operating systems, NetWare® is not an interactive timesharing system. It is often used on servers to provide very efficient file, print and database services for many clients at the same time. It is also used as a platform for high availability clustering systems.
The first version of NetWare® was for the Motorola Incorporated 68000 processor running proprietary software on a Novell file server. Most, if not all, other versions are designed for Intel® Corporation processors of the x86 family. The next two releases were for the Intel® 8086 used in International Business Machines Corporation (IBM®) compatible computers.
Novell released the NetWare® 286 to take full advantage of the new Intel® 80286 processor in 1986. It used the entire 16 megabyte (MB) protected mode memory space for disk caching with a specific file system for the 80286. It also included software RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks), system fault tolerance (SFT), and a transaction tracking and roll-back system. In addition, up to four network cards can be used simultaneously. These features helped increase Novell’s market share as many were only available on minicomputers and mainframes.
The Intel® 80386, NetWare® 386 version used 32-bit protected mode and a much higher capacity file system. A system of loadable modules has replaced the cumbersome re-link and restart requirement of the previous version. “Non-dedicated” support for the Microsoft® Disk Operating System (DOS) has also been removed in this release. This had allowed a system to be used as both a network file server and a DOS-based user workstation. NetWare® 386 also included name and bindery services for authentication and data distribution across multiple servers.
Another 80386 release included a unique high availability clustering solution called SFT-III. He was a bit ahead of his time and divided the NOS into event-driven parts and interruption-driven parts. It also included support for multiple processors in the same machine. Using SFT-III a server could be mirrored to a separate machine over a very fast link.
Between 1993 and 2003, several other versions of NetWare® were released, including a more advanced clustering system. During the same period, however, Novell lost significant market share to Microsoft®. Novell’s lack of support for Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP) was a major reason. Users also often preferred the graphical interface of Microsoft Windows®. Microsoft® also marketed its products to a much wider range of decision makers than Novell typically did.
Novell has also included its kernel in Open Enterprise Server (OES) product releases. Originally released in 2005, OES is a set of core applications and services that can run on NetWare® or a Linux®-based server. In 2007, OES version 2 added virtualization and 64-bit processor support.
