Iowa/Nebraska Novell Technical Blast
John Bezy, Novell Iowa/Nebraska Systems Engineer
Vol 4, No 1 - 1/14/02
** High Priority **
We hope you had a very Happy New Year, and hope you have a rewarding 2002, both professionally and personally...
BrainShare 2002???
It's hard to believe that another year has already gone by, but here's
the proof: BrainShare 2002 is just around the corner! So get ready,
set, go to learn first-hand about Novell's latest products and strategies.
Get hands-on technical experience. See the latest third-party offerings.
Network. Play in the technology lab. Take a certification test. And have
fun! As every year, BrainShare 2002 will be held in Salt Lake City,
Utah, at the Salt Palace Convention Center; the dates are March 17 through
March 22, 2002. Online registration started December 1, 2001 at www.novellbrainshare.com.
If you register before February 15, 2002, registration costs $1,495.00.
After that, it's $1,695.00.
The CIO Corner
"Why They Lie" Campaign Launches, Dispels Lies from You-Know-Who
Here we go again. Another release of NetWare, another round of misinformation
from you-know-who. Why does Microsoft* do it? Well, with the press calling
NetWare® 6 "the de-facto, industry-leading network operating system
for any corporate environment," ? -it's no wonder they're acting defensive.
Chances are, you've been burned by these guys before. We're here for
you. Come visit us and air your grievances in our Rant & Rave Forum.
You can also learn all about NetWare 6, compare our new licensing practices
to Microsoft's and discover why our technology is giving them fits.
After all, sneaky little tricks are no substitute for the truth.
http://www.whytheylie.com
(aka http://www.novell.com/products/netware/whytheylie/main.html)
Big Novell Win in Canada
Largest European eGovernment Project to Date
A directory solution for the Direction Générale des Impôts (DGI), the
French Tax Authority, will be used by 35 million French taxpayers. The
deal sees Novell eDirectory, iChain and DirXML Net services software
create the underlying infrastructure for all the DGI's Internet-enabled
applications, allowing them to provide online access for their
tax-paying population. This agreement will total over €9 million in
software and services over a three-year period. Learn more at:
http://www.novell.com/news/leadstories/2001/dec17/
HIPAA Extension Legislation Signed
On December 27, 2001, President Bush signed into law H.R. 3323, the
Administrative Simplification Compliance Act (now known as Public Law
107-105). This law provides for a one year extension of the date for
complying with the HIPAA standard transactions and code set requirements
(to Oct 16, 2003) for any covered entity that submits to the Secretary
of Health and Human Services a plan of how the entity will come into
compliance with the requirements by October 16, 2003.
The plan must be submitted by October 15, 2002 and shall be a summary
of
(A) An analysis reflecting the extent to which, and the reasons why,
the person is not in compliance.
(B) A budget, schedule, work plan, and implementation strategy for
achieving compliance.
(C) Whether the person plans to use or might use a contractor or other
vendor to assist the person in achieving compliance.
(D) A timeframe for testing that begins not later than April 16, 2003.
The law also requires the Department to develop and promulgate a model
compliance form for the plan by March 31, 2002, and to allow for compliance
plans to be submitted electronically.
Please note that this legislation kept in place the compliance deadlines
for the Privacy Rule (April 14, 2003 for all covered entities except
small health plans; April 14, 2004 for small health plans). The Department
will be providing the details of the model form and submission procedures
at a later date. The law also requires that, by Oct 16, 2003, providers
stop submitting paper claims and submit claims electronically to Medicare.
There are waivers for certain small providers or if there is no method
for electronic submission of claims available. CMS will provide further
details about these requirements through the regulatory process.
You can read the enrolled version of the bill (the version passed by
Congress) at: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c107:H.R.3323.ENR:
The Public Law version is expected to be available at the Government
Printing Office shortly.
Technical Tips
ZENworks for Handhelds Beta Customers Needed
As promised with the announcements of the Callisto acquisition, we are
progressing with the first release of a ZENworks for Handheld Devices.
The first release is scheduled for shipment in the early spring (Feb/March)
and we need your help from beta customers.
ZENworks for Handhelds provides a central point of administration for
handheld management functions for Palm OS handhelds, Windows CE, and
Pocket PC devices including:
-- software inventory
-- hardware inventory
-- software distribution
Software distribution - automated push distribution and updates let you
keep applications and content up to date across your mobile fleet
Hardware and software inventory - automated identification of software
and hardware on handheld devices allows you to analyze assets, plan for
upgrades, and troubleshoot problems
Centralized control - a single point of administration allows you to
monitor status, analyze results, query for specific information, and run
reports for devices, groups, or the complete installation
With these powerful tools at their disposal, systems administrators and
help desk staff can efficiently manage and support handheld devices,
which slashes costs and empowers end user productivity.
Send me your contact info if you want to participate....
Novell FTP Server Usage and Functions
We are in the process of coming up with the enhancements for NetWare
FTP Server on NetWare 5.1/6. If you have had a chance to work with
the NetWare FTP Server, could you give us your usage scenario (how NetWare
FTP Server is being used, any feature needs to be added/enhanced etc).
Also could you give us the list of capabilities/improvements/enhancements
you would be wanting in future versions? Drop me an e-mail...
Windows 95 Support Discontinued
Microsoft has discontinued support of Win95 (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/lifecycle.asp).
Several engineering departments in Novell are considering scaling back
on their unit testing scenarios, and no longer doing any testing on
the Win95 platform. This would mean that the next generation of several
products would not be supported on Win95 (although they'd very likely
run just fine).
We welcome your feedback on the matter. Shoot me any zingers ASAP...
AntiVirus for NetWare 6
McAfee touts antivirus pack for NetWare 6.0
01/08/2002 - Network Associates' McAfee division this week becomes
the first vendor to offer antivirus software for Novell's NetWare 6.0
server, although others, including Computer Associates, expect to have
competing products ready within weeks.
http://www1.novell.com/resourcecenter/ext_clickthrough.jsp?contentId=5662&logType=3
AOL Confirms Security Hole In AIM
January 02, 2002 12:39 PM
AMERICA ONLINE (AOL) confirmed that there is a security hole in the
latest versions of its AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) chat program, corroborating
the findings released by an independent security group Wednesday. AOL
will fix the problem by the end of the week. For Full Story:
http://www.infoworld.com/articles/hn/xml/02/01/02/020102hnaimhole.xml?0102alert
Novell's Resolutions, According to Dave Kearns
Today's focus: Novell, take note
By Dave Kearns
Happy New Year everybody! This week, I thought we'd look at some possible
New Year's resolutions both for Novell and for you, the network executive.
Today, its Novell's turn - I'll get to you in the next issue!
Resolution #1
NetWare 6 is the best-received ".0 version" of Novell's network operating
system ever, topping even NetWare 5.0, which was released to generally
good reviews. It's also one of the most bug-free releases of an operating
system (both network operating system and desktop) I've come across
in the past 20 years. Well, there is one tiny irritant - the operating
system identifies itself as version "5.6" in lots of different places.
What's up with that?
What I've heard is that there's no compelling reason for this identification,
just an engineering decision to do it this way. Well, it's better than
"ME" or "XP", or using some year as a designator. But with all the confusion
that the versioning of eDirectory has caused (see: "Pick a Number,"
http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/dir/2001/00957339.html)
you'd think that a straight-forward versioning system would be high
on the list of things to do for Novell's engineers. So let's suggest
just that - Resolution #1, bring back rational versioning numbers.
Resolution #2
This one is aimed at Novell's top management execs. Guys, you've got
NetWare 6, the best-received NOS ever. Would it hurt to talk about it
once in a while? I don't mean in marketing terms (see Resolution #3),
I mean talk about it when you're speaking in public - trade shows, press
conferences, interviews, and so on.
In the immediate recent past, senior vice presidents and above have
too often acted as if NetWare was some embarrassing second cousin rather
than the major breadwinner of the Novell family. And it is, still,
the major breadwinner.
It's all well and good to attempt to move towards a service-oriented
business, but that service should revolve around the major products
the company has to offer, so the spokespeople need to be sure those
products are frequently mentioned and talked about.
Resolution #3
As I alluded to in Resolution #2, please do something about marketing.
Since we've been asking for this every year for at least the last 10,
I don't really expect anything to come of it - but I'm quite willing
to be pleasantly surprised.
So, Novell, here are three resolutions for you - none of them is arduous
to achieve. We'll look back in December 2002 and see what, if anything,
occurs.
Cool URLs
New Virus? Gigger??
http://vil.mcafee.com/dispVirus.asp?virus_k=99301&#characteristics
Health Related Hoaxes and Rumors
http://www.cdc.gov/hoax_rumors.htm
Don't Spread That Hoax
http://nonprofit.net/hoax/default.htm
Some Cool Tools
http://www.altman.co.uk/products.htm
Use Several IM Tools???
Check out www.trillian.cc
The Other Guys Corner
And Here Are Some Resolutions for Microsoft from Dave Kearns..
Today's focus: Resolutions for Microsoft
By Dave Kearns
Happy New Year everybody! This week, I thought we'd look at some possible
New Year's resolutions for those involved in Windows networking. In
today's issue, I'll present some resolutions Microsoft could adopt -
next issue I'll cover some resolutions for you, the network manager.
First, Microsoft, could you do something about differentiating your
marketing? Windows XP may be the greatest thing since television for
the home user, but it's not optimized for the business desktop. There's
nothing wrong with consolidating the code base, which makes it easier
for application vendors to provide needed services. Just don't try to
tell us that the same operating system with the same add-in and bundled
apps is just as good for the home and the office. Putting in or leaving
out networking is just not the right differentiation.
The second resolution is about Active Directory. Active Directory (AD)
has to be changed so that it will "play nice" with other directory services.
There are very few homogeneous networks any more. And heterogeneous
means more than just a mix of NT and Windows 2000. Sun's DNS, Novell's
eDirectory, Sun's iPlanet, IBM's SecureWay and others are on networks
today and will still be there tomorrow. Stop treating AD as a necessary
evil and promote it as a networking backbone or face having it become
irrelevant for all but the smallest networks.
The third resolution is about security. The Microsoft Strategic Technology
Protection Program was announced with great fanfare some months ago.
So far, though, there's no new information about the ambitious phase
two of the project. You need to commit to this, Microsoft. You need
to take security more seriously than user friendliness, especially in
business machines (see the first resolution). It took Microsoft a long
time to develop an enterprise-capable networking system because of its
emphasis on the user experience. This next step - actually decreasing
user-friendliness - will be difficult, but not impossible.
There you have it, three networking resolutions for Microsoft - none
of them arduous to achieve, although they do require some changes in
corporate philosophy. We'll look back next December and see what, if
anything, occurs.
Microsoft Windows XP Security
New OS's, New Security problems.
http://techupdate.zdnet.com/techupdate/stories/main/0,14179,2835921,00.html
And Here's More From Dave Kearns
Today's focus: Another hole in Windows XP
By Dave Kearns
I warned you about Windows XP. I didn't specifically mention Universal
Plug and Play, but if I'd known about the latest security vulnerability,
I would have mentioned it to you.
If you've purposely cut off communicating with the outside world, you
might have missed the announcement of a new security hole: "Microsoft
patch blocks holes in XP," http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2001/1220msxp.html
But it wasn't only on the trade press sites. Most major newspapers and
TV networks also carried the news that what Bill Gates had called the
most secure Windows operating system ever was highly vulnerable. The
vulnerability was evidently easily found and exploited. Scott Culp,
manager of Microsoft's Security Response Center, was quoted as saying,
"It's a mistake made by the program. The design itself was sound, but
somebody made an error in implementing that design." So much for all
of the beta testing that was supposedly done.
Once again, it appears that Microsoft placed ease-of-use above system
security. It allowed the Universal Plug and Play module to automatically
follow instructions hidden in the HTML on a Web page instructing it
to download and execute something, all without informing the user -
much less asking permission. That's simply not good behavior for an
operating system that hopes to be worthy of running on the corporate
desktop, never mind in the server room.
If you have been weak and allowed XP to be installed on your network,
or if you have Windows 98 or ME desktops that include Universal Plug
and Play functionality (it is included in ME and as an add-on to Win
98), then you need to patch these systems immediately. To download the
patch, go to: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS01-059.asp
Get the patches, install them and only then, come back and read the
details of the bugs, exploits and the fixes. It's that important.
Remember that you'll also have to patch any new XP-equipped machines
that come in, but you could use this problem as ammunition in your fight
to upgrade all of your desktops to the far more secure (and reliable)
Windows 2000 Professional.
I'll try to refrain from saying "I told you so," as long as you quickly
correct the situation.
Windows Migrations Progress Slowly
Interesting read...
http://entmag.com/news/article.asp?EditorialsID=5143
Study: Windows Migrations Progress Slowly
by Scott Bekker
1/3/2002 - Dragging your feet on a Windows 2000 server deployment?
You're not alone, according to a new study from market researchers at
IDC. Rolling out the Windows 2000 Active Directory continues to serve
as a major roadblock for organizations in getting to Windows 2000, and
that new directory service technology may be keeping those organizations
from even considering moves to subsequent operating systems such as
Windows XP clients and the forthcoming Windows .NET servers, IDC found
in a survey of more than 300 IT managers.
"Most Microsoft customers will continue to follow the Windows roadmap,
with broad plans for Active Directory deployment," says Al Gillen,
research director for IDC's Operating Environments service. "However,
users say their movement to Microsoft's latest operating systems will
proceed on their schedule, not on Microsoft's schedule."
Three quarters of the respondents said that less than half of their
server systems have been updated or deployed new with Windows 2000,
Gillen says. "Probably only a third of the systems out there are Windows
2000," Gillen estimates. A disproportionate number of the most comprehensive
deployments appeared in smaller shops, as well, the IDC survey showed.
Of the respondents, IT managers known to have Windows NT or Windows
2000 installed, 36 percent said they delayed their Windows 2000 rollouts
because of complexity associated with Active Directory.
As for licensing, IDC's survey indicated that Microsoft's controversial
Licensing 6.0 program isn't having a major effect on IT manager's
rollout plans. However, a notable percentage is angry over the increased
cost of the revised software licensing. About 15 percent of respondents
said Licensing 6.0 gave them an incentive to seek alternative products.
But Gillen says, "The bigger picture shows that few customers will be
replacing their Microsoft technology with alternate products over the
short term, so competitive products need to continue to offer a strong
story of interoperability with Microsoft environments."
One of IDC Predictions:
As for Linux, which Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer recently identified
as one of Microsoft's biggest competitive threats, IDC predicts a "breakout
year." IDC says "it seems clear that Linux has become a viable alternative
for enterprise use."
Microsoft Rigs Online Poll
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2102244,00.html
Education
Help Desk, Des Moines, IA
Advanced Network Technologies, Omaha, NE
New Certified Novell Salesperson Courseware Available
The latest edition of Selling Net Services Solutions version 6.0 has
just been released. It includes updated materials on Novell's strategy,
NetWare 6, new versions of the ZENWORKS family, Security and Provisioning
solutions including industry partner examples, increasing your revenues
with Novell licensing options, along with coverage of other great Novell
solutions. Completing this courseware prepares you to take the Certified
Novell Salesperson exam and obtain your CNS certification.
http://www.novell.com/partners/channel/academy/spresent.html
Developer Tour Stops in Minneapolis
Looking for more information about developing to eDirectory? How to
customize Apache or Tomcat on NetWare? That and lots more is available
in the Developers Tour that is scheduled to be in Minneapolis January 14
and 15 (Note- the date has changed..), 2002.... Get more information
and sign up at: http://developer.novell.com/education/tour
(The Minneapolis stop IS there.... Get signed up!!)
Novell Upgrading to NetWare 6 Self-Study Kit (Course 3000)
Novell is pleased to announce the release of the Upgrading to NetWare
6 Self-Study Kit (Course 3000). The kit includes a student manual,
an Enhanced Learning CD that offers students a variety of practice test
assessments, animations, and a 5-user demo version of Novell's NetWare
6.
NDS Troubleshooting and How to Perform a System Health Check
Presenter: Gary Porter
Dates:
Monday January 28th, Novell Office, New York
Tuesday January 29th, Novell Office, Herndon, Virginia
Friday February 1st, East West Conference Center, Honolulu
Wednesday February 6th, Novell Office, Denver Colorado
Friday February 8th, Barker Conference Center, Florida Hospital, Orlando, Florida
Monday February 11th, Novell Office, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Wednesday February 13th, Novell Office, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Friday February 15th, Novell Office, Detroit, Michigan
Times: 09:00 to 16:30
Session summary:
With the addition of eDirectory on UNIX or Windows equipment as well
as the introduction of NetWare 6, you've probably been wondering, "How
will this affect the techniques I use for diagnosing and repairing
eDirectory?" Analyzing eDirectory anomalies doesn't have to be a scary
task. It can actually be enjoyable when you understand the correct
techniques and tools.
This one-day class is divided between three focuses-eDirectory health
check, troubleshooting and top eDirectory/NDS issues encountered, along
with their solutions. We will examine diagnostic technique as well
as methodologies for repair, how to spot potential catastrophes, learning
how to find these time bombs and diffuse them before disaster strikes.
The last part of the day deals with current eDirectory issues and demonstrates
methods for repair.
Cost and Registration:
$250 per delegate per day. Further information and a registration form
can be found at the website www.conference-bookings.com
Partner Information
(A new section I have started. Will have information for partners,
reseller, integrators.... Steve and I have assumed responsibility for
the Channel...)
PartnerNet 2002 Program Announced
Well 2002 is here and so is the NEW and IMPROVED Novell PartnerNet Program.
There have been several new changes made to the PartnerNet Program for
2002, with NOVELL CERTIFICATIONS leading the way. So here is your opportunity
to get CNS Certified. Below are the registration web sites for the
upcoming CNS Training to be held:
Des Moines
1/15 8:30am - 5pm
Help Desk - 4110 114th Street, Urbandale, IA 50322
https://register.novell.com/reg/register.cfm?event_id=2919&lcode=enu
Minneapolis
1/16 8:30am - 5pm
Novell office
https://register.novell.com/reg/register.cfm?event_id=2920&lcode=enu
Omaha
2/19 8:30am - 5pm
Compaq, 1000 N. 90th Street
(not yet on the registration web site)
This new training is going to be very valuable in selling Novell's NetWare
6, ZEN for Desktops 3.2, GroupWise 6, and new "solutions" like iChain,
DirXML, OnDemand, and Novell Portal Services.
NOTE: CNS Certification is a REQUIREMENT for ALL levels of the Novell
PartnerNet Program.
Should you have any questions please contact myself or Steve Ferrick
(515.537.5300). We look forward to seeing ALL of you at the nearest
event to you.
Sales Stuff----
The Survivor's Guide to 2002
Leading out the Survivor's Guide in a discussion of directories, Network
Computing says that "Novell's eDirectory has matured and can serve as
the directory of choice for intranet, extranet and Internet applications. . .
The product's maturity, cross-platform support, scalability and reliability,
coupled with the increasing number of applications from Novell and third
parties that take advantage of it, have helped place Novell on our list
of companies to watch for 2002." http://www.nwc.com/1226/1226f83.html
Novell SecureAccess 1.0 Scheduled to Ship Mid-January
Novell SecureAccess enables organizations to better secure their infrastructure
and applications by unifying the identity management, access control,
and security policies for their Novell and third party applications,
databases, platforms, and security products. So regardless of whether
a user is authenticating from the web, wireless, dial-up, client, or
VPN, their identities can be managed as a single identity and access
enforced with a consistent security policy. By simplifying identity
management and unifying the infrastructure, Novell SecureAccess also
significantly reduces the cost of managing access and security solutions.
This solution will be a soft bundle of existing Novell products that
will be available as a single part number where customers will get the
following products at a discount: includes iChain, Novell Modular Authentication
Service (NMAS), NDS-Authentication Services, BorderManager, Secure Login,
and eDirectory.
Stay tuned as we will be sending out more info on training dates and
times, availability of competitive and other docs.
NetWare® ABEND Analysis System
Novell is pleased to announce the availability of the NetWare® ABEND
Analysis System. This automated, online tool can help you save time
in resolving server ABENDs by eliminating the need to call Novell Technical
Support. When a user submits an ABEND.log file, the system searches
in a database for a resolution. If one is found, it will be e-mailed
to the user immediately. Even if a solution is not available, the submission
remains active until a resolution is posted and e-mailed to the user.
The ABEND Analysis System now supports NetWare 6 ABENDs, as well as
ABENDs from NetWare 5 and NetWare 4.
Premium Service customers and PartnerNet partners receive unlimited
access to the NetWare ABEND Analysis System, and all other customers
receive limited free access. See http://support.novell.com
for moren details.
Expansion of promotion announced in NPA 2176-2177 - Promotional Upgrade
Pricing to ZENworks for Desktops 3.2 from Intel's LANDesk Management
Suite to include Microsoft's System Management Server (SMS) 2.0 Novell
announces an expansion of the promotion announced in NPA 2176-2177.
The promotional Upgrade Pricing to ZENworks for Desktops 3.2 has now
been extended to Microsoft's Systems Management Server customers. For
customers paying upgrade protection or maintenance to Intel for LANDesk
Management Suite 6.4 or to Microsoft's Systems Management Server (SMS)
2.0, Novell will allow customers to trade their LANDesk or SMS licenses
for ZENworks for Desktops 3.2 licenses on a one for one basis. To take
advantage of this offer the Customer will just be required to place
an order for the ZENworks for Desktops 3.2 upgrade using existing skus
at $0 per user and maintenance using the existing skus at regular prices.
A 1000 user minimum order is required.
For LANDesk Management Suite or SMS customers that are not on the current
release or are not paying upgrade protection or maintenance, Novell
will offer a 25% discount to the combined upgrade and upgrade protection
or maintenance costs.
Contact your local reseller or Steve for more information....
New Phone Number for Iowa/Nebraska Account Manager
Steve's numbers now are:
(new) Novell Office #515.537.5300
(same) Cellular Ph #515.250.6194
(same)TollFree Fax #866.618.4712
Administration Information:
Trouble Incident Escalation
I am NOT a Tech Support person... But, if you have an open support incident
and it has been open for an unusually long period of time, one of my
functions is to help escalate the issue inside Novell Tech Support. I
will decide what the 'unusually long period of time' is... If you have
a support contract, your issue should be resolved within days (resolved;
depending on the level of the support contract, someone should contact
you within minutes/hours to start working on it.) Without a support contract,
you might face hours/days of waiting before tech support can address
your call. So, if you feel you need assistance, send me an e-mail describing
the incident, the incident number, and who to contact. If you don't have
an open incident, don't get me involved until you do.
How to Get Tech Support
Want to see how some of our solutions work?
Check them out at the on-line demo city... http://democity.novell.com/staticindex.html
Due a Software Upgrade?
Here is how the process works.... You should receive an e-mail from Novell
Sales Operations stating you are entitled, as an upgrade protection customer,
the next upgrade for product XYZ... You should then go to the upgrade request
site at www.novell.com/licensing/upgfulfill
and fill in the appropriate lines and information. Your upgrade should then
be shipped second day.... BUT turnaround time is dependent on when the product
is actually available for FCS (First Customer Ship), which could be days or
weeks after the actual product announcement. If you are then having problems,
please let your IA/NE Novell team know so we can get involved.
Previous Editions of this E-Blast
Have you missed previous editions of this newsletter? Want to read them?
Thanks to the CINP (Central Iowa Network Professionals), they have posted
them all at http://www.cinp.net, click on News...
Subscribe to news listservs at:
For GroupWise list: http://www.ngwlist.com
For Syracuse U NetWare list: listserv@listserv.syr.edu with 'subscribe novell' in message body
Disclaimer:
Information contained herein is provided as-is. Opinions are those of
the author and may or may not be the same as those of Novell, and are definitely
NOT attributable to Novell unless otherwise noted.
John Bezy
Technology Account Manager
Iowa/Nebraska
ph: (402) 291-1808
eFax: (561) 760-6149
fax: (402) 291-4529
Novell-the leading provider of
Net Services Software
www.novell.com
jbezy@novell.com
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