Novell Netware 4.11 still works as file server for DOS machines
Posted by CommunityHairy6695@reddit | vintagecomputing | View on Reddit | 37 comments
it runs while hdd runs..
redditshreadit@reddit
Isn't that what it was designed to do. What other clients does it support?.
KingDaveRa@reddit
You could theoretically talk to anything Windows with the NetWare client. I think 4.11 supported tcpip.
CommunityHairy6695@reddit (OP)
yes also linux clients can access the server. tcp/ip is optional and i don't use it. my lan is not open to internet.
WeakSherbert@reddit
OS/2 as well.
CommunityHairy6695@reddit (OP)
naturally...
WeakSherbert@reddit
And Macintosh
enrious@reddit
My newer colleagues look at me funny when I tell them that tcp/ip used to be an elective exam for the MCSE.
redditshreadit@reddit
There are Netware client software for NT and Windows 9x. The operating systems came with the IPX protocol built in.
pfak@reddit
I used netware with 3.11, NT, 95 and 98.
sparrow_42@reddit
yeah this
probably_platypus@reddit
So the NTM loadable module didn't work after all?
NTM (R) - Novell Time Machine: Goes back in time and breaks future compatibility for existing Novell branded and licensed products.
Tscotty223@reddit
I’ve had many netware servers with an uptime of over a year but that was a long time ago. Netware and NDS copied from Banyan Vines then copied by Microsoft. In some ways IT life was easier then.
Dizzy_Bridge_794@reddit
Don’t miss Token Ring though and stuck MAU’s and the token reset tool.
Dizzy_Bridge_794@reddit
Best Server OS ever. Was a tank.
steppek@reddit
I used to be Netware certified. I have a screenshot of a server from 1993 and at that time had just about 2 years of uptime.
H3rbert_K0rnfeld@reddit
Back when uptime was a thing to be proud of.
sparrow_42@reddit
My ISP in those days included a shell account. Once I got an always-on connection at work I stayed logged into a terminal window 24/7 just so the admin there could see how long it had been since I rebooted my workstation.
RomanOswald@reddit
Pfff 2 years… We had to relocate out server room, update was almost 6 years.
steppek@reddit
6 years, impressive. I had to shut this one down for a planned power outage in the business park.
Tiny-Part-4786@reddit
We had an old box years ago that had monitor.nlm burnt into the CRT.
PaleDreamer_1969@reddit
Wow, this REALLY brought back memories! Netware 4.11 was so ultra stable. I worked at a company back in the 90’s that had a lost Netware server. We looked and looked for it for years. It was still on the network, responding to network requests and processing print jobs, while storing a copy of the tree. It was old, Pentium 90, with 16 MB of ram and a small HDD. It’s uptime was over 4 years
ExplodedPenisDiagram@reddit
It works as a fileserver for any machine, really. I used to work there (recently enough to be notable -- it was 2013). I was the guy who had an excellent understanding of Netware and Linux in modern systems, so they had me on migrations non-stop.
AD did that company dirty. They had a directory service that trounced AD even at the time, because Microsoft had ripped it off. It was so much easier to understand and so much more conceptually sound it was unreal.
Also, the software was *good*. So incredibly stable -- solid as a rock on Caldera DOS, which ended up being a favored DOS for me.
Maximum_Help_4371@reddit
The college I first when to used some Novell domain
gadget850@reddit
With the right NIC, it should work with the 10BASE2 in my house.
kaaskugg@reddit
I think my copy of Novell DOS 7 came with a very basic version of this as part of the OS.
_litz@reddit
All you ever need to know about NetWare (and the fact that after Armageddon, it'll still be running):
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/42s46g/til_in_2001_it_at_unc_decided_to_do_a_server/
Ok_Study3236@reddit
2 minutes to install, 12 hours to apply all the patches..
calculatetech@reddit
I did a little project just for fun to slipstream all the patches into 4.10. 4.11 changed quite a bit for such a small version increment and is much harder to do. I think I was able to get it partially done. My intention was to run a server for my classic machines, but keeping data in sync with my primary NAS is the hurdle I haven't bothered to solve yet.
Ok_Study3236@reddit
I've been looking for a better way to get sync working except the Flex/IP FTP server, which is buggy and very minimally functional. Working on Netware 3.12
calculatetech@reddit
Gives me inspiration. Appreciate the comment!
CommunityHairy6695@reddit (OP)
only ide/ata and nic drivers i installed additionally.
Breezeoffthewater@reddit
Netware 4.11 was pretty solid once they'd sorted out the NDS issues. Used to run about 20 servers back in the day
ger042@reddit
Cool! And not easy to hack, because no TCP, but IPX/SPX-stack.
k-phi@reddit
Does it include NetWars?
Academic-Shoulder308@reddit
way back machine!
Pubcrawler1@reddit
I have netware installed under a VM and run it when I need to setup DOS machine. Plug a network card, boot from floppy/CF card and I can login to the netware server. Then have access to all my DOS utilities and windows install files.
fcarolo@reddit
IntranetWare. Now that's a name I've not heard in a long time. A long time.