Avanti's President Issues Long Overdue Apology
To Dave Kearns (Network World's Novell NetWare Tips)
For Misleading Server Uptime Picture Submission

Dave Kearns - Novell NetWare Tips
c/o Network World

Dear Dave:

With the Holidays being a time of reflection, it wasn't long before I began to feel pangs of guilt over my part in the great Server uptime story. As part of my New year's resolutions, I decided to come clean and confess the truth about the picture of the NetWare 6.5 Server showing almost 2720 days of uptime (picture link) that you wrote about in your December 13, 2005 Novell NetWare Tips newsletter (newsletter link).

In truth, the picture is from my NetWare v6.5 Server running in the year 2012. One might now ponder how that could be since we are talking about a date seven years in the future. Novell has often been somewhat ahead of their time in their technology development. Only a select few know that the NetWare kernel time synchronization logic has some 'advanced' features which proved to be an excellent engine for supporting the resources required to construct a time capsule. While many friends and users knew about the internal tinkering and resulting technology that exists in my lab, most of which never made it into actual released products, I did manage to keep a particular project secret: The construction of a time capsule based largely upon the NetWare time synchronization engine.

Unfortunately, this is not your H.G. Wells kind of time machine built to transport occupants to a different point in the time line. It is limited to taking the Server itself forward and backward within its own time line which begins at boot time and ends when the Server stops running. While you might wonder what value this would have in normal Server operations, the possibilities become crystal clear once you ponder the concept at length. Imagine knowing what the Server's processing load and capacity requirements might be at any point in the future? Or when the Server might experience an ABEND (if ever)? Or what impact applying a Support Pack will have on the Server?

Or how long the NetWare Server might still be around?

That was the goal. As developer of a product for the NetWare platform watching Novell seemingly pushing users away from the platform, I was curious how long the NetWare user base would continue to rely on NetWare, maintaining a market for a product that is being starved for attention by its creator. After all, I've been developing for NetWare since 1984 (and a pro-NetWare bigot since day one). Having started writing applications for a Motorola 68000 based StarServer then writing VAPs for NetWare v2 and NLMs for NetWare v3 through OES, NetWare has become, shall we say, familiar. I am not fond of the concept of it ever reaching an End Of Life point. Therefore, I decide to reboot a NetWare v6.5 Server after putting it on a very reliable UPS and attaching a large note which reminded me NOT to reboot or restart the Server in any way. I then started the forward motion process and waited for the results.

When the date reached seven years in the future, I nearly cried realizing that an old friend was not going to meet the fate intended by Novell, predicted by the Press (present company excluded) and prayed for by Microsoft (after all, Novell is naive if they believe that 100% of the NetWare Servers will be converted to Linux). My first instinct was to share the news with you, as a lone NetWare crier in the crowd of non-initiated columnists. However, I knew such would require some explanation that might cause eyebrows to raise in doubt. Thus, I decided the best thing was to show how reliable a NetWare v6.5 Server could be but neglected to seriously consider that you might actually calculate the uptime and compare it to the actual product release date.

For that deception, I truly apologize. It is not right to deceive someone long regarded as a good friend.

The good news is that NetWare users need not be pushed into abandoning the dependable, familiar, reliable and stable (please feel free to insert additional positive superlatives) platform that they have long trusted. There is no reason your NetWare Servers should not still be running over seven years from now, just like mine. If you don't believe me, just remember that a picture speaks a thousand words (picture link).

And we'll probably still be around supporting the NetWare platform.

Sincerely,

Steve Meyer, President
avanti technology, inc.

TaskMaster on Tour: Automating NetWare Server Management Tasks
(a.k.a. The ABCDE's of NetWare Server Management using TaskMaster)

Automating Backups, Centralized Distribution and (almost) Everything else you can imagine on a NetWare Server using TaskMaster, including Tips & Tricks that are not specific to (but a lot easier to automate through) TaskMaster.

Replicating Data and Synchronizing Files between NetWare Directories, Volumes and Servers, on a local LAN or across the WAN, COMPLETELY AUTOMATED with FULL NetWare compatibility. All with only a single NLM and a single TaskMaster Command (SYNC). The Scheduler, Scripting Language and Extended Command functionality, plus Multi-Session NDS Secure Remote Console support, all built-in. And SYNC is but one of over 60 Extended Commands included in TaskMaster.

Note: This is a live technical demonstration by the Steve Meyer (President of Avanti Technology, Inc. & Chief Architect for TaskMaster), not a sales pitch or slide show presentation.

WEB Site Hits Gold!
Avanti WEB Site Awarded GOLD Site status by NetGuide. The Gold Site Award recognizes Web sites that meet stringent criteria for overall excellence. NetGuide screened over 100,000 URLs and reviewed more than 50,000 sites while making their selections. "Thanks for giving us a great site to review." NetGuide

WEB Site Is Hot!
Avanti WEB Site Placed On InfoWorld'S WEB HotList. This site was reviewed and selected by InfoWorld as a "site worth checking out" on their WEB HotList (as of July 8, 1996).

TaskMaster v2
TaskMaster hailed as impressive by Networking Solutions Magazine. "The TaskMaster server task scheduler automates virtually every task normally peformed at the server through a powerful, easy-to-use scripting language" wrote Patrick Corrigan, a prominent author, columnist, consultant, and speaker on NetWare management issues. Mr. Corrigan went on to say "If Novell executives were smart, they would license Avanti Technology's TaskMaster and include it with every copy of NetWare and IntranetWare sold."

NConsole v2 wins award!
Avanti technology, inc., developer of network management utilities for NetWare, received one the highest honors when PC Magazine selected its Server Trends Analysis utility, NConsole v2 for NetWare, as one of "The Best Products Of 1995" in the Networking and Communications Software category.