Product Development Plans For Avanti's TaskMaster
(Last Updated: 07 May 2009)

Avanti's TaskMaster was originally released in 1994 as a NetWare Server centric utility. Since then, support for network centric (Server-to-Server) operations, Mac/NFS Name Spaces, and the NSS File System, as well as many other features, including Replication and Synchronization capabilities, have been added to the product. TaskMaster's support for the myriad of NetWare specific File System features, including multiple Name Spaces, Extended Attributes, and Trustee Rights on both the TFS and NSS volumes, have been widely embraced by Novell users. However, these NetWare specific features have also tied TaskMaster closely to Novell's proprietary API set. TaskMaster v4 is highly dependent upon the legacy CLIB based NetWare API which provides its base of support but also limits it to supporting the Code Page based file naming conventions (i.e., no Unicode-16 or UTF-8 characters) and 32 bit File I/O (i.e., files under 4GB in size).

It is our intention to offer a version of TaskMaster for OES Linux, and possibly other OS platforms, and we are working aggressively towards that goal at this time. We began work on this first step several years ago following a direction suggested by Novell's developer support engineers which proved to be wrought with API delivery delays and bugs that hindered our progress. After it became apparent that the direction was not ideal for our objectives and would significantly limit portability of the final product, we stepped back and re-evaluated the project. Unfortunately, we easily lost 12-18 months of productive development time in the process of having to start over.

After careful consideration, we determined the project was best approached as a multi-step process. The first step in the process is to incorporate support for both UTF-8 file naming conventions (i.e., global name support) and 64 bit File I/O (i.e, files greater than 4GB in size) while also converting as many of the NetWare specific APIs as possible to more portable APIs in the NetWare version of the product. The second step is to create an OES Linux agent that is compatible with and an extension of the NetWare platform. The final set is to then merge and port the combined code set, once proven stable through testing in the field, to the OES Linux platform. Attempting to convert from legacy NetWare APIs and port to OES Linux in one step would create so many potential design and debugging issues as to actually delay the final release much longer than if approached in stages.

We are currently working aggressively on the first step by re-writing the base code in TaskMaster to utilize the ANSI/Posix subset of the LibC based APIs for NetWare which we plan to release as TaskMaster v5. This will provide support for UTF-8 file naming conventions and 64 bit File I/O, as well as a more portable base code design. Our goal is to release TaskMaster v5 this Summer 2009 as the first step in the process.

Once TaskMaster v5 is released, we plan to use the portable base code design to create an OES Linux Agent for TaskMaster v5 which will make replicating and synchronizing data from the NetWare platform to the OES Linux NSS platform much simpler. Concurrent with the TaskMaster v5 OES Linux Agent release, we plan to aggressively focus our development efforts on the full port of TaskMaster to the OES Linux platform. Unfortunately, we do not have a specific release date to which we can commit at this time for the release of the OES Linux port due to the multi-step process involved. However, the more sites we have involved in the process of testing and implementing the various releases, the faster the process should proceed and the more rapid the final release date should approach.

We anticipate seeking test sites for TaskMaster v5 in the near future. Test site selection will be limited to those sites which have Annual Software Maintenance (ASM) coverage in place. Alpha test sites will be selected from those who have an environment which allows for testing on other than production systems. We will expand to Beta test sites and Early Release sites as testing results justify. Once available, notification of test site sign-up opportunities will be sent by eMail to ASM subscribers so make sure that we have a valid eMail address for the principal technical contact at the site and white list the avanti-tech.com domain with any eMail or SPAM filtering software used at your site.

We appreciate the confidence in TaskMaster for NetWare and interest in TaskMaster for OES Linux expressed by its user base. We look forward to working with TaskMaster users towards further enhancing TaskMaster and broadening its platforms of support. ASM subscribers should keep an eye on the eMail In Box for further announcements in this regard.

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.