Any Novell Administrators out there?? (1 Viewer)

[LDfan]

Hi All,
I'm going to be taking a position in which I'll be in charge of a small network. The good thing is that it's a fairly small network (

 

[John DeLuca]

Jeff,
Which version of Netware will you be using? If it's 4.x or 5.x it's not a bad thing at all to work with. I have worked with Netware for over 8 years and am very happy with it, although the 3.x days were a bit of a struggle. It's just sad to see that it never got the respect that it deserves. Working with Netware prepared me very well for Windows 2000 because NDS and Active Directory are both based on the x.500 standard so they have alot of similarities. When I was job hunting for my most recent position, I really wanted to stay with Netware but I just couldn't find a position. They were all either lower level or they wanted me to be like one of the Novell programmers
As far as books go, if you will be using Netware 5, there is a Mastering Netware 5 book that's pretty good. Even some of the CNA/CNE books by David Clarke will be a big help because he explains things very well. Unfortunately, since Netware isn't as popular as NT/2000, there aren't as many books on it so you are limited with your choices.
Good Luck.

 

[Dean DeMass]

Jeff,
My file server that I manage is running Netware 3.12 and it isn't that bad. It is stable and the only problem I have had with it is the virus software taking down the server every weekend. However, it will be replaced with Windows 2000 in a month or so and I am happy with it (I know more about NT and 200). I never used the newer versions of Netware, but from what I have heard, it is much easier to use. I have also heard that the newer versions of Netware are not as stable (not sure if this is true). You should have no problem with it, just go buy a couple of books and you will be fine.
-Dean-
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"I've seen you and you are not cool."

 

[LDfan]

Hi John,
Thanks for the info. I'll be working with netware 5.0. I have about 2 months before I'll be moving into the position so that'll give me a little time to study up. Do most of the Novell books you can buy come with some kind of simple version of novell to install and practice with? That may be helpful.
Jeff

 

[John DeLuca]

Jeff,
Unfortunately, none of the books I know of come with Netware itself. I think there's a way to purchase a trial version though through Novell themselves. Last time I remember, it was only like $15. Could be beneficial but I'm not sure if they still do that. The problem with Netware is it's not like 2000 where you can have a desktop like an NT/2000 server, so you'll need at least 2 pc's if you want to mess around with it. There is a Java GUI utility on the server that functions like Netware Administrator but it's not as useful. You're going to want to get familiar with the Netware Administrator program which is where all the administration is done from. Once you are comfortable with that, then you can start learning some of the server commands which can get pretty in-depth.

 

[CarlS]

Jeff -
Two months is plenty of time to get up to speed on Netware 5.0 and NDS. Netware is an extremely stable environment to work with.
I manage a network with 180 users. We have three NW 5.1 servers and three NT 4.0 servers. I can say that I leave every weekend and never have to think about my NW servers, which is good since I am the only one here. The Windows servers on the other hand...
Good luck with your new job.