OT Novell

[Jeremy Fowler]

> >>I got one fact I definitely need to get straight.  Novell 6.0 on a
> >>PII-300 w/ 256MB of RAM is dog slow when you run the Java 
> desktop.  It
> >>was slow from command line too, but not as much.  

Those are the BARE minimum system requirements:
  A server-class PC with a Pentium* II or AMD* K7 processor 
  256 MB of RAM 
The recommended system requirements for Netware 6 are:
  A multiprocessor PC with a least two Pentium III 700 MHz or higher processors 
  512 MB of RAM 

Java is dog slow, so Novell's X is slow and a resource hog. Since your not running the recommended 
system requirements, and the X server isn't required for Netware to operate, I don't doubt that 
your having problems with X. I don't even run X on my dual Xeon Novell servers to save resources 
for more important processes. I believe a reliable NOS shouldn't have an X server running. A server 
should be a server - not a workstation. I don't even run X on some of my production Linux servers 
as its just one more service that isn't required and a possible security risk - especially on my 
firewall. 

> >Is this a server that is actually running Novell as the base 
> OS?  What do you 
> >do with a java desktop on a server?
> >
> Ask Novell why they used Java apps for server config.  Actually I 
> mis-spoke a little.  The desktop was the Xi Graphics commercial  X 
> server, but the ConsoleOne is written in Java.  It was the 
> easiest way 
> to set up the initial directory.  The X server froze 
> repeatedly and the 
> Java ConsoleOne was a big Zero.  I'm not sure if the options I wanted 
> were available from the novell admin cli app.  Novell has 
> been trying to 
> get away from text mode.  That's what I read anyway in their docs.  I 
> was trying to dredge up what I remembered from 4.11, anyway it was a 
> disaster.  The box is still sitting next to my desk, OFF.

Well, putting an X server on Novell was more of a marketing ploy. Mainly because Windows had a GUI, 
so someone over there at Novell thought they needed a GUI too. There are very few Netware Admins I 
know that actually use Netware's GUI - as its more of a toy and doesn't come with too many apps. 
Its easier to administer from a workstation anyway. However, I'm told that it will run any java app 
as it's 100% Java compatible - which is the reason they chose Java despite its slowness. Software 
developers then wouldn't have to compile new versions of their apps for Netware.

There are times I wish I could turn off Window's GUI and recover those resources. How often do you 
actually use the GUI on your Windows servers anyway... 

> You know, I just remembered.  Novell 6.0 wouldn't recognize my 3Com 
> Nic.  This is one that Linux and Windows recognize no matter what 
> version from the last 5 years.  Thanks Donald Becker.  So I 
> could only 
> do the initial setup of the Directory from ConsoleOne.

What 3COM NIC was it? EISA or PCI? Netware supports all kinds of 3COM cards. Did you use NWCONFIG 
to detect the card? Did you try finding the latest drivers on 3COM's website and using those? Most 
of their driver Zips have a Netware drivers in a subdirectory called Netware.