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Upgrading Network

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I have a Novell 3.2 Network with about 50 users. I am going to up grade and was thinking about moving to a Windows NT server, what could be some pros/cons of doing this. Also I would like to replace my current server (Pentium II 350, 128 mg RAM) what would be a good Make and configuration to go to?

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Upgrading Network

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I wasn’t involved in the decision making process so I can’t give pros and cons. I can tell you I work for a large organization that went network in 1993. The pilot offices ran Novell 3.2, but when they made the decision to go national, it was NT.Our current server is a Dell PowerEdge2300 which I think is a 400Mhz machine, with 256 MB RAM.

Hope this helps.

Upgrading Network

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Upgrading Network

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Upgrading Network

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Nt 4.0 or 2000?
You have some decisions to make. Do you have experience with NT? You’ll need some. The OSs and approaches to permission and shares are very different.
If you’re learning from scratch, why not start with Win2000. That’s where themarket is going. Don’t know where you’re standing, so it’s hard to guess.
As far as the machine to get, it will depend upon what you need it for. A good base Server has Xeon PIII processor, RAID with at least 4 disk bays allowing for hotswap, at least 256 MB SDRAM. Compaq is my favor server mfr. But, any major mfr will provide you with a good product. Look at IBM, Dell, Compaq, HP. These are the major players.

Good luck!

Upgrading Network

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Unless you have applications that are dependent on Novell (e.g. Groupwise), I think it’s a toss-up between Novell 5 and Windows2000. In either case, since you haven’t been using a directory service (NDS for Novell or Active Directory for W2K), there will be a fairly steep learning curve regardless of which way you go.

For basic printer and file sharing services, WindowsNT v4.0 performs no better than what you are now using and is a lot less stable so I wouldn’t consider a migration to NT4 to be a good choice unless you have a need for the other products bundled with it, in which case you might want to consider NT Small Business Server (it comes with SQL, Exchange, Proxy, Modem-sharing and a partridge in a pear tree).

As far as servers, I would choose the software first, then define the hardware and finally choose a server from Compaq, HP, IBM or Dell. But I agree with a baseline of a PIII CPU, redundant drive and at least 256meg of RAM.

paul

Upgrading Network

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I would have to say leave NT out of the picture. Netware 5 or Win2000. I would have to say that since you are running with Novell already you should stick with it. The upgrade will go smoother. Netware has a lower overhead for administration andgoing to NT or 2000 will leave a lot of wholes in security. But they both have their goods and bads.

Upgrading Network

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I would like to tell you that it is not the question of server configuration in case if you want to switch over to Win-NT. your entire infrastructure should be at the higher side. I mean you should have all desktop pc’s connected to the server are all should be of 100 MBPS connectivity with more RAM. If you are not having this equipment or upgrading entire environment stick to Novell 5 otherwise go on to NT

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