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<html> <head><script type="text/javascript" src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/js/bundle-playback.js?v=7YQSqjSh" charset="utf-8"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/js/wombat.js?v=txqj7nKC" charset="utf-8"></script> <script>window.RufflePlayer=window.RufflePlayer||{};window.RufflePlayer.config={"autoplay":"on","unmuteOverlay":"hidden"};</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/js/ruffle/ruffle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> __wm.init("https://web.archive.org/web"); __wm.wombat("http://guide.sbanetweb.com/press/varbiz07116001.html","20110716012211","https://web.archive.org/","web","https://web-static.archive.org/_static/", "1310779331"); </script> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=p7PEIJWi" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="https://web-static.archive.org/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv" />  <title>VAR Business - Has Microsoft Ever Read the History Books?</title> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <style type="text/css">  </style> </head> <body bgcolor="#FFFFFF"> <div align="center"> Has Microsoft Ever Read the History Books? <tt>Windows 2000 server--a repeat of Novell 4.x?</tt> </div> <div align="center">By <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110716012211/mailto:/">Wayne Spivak</a>, VARBusiness 12:02 PM EST Fri., July 13, 2001 </div>   George Bernard Shaw wrote, "We learn from history that man can never learn anything from history." It should be obvious that Microsoft's actions vis-a-vis Windows 2000 demonstrate that the powers that be at Microsoft not only haven't read recent history, they insist on repeating its mistakes. Let us return to a simpler time, in the not-too-distant past. The fastest PCs generally available and affordable were 486 machines--the P5 was just around the corner. Novell was the dominant force in network operating systems. Their product was NetWare 3.1. What an operating system! Clean, relatively simple to install--despite the absurd number of floppies, CDs still weren't affordable--implement and maintain. NetWare 3.1, 3.11 and 3.12 were scalable and, more importantly, stable. No wonder this operating system found a home in every office, from the three-person SoHo loft to the Fortune 100 MIS department. Today, as it was in the past, and will undoubtedly be in the future, more networks and servers are located in small companies and workgroups than will ever be found as corporate-wide servers in the Fortune 5000. The math is pretty simple. In a 1999 report based on U.S. Census Bureau statistics, the U.S. Small Business Administration stated that, "Small businesses with fewer than 500 workers employ 53 percent of the private non-farm workforce," and, "During the 1990-1995 period, small firms with fewer than 500 employees created 76 percent of new jobs." Those statistics don't address the small workgroups in large, decentralized companies. Other data provided by the Small Business Administration show that most companies in the fewer-than-500-worker category really have fewer than 100 workers. And in that subcategory, the fewer-than-50-worker class is larger, than the more-than-50-worker class. Another way to look at this data is by how most software publishers license their software. Licenses are usually sold as singles, but multiples are offered, often based upon five, 10, 25 or 50 users. Obviously, the software publishers read the U.S. Census Bureau statistics, too. So now let's move time forward a bit to Novell's decision to end the life of NetWare 3.12 and embark on a new operating system, NetWare 4.x. This marketing program turned out to be a major mistake. NetWare 4.x had some wonderful new features. Central to the program was Novell Directory Services (NDS). This re-invention of x.25 directory services enabled the Fortune 5000 to better network and manage their sites. But Novell forgot a crucial element when they developed NDS. They didn't look at or consider the smaller users with five to 25 seats that didn't need to use NDS. NDS was, and is, too complicated, too time-intensive to set up and maintain. It just wasn't and isn't made for smaller customers. Like the old Monty Python skit, it was like using a bazooka to kill a mosquito. So what did those customers do, when they could no longer get support for NetWare 3.x? They made the logical decision and migrated to Windows NT. Not because NT was better than NetWare, but it was easier to maintain, install and implement. It was graphical. It was , well, like Windows. And it supported TCP/IP natively, out of the box, so those forward-thinking companies could access the Internet. Fast-forward a few years, and we find Microsoft NT 4.0 the dominant network operating system. Novell and NetWare 5.x are struggling to stay alive. I personally can't remember the last time I used NetWare. Nor can I remember the last time I was in an office that had NetWare operating. With the exception of friends, family and associates who work in very large IT shops, I haven't heard anything about NetWare. Not to say it's a bad operating system, it's just that Novell did such a thorough job of cutting off so many possible clients that they assisted Microsoft in capturing the network operating system marketplace. I could sit here and regurgitate every valid complaint against NT, but facts are facts. So, you ask, where's our history lesson? What's the point? Microsoft announced in early February 2001 that it had sold 1 million copies of Windows 2000 Server. But as you read the trade press, W2K Server still hasn't penetrated the NT 4.0 marketplace. Why? Here's a hint: Read Mr. Shaw's quote again. Active Directory Services. Bloatware. Hardware requirements. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? A tool that makes it too complicated for the small business, workgroup or department to install, implement and operate. Does the name NetWare 4.x ring a bell? I recently installed Windows 2000 Server, which used to be called Advanced Server, but was rolled back to plain old Server when Microsoft decided to instill more technology into a midlevel server operating system, which they then called Advanced Server. Now let's be clear, I'm not talking about DataCenter Server, which was always clearly different, or Professional, which was the desktop replacement for NT Workstation. If you're confused, you're not alone: It's a marketing thing. Reminds me of what former vice president Dan Quayle said: "People that are really very weird can get into sensitive positions and have a tremendous impact on history." And so, those same people get into marketing, change product titles, and confuse the hell out of us. But back to our story. I was installing Windows 2000 Server on a small network for a friend. In fact, it was my first W2K Server install. I must say, it wasn't difficult to install, but when I started to configure the software, the only way to make it a primary domain controller (PDC) was to install Active Directory, DHCP, IIS and DNS. Microsoft provides some help on its Web site, with an 11-chapter tutorial <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110716012211/http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/library/planning/activedirectory/branchoffice/default.asp">(http://www.microsoft.com/Windows2000/library/planning/activedirectory/branchoffice/default.asp)</a>, as well as a step-by-step guide, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110716012211/http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/library/planning/server/serversteps.asp">(http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/library/planning/server/serversteps.asp)</a>. There's our bazooka again. Now let's look at NT 4.0. You don't need to install DNS or IIS, DHCP is optional, Active Directory doesn't exist, and you can make local or global groups. In addition, you don't need to create policies. NT 4.0 is much faster, simpler and easier to manage. Microsoft is moving away from the Windows 9.x and NT platforms and will in the near future make those operating systems obsolete. What will those small shops do? Will history repeat itself? Or did somebody say--Linux? Wayne Spivak is the president of SBA Consulting Ltd. of Bellmore, N.Y. </body> </html>