Client32 vs M$ Client

[Jeff Umstead]

As part of an on going software upgrade involving Visual FoxPro
(which I posted earlier), I've been told that we have to use the M$
client for Netware instead of Netware's client on all Win95/8 and NT
stations.

Does anyone have a list of pros and cons for the Netware vs M$
clients?

Thanks

Jeff Umstead
Systems Administrator
Merrill Tool Holding Company
Saginaw MI

[Anthony Baratta]

Jeff Umstead wrote:
>
> As part of an on going software upgrade involving Visual FoxPro
> (which I posted earlier), I've been told that we have to use the M$
> client for Netware instead of Netware's client on all Win95/8 and NT
> stations.
>
> Does anyone have a list of pros and cons for the Netware vs M$
> clients?

Jeff...

Sometimes its important to listen to the vendor when they recommend a
particular client. There are software packages (like remote desktop
backup software/agents) that 'require' the MS Client and will not work
with the Novell Client.

The Novell 32-bit Clients (post VLM versions) appears to be in flux
(especially considering the traffic about the clients here on the list)
and many Software vendors are not attempting to 'keep up'. Can't blame
them, really. It bites - both ways.

I'd do your own internal testing, compare with your internal update
procedures like Zen/SMS et.al, and whether the software you want will
user either or only one of the clients. Nothing beats a little of your
own R&D.

--
Anthony Baratta
President
KeyBoard Jockeys
South Park Speaks Version 3 is here!!!
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[Larry Hansford]

It is not true that you have to run M$ Client for NetWare to
run Visual Foxpro Apps. All of our apps run in either VFP
or FoxPro For Windows, and we use nothing but Client 32.

Most of our clients are running Client 32 Ver 2.5, but all
the newer ones are running Client 32 Ver 3.1. Neither are
having any problems whatsoever. The WinNT workstations are
all running Client 32, whichever version was current at the
time the workstation was installed.

There has been considerable discussion about not having enough
file handles, but that is solved by adding the FILES=120 in
the CONFIG.SYS file. VFP is a resource hog, but it does not
cause any problems with Client 32.

Larry

At 03:21 PM 5/5/99 -0500, you wrote:
>As part of an on going software upgrade involving Visual FoxPro
>(which I posted earlier), I've been told that we have to use the M$
>client for Netware instead of Netware's client on all Win95/8 and NT
>stations.
>
>Does anyone have a list of pros and cons for the Netware vs M$
>clients?
>

[Randy Richardson]

[Snip]

> Sometimes its important to listen to the vendor when they recommend a
> particular client. There are software packages (like remote desktop
> backup software/agents) that 'require' the MS Client and will not work
> with the Novell Client.

Often times, I've found the vendor's advice to be incorrect. In most
cases,
they provide this answer only because they haven't tested it with Novell's
Client32. Most software vendors don't specialize in networking, and so they
are not qualified to make such recommendations.

> The Novell 32-bit Clients (post VLM versions) appears to be in flux
> (especially considering the traffic about the clients here on the list)
> and many Software vendors are not attempting to 'keep up'. Can't blame
> them, really. It bites - both ways.

I think the vendors are to blame. If they want people to use their
products,
then they need to ensure compatibility with popular operating environments,
including Client32 on Windows in a Novell network, which is very popular.

On a side note, most applications need only perform basic functions such
as
opening files, locking records, sending output to printers, and communicating
with WinSock.DLL (internet). Software developers who choose to use
non-standard or tricky methods in their programming are asking for trouble, and
with the wide variety of alternative applications on the market it's not
difficult to lean on the vendor to smarten up and fix their software.

> I'd do your own internal testing, compare with your internal update
> procedures like Zen/SMS et.al, and whether the software you want will
> user either or only one of the clients. Nothing beats a little of your
> own R&D.

This is an excellent suggestion.

Randy Richardson - ra...@inter-corporate.com
Inter-Corporate Computer & Network Services, Inc.
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
http://www.inter-corporate.com/
http://www.inter-corporate.net/

"Think big. Think fast. Think scalable. Think Oracle 8 on NetWare with NDS."