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ArticlesDatapro Report


May 1997 / Bits / Datapro Report

Many Paths to NT/Unix Interoperability

Mary Hubley

End-user IS departments are increasingly building heterogeneous computer environments that combine legacy systems with Unix and Windows NT. The problem is that these OSes are not transparently integratable; you cannot simply plug an NT system into your Unix network and have it run seamlessly. Nonetheless, many IS departments, attracted by the lower costs and simplified maintenance characteristics of NT applications servers, are scrambling to integrate NT into their environments.

Users are not replacing their original Unix applications but are maintaining their Unix systems while implementing NT. Thus, these users are looking for solutions that will help them preserve their investments by creating a transparent NT/Unix computing environment.

Microsoft has bundled a number of protocols into NT for creating interoperable environments. In addition, many vendors have built NT-to-Unix interoperability suites. While not totally seamless, these solutions are contributing to the rise in NT installations within traditional Unix environments. Most of these solutions, which are available from myriad vendors, can be categorized into the following areas: system/network-management solutions; networking protocols, such as TCP/IP; NFS (which allows NT applications to run on Unix); Unix/NT file sharing; tools for porting applications from Unix to NT or vice versa; and client/server applications development for both Unix and NT.

The goal of most users is to create an NT/Unix computing environment that allows the sharing of files and printers from anywhere on the network and the use of applications from both environments. A TCP/IP stack is usually one of the first technologies implemented, along with a NetBIOS name server for use with NetBIOS over TCP/IP, as well as a DHCP server that supports the various NetBIOS configuration options. While these basic components are supplied with Windows NT Server, several vendors have built upon these components to offer integration packages that provide file and print sharing, remote administration, applications integration, and e-mail connectivity solutions for mixed NT/Unix environments.


A Variety of NT-to-Unix Solutions

A Variety of NT-to-Unix Solutions
Company Product(s) Brief description Contact information
WRQ * Reflection NFS Connection for Windows NT NT-to-Unix host access 206-21 7-7100; http://www.wrq.com
Datafocus * Nutcracker Unix-to-NT application-porting tools 703-631-6770; http://www.datafocus.com
FTP Software * InterDrive NT Server NFS Server for NT (file and print sharing between NT and Unix) 508-685-4000; http://www.ftp.com
Hummingbird Communications * Exceed for Windows NT
* NFS Maestro for Windows NT
PC X Server (lets NTaccess Unix); NFS Server 416-496-2200; http://www.hummingbird.com
Network Computing Devices * PC-Xware
* WinCenter Pro
NFS client/server (resource sharing among Unix, NT, and PCs); NT applications server 415-694-0650; http://www.ncd.com
Mainsoft * MainWin Studio NT/Unix portability toolkit 408-774-3400; http://www.mainsoft.com
Bristol Technology * Wind/U NT/Unix portability toolkit 203-438-6969; http://www.bristo l.com

Mary Hubley, principal analyst, Datapro Information Services Group. Hubley is also manager of Datapro's new NT Analyst information service, which focuses on the Windows NT market and related technologies, including case studies, product and technology overviews, and integration and management strategies.

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