Datapro Report

Unix or Windows NT? Both!

Mary Hubley

Most everyone is screaming for ways to make Unix and Windows NT work together easily and effectively. Softway Systems' easy solution puts them on the same platform. In integrating the two OSes, Softway's OpenNT does more than simply provide integration between Unix and NT: OpenNT provides a complete, native Unix subsystem on top of an NT kernel. OpenNT is so much like Unix that it conforms to Posix.2 standards, and Softway expects that by the end of the year, it will achieve the Open Group's XPG Unix 95 branding. When that happens, OpenNT can be truly called Unix.

OpenNT is more than interoperability software. Other interoperability-software products take one of several strategies, such as cross-platform APIs, Windows emulation for Unix (e.g., Bristol and Mainsoft),or Unix emul ation for Windows (such as MKS toolkit or Cygnus's GNU Win32). These other solutions usually have a price, such as reduced performance, limited functionality and compatibility, or high cost. Softway's product solves t hese problems by running Unix and NT natively together. OpenNT also lets Windows and Unix applications run side by side on a single desktop, making it a strong choice for users who need applications from both systems.

OpenNT 2.0's ( http://www.softway.com ) supported facilities include:

• Posix.1, Posix.2, and ANSI C interfaces
• BSD sockets mapped to Winsock
• SVID IPC (message queues, semaphores)
• shared memory, memory-mapped files
• ability to execute Win32 applications from OpenNT
• full tty semantics mapped to console windows
• pseudoterminal support
• X11R5 Windowing System clients and libraries
• X11R6 Windowing System display server
• X11R6 fonts and font management
• OpenNTiF (OSF/Motif 1.2.4 window manager, libraries, development kit)
• telnet daemon service (multiuser log-in support)
• file-link support, true case-sensitive filenames
• over 200 Unix and X11R5 commands and utilities
• Unix shells: KornShell, Bourne shell, C shell
• Unix scripting languages: awk, Perl, sed, Tcl/Tk
• full shell job control
• full integration with Windows NT security model
• full integration with Windows NT file systems
• cron service, system service, daemon support
• Internet clients: FTP, telnet, ping, rsh
• integrated tape-device support
• Unix development tools: make, rcs, yacc, lex, cc, c89, nm, ar, strip

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Mary Hubley, principal analyst, Datapro Information Services Group, analyzes the NT and Unix markets. Hubley is manager of Datapro Analyst: Reports on Windows NT, which focuses on the Windows NT market and related technologies, including case studies, product and technology overviews, and integration and management strategies. For more information on Datapro reports, call 609-764-0100; fax: 609-764-2814; http://www.datapro.com .