Novell is set to release a version of its directory services product that interoperates with Citrix Systems' thin-client networking software.
Combining Novell Directory Services (NDS) and Novell's ZENworks desktop management tool with Citrix's WinFrame thin client server software will allow companies to more easily access and manage Windows applications across a network, Novell officials said.
Novell's decision to bring its directory technology across from PCs to thin clients may represent a shot in the arm for the thin-client movement.
Citrix's WinFrame is designed to allow users to access Windows applications hosted on a server using a variety of client devices, including network computers (NCs), so-called "dumb terminals," and desktop PCs.
NDS, meanwhile, allows IT managers to customise the look and feel of a user's client interface and control which applications they can access based on a "digital persona" compiled in the directory services software, Novell said. ZENworks is also compatible with Microsoft's Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition, the vendor added.
Users with NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition, and MetaFrame will be able to download the necessary updated Novell client for NT (version 4.5) free of charge from Novell's Web site (http://www.novell.com) by the end of September, Novell said. That client will also ship with NetWare 5 by September 20, and later in ZENworks 1.1, the company added.
Customers with WinFrame will then be able to download Novell's updated client for NT, as well as the necessary prerequisite software from Citrix, in the same time frame, Novell said.
In related NDS news, Novell this week announced the availability of a beta version of the latest release of its directory services software for Windows NT. The commercial release, NDS for NT 2.0, is expected to ship before the end of the year, Novell said.
The beta software can be downloaded immediately for free from Novell's Web site at (http://www.support.novell.com/beta/public). The product is expected to ship in the fourth quarter of this year, when pricing will also be announced.
