The next step will be the release of the new version, code-named Topaz, of its desktop management software System Management Server. The beta is scheduled for this fall. Microsoft will develop some 20 modules and offer a tool kit for developers. But it represents the first plug-in to a management platform Microsoft is creating to support .Net, which includes a set of interconnected servers for online software delivery. The goal is for it to be part of a larger management system.
Critics say it is a tall order.
They have to expose APIs and break the product into components that can be plugged into other environments. They need to get the components right to make use of the system's various parts and data. He questions whether Microsoft can embed in the operating system something similar to what Computer Associates and Tivoli have been trying to do for a decade. The other question is whether Microsoft plans to compete with those vendors. Emanuel says the company will take a co-existence view.