This combination of NetWare Cluster Services and NetWare 5 allows customers to dramatically reduce network downtime by providing extremely fast failover if problems occur. In most cases, if a clustered server does go down, failover is imperceptible to end-users. For example, if a user sends a print job and the network server fails, that user doesn't have to resubmit the print job and would notice little more than the passing of a few seconds before the job is completed. Today Novell is announcing support for an eight-node cluster, but extended configurations are possible, and NetWare Cluster Services has been demonstrated to support up to 12 nodes. Using ConsoleOne , network administrators can manage all clustered resources, including connection licenses, data volumes, services and applications, from a single point.
Administrators also have the option of monitoring the cluster remotely via any Web browser.
Those resources can be quickly and easily transferred to another server in a cluster allowing critical maintenance to occur. Novell Consulting's Rapid Deployment program reduces customers' deployment time by 30 to 50 percent. Networking consulting experts will design, plan, pilot and rapidly deploy NetWare Cluster Services and other customized solutions based on NDS in a customer's environment, thus providing immediate business benefits and a competitive advantage from this technology. This Rapid Deployment Solution is implemented quickly and optimally the first time, allowing users and network administrators to immediately become more productive. Novell solutions give customers total control of business networks and the Internet, simplifying the management of user access and identity.