Advantages to using the Universal Driver (UD) service from Revelation Software on Windows server instead of the older NLM technology under Novell include;
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Eliminate Novell software from client workstations,
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No need to map Novell drives on stations,
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Remove IPX protocol from your network,
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Eliminate the use of named pipes
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Significant Revelation performance gains due to all of the above - up to 5 times faster on I/O intensive work,
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UD manager function on server allows you to manage user sessions and record locks using a simple Windows interface – even junior techicians can handle day-to-day support,
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Virtually eliminate Group Format Errors – the only time we have seen any data corruption was when the power to the server was repeatedly cut,
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Option to add UD Heavy if you need 24/7 uptime with real time failover protection (extra cost and equipment required),
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The 4GB file size limit has been overcome,
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File frame size can be set up to 100K,
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You can hide Revelation database .LK and .OV files from end-users to avoid inadvertent WinExplorer manipulations,
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All printers will be accessed via Windows print queues only,
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Novell skills will no longer be a requirement for support technicians.
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Inexpensive NLM cross-grade pricing is available on request from Revelation Software for AREV and OI v8 or earlier. OpenInsight v9+ licensing includes UD.
Why not move to Universal Driver from Novell NLM?
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You will need to upgrade AREV to v3.12 or OpenInsight to at least v4.1.3 to use the latest UD v4.6. UDv4.5 will work with AREVv2+ and OIv4+,
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There are some application changes involved such as substituting Novell Capture commands for Windows Net Use equivalents. Contact us for software tools and assistance.
See the related Revelation Knowledge Base article.
