Server operating systems need tender Y2K care

Second in a four-part series.

With the end of the year fast approaching, don't overlook potential Millennium Bug problems in your server operating system - it may need a patch, an upgrade or both.

The root of the Year 2000 problem generally rests in the underlying server hardware, which may start misrepresenting the date once the dial rolls over to Jan. 1, 2000. Unfortunately, server operating system software residing on the server hardware can unknowingly replicate the incorrect date across the network.

The main problem is in the BIOS software that is built into each physical server and which controls fundamental hardware operations. Most BIOSes cannot adjust to the rollover to 2000. Server operating systems communicate directly with the BIOS, and the operating systems can, in turn, pass on incorrect date information to unsuspecting server applications that request a time stamp.

On the software side, there are two issues you need to consider when checking your server operating systems for Y2K compliance. First, find out if the software can read dates later than 1999. Second, if the software is handed a wrong date from an old hardware BIOS, determine whether the server operating system will make the correction or pass the error onto applications. If your server operating system can read 2000 dates but does not have an internal mechanism that knows when it has been passed a bum number, there will be serious Y2K repercussions.

Of course, if you upgrade your BIOS, you only have to worry about whether your software can handle post-1999 dates.

In this age of heterogeneity, most enterprise networks have servers running a range of server operating systems, which makes compliance-checking a bigger hassle. Fortunately, Y2K service vendor Infoliant has an online hardware and software compliance-tracking system that makes the job a little easier.

A Network World survey of the Infoliant database shows that the majority of server operating systems available today need Y2K work. In more than 50% of the cases, users will have to upgrade to the latest version of their respective server operating systems. Others will merely have to download and apply a Y2K patch, and a third set will have to take both actions to remedy the pending Y2K situation.

They're ready

In the compliant column are Banyan System's Vines 8.5; the latest update to IBM's Unix-based AIX, Version 4.3.2; and IBM's version of OS/400 that runs on RISC servers. Compaq's Digital Unix Version 4.0D has also passed the compliance test. However, previous versions of all these products require a patch if they are to function properly next year.

Novell customers who have managed to keep their server operating systems current are in the best shape. The new IP-based NetWare 5.0 and the most current versions of Novell's other major releases, NetWare 3.2 and 4.2, are all fully compliant. Novell is not testing NetWare 2.X, NetWare 3.11 and earlier, and NetWare 4.0 for Y2K compliance. In most cases, Novell suggests that customers upgrade to any compliant version. However, NetWare 3.12, 4.10 and 4.11 customers can download Y2K patches from Novell's Web site.

While Novell seems to have tackled the Y2K issue on the server side, users should be aware that they also need to take a look at the client software that sits on each desktop and allows those machines to connect to the NetWare back end. Novell has compiled a long list of client software that the company will not be testing for compliance, thereby creating a situation in which some users will have to upgrade thousands of desktop machines on their networks.

Of the more than 20 clients available today from Novell, only half are Y2K-compliant. NT Workstation users can choose the already Y2K-compatible Novell Client Versions 4.3 and 4.5 for Windows NT. Compliant clients for Windows 9X PCs include Novell Client Versions 2.5 and 3.01 for Windows 95 and 98, and the NetWare/IntranetWare Client Version 2.20 for Windows 95, which is also known as Novell's Client 32. For older systems, the Novell Client Version 2.6 for DOS/Win 3.1X is 2000 ready.

Novell officials downplayed the hassle of rolling out Y2K patches to thousands of desktops. They say the process can be significantly eased with its desktop management suite, ZENworks, which allows an administrator to distribute software using Novell Directory Services (NDS). A five-user ZENworks starter pack ships with each NetWare 5.0 and 4.X box.

On the Unix side of the server market, the leading vendors are all requiring users to take action. The Santa Cruz Operation requires that all its Intel-based UnixWare users upgrade to Version 7.0 and then download a free patch. Sun's Solaris - the recent Version 2.6 and past releases going back to Version 2.3 - require a free patch for compliance. Hewlett-Packard has supplied a series of fixes for its HP-UX Version 11.0 systems, but it will not offer fixes for past versions of the product.

IBM's PC-based server operating system, OS/2 Warp/LAN Server, also requires users to apply a Y2K patch.

Open source Linux products were not considered for this article because compliance information is not readily available.

Beyond the BIOS

Server operating systems now include a slew of services - from directories to built-in Web servers - and utilities that make the servers more manageable. These services and utilities must both be checked for Y2K readiness.

NDSforNT and the version of NDS that runs on NetWare have received clean bills of Y2K health. However, Novell is telling users to swap out its Novell Web Server in favor of Netscape's Fast Track Server if they want to be Y2K ready. Novell has dropped its Web server from its list of supported products and, therefore, has no plans to test it for Y2K compliance.

Microsoft's Internet Information Server, which comes with NT Server, is reported to be compliant. However, it is mainly in the utility area where Microsoft falls down.

For example, the Windows NT 4.0 User Manager Utility does not recognize that February 2000 has an extra day due to the leap year. Also, the NT 4.0 Control Panel Date/Time applet may display a date that is ahead of the actual system date. In NT 3.51 systems, the IP addressing service known as WINS/DHCP Admin will misrepresent the years 2000 to 2009 as 1900 to 1909. Also, NT's File and Print Services for NetWare can't handle the four-digit date, and the date of queued print jobs may be off by as much as a year.

Microsoft claims that applying the same Y2K service packs that remedy the Millennium Bug in the Windows NT operating system will remedy these utility problems before New Year's Eve rolls around.

The rollover to 2000 is only eight months away, but with proper care, server operating systems will be the least of your worries.