Novell, Inc. this week released Zero Efforts Networks, a desktop management product that ties into enterprise directory services.
By accessing Novell Directory Services (NDS), the applications and utilities that form the Z.E.N.works suite can get the latest information about user access privileges, security and desktop configurations. Network administrators then use Z.E.N.works tools to create a rule, called a policy, and apply the rule to specific users or to groups of users.
Z.E.N.works' appeal is not limited to current NDS or Novell customers, according to beta testers. Sites that are investing in Windows NT also are expressing strong interest in Z.E.N.works, which can work with Novell's NDS for Windows NT product.
"The key issue is that Novell has a mature directory, and mature applications that are exploiting it, today," said Jon Freeman, president of Mycroft, Inc., a New York City-based network integrator specializing in enterprise directories. "Microsoft's Active Directory [due with NT 5.0 next year] and Zero Administration Windows have a lot of promise, but they're not here yet."
Z.E.N.works comprises a set of extensions to NDS, which let NDS recognize a desktop PC as a separate entity, which can be associated with a user, and with specific hardware and software. For Z.E.N.works, Novell reworked several existing NetWare applications, such as the Novell Application Launcher (NAL) for distributing software and Workstation Manager for managing PCs. One new feature is called Remote Control, which lets an authorized user, such as a help desk staffer, take control of a remote PC to troubleshoot a problem.
The Z.E.N.works software adds extensions to the server-based NDS, while the tools run on an administrator workstation. PCs run the standard NDS client software.
One Mycroft customer is relying on Z.E.N.works to speed converting some 5,000 desktops from Windows 3.1 to Windows NT Workstation 4.0. This customer has more than 300 applications. Which ones a customer actually uses, depends on several variables, including job title, business unit and business processes, Freeman said. With Z.E.N.works, Freeman's team can use the information in NDS to associate users with applications and workstations. When a user logs on, Z.E.N.works automatically configures the desktop and delivers any needed software updates.
Z.E.N.works is available now, for Windows 3.1, Windows 95 and Windows NT. The suggested price is $39 per user.
