Novell aims Linux suite at Small Business Server customers

. . . keeping an eye on the penguin

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May 09, 2006

On May 9th, Novell Inc. announced a new package, the Novell Open Workgroup Suite, that is intended to go head to head with Microsoft's Small Business Server. In no coincidence at all, Microsoft had just announced its release candidate for Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2 the day before.

Novell is billing the Novell Open Workgroup Suite as "The first workgroup suite for the open enterprise," but the real selling point is that it is up to 70 percent cheaper than a similar Microsoft solution.

Actually, Novell has offered other Linux workgroup solutions before, with its Novell Linux Small Business Suite 9. The Novell Open Workgroup Suite replaces both the Novell Linux Small Business Suite and the Novell Small Business Suite, and an inexpensive upgrade path is available for those products' customers.

Novell Open Workgroup Suite customers will have two main options.

The first, for deployment with Linux servers and any desktop platform, includes Novell Open Enterprise Server, with SLES (SUSE Linux Enterprise Server) 9; Novell GroupWise 7 for e-mail and collaboration; Novell ZENworks Suite 7 for cross-platform systems management; Novell Linux Desktop 9; and, OpenOffice.org 2.0x for both Windows and Linux desktops.

The other, more expensive, option enables users to run the server side on either Linux or NetWare.

What's truly different about this package from its immediate predecessors is a blast from Novell's past: this package includes both the server and desktop operating systems. That hasn't been seen since the NetWare 2.x 'red box' days.

In a statement, Novell's new, executive VP and CTO Jeff Jaffe said, "Our customers are seeking cost-effective, secure and reliable alternatives to proprietary workgroup solutions. The Open Workgroup Suite was created in response to the market's demand for greater choice and flexibility, and is a perfect example of our strategy to source and deliver the best blend of technologies based on open standards and open source."

The Linux-only package requires an annual maintenance subscription that lists for $80 per user or device per year. The package with the NetWare option enabled is priced at an upgrade of $150 per user or device, with maintenance at $106 per year. Other options are available, and lower pricing is available for some users through Novell's Volume Licensing programs.

Users can buy any of these combinations either directly from Novell or from a Novell reseller.

-- Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols

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