COMPUTER PLATFORMS

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COMPUTER PLATFORMS
Network Operating Systems Week 9
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Week 9

• Operating System
• Uses
• Network Operating System
• Fundamentals
• Architecture
• Windows 2000 family
• Windows 2003
• Windows NT 4
• UNIX family
• Linux flavours
• Apple Macintosh OS
• Novell NetWare family

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Week 10

• NO COMPUTER PLATFORMS
• LECTURES OR LABS NEXT WEEK
• 1st - 5th DECEMBER
• USE THE TIME TO WORK ON YOUR ASSIGNMENTS AND DO
  BACKGROUND READING

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Operating System

• Traditionally the OS is the interface between the
  user and the computer
• Interact and control computer hardware
• No capability to connect to remote computers
• Essentially stand alone machines

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Network Operating System

• Provides network communication protocols
• E.g.-
• TCP/IP
• NetBEUI / NetBIOS
• AppleTalk
• IPX/SPX
• Provides interaction with network hardware
• Network Interface Card (NIC)
• Media access
• Router configuration
• Allows remote access to other computers
• File /Application Sharing
• Administration / Control
• Cluster processing
• etc.

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Network Operating System

• Hybrid NOS
• Windows 3.11
• Windows 95 / 98
• Apple Mac OS 7.x
• True NOSs
• UNIX
• Novell Netware
• Windows NT 4
• Server and Workstation
• Windows 2000
• Server and Workstation
• Windows XP
• Mac OS X

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NOS Architecture

• Client / Server
• Centralised file / application sharing
• Centralised control / administration
• One or more servers
• File server
• Application server
• etc.
• Good security
• If correctly configured
• Scalable
• Add more servers / clients
• Expensive
• Server and workstation software
• Select few people in charge of administration
• Good or bad?

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NOS Architecture

• Peer-to-peer
• Everybodys equal
• No priority
• No central control
• Software cheap
• Easy to set-up
• No specialist configuration
• Poor security
• Suits
• Small Home / Office LANs
• Networks in a single room
• Networks with no interconnection requirements

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Windows 2000 Server

• IIS 5
• Internet Information Server
• A web server
• VPN Server
• Virtual Private Networking
• Allowing remote dial-in connections
• Active Directory
• Central control over all shared resources and
  users throughout an entire network
• Requirements
• Intel Pentium 133 Mhz or higher
• 256 megabytes (MB) of RAM
• 1.0 GB hard disk space

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Windows 2000 Professional

• AKA - Windows 2000 Workstation
• Used for P2P or Client / Server
• Client for WIN2k Server
• Features of Win 98 NT4
• Support for
• 4Gb RAM
• 2 Processors using SMP
• Symmetric Multiprocessing
• Plug n Play
• NTFS File System
• Security Sharing

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UNIX

• Developed by Ken Thompson Dennis Ritchie at
  Bell labs / ATT
• Multi-user
• More than one person suing the OS at a time
• Multitasking
• Each user can run more than one process
• Platform independent
• Runs on almost any hardware platform
• Was free at first but now expensive
• Especially for PC
• Complex to understand
• Large distribution
• User control and administration
• Used as multiple types of server

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Linux

• Developed by Linus Torvalds
• Attempt to provide functionality of UNIX in a
  free, easier to use form
• Particularly aimed at PC users
• Two parts
• Kernel
• The Linux operations section
• The UNIX part of things
• Distribution
• Particular flavour of Linux
• Control and admin
• Users can be created an deleted by an admin (root
  or su)
• Users are organised into groups
• Open source
• Free! (more or less)
• Many now have a windows style interface
• Easy to get to grips with
• Some expertise is required to become a master
• Low hardware requirements
• 100 MHz CPU, 12Mb RAM, 500Mb HDD

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Linux Distributions

• Lots of different flavours
• Usually based around one main Linux Distribution
• SuSE
• Red Hat
• Mandrake
• Vine
• Caldera
• Debian
• LindowsOS
• Morphix
• Many free and open source applications being
  developed

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Linux Interface
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Linux Interface
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Linux Interface
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Novell NetWare

• Versions 5 and 6 most common
• Sharing of resources
• Novell Directory Services (NDS)
• NDS e-directory
• Network Services
• Mail servers
• Print servers
• Etc.
• Clients servers
• Often found running alongside another OS
• Such as Windows 9x, NT, 2000
• As a client piece of software on workstations

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Novell NetWare Interface

• Very Windows like

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Mac OS X Server

• Developed by Apple Computers
• Based on UNIX architecture
• Designed to be run on Apple Xserve computer
• File / resource sharing
• Open directory
• Network admin
• Workgroup management
• Network services
• Mail
• Web
• Etc.

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Mac OS X

• Developed by Apple Computers
• Based on UNIX architecture
• Customisable GUI
• Can connect to other networks
• Windows
• Novell
• UNIX
• Network client software
• SMP support

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Mac OS X Interface
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Features of a NOS

• User must logon to the computer / server
• User name
• Password
• Organisation of users
• Rights and privelages
• Sharing of data
• Provision of network services
• Application services
• Above all, communication

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Week 9

• Operating System
• Uses
• Network Operating System
• Fundamentals
• Architecture
• Windows 2000 family
• Windows 2003
• Windows NT
• UNIX family
• Linux flavours
• Apple Macintosh OS
• MacOS X server/client
• Novell NetWare 5 6 Overview