Sim-Ex™ Tutorial for Network+

3.0 Network Implementation

3.1 Basic Capabilities of Network Operating System (NOS):

UNIX/Linux: Unix/Linux is both an Computer Operating System as well as a Network Operating System. It consists of a kernal and a user interface called a shell. Kernel is a main program of Unix system. it controls CPU, memory, hard disk, network card, and other hardware components. Shell is an interface between user and kernel. Shell interprets your input as commands and pass them to kernel.

The following are the important features of UNIX/Linux Operating system:

It is a multi-user multi tasking: Several users can use the OS/NOS simultaneously for running single or multiple tasks.
Data, directory, process, hard disk etc are treated as a file. This is sometimes confusing to those familiar with Windows OS, where devices are treated separately from files and folders.
The directories are in a hierarchical structure. The "Top" directory is "/", which is called slash or root.
Every user will have his own directory, called home directory.
UNIX/Linux uses standard TCP/IP protocol for communications and network services.
Unlike Windows, Unix is case-sensitive. For example, a file named Mydata.txt is different from a file named mydata.txt.

Some commonly used commands in UNIX are listed below:

cd: Change directory
cp: Copy file or directory
ls: Show files in current position
mkdir: Create directory
mv: Move file or directory
pwd: Show current position
rm: Remove file or directory
rmdir Remove directory
man: Display online manual
shutdown: Reboot or turn off machine

Netware: Netware is the first NOS to be used for PC LANs. It has multiple client support for multiple client platforms. Netware 4.x and above uses NDS for authentication. NDS is a directory service that keeps track of all of the network entities and performs authentication for them.

Macintosh: The recent of Mac OS version is based on a UNIX kernel, so essentially it is a UNIX server. In addition to Mac clients, a Mac server can support UNIX clients and Windows clients. Authentication is handheld through Kerberos and Open Directory. File and print services are handheld through AppleShare and other open protocols and utilities. Mac OS has limited application support.

Windows: Windows Server uses the same interface and, to some extent, the same software as the desktop Windows versions. Earlier versions of Windows did not support Networking. Now, ofcourse, all Windows OSes support networking. Given below are the Windows OSes that support networking:

Windows 95
Windows 98 and Windows 98 Second Edition
Windows Millenium
(ME)Windows NT
Windows 2000
Windows XP
Windows 2000 Server
Windows 2003 Server

Though the desktop Windows versions like Win9x support networking, it is limited to peer-to-peer networking. Windows 2000, and Windows2003 support client-server computing.

Windows 2003 Server is among the most advanced servers offered by Microsoft. The important features offered by Windows 2003 Server include the following:

Terminal Services: Terminal Services allows desktop computers to run applications on a central server, as if they were running locally. This enables centralized applications deployment, and management.
Web and Application Services :Windows Server 2003 provides a integrated Web server solution. The Web server can host and serve web sites over a corporate intranet or the Internet.
Security Services : Windows 2003 Server offers the following security features for organizations deploying the server:
- Kerberos Authentication
- Public Key Infrastructure (PKI)
- Network Access Protection
- Security Configuration Wizard
Networking and Access Technologies : Windows 2003 Server has the following networking features:
- DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)
- Authentication
- Internet Protocol Security (IPSec)
- Supports Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6)
- Routing and Remote Access
- Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)
- Wireless Networking
Windows SharePoint Services: Windows SharePoint Services offers file sharing and team collaboration benefits for Windows Server 2003 environments.

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