FYI (Note: The origin of this information may be internal or external to Novell. Novell makes every effort within its means to verify this information. However, the information provided in this document is FOR YOUR INFORMATION only. Novell makes no explicit or implied claims as to the validity of this information.) TITLE: NOVELL DOS 7 PRESS RELEASE DOCUMENT ID#: FYI-M-1003 DATE: 05AUG93 PRODUCT: NOVELL DOS PRODUCT VERSION: 7 SUPERSEDES: 04JUN93 SYMPTOM: N/A ISSUE/PROBLEM: This document is designed to provide you with additional detailed information on Novell DOS 7, the next generation of DOS. This was most recently updated on August 4th to include information to about Fifth Generation's Search & Destroy and Fastback Express, and Stac Electronics' Stacker compression utility. Additional information, including pricing and availability, will be added to this document when it becomes available. We recommend that customers register their DR DOS 6.0 packages, and periodically check this document for further information. Novell released the following press announcement on August 2, 1993: Novell Announces Seamless Integration of Stacker Data Compression Technology in Novell DOS 7 Strategic Development Agreement Also Provides Novell Implementation of Data Compression Technology for Operating Systems and Network Services San Jose, Ca, August 2, 1993--In order to provide end users with the safest, robust and most reliable data compression technology available in the industry, Novell, Inc. today announced the inclusion of Stacker, the de facto industry standard data compression software from Stac Electronics, in Novell DOS 7. Through a strategic development agreement, Stac has granted Novell a license for Novell networks and operating systems which could as much as double the storage capacity of network servers and workstations that currently do not compress data, as well as facilitate the transmission of compressed data throughout the network. Novell DOS 7 reflects the company's commitment to the world's largest installed base and the needs of DOS customers worldwide for enhancedfunctionality and better networking support. The integration of Novell DOS 7 and Stacker enables the data compression device driver to execute in protected memory, providing customers better performance and more conventional memory for running applications. Additionally, customers can use existing hardware because data compression technology enables end users to have up to twice the storage capacity than without compression technology, leveraging their investment in hardware. "Providing our customers with the ability to store more data without having to upgrade their hardware means that customers get the most power from existing investments in technology," said Steve Tucker, vice president and general manager of Novell's Desktop Systems Group. "Novell is providing its customers with networking and desktop solutions and support that truly work in today's complex computing environment." "The seamless integration of Stacker will give Novell DOS 7 customers a fully integrated and powerful operating system that can grow well into the future," said Gary Clow, president of Stac Electronics. "We are pleased to be selected by Novell as one of their strategic technology partners." Stacker will fully support Novell's new technology known as DOS Protected Mode Services (DPMS) to further reduce its conventional and upper memory requirements. DPMS is an API that allows device drivers and TSRs to reside in extended memory and execute in protected mode on 286, 386 and 486 computers, thus providing additional conventional and upper memory for DOS applications and Microsoft Windows. Using DPMS compatible software, customers can configure feature rich systems with substantially more conventional and upper memory. DPMS is DOS version independent and is fully compatible with Microsoft Windows. With the industry's current concern over disk compression technology at the desktop level, Tucker stated Novell is ensuring its customers that they will receive the most reliable data compression technology through the integration of Stacker with Novell DOS 7. "Through partnerships with leading technology developers such as Stac Electronics, Novell is providing technically superior products to our customers, " he said. Novell DOS 7, the first network-ready DOS, is designed to be easy to use, install and administer. Its disk management utilities and disk caching fully support Stacker's compressed drives providing consistency and simplifying the end user's use of compressed drives. Other additions to Novell DOS 7 that will significantly extend DOS technology include NetWare client support, network installation, peer-to-peer networking, a SNMP network management agent, pre-emptive multitasking, desktop security and enhanced memory management, backup and virus protection, and DOS and Microsoft Windows user interfaces. Novell DOS 7, available in September, is the first major upgrade to DR DOS to be released from Novell's Desktop Systems Group. Stac Electronics is the leading supplier of high-performance data compression products for DOS, Windows, Macintosh and OS/2 personal computers. Implemented in software and silicon, Stac's products are sold direct from the company and through retail and OEM distribution channels worldwide. Novell, Inc., (NASDAQ: NOVL) is an operating system software company, the developer of network services, specialized and general purpose operating system products including NetWare, DR DOS and UnixWare. Novell's NetWare network computing products manage and control the sharing of services, data and applications among computer workgroups, departmental networks and business-wide information systems. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Novell released the following press announcement on August 2, 1993: Novell Adopts Stacker and Data Compression as Standard Strategic Development Agreement Gives Novell Multi-Platform License to Stacker LZS PROVO, Utah -- August 2, 1993 -- Novell, Inc. (NASDAQ:NOVL) announced today that it has selected Stac Electronics' (NASDAQ:STAC) Stacker LZS as a data compression standard for its operating systems and network services. Under a strategic development agreement, Stac has granted Novell a multi-platform license to Stac's patented compression technology and has agreed to work closely with Novell to develop new compression products for Novell networks and operating systems. Stac's Stacker LZS Compression technology will be integrated into the forthcoming release of Novell DOS 7. Subsequent work under the strategic development agreement includes making stacker LZS compression technology available for NetWare network operating system products. The use of Stacker on Novell networks that currently do not compress data could as much as double the storage capacity of network servers and workstations as well as facilitate the transmission of compressed data throughout the network. "As networks increasingly provide distributed services for applications that include document imaging and multimedia, data compression is important in making these services affordable and transparent to end-users," said Jan Newman, Novell executive vice president and general manager the NetWare Systems Group. "And Stac is the clear leader in multiplatform data compression technology." Gary Clow, Stac president and chief executive officer, said that integrating Stacker into Novell DOS is the first in a family of development projects Stac is beginning with Novell. "As the industry's leader in network technology Novell has operating systems running on everything from individual PCs to wide area networks, all of which can benefit by incorporating a common, high-performance data compression technology," he added. Stac Electronics is a leading supplier of high performance data compression products for personal computers. Implemented in software and silicon, Stac's products are sold direct from the company and through retail and OEM sales distribution channels worldwide. Novell, Inc. is the computer networking company, developer of network services and specialized and general purpose operating system products including NetWare, UnixWare and Novell DOS. Novell's NetWare network computing products manage and control the sharing of services, data and applications among workgroups, departmental networks and a cross enterprise-wide information systems. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Novell released the following press announcement on March 24, 1993: NOVELL ANNOUNCES MULTITASKING, NETWORKING DOS SAN JOSE, CA--March 24, 1993--Reflecting the company's commitment to the world's largest installed operating system and the needs of DOS customers for enhanced functionality and better networking support, Novell today announced Novell DOS 7, the next generation DOS and a major upgrade to DR DOS 6.0. Novell DOS 7, available this summer, will significantly extend DOS technology and enhance the core functionality of DR DOS by including integrated NetWare client support, peer-to-peer networking, a network management agent, network installation, pre-emptive multitasking, enhanced memory management and desktop security, as well as a suite of protected mode drivers. Novell DOS 7 is the first major DOS upgrade to be released from Novell's Desktop Systems Group. Novell DOS 7 is designed to be easy to use, install and administer. Its robust technology offers tighter integration with NetWare and scalable solutions from the emerging palmtop market to desktop PCs. Novell's DOS 7 will also continue to provide the best foundation for Microsoft Windows by offering Drag-and-Drop network resource capabilities. Novell DOS 7 benefits from another key technology known as DOS Protected Mode Services (DPMS), an API that allows device drivers and TSRs to reside in extended memory and execute in protected mode on 286, 386 and 486 computers. DPMS greatly reduces the demand for conventional memory, allowing customers to leverage more existing memory for applications. Having access to network services is a critical element in today's enterprise computing environment. Novell recognizes that as desktop operating systems evolve, they must continue to be tightly integrated with the information and services found in the NetWare environment, whether those desktop systems are integrated into a workgroup or an enterprise solution. "Novell DOS 7, our next product offering, is more tightly integrated with NetWare," said Steve Tucker, Novell vice president and general manager. "Novell DOS 7 will increase our lead over the competition in providing advanced DOS system software," he added. DOS PROTECTED MODE SERVICES DPMS is a DOS version-independent and Microsoft Windows- compatible API that provides protected mode support for device drivers and TSRs. By implementing DPMS, developers can easily add functionality and reduce conventional memory requirements of their programs. The API is available now as a Software Developers Kit (SDK) to third party developers. Developers will be able to license and distribute DPMS free of royalty charges. Novell DOS 7 will include several DPMS client components including disk cache and compression drivers, a peer-to-peer server, and CD-ROM extensions. The DPMS SDK is priced at $195 and is available through Novell's Professional Developers Program. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Novell released the following press announcement on May 24, 1993: NOVELL TO ADD FIFTH GENERATION BACKUP AND ANTI-VIRUS PROTECTION TO UPCOMING NETWORKING, MULTITASKING NOVELL DOS 7 NEW UTILITIES GUARD AGAINST THOUSANDS OF VIRUSES FOR DOS AND MICROSOFT WINDOWS SAN JOSE, CA--May 24, 1993--In another move to provide users with the most advanced DOS operating system available, Novell today announced the addition of fully integrated utilities from Fifth Generation Systems. These utilities are designed to protect users from virus infection and provide reliable, high performance backup all through easy to use, full screen interfaces. Fifth Generation is a leading developer of DOS, Microsoft Windows, Macintosh, UnixWare and NetWare utility software for backup, anti-virus, security, recovery and communications. Novell DOS 7, the next generation of DOS and a major upgrade to DR DOS 6.0, will be available this summer. "To provide our customers with the best data security and reliability available in the industry, Novell has licensed the leading anti-virus utility and a fast and dependable backup and restore utility for DOS and Microsoft Windows," said Steve Tucker, vice-president and general manager, Novell Desktop Systems Group. "It is Novell's philosophy to leverage the core competencies of our industry partners to provide the optimal solutions for our customers in a timely manner." Search & Destroy is Fifth Generation's anti-virus utility for DOS and Microsoft Windows. While memory resident, Search & Destroy is the least memory intensive virus monitor available in the industry. Also included is an ongoing virus scanner and removal utility, to provide reliable protection for executable, compressed and archived files. Novell DOS 7 also includes Fifth Generation's Fastback Express, a fully integrated backup and restore utility for DOS and Microsoft Windows. Utilizing DMA (Direct Memory Access), Fastback Express provides high performance and reliable backup and restore functionality to users. Fastback Express is NetWare-aware, ensuring preservation and restoration of all NetWare file attributes, which saves time and is a convenience factor for NetWare users using Novell DOS 7. The fully integrated networking security, data compression, memory management and multitasking features of Novell DOS 7, together with the utilities from Fifth Generation, are an example of Novell's continuing commitment to DOS customers. Search & Destroy guards against thousands of today's known viruses and supports Drag and Drop functionality for Microsoft Windows, allowing users to quickly scan individual files and directories from Microsoft Windows. "Novell is renowned for the production of the highest quality system software. We are very pleased to have our software included in such a highly respected product," said Barry L. Bellue, president and CEO, Fifth Generation Systems, Inc. "Our alliance with Novell is helping to bring a fully integrated operating system to DOS customers and allows us to continue to provide the most complete and reliable solutions to the computer industry." Novell DOS 7, expected to ship this summer, will be available in English, French, and German with Italian, Spanish and Japanese versions to follow.