Novell Small Business Suite 6.5 Ships, Putting Big Technology in Small Business Hands to Solve Business Problems of All Sizes

• Available Feb. 20, Novell Small Business Suite 6.5 will feature licenses for up to 100 users, doubling the previous limit
• Novell Small Business Suite Starter Pack program continues to provide initial suite at no product cost through qualified resellers

Novell today announced the availability of Novell® Small Business Suite 6.5, the latest version of Novell's complete networking solutions suite for small businesses. Novell Small Business Suite 6.5 includes full versions of Novell's award-winning networking and collaboration products, providing customers with big-business networking on small-business budgets.

Novell Small Business Suite 6.5 will feature licenses for up to 100 users, doubling the previous limit. It will also be part of the Novell Small Business Suite Starter Pack program which allows qualified Novell resellers to deploy limited-license versions of the Novell Small Business Suite at no product cost to customers. The starter pack featuring version 6.5 will be available shortly after Novell Small Business Suite 6.5 ships.

"Small business owners need to be able to focus on running their businesses, and not worry excessively about their networks," said Chris Stone, Novell vice chairman - Office of the CEO. "The Novell Small Business Suite bundles 20 years of Novell technology innovation and experience with FORTUNE 500 companies and tailors it to the specific needs of small organizations while keeping all the networking clout of the giants. We make sure it will run with hundreds of line-of-business applications small businesses depend on, and we price it so practically everyone can take advantage. There's no other small business networking solution on the market that can match it."

Raymond Boggs, IDC vice president, Small Business and Home Office Research, said, "With 8 million small and medium-sized businesses in the United States alone, and most finding themselves with many of the same technology needs as large companies, there is a tremendous market for a networking solution such as Novell's. The growing number of smaller firms interested in local area networks is very much related to affordable technology that is delivering very compelling performance. A small business can't afford to appear unsophisticated to a consumer who is used to doing business with multinational conglomerates, and a vendor who can provide affordable technology that solves business problems is well positioned to succeed in this important market."

What's in Novell Small Business Suite 6.5
In addition to support for up to 100 users, the Novell Small Business Suite now features user licensing, meaning customers pay for a license for each user who logs into the network, but they are not charged for printers, other servers or other devices that access the software services of the Novell Small Business Suite. In addition, the suite includes simplified licensing and configuration wizards to make it easier for resellers to implement Novell networking solutions for customers.

The software in the suite includes:

• Novell NetWare® 6.5 and its advanced network services on the industry's most secure and reliable platform, including two-node clustering and anytime/anywhere data and print access.
• Novell GroupWise® 6.5 full-featured collaboration, including e-mail, junk mail handling, calendaring and instant messaging.
• Novell BorderManager® 3.8 network security, including firewall and virtual private network (VPN).
• Novell ZENworks® for Desktops 4 management services, including application management, hardware inventory and remote control.
• Novell Nterprise Branch Office™ 1.02 for providing complete network services to branch offices securely and inexpensively.
• Open source software including Apache Web server, Tomcat and MySQL* to provide full support for hosting Web services or running Web-based applications.

"Our small business customers have an extreme need for reliability and security, and the Novell Small Business Suite gives them exactly that," said Robert Strasser, co-founder of ClearView Consulting, a Seattle-area Novell channel partner. "The value of the solution makes them happy, the services make their customers happy, and overall it improves their business."

Pricing and Availability
Novell Small Business Suite 6.5 will be available Feb. 20 through Novell channel partners for a suggested $475 per five new users or $252 per five upgrade users. Five server licenses are included at no additional cost. Novell Small Business Suite is part of Novell Nterprise™, a set of offerings that improve communication, simplify and automate network management, and allow workers to be productive regardless of location, device or platform. For more information about the Novell Small Business Suite, visit http://www.novell.com/products/smallbiz. For details on the Novell Small Business Suite Starter Pack, see http://www.novell.com/products/smallbiz/nsbs_starterpack.

About Novell
Novell, Inc. (Nasdaq: NOVL) is a leading provider of information solutions that deliver secure identity management (Novell Nsure), Web application development (Novell exteNd) and cross-platform networking services (Novell Nterprise), all supported by strategic consulting and professional services (Novell Ngage^SM). Active in the open source community with its Ximian® and SUSE® LINUX brands, Novell provides a full range of Linux products and services for the enterprise, from the desktop to the server. Novell's vision of one Net - a world without information boundaries - helps customers realize the value of their information securely and economically. For more information, call Novell's Customer Response Center at (888) 321-4CRC (4272) or visit http://www.novell.com. Press should visit http://www.novell.com/pressroom.

Novell, NetWare, BorderManager, GroupWise, Ximian and ZENworks are registered trademarks; exteNd, Nsure, Nterprise and Nterprise Branch Office are trademarks; and Ngage is a service mark of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries. SUSE is a registered trademark of SUSE AG, a Novell company. *All third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.