Novell Takes the 'Remote' Out of the Remote Office

• Novell ships Nterprise Branch Office 2, giving branch offices complete network services, securely and inexpensively
• Nterprise Branch Office easily integrates with Linux, Windows/Active Directory or NetWare in the data center

Novell today announced the availability of Novell® Nterprise Branch Office™ 2, a software appliance that lets organizations provide complete network services to branch offices securely and inexpensively, without IT staff on site. A cross-platform solution, Nterprise Branch Office 2 works with Linux, Windows* or Novell NetWare® in the data center, so whatever direction customers may be headed in terms of server platform, Nterprise Branch Office will easily integrate and provide quality, lower-cost network services to branch offices.

"Novell Nterprise Branch Office takes the 'remote' out of the remote office," said Chris Stone, Novell vice chairman - Office of the CEO. "Any organization's long-term viability is at risk if they don't take care to make real improvements to remote office productivity and reduce overhead. Nterprise Branch Office was explicitly designed to reduce the cost and complexity of maintaining network services in branch offices, while delivering the same high level of service regardless of employees' location and regardless of the central office server platform."

Nterprise Branch Office is a software appliance, giving customers flexibility to use their choice of new or existing compatible hardware. It plugs directly into existing Linux, Windows or NetWare networks and gives branch office users instant access to file storage and printing resources. Automatically replicating data to data center servers for centralized backup, Nterprise Branch Office operates securely across the high-speed Internet, eliminating the need for costly and slow wide area network (WAN) links and virtual private network (VPN) connections. It is unlike other solutions because it maintains a separate, cached directory of local users so the entire corporate directory doesn't need to span the network, saving additional bandwidth and management costs.

Rick Smith, national director of technology solutions for the American Diabetes Association, said, "No other vendor offers a solution to match what we get with Nterprise Branch Office. There is no way a small, centralized IT staff of seven could run 140 offices in five different time zones with people working 24/7 without a Novell solution. We can easily calculate a savings of more than a million dollars from this product alone."

Nterprise Branch Office uses industry standards and fits easily into mixed environments, working with Linux, Windows or NetWare in the data center along with Windows, UNIX*, Linux, Macintosh* and Web clients, although no client is required. Other features new to Nterprise Branch Office 2 include enhanced disaster recovery and password management as well as support for the Novell GroupWise® post office agent for local e-mail and a Novell ZENworks® supported configuration for distributing applications to branch office users. Nterprise Branch Office drives the cost out of branch office deployments by enabling server consolidation, lowering WAN and management costs, simplifying deployment, and resolving the backup challenges of branch offices.

Pricing and Availability
Novell Nterprise Branch Office 2 will be available Jan. 9 through Novell channel partners for a suggested $2,500 per server, supporting up to 250 users each. Nterprise Branch Office 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 Nterprise Branch Office, visit http://www.novell.com/products/branchoffice.

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 NgageSM). 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, GroupWise 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. *All third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.