The Developer Connection…ice Driver Kit for OS/2 3/DEV3-D1.ISO/docs/lanstrat.inf

OS/2 Help File | 1994-02-27 | 30.3 KB | 906 lines

ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 1. IBM PSP's LAN Systems Solutions ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

                            August 1993

      IBM PSP's LAN Systems Solutions


Introduction

Connected workgroup solutions can provide a more cost-effective,
efficient way of running your business, whatever its size. If
you are considering migrating from a host-connected environment
or if you want to make better use of your current hardware and
software inventory, this article will be of particular interest.
It describes IBM Personal Software Product's (PSP's) directions
for Local Area Network (LAN) systems: enabling organizations to
manage an entire heterogeneous network as a single entity with
scalable product levels ranging from small business to workgroup
to enterprise.


Traditional Business Structures Are Changing

Increased competition, corporate decentralization, and economic
pressures are making companies change the way they do business.
Filtering decisions through traditional management chains is no
longer acceptable. Companies are finding that teams of employees
closest to the situation make better, quicker decisions.

Today, empowered teams are replacing the old workplace
hierarchy. To make good decisions quickly, these teams need
timely, reliable information. To remain competitive,
organizations must enable their employees to access and share
the ideas, knowledge, and resources they need.

Business Systems Are Also Changing

These changes in the traditional office have resulted in an
explosion in the use of LANs and enterprise networks. These
networks and a new generation of distributed applications are
connecting people to people, workgroups to workgroups,
workgroups into the enterprise, and everyone to outside
information resources, including small businesses and department
workgroups to suppliers and buyers.

With this explosion comes the challenge of determining the best
way to enhance or grow your computing environment. Traditional
Information Systems (IS) departments still play a major role in
the installation of business systems, but end users now have
much more influence in defining their computer environments.
Companies must consider their existing hardware and software
investment. With all the options available in the industry
today, choosing the right solution can seem an arduous task.

IBM LAN Systems Can Help

IBM PSP LAN systems bring together the best of the personal
computer and mainframe environments to create scalable solutions
that are easy to integrate into a business, easy to use, and
easy to manage. From the personal computer environment comes the
ease of the human/computer interface. And from the mainframe
environment comes the ability to deliver products that run
mission-critical applications and manage complex tasks and
environments.

This approach--along with a commitment to open systems based on
industry standards--has enabled IBM to leverage synergy from
diversity.


       PSP's LAN Systems Solutions

Since the inception of the Local Area Network (LAN), business
systems have been evolving to exploit LAN technology. Some
organizations--mostly departments or small businesses--are
moving from stand-alone personal computers to a networked
environment, using a workgroup LAN to run critical business
systems. Other, larger organizations are setting up integrated
LANs throughout the enterprise, either to interact with a
central host system or to downsize by off-loading applications
from the host to a LAN.

As this range of business needs has evolved, so have the
capabilities of the LAN environment. Organizations are now using
LAN servers not only as file and print servers, but also as
specialized database, communications, management, and
application servers in increasingly complex heterogeneous
environments.

IBM Personal Software Products (PSP) Division's strategy for LAN
systems is to simplify these complex environments from the
user's perspective by treating the LAN as a system. This
manageable LAN environment will serve as the platform for a new
generation of distributed applications. Backing up this strategy
is IBM's range of system solutions and hardware/software
interoperability--the widest of any company in the industry.
This approach combines the ease of use and flexibility of
workstations with the reliability, manageability, and capability
found in traditional information systems, giving customers the
following benefits:

   o  Easy access to information anytime, anywhere

   o  Industrial-strength systems that are reliable, manageable,
    and secure

   o  Investment protection through scalable systems that grow
    with the business

Today's PSP LAN systems products are designed to give users
access to the information they need, regardless of where it is
located. At the same time, the products insulate users and
administrators from the complexities of the network--including
connections, protocols, service providers, and hardware.


The LAN as a System

The LAN provides centralized security, administration, and
management functions like the minicomputer and mainframe systems
of the last 20 years. Beyond these functions, the LAN has also
evolved to allow flexibility and diversity to which users have
become accustomed. Treating the LAN as the system means
providing a manageable environment with a single-system image.
The goal is to ensure that LANs no longer appear as
sophisticated, expensive, and complicated products, but are easy
to use and manage.

With a single-system image, the end user's Graphical User
Interface (GUI) appears to be the first, last, and only
interface into the user's entire computing universe. In reality,
it may be an integrated piece of a huge worldwide network
comprised of thousands of resources. It also means that
organizations can manage an entire heterogeneous network as a
single entity.


Where It All Begins: The Client

Fundamental to a LAN system of any size is reliable client
software that supports multiple hardware and software
environments.

For the PC environment, IBM's premier offering is OS/2 running
with LAN Server 3.0. For workstations, IBM offers AIX/6000 with
Network File System (NFS) running on the RISC System/6000 as
well as the AIX Distributed Computing Environment (DCE) family.
OS/2 and AIX are both enabled for multiple Network Operating
System (NOS) environments to access data across heterogeneous
systems including LANs, minicomputers, and mainframe hosts.

OS/2 and AIX both offer the crash-protected, multitasking
environments required to support mission-critical applications.
With their powerful, highly intuitive GUIs--Presentation Manager
and Workplace Shell for OS/2, Motif and X-Windows for AIX--these
strategic platforms are easy to use and can support highly
sophisticated applications.

With OS/2 and AIX, users can continue to use DOS and DOS/Windows
applications--but in a crash-protected, multitasking environment.

The LAN is best suited to today's business because it promotes
using the best system for each user's needs. IBM supports not
only clients that it develops, but all users' clients of choice.
Support for DOS and DOS/Windows is outstanding. The LAN Server
for Macintosh extends sharing files and printers to the
native-mode Macintosh.


Bringing It All Together

OS/2 LAN Server 3.0 has two versions: Entry and Advanced, with
an optional feature that supports Macintosh clients. In addition
to the flexibility and scalability offered by this approach, LAN
Server provides extremely high performance. In October 1992,
LANQuest--an independent test lab--named LAN Server 3.0 the
fastest PC-based LAN server on the market.

LAN Server 3.0 currently supports DOS, DOS/Windows, OS/2, and
Macintosh clients, and over 300 types of PCs. In addition, LAN
Server and NetWare LANs can now share resources across
environments. Combined with the Network Transport Services/2
(NTS/2) enhanced multi-adapter feature, LAN Server 3.0 can
support over 1,000 LAN clients on a single LAN server on a
single network.

The system composed of LAN Server and its clients can also
interoperate with other types of LAN systems. Integrating client
requesters, particularly under the transparency of the WorkPlace
Shell, allows users to access resources on several LAN systems.
This results in a high degree of interoperability between LAN
Server and NetWare. In addition, LAN Server and Microsoft LAN
Manager systems can interoperate.

Both Entry and Advanced versions of OS/2 LAN Server 3.0 exploit
the power of the OS/2 32-bit operating system. Remote
installation support provides for the unattended installation of
remote requesters and servers. Peer services enables clients to
access printers, files, and serial devices on another client on
the same LAN. With peer services, users can share directories,
printer queues, and communication device queues with other users
on the network.

For networks that need higher performance and higher levels of
reliability, LAN Server 3.0 Advanced offers High-Performance
File System-386 (HPFS-386) support, improved disk fault
tolerance (mirroring and duplexing), asymmetrical
multiprocessing on the IBM PS/2 Server 295, and local security
enhancements.

Network File System is the distributed file system for UNIX
supported by AIX/6000. A de facto UNIX standard developed by Sun
Microsystems, NFS can be used by DOS, DOS/Windows, OS/2, AIX,
and VM machines. NFS is widely supported by other vendors.

IBM's High-Availability NFS (HANFS) is a high-availability
configuration of RISC System/6000 hardware and software in which
one NFS server backs up another server. Switchovers are
transparent to the NFS clients. In addition, the IBM 7051 POWER
Network Dataserver system provides industry-leading NFS
performance for applications requiring large amounts of online
data.

For distributed client file and print support in PC
environments, AIX/6000 supports DOS Server/AIX Access for DOS
Users (AADU).

NetWare from IBM is supported on OS/2 and AIX server platforms.
It is offered in addition to OS/2 LAN Server and AIX/6000 NFS to
fulfill the broadest possible range of user requirements.
Although the three products are similar, they are best suited
for different situations and remain separate product lines with
unique system services, Application Programming Interfaces
(APIs), and communication transports.


Connection Flexibility

IBM has designed a blueprint for optimum network flexibility
while providing for the most robust connections. The
Multi-Protocol Transport Networking (MPTN) architecture provides
for communications on almost any network protocol. A variety of
network interface cards and cable connection mechanisms that
support the Network Device Interface Specification (NDIS) can be
used with the MPTN architecture.

LAN Server with NTS/2 provides full support for the MPTN
structure. The primary default protocol is NetBIOS. With full
support of NDIS, NTS/2 enables LAN Server to support a wide
variety of network interface cards from many suppliers. As a
result, users can install and configure adapters without
changing their workstations, applications, or networks. This
approach provides a future migration path as higher capability,
wider bandwidth networks become commonplace for LANs.

TCP/IP provides the NFS distributed file mechanism and
other classic UNIX connectivity applications. This LAN system
provides interoperability between OS/2, DOS, and UNIX-based
systems (including AIX) that support open standards such as
TCP/IP, NFS, File Transfer Protocol (FTP) TELNET, and X-Windows.
TCP/IP is important for users who share data across different
software platforms that may, for example, be running on IBM,
Hewlett-Packard (HP), or Sun hardware.


Workgroup Computing

Electronic mail and workgroup computing  are major elements of
any networked PC environment. As the result of a strong
partnership with Lotus, IBM's LAN systems and OfficeVision
products include Lotus cc:Mail and Lotus Notes.

Lotus cc:Mail provides high-end electronic mail capabilities.
The cc:Mail product supports DOS, Windows, Macintosh, OS/2
Workplace Shell, and UNIX clients, as well as gateways to PROFS,
OS/400, DEC, NetWare's MHS, and many more. This makes cc:Mail
the industry's most comprehensive electronic mail and messaging
system.

Lotus Notes gives every member of a workgroup--across the hall
or across the continent--easy access to information in text,
graphics, or images. It also contains a development platform for
creating individual and workgroup business applications.


Data You Need, When You Need It

For mobile users, PSP has developed full-function,
dial-in/dial-out Remote LAN Access for LAN Server. IBM Remote
LAN Access enables users with portable systems to connect to a
LAN by telephone. This provides transparent access to LAN
applications and services from anywhere in the world. Remote LAN
Access clients supported on both OS/2 and DOS/Windows can access
LAN Server, NetWare, and NFS servers. This feature can
significantly enhance the efficiency of employees who travel on
business and need access to LAN resources and data.

Communicating Among Networks

IBM OS/2 Extended Services, Communications Manager/2, and AIX
Systems Network Architecture (SNA) provide connectivity to a
variety of IBM and non-IBM host-connected applications. They
also support peer-to-peer operations using Advanced Peer-to-Peer
Networking (APPN) support.

Easy Access to Host Data

More information is moving to LANs--but valuable information
will continue to reside on minicomputers and mainframes. IBM LAN
systems products provide access to existing information and
applications, whether they reside on a co-worker's desktop, a
workgroup server, or a large host system.

For relational data, IBM provides integrated, high-performance
multivendor communications and SQL (client and server) database
support, while various resource managers provide application
enablers. Workstations from LAN Server, AIX, and NetWare
environments can create, access, and modify information on LAN
or host databases such as DATABASE 2 OS/2 (DB2/2), DATABASE
2/6000 (DB2/6000), DB2, and third-party databases on
workstations and mainframes.

DB2/2 and DB2/6000 are powerful relational database management
systems for users in client/server LAN environments. They can
run on stand-alone machines or they can be database servers on a
LAN. Their newly enhanced DB2 compatibility, remote systems
administration, and other features improve both reliability and
system management. DB2/2 and DB2/6000 are open database
platforms supporting industry standards.

For organizations with databases in both LAN and host
environments, IBM offers Distributed Database Connection
Services (DDCS). DDCS/2 for OS/2 and DDCS/6000 for the RISC
System/6000 support the Distributed Relational Database
Architecture (DRDA) used in all IBM relational database products
as well as those from several other vendors. DDCS allows
developers to write applications that connect to, access, and
update host databases from DOS, DOS/Windows, OS/2, and AIX
client workstations.

Organizations that use LAN Server or NetWare and want to access
data on host systems can take advantage of IBM's LANRES/VM,
LAN/MVS, or Workstation LAN File Services (WLFS) for shared file
access. For backing up host systems from LAN Server, NetWare,
and other systems, Data Facility Distributed Storage Manager
(DFDSM) can be used.


System Management

System and network management is one of the biggest challenges
in a networked environment. How can changes be handled
efficiently? What is the best way to manage the assets that are
distributed in large numbers in locations far and wide? How are
the LANs analyzed and supported remotely? How can heterogeneous
systems and tools be integrated into a single management
environment that makes sense? And finally, how can the needs of
both IS departments and end users be satisfied? IS wants
reliability, security, and the ability to meet user needs in a
planned and controlled way. End users want the freedom to access
data anywhere, anytime.

IBM's strategy for distributed system management is to solve the
business issues associated with managing changes, configuration
problems, software distribution, and assets.
IBM is delivering a distributed systems management family,
called LAN NetView, to address the problems of distributing
information and data that will satisfy both IS and end users.

LAN NetView

The LAN NetView family provides industry-standard interfaces to
network management protocols such as X/Open Management Protocol
(XMP), Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), and Common
Management Information Protocol (CMIP). IBM and other vendors
will build on this family with system management applications
that support a variety of management functions across different
types of clients, servers, operating systems, and hardware
platforms.

In this environment, customers will be able to easily develop
system management applications to address their own unique
requirements. Management functions can be centralized,
decentralized, or a combination of both. In addition, companies
and LAN managers will not need a totally different set of tools
for each network component.

LAN NetView View

The LAN NetView View component is a graphical interface that enables
system management tools to be written with a consistent look and feel,
so a company's entire system management application suite can be
viewed through this single graphical interface.

Configuration, Installation, and Distribution

To reduce costs and simplify LAN administration, IBM products
support automated Configuration, Installation, and Distribution
(CID) for clients and servers. Desktop operating systems,
communications managers, databases, and the user's choice of
applications can be distributed, installed, and managed by the
system automatically. Human intervention is eliminated because
CID functions are handled over the network.

CID can be further enhanced when the LAN is connected to an IBM
MVS host. Using NetView Distribution Manager (NetView DM) on the
host, software can be sent to servers on many LANs located
worldwide. Using NetView Distribution Manager/2 (NetView DM/2),
these remote servers can then customize the installation of both
clients and servers on the LAN. They can also quickly distribute
code fixes to both vendor- and customer-developed programs.

AIX NetView/6000

AIX NetView/6000 is an open network management platform for
multivendor TCP/IP networks. It provides device management
including SNMP agent support and Internet Protocol- (IP-)
addressable device monitoring. AIX NetView/6000 also provides
interfaces to XMP and CMIP, industry-standard network management
protocols.

NetView/6000 features a graphical, object-oriented user
interface built on Motif and X-Windows that displays the network
on top of pictures such as maps, buildings, or devices. It also
maintains a dynamic view of the network topology.

Cooperative network management is also available from System/390
NetView. Together, System/390 NetView and NetView/6000 provide
hierarchical management for large networks with mixed SNA and
TCP/IP protocols.

NetView Entry

NetView Entry, an entry version of NetView/6000, manages TCP/IP
networks with a maximum of 32 nodes. In small TCP/IP networks,
NetView Entry operates as a stand-alone distributed manager.


Open Systems

In response to customer demand, much of the computer industry
has shifted from proprietary technology to open systems. While
everyone agrees that this shift is necessary, the definition of
open is being debated.

IBM PSP's approach to building open systems is based on the
following characteristics of open environments:

   o  Applications and data can be moved from one vendor's
    computer system to a different vendor's computer system.

   o  Computing systems and products from different vendors can
    work together to form an application solution.

   o  Standards are complied with, whether set by
    standards-making bodies, de facto industry standards, or
    common specifications/technology endorsed by the industry.

PSP's approach is to combine industry standards with existing de
facto standards. Where standards do not exist, PSP will add its
own specifications and technologies, working closely with
industry standards bodies and consortia to gain industry
acceptance and support.


Distributed Computing

Distributed computing is much more than the simple file and
print sharing being done on most LANs today. In a distributed
environment, a set of workstations, personal computers, and
programs appear to the user as a single system. Individual
programs can run on multiple computers simultaneously, thus
taking advantage of the different types of processing power
available across a network. As shown at the recent Challenge '93
sponsored by the Open Software Foundation (OSF), users can run
programs that appear to reside on a local system, but are
actually executing on several remote systems.

Imagine writing a distributed application in half the time it
takes today--one that is also higher quality, 40% smaller, and
significantly less expensive to maintain because the code has
already been tested. Too good to be true? No--that is the
significance of distributed computing technology and services
for application developers. IBM provides the infrastructure
(multiple protocol support, gateways to other networks, and so
on) required for a distributed environment, so application
developers can focus on the application functionality.
Applications for databases, mail, system management, and Online
Transaction Processing (OLTP) can all be written to take
advantage of a distributed environment.

The Distributed Computing Environment

IBM has selected the Distributed Computing Environment (DCE)
from OSF as fundamental technology for common services
supporting application development and interoperability. Using
DCE technology, application developers can write distributed,
network-optimized applications without having to write vendor-
or network-specific code--significantly increasing the
portability of applications across different vendors' hardware
and software platforms.

DCE facilities have key functions such as Remote Procedure Calls
(RPC), network time management, security, distributed file
system, and distributed directory services. DCE provides a
coherent, integrated environment for developing and managing
distributed applications in an open enterprise; an application
implementing DCE can be distributed across multiple systems
composed of both IBM and non-IBM hardware.

To continue our position of providing the broadest coverage in
the industry, IBM currently intends to support DCE on AIX/6000,
OS/2, OS/400, AIX/ESA, MVS/ESA, and VM. Other vendors, such as
HP and Digital Equipment Corporation, also offer DCE support
within their product lines. Today, IBM's DCE technology is
available on AIX, with beta versions available for OS/2 and MVS..

Remote Procedure Call

Application developers using Remote Procedure Call (RPC) can
create programs that are portable and interoperable across
multiple hardware and software platforms. In a distributed
computing environment, RPC enables multiple computers on a
network to process the work. Work is handed off from one
computer to another by an application program executing a
familiar programming construct--a procedure call. The RPC
programming construct extends the call/return mechanism from a
single system to network capability.

Distributed Directory Services

Distributed directories enable people and programs to identify
the resources (such as files, printers, and programs) they need
across a global network. Using accepted industry naming
standards (such as the X.500 worldwide directory service and the
X/Open directory service programming interface), the OSF DCE
Directory Service ensures that resources are known through
location-independent names. The DCE Directory Service is
accessed via the RPC communications programming interface.

Security Services

Users are placing more valuable information on LANs. This makes
security a growing issue for both end users and LAN
administrators. Because most LAN systems control password access
on a per-server basis, each user can have several passwords. As
LANs get larger and users begin to access more resources,
securing these simple systems becomes increasingly difficult.

IBM will enhance security through a combination of passwords and
privilege assignments that enables a single user logon to access
all system resources. This eliminates the need for a user to
have multiple passwords for multiple servers--or even for a
single system. It also reduces administrator workload and cost,
since each user has a single profile on the entire system, not
one profile per server.

The technology to ensure security will be the Kerberos
authentication service developed by the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology's Project Athena. It is an excellent solution for
networks where resources, applications, and user profiles keep
changing.

Distributed File System

OSF's Distributed File System (DFS) extends the operating
system's file system by taking advantage of DCE's global
directory and security services, providing a secure,
enterprise-wide view of the file system. File replication and
cloning maximize timely, usable access to data. DFS also ensures
file integrity, thus enabling developers to create data
location-independent applications.

Online Transaction Processing

To enhance the core DCE services (RPC, Security, Time,
Directory, and DFS), IBM has included additional functions in
OLTP. Because the next generation of distributed applications
will be used in real-time systems, IBM has incorporated
transaction management services into DCE. Both Encina (from
Transarc Corporation) and CICS are offered to allow distributed
application transactions across a network of heterogeneous
systems. They maintain data integrity if a system or network
fails at any point during a transaction.

Encina monitors basic distributed transaction processes,
including transactional RPC, structured file system for indexed
data access, and two-phase commit. With Encina, developers can
create distributed transaction processing applications that
ensure data is changed only when the complete transaction is
successfully processed.

Another option is CICS. CICS-OS/2 and CICS/6000 make it easy to
port mainframe applications to workstations. The CICS family API
is supported for both COBOL and C languages. Both mainframe and
LAN connections are supported.


Today's Solutions--Breadth and Choice

No one in the computer industry provides the breadth of
solutions nor the interoperability across hardware and software
boundaries that IBM does. This is important to many
organizations that must deal with an installed base of hardware
and software. For example, suppose you have one department with
a mix of personal computers and software that includes
DOS/Windows, Macintosh, and OS/2 computers attached to a NetWare
LAN. Another department may perform intensive graphic design
using UNIX workstations. You keep data for both departments on a
remote server and require the data to be current at all times.
Finally, you update the information on a host at a headquarters
location every quarter.

With IBM PSP's approach, if your needs are only a subset of
those described, you can choose from these offerings, while
leaving your options open to grow incrementally as your business
grows or as your needs change.


Extending Today's Products

While distributed systems technologies are being developed, IBM
and others in the industry are already working on new
technologies such as objects, distributed objects, multimedia,
image, wireless computing, mobile systems, symmetrical
multiprocessing, and microkernel-based systems. Using
distributed systems as the base, these new technologies are
being incorporated into an exciting new computing environment
for end users, administrators, and application developers.

IBM PSP's approach to this new environment begins with today's
family of distributed LAN system products. IBM is committed to
LAN Server and will offer new products built on the current LAN
Server 3.0. With IBM's distributed system technology, this
family will be extended to increasingly insulate end users,
administrators, and application developers from the specifics of
the network, including connections, protocols, service
providers, and hardware. The network will continue to be
scalable, enabling users to choose product solutions that
address current needs while offering the flexibility for system
growth. As new technologies, such as objects and distributed
objects, are developed and enhanced, PSP will incorporate them
into the family to interoperate with current products and
provide upward compatibility.


Enhancing Scalability

IBM PSP's approach to scalability enables users to expand their
environments by adding--not replacing--products. Each product
family member is simply an add-on to the previous level. The
next generation of IBM PSP products will address the
requirements of customers of all sizes. At the same time, these
products will protect existing investments in hardware,
software, and skills, thus enabling growth without the need to
migrate or replace.

Entry products will offer a low-cost, load-and-go environment
that requires no server and minimal administration. This product
level is designed for organizations that require easy-to-use
personal productivity applications. It will support file and
print sharing and an electronic mail capability--sometimes
called peer-to-peer communications--that allows people to
collaborate on the same information whether they are in the same
room or miles apart.

Workgroup products will offer all the functions of the entry
product level plus advanced system management options and
additional connectivity. This environment provides a server and
is designed for larger organizations needing higher performance,
fault-tolerance functions in the server, more rigorous system
management capabilities, and more connection choices. It
provides a straightforward growth path from the entry product.

Enterprise products will include a set of extensions to the
workgroup environment aimed at accessing enterprise data and
integrating workgroups with enterprise applications. This
product line will include global directory services, full
systems and network management, host information access, and
mechanisms to give a single-system image to multiple
heterogeneous LAN systems. Global security will be implemented
with the OSF DCE Security Service, which specifically addresses
the challenges of maintaining security in a distributed
environment. In addition to stringent security services, IBM's
enterprise products will include a backup/restore capability,
access control, and software license management.


Enhancing Application Development

IBM PSP's goal is to make the underlying services of the
distributed application environment transparent to end users,
administrators, and application developers. We think the best
approach to creating this transparency is to develop frameworks
incorporating object-oriented technology.


Object-Oriented Technology

With the magnitude of current industry-wide software backlogs
and escalating software maintenance costs, many companies
realize that they must shorten their application development
cycle to remain competitive. PSP's strategy is to offer products
that provide a basis for developing object-oriented distributed
programs.

From the end user's perspective, object-oriented technology will
make using computers more intuitive. The drag-and-drop
capabilities of OS/2 and AIX illustrate how easily end users can
manipulate the system in an object-oriented environment. While
end users benefit from this easy-to-use, easy-to-learn
environment, application developers can work faster because of
highly reliable reusable code. Object-oriented technology can
significantly benefit an application programmer developing a
distributed application because the developer can take advantage
of existing code in the form of objects. An example of an object
that could be created for a LAN environment is one that takes a
file on a client and prints it on a remotely located printer. As
you can see from this simple example, many different types of
applications could take advantage of an object that provides
this function.

Objects and Object Frameworks

The software industry is expected to evolve rapidly into
developing software in modules. Many small, general-purpose
software modules will be available as foundations for building
larger applications--regardless of hardware platform, operating
system, or programming language. This approach will greatly
reduce development time, resulting in shorter cycles and lower
costs.

Object frameworks are collections of prebuilt objects with
established relationships. They offer built-in, easily
extendable, and customizable functions. Object frameworks can be
designed for a variety of specific purposes such as system
management, transaction processing, compound documents, and
graphics. Replication of data across a network is another
example. An object framework could contain the objects necessary
to create a copy of data, locate the data across the network,
and automatically update a file on multiple systems.

Object framework technology has the potential to automate the
drudgery of development, lower the bar for entry-level
developers, and spark a new cycle of software development
creativity as profound as the move from machine languages to
high-level languages more than 30 years ago.

Industry Standards for Objects

IBM's object-oriented technology is based on industry-standard
Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) from Object
Management Group (OMG). The foundation for this technology is
IBM's System Object Model (SOM).

System Object Model. IBM's SOM technology for packaging
object-oriented class libraries is a language-neutral model for
defining object libraries that operate across many computer
languages. Many in the industry view SOM as a universal
translator of applications and objects developed in diverse
programming languages. It will be supported on many software
platforms, including OS/2, AIX, Windows, MVS, CICS, and AS/400.
SOM technology has broad industry support and is being embraced
by OEMs as well as language and tool vendors.

On June 16, 1993, IBM announced the SOMobjects Developer
Toolkit, the first complete CORBA-compliant, cross-platform,
cross-language object implementation. This object and framework
technology will provide flexible, distributed, and portable
systems. In addition, IBM, HP, and SunSoft, Inc. announced plans
to work together to enable software portability across the
companies' object-oriented software platforms using standards
set forth by OMG.

The close affinity between the principles of distributed
computing and those of objects leads us to believe that the best
approach to enhancing application development is based on
objects. The significant investment in education and development
to produce truly distributed applications can be reduced by
marrying the two technologies. Developers can simply use
distributed objects and let the underlying distributed system
services manage the communications completely.

Distributed SOM (DSOM)

DSOM is planned to support transparent remote access to objects
in a distributed environment.  DSOM supports the full
object-oriented programming paradigm through distributed
computing facilities such as Sockets and DCE.  It is based on the
SOM currently available for OS/2 and provides language-,
network-, and platform-independent access to distributed objects.
This technology is being developed together with standards
organizations as well as with leading industry language and tools
vendors.  Like SOM, DSOM will support multiple software
environments.


Systems Management

To enhance our LAN NetView family, IBM is working with other
industry suppliers to encourage development of systems
management applications. NetWare Services Manager from Novell
and LANlord/2 from Microcom are two examples.

LAN NetView products will combine selected technologies from OSF
Distributed Management Environment (DME), X/Open, the Open
Systems Interconnection (OSI) System Management Model, and IBM
SystemView to help customers manage heterogeneous network
environments. LAN NetView includes industry-standard protocols
such as CMIP (for standardizing management communications
between systems) and XMP (for providing a common programming
interface) for system management applications. Using these
protocols should increase the number of distributed applications
available by making it easier to develop powerful applications
that will appeal to a variety of users.


Transport Technology

To provide application transparency, IBM PSP is developing and
supporting programming interfaces such as the industry-standard
Sockets and X/Open's transport interface.

The Sockets interface, first introduced in UNIX, has become a de
facto industry-standard API for communications. With this
interface, users and their existing applications can operate
consistently and transparently across multiple network
environments, including TCP/IP, NetBIOS, IPX, OSI, and SNA. In
addition, a single network adapter card can be used with
multiple protocols--meaning that with one network adapter, end
users can participate in LAN Server, NetWare, and TCP/IP
networks simultaneously and transparently. These future
developments will be achieved with the MPTN blueprint.



Conclusion

Never before has technology held such tremendous potential for
reshaping the way people and organizations work. Regardless of
an organization's size or function, effective growth relies on
effective use of information and the ability of the information
system to grow and change with it. Distributed LAN systems
technology offers the potential for getting needed information
to the desktop user.

Advanced users are already pushing the limits of today's LAN
technologies. Simple resource sharing is giving way to
distributed applications. Single LANs connecting multiple users
have grown into multiple LANs connecting multiple workgroups.
Mission-critical applications that were once locked in the
domain of the centralized host/terminal environment are being
rightsized to LANs. The environment that now accommodates OS/2,
NetWare, Macintosh, DOS, DOS/Windows, and AIX will soon stretch
to accommodate even greater heterogeneity.

IBM's current set of LAN systems products enables any small
business or large organization to develop an effective workgroup
computing environment today. IBM is also delivering a stream of
new offerings for tomorrow, many of which are now being tested
by customers.

To ensure that LANs are easy to use, manage, and integrate into
your business, IBM PSP's strategy is to provide an open,
manageable LAN environment with these characteristics:

   o  Easy access to information anytime, anywhere

   o  Reliable, manageable, and secure industrial-strength
    systems

   o  Investment protection through scalable systems that
    grow with your business

This environment will serve as an excellent platform for a new
generation of distributed applications and a launch pad for the
distributed objects of the future.


================================================================

    For more information about current IBM PSP products, call
    (800) IBM-4FAX. A voice menu will provide options for
    requesting information. For information about PSP
    products in beta test, call [phone].

================================================================



Authors:

C. W. "Mac" McCarter is a program manager in IBM's PSP LAN
Systems organization in Austin, Texas. He presently develops
business and technical strategy for LAN systems.

Alisa Nessler is in IBM's Personal Software Products Marketing
group in Austin, Texas, where she develops marketing plans and
programs for IBM's LAN systems products.

DeeAnne Safford is a program manager in IBM's Personal Software
Products Marketing Strategy group. She presently develops market
strategies for Personal Software Products.