geoff@hinode.East.Sun.COM (Geoff Arnold @ Sun BOS - R.H. coast near the top) (08/09/89)
The following is derived from the text of the bulletin that we sent to the Sun sales folks about PC-NFS 3.0.1. This accounts for its marketing flavour. I have edited some of that stuff out, but bear with me. I am posting this because hardly a day goes by without a posting to this group or an email message to me asking about the contents of 3.0.1. People who feel this is too promotional can hit 'j' (or whatever your newsreader requires) right now... Please note that section II.G lists things that are NOT in the release. It's easy on a cursory reading to assume that these features are part of the release - I know that I did (with some amazement!). I have removed most of the stuff promoting third party alternatives. If you need this info, please email me. (No. Really, I mean NEED!) Cheers, Geoff Subject - PC-NFS(tm) to ship NEW RELEASE; v. 3.0.1 -------------------------------------------------- PC-NFS will be upgrading from its current version, 3.0, to version 3.0.1 on July 5, 1989. As the version number implies, PC-NFS 3.0.1 is primarily a maintenance release. There are four major software changes and numerous minor revisions, most of which are transparent to the user. In addition, the upgrade includes a new Serial Communications Guide and "change pages" for the current PC-NFS 3.0 documentation that correct or clarify many items. I. Upgrade Procedure: ---------------------- A. All product upgrading is handled by the Telemarketing Group of Sun's Customer Support Division (CSD). The domestic CSD is reachable by phone at 1-800-USA-4SUN. Outside the US, please contact your local support office for upgrade information. B. Each upgrade kit contains both 5 1/4" and 3 1/2" media. Only one upgrade kit is required for each site using PC-NFS. The upgrade kit contains unserialized upgrade software which will upgrade all previously installed copies of PC-NFS. Upgrade software cannot be used by itself. To order copies of PC-NFS 3.0.1 for new installations continue to order PC-NFS as usual. C. Upgrades are provided free to all PC-NFS customers on PC-NFS CSD Service Contracts. D. There are two (2) upgrade kits available: Part number Function Cost ----------- -------- ---- PC-NFS-3.0.1-51UP Upgrades 3.0 to 3.0.1 $200. PC-NFS-3.0.1-51UF Upgrades pre-3.0 to 3.0.1 $250. Both upgrade kits can be used to upgrade an entire site where older versions of PC-NFS are in use. The "51-UF" upgrade kit, for customers still using versions 1.0 or 2.0, includes documentation that the 3.0 customer has already received. Additional copies of PC-NFS documentation can be ordered with part number PC-NFS-09. E. Upgrades will be available domestically through CSD beginning June 19, 1989. II. What's New in PC-NFS 3.0.1 ------------------------------ The following is a summary of the major changes in PC-NFS Release 3.0.1. For a comprehensive description of these changes please refer to the following documents: "PC-NFS 3.0.1 Release Notes" "3.0.1 Install Guide Change Pages" "3.0.1 User Guide Change Pages" "PC-NFS Serial Communications Guide" These documents are shipped with the new PC-NFS 3.0.1 upgrade. A. DOS 4.0 Compatibility. ------------------------- PC-NFS is now compatible with DOS 4.0. This involved adding support for a number of new system calls, including the new generalized file "open/create". We believe that PC-NFS 3.0.1 is "bug for bug" compatible with IBM PC DOS 4.00, including all undocumented system calls. B. 8-Bit International Character Set Support. -------------------------------------------- PC-NFS now supports 8-bit international character sets for filenames. This resolves problems associated with using the commands, "copy" or "xcopy" with files whose names use 8-bit characters. C. Improved Network Printing. ---------------------------- In response to many PC-NFS user requests, the network printing capability has been substantially enhanced. The print redirector, PRT.EXE, is more robust and handles errors more effectively; if network-related problems occur, users can invoke NET PRINT to report and, if possible, correct them. For print spooling, the 5 minute timeout interval now works as expected. In addition, the default timeout of 5 minutes is now user-configurable. "NET PRINT filename" now correctly handles previously redirected printer output. To accomodate Transcript(tm) software, particularly newer versions which accept fewer control characters in ASCII data streams, PC-NFS 3.0.1 filters most control characters from the print stream in "Standard Text" and "PostScript"(tm) printing modes. More applications now print successfully to PostScript printers in either mode. For situations in which such filtering is not appropriate, a new "raw" print option has been added. A documented workaround for network printing with Microsoft Word(tm) is provided. The printer hot key setting is fixed, so that changing the hot key in "nfsconf" works correctly on pcs and is not lost on reboot. D. Compatibility Fixes. ----------------------- Improved co-existence with Microsoft Windows, expecially in the area of printing. Compatibility with the network versions of Nantucket Clipper(tm), dBase III+(tm), and Foxbase(tm). Better handling of certain illegal DOS requests, such as performing a directory search on a plain file or creating a file with a null name. Borland's Turbo Pascal(tm) and various command shells are now fully compatible. Improved write caching schemes for better performance with certain applications. E. Other Fixes. --------------- The ability to protect applications stored on NFS servers from unauthorized copying by marking .EXE and .COM files as "execute only." (This feature is not applicable to .BAT files) Improved ICMP and subnet routing capabilities. Support for multiple user group membership via the "group" YP map. Support for longer Yellow Pages domain names. (Host names are still restricted to 15 characters for DOS compatibility reasons.) More natural semantics for symbolic links; links that are not valid DOS filenames are now handled. Fixes to FTP, including better handling of multi-file requests and stripping DOS EOF characters in ASCII mode. Improvements to Telnet, including better option negotiation, configurable CR-LF or CR-NULL at EOL, and better VT-100 emulation. F. Serial Communications with SLIP enhanced. ---------------------------------------------------- Remote communications with SLIP serial line connectivity is improved. Included are support for Sun OS 4.0 servers, improved gateway installation (with routing), and a new Serial Communications Guide, which provides clear SLIP installation instructions and trouble shooting tips. G. NOT in this release: ----------------------- Additional terminal emulations, including graphics or 3270. [Deleted: Info on third party solutions.] Support for intelligent Excelan cards, token ring drivers or the Ungermann-Bass NIU driver. Ungermann-Bass is now providing the NIU driver for PC-NFS. Sun still provides the Ungermann-Bass NIC driver with PC-NFS. Support for EMS or other memory-reduction techniques. Code size in this release remains the same. [Deleted: Info on third party solutions.] Operation in the OS|2 DOS "Compatibility Box". Co-existence with 3Com 3+ Share(tm) and PC-NFS on the same network. We are working with 3Com to restore this previously available feature. A patch will be released as soon as it is completed. [Other promotional stuff deleted.] ****************************************************************** All product names are registered trademarks of their respective manufacturers. ******************************************************************* The above pricing and product availability information is for U.S. Customers only. For customers outside the U.S., please contact the local sales office. Geoff Arnold, Internet: geoff@East.Sun.COM PCDS Group, Sun Microsystems Inc. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Just think: If Unix had been developed in England, we'd all be using BCPL...