IBM LAN Server

IBM LAN Server started as a close cousin of Microsoft LAN Manager and first shipped in early 1988. It was originally designed to run on top of Operating System/2 Extended Edition. The network client was called IBM LAN Requester and was included with OS/2 EE 1.1 by default. (Eventually IBM shipped other clients and supported yet more. Examples include the IBM OS/2 File/Print Client, IBM OS/2 Peer, and client software for Windows.) Here the short term LAN Server refers to the IBM OS/2 LAN Server product. There were also LAN Server products for other operating systems, notably AIX (now called Fast Connect) and OS/400.

Version history

• 1.0 - 1988 - for OS/2 EE 1.0
• 1.2 - 1990 - for OS/2 EE 1.2
• 1.3 - 1991 - for OS/2 EE 1.3
• 2.0 - 1992 - related to LAN Manager 2.0
• 3.0 - 1993 - Entry / Advanced (no LAN Manager "cousin" from here on)
• 4.0 - 1994 - Entry / Advanced - new OO user interface
• 5.0 - 1996 - included in OS/2 Warp Server
• 5.1 - 1999 - included in OS/2 Warp Server for e-business

Predecessors included IBM PC LAN Program (PCLP). Variants included LAN Server Ultimedia (optimized for network delivery of multimedia files) and Workplace On-Demand. Add-ons included Directory and Security Server, Print Services Facility/2 (later known as Advanced Printing), Novell NetWare for OS/2, and LAN Server for Macintosh.

Innovations

LAN Server pioneered certain file/print sharing concepts such as domains (and domain controllers), networked COM ports, domain aliases, and automatic printer driver selection and installation.

See also

• Server message block