SNA Server 4.0 provides a wide range of features in addition to fault tolerance. Here is a description of many of those features.
Clients and protocols. SNA Server 4.0 supports many clients, including Windows NT, Windows 95, Windows for Workgroups, Windows 3.x, DOS, and OS/2. Macintosh and UNIX support is available through third-party solutions. Clients can use the protocols TCP/IP, IPX/SPX, Banyan VINES, AppleTalk, and Microsoft Named Pipes to access SNA Server.
Host gateway services. SNA Server 4.0 provides host gateway services for native mainframe 3270 and AS/400 5250 access, Advanced Program-to-Program Communications (APPC) application access, and TN3270 and TN5250 access. SNA Server provides APPC File Transfer Protocol (AFTP), and FTP service for file transfer between the client and mainframe and AS/400 hosts. It also provides Virtual Storage Access Method (VSAM) file transfer service that lets users transfer VSAM files to NT Server.
Security features. SNA Server 4.0 uses NT domain security to authenticate users. It offers a single sign-on feature that automatically authenticates users to the host after users log on to the NT domain. With third-party support, SNA Server can bidirectionally synchronize a user's NT account with a host account. SNA Server provides LU-level security to let administrators set up the strictest security for host access. SNA Server can also encrypt data transferred between client and server.
Host integration. SNA Server integrates Microsoft Transaction Server (MTS)-based Web applications with mainframe CICS and Internet Mail Service (IMS) transactions via component object model Transaction Integrator (COMTI). With the Object Linking and Embedding Database (OLE DB) Provider for AS/400, VSAM in SNA Server 4.0, and ActiveX Data Object (ADO), application developers can write Visual Basic (VB) programs to integrate data between NT and hosts. SNA Server 4.0 can create AS/400 shared folders that appear as NT shared folders in the NT network. SNA Server also provides host print service to print host data on LAN printers.
Configuration. SNA Server 4.0 provides easy-to-use configuration wizards to configure host connections, security, and COMTI. SNA Server provides snap-ins for Microsoft Management Console (MMC), so you can manage SNA Server, COMTI, and OLE DB Provider in one place. With Internet Information Server (IIS), SNA Server 4.0 lets Win95 clients install Web SNA Client from a central Web server.