From 09faf816070b3648a75f207bc5cf0d5a6eb7d1c1 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Mario Fetka Date: Tue, 21 Apr 2026 21:00:55 +0200 Subject: [PATCH] Update Readme.md --- README.md | 237 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++---------------------- 1 file changed, 143 insertions(+), 94 deletions(-) diff --git a/README.md b/README.md index d6ea4e4..f3b3354 100644 --- a/README.md +++ b/README.md @@ -1,137 +1,186 @@ # MARS_NWE -This is Mars_nwe, a free NetWare emulator for Linux originally written by -Martin Stover of Marburg, Germany. +MARS_NWE is a free NetWare emulator for Linux, originally written by Martin Stover of Marburg, Germany. It is a long-running retro-computing project that aims to keep classic NetWare-style services available on modern Linux systems. + +This repository is now the de facto home of MARS_NWE: the central place where ongoing maintenance, fixes, integration work, and current public releases are collected. ## Current Development Status -The last release by the original author was on 1 September 2000. -Marco Cavallini of Koan Software produced version 0.99.pl21 on or around 14 June 2003. -Mario Fetka (@geos_one) released version 0.99.pl22 on 21 May 2012 and 0.99.pl23 on 5 -November 2013. -No further work has been done on this in public since 2013. While it all builds and runs on -modern linux systems (surprisingly) there are a lot of build warnings and many missing -features to be dealt with as well as bugs to be found and squashed. +The original author's last release was on 1 September 2000. Marco Cavallini of Koan Software later produced version 0.99.pl21 around 14 June 2003. + +With the 0.99.pl22 release in May 2012, I effectively took over ongoing public maintenance of MARS_NWE. Since then, I have collected and integrated many of the patches that had accumulated across different distributions and downstream packages, including work from Arch, Debian, Fedora, PLD, Koan, and other sources, while trying to keep the project building and working as a whole. + +This repository is where that continuing integration and maintenance work now happens. Public release milestones include 0.99.pl22 (20 May 2012), 0.99.pl23 (5 November 2013), 0.99.pl24 (31 May 2023), 0.99.pl25 (31 July 2024), 0.99.pl26 (28 March 2026), and 0.99.pl27 (21 April 2026). + +Although MARS_NWE still builds and runs on modern Linux systems, it remains an old codebase with rough edges, missing features, and bugs that still need attention. ## About This Repository -This repository was initially produced to see what the differences were between the few -most recent versions of mars_nwe, in particular the versions not produced by the -original author. Most other versions going back to 0.96 have also been imported to see -how it changed over time. The source archives used to build this repo can be found -[here](https://ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/novell/mars_nwe_dist/). -## What can Mars_nwe do? -From the old [README file](README): +This repository was originally assembled to compare the differences between the more recent MARS_NWE versions, especially those not produced by the original author. Older versions going back to 0.96 were also imported to preserve development history and make it easier to track how the code changed over time. -- mars_nwe is a very functional clone of a NetWare server that runs - under Linux. It works fine with the usual DOS client software that - normally comes with your NetWare server. +The source archives used to build this repository history can be found here: -- mars_nwe offers file, bindery and print services for NetWare client - software. +- -- mars_nwe does not include any user license restrictions. You can - increase mars_nwe's licenses by simply recompiling it, and you can - start any number of mars_nwe's on your network! +## What MARS_NWE Can Do -- mars_nwe includes a RIP/SAP daemon that turns your Linux box into a - fine IPX router. +As described in the old project documentation, MARS_NWE is a functional clone of a NetWare server for Linux. It works with the usual DOS client software normally used with classic NetWare servers. It provides file, bindery, and print services for NetWare client software, and it does not impose user license restrictions. It also includes a RIP/SAP daemon that can turn a Linux machine into an IPX router. +The wider MARS_NWE ecosystem also includes related tools and companion projects: -Related packages include: +- **SMArT**: the web configuration tool for MARS_NWE. + - +- **dosutils**: DOS-side helper tools for login, mapping, testing, and related client tasks. + - +- **mailutils**: additional mail-related tools and utilities for MARS_NWE environments. + - +- **ncpfs module**: a standalone NCPFS kernel module for Linux 4.18 and newer. + - +- **ipx kernel module**: IPX kernel support for Linux 4.18 and newer. + - +- **ipx-utils**: userspace IPX utilities for Linux. + - -- mars_dosutils: Some utilities that should free you from having to - use proprietary utilities when you want to use mars_nwe with DOS - clients. These are now in the dosutils directory of this repository +## SMArT -- [ncpfs](https://github.com/EnzephaloN/ncpfs-module): a linux-only - filesystem allowing you to mount volumes exported by NetWare servers - on your linux box. +SMArT is the web configuration tool for MARS_NWE. It provides a web-based way to configure and manage a MARS_NWE installation. -- [ipx kernel module for Linux](https://github.com/pasis/ipx): this is - required to run mars_nwe on versions of Linux newer than 4.17. +## Security Warning -## WARNING Security -This code has not been actively maintained in over two decades. The network protocol it -implements is even older than that. **THERE WILL BE SECURITY VULNERABILITIES.** If you -decide to run this please do so on a private network only. +This codebase implements very old network protocols and has not had the kind of continuous hardening expected from modern network-facing software. -In particular, since version 0.99.pl9 mars_nwe has made filesystem calls as the root -user in order to handle trustees so this may be a source of security issues. +**THERE WILL BE SECURITY VULNERABILITIES.** -## Installing +If you decide to run MARS_NWE, do so on a trusted private network only. In particular, since version 0.99.pl9, MARS_NWE has made filesystem calls as the root user in order to handle trustees, which may be a source of security issues. -With [the IPX Kernel Module](https://github.com/pasis/ipx) installed you should be able to -just go: -```shell +## Building + +With the required kernel support installed, a typical build should be as simple as: + +```sh +cmake -S . -B build +cmake --build build +sudo cmake --install build +``` + +The older in-tree build style still reflects how the project was traditionally built: + +```sh cmake . make sudo make install ``` -Once thats done you'll need to edit `/usr/local/etc/mars_nwe/nwserv.conf` to: -- Give your server a name (section 2) -- Set ethernet frame types and IPX network numbers (section 4, you may be able to skip - this if you have no other NetWare servers on your LAN) -- Give the supervisor user a password (section 12) +Current installs also provide systemd service files, including: -You should probably read all the comments in the server configuration file in case there -are any other settings you wish to customise. +- `mars-nwe-serv.service` for the main MARS_NWE server +- `mars-nwe-webui.service` for the HTTPS-enabled web UI daemon that places the older Perl SMArT interface behind proper encryption -You'll also want to edit `/var/mars_nwe/SYS/public/net$log.dat` and replace the -default login script with something sensible like: -``` +## Basic Configuration + +After installation, edit: + +`/usr/local/etc/mars_nwe/nwserv.conf` +`/usr/local/etc/mars_nwe/smart.conf` + +At minimum, you should: + +- give your server a name (section 2) +- set Ethernet frame types and IPX network numbers (section 4, you may be able to skip this if you have no other NetWare servers on your LAN) +- set a password for the supervisor user (section 12) + +The comments in the configuration file are worth reading carefully, as there may be additional settings you want to customize for your environment. + +You will probably also want to edit: + +`/var/mars_nwe/SYS/public/net$log.dat` + +and replace the default login script with something more useful, for example: + +```txt MAP INS S1:=SYS:PUBLIC MAP *1:=SYS: ``` -Once all that's done you should be able to start mars_nwe by running the following as root: -```shell -mkdir -p /var/log/mars_nwe -mkdir -p /var/run/mars_nwe -nwserv +## Running + +On current systems, MARS_NWE should normally be managed through the installed systemd service files. + +To start the main server: + +```sh +sudo systemctl enable --now mars-nwe-serv.service ``` -To make it start automatically you can put the above in `/etc/rc.local` or, even better, -write a systemd unit file. -Lastly you'll need a client. The best one for DOS and Windows 3.11 is probably -[Client32 v2.71](https://ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/novell/clients/client32_2.71_dos_win3x/dw271e.exe) -from February 1999 which uses at most 4K of conventional memory (386SX or better CPU -and a few MB of extended memory required). For other operating systems (or older DOS -machines) you can grab another client from [here](https://www.zx.net.nz/netware/client/). Note -that Mars_NWE won't work with the Mac client as that needs NDS (NetWare 4.0+) which Mars_NWE -does not implement. +To start the HTTPS-enabled web UI daemon: -## NetWare DOS & OS/2 Utilities -mars_nwe only comes with the bare minimum required to login and map drives on DOS. You can get -some other utilities (such as flag and ncopy) from the NetWare DOS Client Kit v3.01 -(released in 1990) which was made freely available by Novell. You can get it from -[this page](http://www.zx.net.nz/netware/client/dos-netx.shtml) (DSWIN3.ZIP and -DSWIN4.ZIP). These utilities would normally live in `/var/mars_nwe/SYS/public/` +```sh +sudo systemctl enable --now mars-nwe-webui.service +``` -For OS/2, some of the client kits for OS/2 include updated 16bit OS/2 utilities -(usually the OS2UTIL disks) which may fill some gaps. Four EXEs (attach, login, map, slist) -should go in `/var/mars_nwe/SYS/login/OS2/` while the rest go in `/var/mars_nwe/SYS/public/OS2/`. +The runtime directory setup is handled by the service files, so the old manual `mkdir` steps are no longer needed when using systemd. -For other utilities such as SysCon you may need to obtain a proper copy of -NetWare 3.11 or 3.12. +For Gentoo and other OpenRC-based setups, init.d files are available in the `doc` directory and currently need to be installed manually. + +## Clients + +You will also need a NetWare client. + +For DOS and Windows 3.11, one of the best choices is probably **Client32 v2.71** from February 1999. + +- + +According to the original notes, it uses at most 4K of conventional memory, although it requires a 386SX or better CPU and a few megabytes of extended memory. + +For other operating systems, or for older DOS machines, additional client software can be found here: + +- + +MARS_NWE does **not** work with the classic Mac client, because that client requires NDS from NetWare 4.x or newer, which MARS_NWE does not implement. + +## NetWare DOS and OS/2 Utilities + +MARS_NWE itself only includes the bare minimum needed to log in and map drives on DOS. If you want additional tools such as `flag` or `ncopy`, you can use the **NetWare DOS Client Kit v3.01** from 1990, which Novell later made freely available. The original README points to the following page and notes `DSWIN3.ZIP` and `DSWIN4.ZIP` as useful archives: + +- + +These DOS utilities would normally live in: + +`/var/mars_nwe/SYS/public/` + +For OS/2, some client kits include updated 16-bit OS/2 utilities, usually on the `OS2UTIL` disks, which can help fill some of the gaps. The four executables `attach`, `login`, `map`, and `slist` should go in: + +`/var/mars_nwe/SYS/login/OS2/` + +The remaining OS/2 utilities should go in: + +`/var/mars_nwe/SYS/public/OS2/` + +For other tools such as **SYSCON**, you may still need an original copy of NetWare 3.11 or 3.12. ## Managing Users and Login Scripts -For NetWare 3.x servers this is normally done with the SYSCON utility for DOS. Mars_NWE doesn't -include any replacement for this utility and the original Novell one is probably out of bounds -unless you've got a NetWare 3 license. -One alternative is [WnSyscon](https://web.archive.org/web/20050828165409/http://www.amcsoft.demon.co.uk/wnsyscon.htm), -a 16bit windows SYSCON replacement. Novell actually bundled the registered version of -this with NetWare 3.2 as their [Graphical SYSCON Utility](https://support.novell.com/techcenter/articles/ana19980403.html). -You can grab the ShareWare version from [here](https://ftp.zx.net.nz/pub/archive/novell/3rdparty/admin/wnsyscon/) - it -seems to be fully functional aside from a few nag screens. Unfortunaltely buying a copy of NetWare 3.2 is probably -the only way to get a proper registered version of this today unless the original author can be contacted somehow. +For NetWare 3.x style servers, user and login script management would normally be done with the DOS **SYSCON** utility. MARS_NWE does not include a replacement for that tool, and the original Novell version is likely out of bounds unless you already hold a valid NetWare 3 license. + +One possible alternative is **WnSyscon**, a 16-bit Windows SYSCON replacement: + +- + +According to the old README, Novell bundled the registered version with NetWare 3.2 as their Graphical SYSCON Utility + + - + + and the shareware version could be downloaded from: + +- + +The shareware version was described as being fully functional aside from a few nag screens. Unfortunately, obtaining a properly registered version today may require owning a legitimate NetWare 3.2 copy, unless the original author can still be contacted somehow. ## Where To Get Help -There is some very old documentation available [here](doc) which may be of interest. -The old [linware mailing list archives](https://marc.info/?l=linware&r=1&w=2) may still -contain useful information as well. There is also a few additional notes [here](http://www.zx.net.nz/netware/server/mars.shtml). -If you can't find a solution to a problem in any of those places the only remaining -option is probably reading the code. +There is some very old documentation in the `doc` directory that may still be useful. The old linware mailing list archives may also contain useful information, and the original README also links to a set of additional notes here: + +- +- + +If none of those help, the remaining option is often the same as it has always been for old infrastructure software: read the code.