Bull ISM Announces U.S. Introduction of Integrated System Management Suite; OpenMaster to run on platforms from IBM, Sun, Silicon Graphics, Tandem and Bull; ISM object-oriented framework provides deep integration of popular management tools from a wide range of vendors.

commitment it made earlier this year, Groupe Bull's ISM division today announced the U.S. introduction of its OpenMaster integrated network and system management software suite.

OpenMaster, which will be commercially available in the U.S. in January, is the world's most field-proven network and system management software. It is based on an object-oriented technology ISM, which provides an open, integration framework and growing suite of management tools for the management of Unix-and PC-based systems and networks, wide area communications links, proprietary hosts, internetworking devices such as routers, bridges, and hubs, security and applications. OpenMaster is currently in use at more than 400 customer sites worldwide, managing enterprise networks and distributed computer systems in some of the world's largest organizations.

In readying OpenMaster for the U.S. market, ISM has made several significant enhancements to its product offering:

o Multiple platform support: At its U.S. introduction, OpenMaster

will run on several popular computing platforms, including the IBM 

RS/6000, Sun Microsystems' Solaris operating system, Tandem Integrity

systems, Silicon Graphics, and Bull's DPX/20. Bull will add

additional platforms to this roster in 1996.

o Distributed Management Architecture: OpenMaster now offers a

unique capability to consolidate the management of distributed,

enterprise-wide environments. Its Concentrator is an advanced

intelligent agent to minimize traffic at the central management

console, collect information and act on it in the most appropriate

place. The Concentrator takes advantage of OpenMaster's

client/server architecture and provides all the high-level management

functions, such as polling services, filtering, inventory, discovery

and alarm log.

o Telecommunications Management: OpenMaster's TMN Master domain

offers telecommunications service providers, PTTs and equipment

vendors comprehensive management services which comply with the

Telecommunications Management Network (TMN) standards set. Bull's

TMN Master includes a robust development toolkit to enhance, extend

and customize TMN applications with new features to quickly meet the

requirements of a TMN network.

OpenMaster is the only systems and network management suite that provides an integrated, enterprise security management capability along with all the other functionality systems and network managers require to ensure reliable and efficient operation of their organization's IT infrastructure.

"After tremendous success in Europe and Asia, we believe the time is right to bring a complete management solution to the U.S.," said Denis Attal, president of Bull's ISM business unit. "American companies are tired of the empty promises they've heard from systems vendors about integrated management solutions. Only ISM can deliver the real goods, right now a customer-proven, object-oriented management framework with a set of nearly 50 integrated management applications."

Key Management Domains

OpenMaster comprises six solution sets, each of which addresses a key management domain. Applications can be bought separately, and each integrates with the others when combined.

1) Operation Master -- Monitors and automates the full range of

system management tasks, including software distribution,

performance analysis, job scheduling and backup.

2) PC/Operation Master -- Manages, configures and distributes

software to networked PCs across Novell NetWare, Microsoft LAN 

Manager and Windows NT, and TCP/IP networks. Later this year,

PC/Operation Master will interoperate with LAN management products

such as Microsoft's System Management Server, as announced last

month.

3) Network Management -- Manages multiple networks using a mix of

protocols (SNMP, CMIP, DSAC, SNA, FDDI/SMT, X.25 switches) and

effectively masks the complexity of multivendor, multiprotocol

networks.

4) TMN Master -- A robust platform for managing telecommunication

networks, consistent with standards developed by the ITU-T 

(previously CCITT). TMN master is currently used to manage Global

System for Mobile (GSM) cellular phone networks, PBX systems,

switches and similar communications hardware.

5) SQL Master -- Manages critical corporate data and applications and

key database systems, such as Oracle.

6) Access Master -- Integrates security management across the entire

network, supporting user management, user authentication and

identification across multivendor, multiprotocol systems. This

enables users' single sign-on and reduces the cost of management

while ensuring consistent, multi-level security across the

enterprise. Access Master is the only security solution which

provides end-to-end security from the workstation (whether Windows,

Macintosh, OS/2 or Unix) to the remote system or application used by

the user.

These OpenMaster solutions are made of a broad and growing suite of nearly 50 management applications. The applications support a consistent user interface that provides a common look and feel, reducing the amount of training required for system administrators. The applications share information through a common database and common services. The graphical interface displays complex performance and status data in an easily understood graphic format. An intuitive Windows-like interface eliminates the need for clumsy command line operation, allowing nearly keystroke-free operation and ensuring that administrators quickly understand complex management information so they can execute critical tasks simply and without errors.

Integrated Enterprise Management Framework

The ISM management framework upon which OpenMaster runs is a software integration infrastructure that collects and shares information among multiple management tools. As an integrated, modular system management framework, ISM enables the management of distributed and local, open and proprietary systems and networks. It scales to support everything from single sites to large-scale, multivendor global enterprise systems.

The ISM architecture is designed explicitly for the multiprotocol environment characteristic of today's corporate information systems, allowing comprehensive views of widely different systems through integrated management applications. It employs a sophisticated, advanced object-based architecture in which all networked resources are defined as objects, making it easy to integrate views of different components into a single, consistent view and to support new objects and protocols.

In addition, ISM's flexible architecture lets users easily tailor ISM to their exact needs.

Pricing and availability

ISM carries a base price of $10,000 for the management framework and general purpose applications including ISM Alarm and ISM Monitor. OpenMaster application modules which run on the ISM framework are priced separately.

The ISM framework and the complete OpenMaster software suite will be available from Bull ISM (Billerica, Mass.) in January. Customers can also purchase it from ISM partner Tandem Computers. The AccessMaster security module is also available from Mergent International.

Reader Inquiry Information

For more information about Bull ISM's OpenMaster, readers can call 1-800-884-4864 or point their Web browsers to http://www.bull.com.

Background Information

Founded in 1991, Bull ISM is a software house within Groupe Bull's Open Systems & Software Division. ISM has operations in the U.S., Europe, and the Far East.

With a presence in more than 90 countries, over 25,000 employees and combined revenues of more than US $5.4 billion, Bull is one of the world largest information technology companies and a major systems and technologies integrator, offering a comprehensive range of solutions, services and support capabilities for use in a multivendor environment. -0-

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CONTACT: Stephanie Schweighofer-Jones Dave Manley

Groupe Bull Duval Public Relations 

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