NWLink is an IPX/SPX-compatible transport protocol for Windows NT. It can be used to establish connections between Windows NT computers and either MS-DOS, OS/2, Windows, or other Windows NT computers via RPC, Sockets (either Windows Sockets or NetWare® sockets), or Novell® NetBIOS. It does not, however, allow a Windows NT computer to connect to a Novell NetWare server or to act as a server to a Novell NetWare client. To connect to a Novell NetWare server, you need to purchase Novell's NetWare Client for Windows NT or you need the Client Services for NetWare.
NWLink is useful if you have NetWare client applications that use the IPX/SPX API or if you have applications which use NetBIOS or Novell NetBIOS. NWLink can also serve as the protocol used by the default redirector and server for Windows NT and Windows NT Server.
User-mode applications can use RPC, NetBIOS APIs, or Windows Sockets APIs to access the network through NWLink or other IPX/SPX protocol drivers. Both NetBIOS and Windows Sockets are supported in the Windows 32-bit, Windows 16-bit, and MS-DOS environments. Programs that run in the OS/2 environment can use NetBIOS but not Windows Sockets APIs. All subsystems and VDMs can use logical drives that are established by the redirector via NWLink.
Microsoft's Client Services for NetWare allows Microsoft Windows NT workstations to access files, directories, and printers on Novell NetWare servers.
Because CSNW uses the IPX protocol, NWLink transport must be installed before you install CSNW.
GSNW is a 32-bit Windows NT service equivalent to the NetWare requestor. It allows Windows NT servers to access files, directories, and printers on Novell NetWare servers, and also to transparently pass those resources on to clients on the Windows Network.
GSNW allows users to connect to what appear to be NT Server resources, but which in reality are resources that exist on a NetWare server connected with the Windows NT network. This capability allows Windows NT Server to act as a nondedicated gateway to NetWare file systems for any SMB (Server Message Block) client (including Windows for Workgroups, Windows NT, and MS-DOS clients under LAN Manager).