Windows NT Server has an open networking architecture that allows flexibility in communicating with other network products. Client computers running operating systems other than Windows NT Workstation or Windows NT Server can interact with computers in a Windows NT Server domain. However, they do not have domain computer accounts and, therefore, do not have Windows NT Workstation logon security. Users running other operating systems can have user accounts stored in the directory database, but the computer itself does not have logon security to restrict access to its own resources.
Computers running Windows NT Workstation or Windows NT Server can also interact with servers and clients running other operating systems. Various protocols and other software that allows interoperability are either included with Windows NT Server or are available separately.
A workgroup is a collection of computers (not users) that form an administrative unit and do not belong to a domain. In a workgroup, each computer tracks its own user- and group-account information and — in contrast to domain controllers — does not share this information with other workgroup computers.
Workgroup members log on only to workstation accounts and can view directories of other workgroup members over the network.
Computers running Windows NT Workstation, Windows NT Server, Windows for Workgroups, or Windows 95 can be configured to participate in either a domain or a workgroup. When setting up one of these computers for networking, you specify a computer name and a workgroup name. If the workgroup name matches a domain name, the computer name appears in the browse list for that domain. The computer can browse computers running Windows NT Server and Windows NT Workstation that participate in either a domain or a workgroup. You can specify whether the computer will log on to a Windows NT Server domain or a workgroup when you set up Windows NT.
Access to Windows NT Server networking is built in to Windows 95. Users with domain accounts who run Windows 95 can log on to their accounts the same way users running Windows NT Workstation do. Windows 95 user-account logons can be validated by both Windows NT Server domain controllers and LAN Manager 2.x domain controllers.
MS-DOS client computers running one of the following components can use shared network resources on the respective servers:
Because computers running MS-DOS cannot store user accounts, they don't participate in domains the way Windows NT computers do. Each computer running MS-DOS usually has a default domain for browsing. An MS-DOS user with a domain account can be set up to browse any domain, not merely the domain containing the user's account.
Windows NT Server interoperates with Microsoft LAN Manager 2.x systems. Computers running LAN Manager workstation software on MS-DOS, Windows 3.1, or OS/2 can connect to servers running Windows NT Server. LAN Manager 2.x servers (on computers running either OS/2 or UNIX) can also work with servers running Windows NT Server — even in the same domain.
Microsoft LAN Manager for OS/2 version 2.2 is a component of Windows NT Server that enables computers running OS/2 version 1.3x to interact with LAN Manager 2.x servers and computers running Windows NT Workstation and Windows NT Server. If an OS/2 version 1.3x system is running these components, it can share network resources with the respective servers.
You can connect computers running Windows NT Server to NetWare file and print resources by using NWLink protocol software and Gateway Service for NetWare. You can also enable a gateway to share NetWare file and print resources with Microsoft networking clients without NetWare client software.
NetWare client computers can also connect to file and print resources and server applications on computers running Windows NT Server.
Microsoft Windows NT Server Services for Macintosh is a component of Windows NT Server that enables Windows clients and Apple Macintosh clients to share files and printers. With Services for Macintosh, one computer running Windows NT Server can act as a server for both types of computer, and Macintosh computers can share resources with any client supported by Windows NT Server, including MS-DOS and LAN Manager client computers.