ICSS spans multiple platforms

IBM hopes to challenge World Wide Web major-league players Netscape Communications Corp. and Microsoft Corp. later this month with the release of its Internet Connection Secure Server (ICSS) 4.1. IBM's offering appears to be the only server that supports as many different platforms as Netscape's servers. Microsoft, by contrast, remains tied completely to Windows NT.

Is Internet Connection Secure Server right for you? If you don't want to be tied to one platform, ICSS deserves your consideration, alongside Netscape's Commerce Server. If your company is currently using Lotus Development Corp.'s Notes, you'll be interested to know that Lotus' new Notes HTTP server, code-named Domino, uses tightly integrated ICSS technology under the hood, which may simplify integration with ICSS.

Although nonsecure servers may be suitable intranet candidates, security features are necessary if the server is also to support a public Web site or remote access to intranet pages. Accordingly, I downloaded and tested the beta version of IBM's ICSS 4.1 for OS/2 Warp. ICSS provides security via the de facto standard Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) 2.0, developed by Netscape, and it also supports Secure HTTP (SHTTP).

SHTTP's current advantage over SSL is that it enables clients and servers to authenticate each other and agree on the kind of security to be used in transmission. The problem is that IBM's Secure WebExplorer is the only browser currently supporting SHTTP. IBM plans to add support for SSL 3.0 once the specification is finalized.

Small Footprint

ICSS for either OS/2 Warp or Windows NT has lower resource demands than Netscape and Microsoft's offerings, requiring a scant 6MB of hard disk space, a 386 processor or higher, and 12MB of RAM. The smaller memory footprint could enable small shops to host FTP (File Transfer Protocol), Gopher, and other services on one machine, along with Web services.

ICSS' configuration and administration tools, like Netscape's Commerce Server's, are accessible through your Web browser. I used IBM's WebExplorer 1.1b to load my server's front page, then entered the default administrator user ID and password to access administrative functions. I was able to view documentation in HTML format using WebExplorer or in .INF format at the server. You can also print hard copy from PostScript files on the CD-ROM.

IBM supplies a sample home page and links to popular editing tools on the Web, but ICSS has no built-in authoring tools -- not a very friendly solution for neophyte Webmasters. IBM really needs to bundle a starter kit (such as Microsoft's FrontPage or, for Lotus Notes shops, IBM's own InterNotes Web Publisher) to help those new to Web authoring get up and running quickly. Because Netscape's forthcoming Enterprise Server will include WYSIWYG editing and revision-control features, InterNotes Web Publisher may become a requirement for the success of ICSS.

We were pleased to see IBM include proxy support for http, FTP, and Gopher -- which Microsoft doesn't provide, and Netscape offers as a $995 add-on. Obviously, the amount of traffic generated by a large enterprise would degrade performance on a single machine acting as both a proxy and Web server, but it's nice to know that it's possible. ICSS includes many proxy caching options to help tune performance.

The Bottom Line

Internet Connection Secure Server 4.1

What it lacks in integrated authoring tools, Internet Connection Secure Server makes up for in ease of administration and custom-tuning capabilities.

Pros: Browser-based server administration; multiplatform solution (servers can scale up from Intel to RISC to mainframe); includes advanced proxy features; extensive performance settings.

Cons: No built-in authoring tools; lacks tight integration with OS/2 Warp Server's SystemView systems management services; security maintained separately from OS/2 Warp Server.

Open Market SecureLink™, the unique, distributed architecture of Transact, separates content management from order processing and customer service for optimal security, scalability, and manageability.

A single Transact system can centralize Internet commerce services for multiple divisions, lines of business, or even companies. It also enables an Internet business to reach its customers via multiple Web sites, "push" technology, CD-ROMs — anyplace you can put a URL.

Secure

Transact provides an end-to-end solution for secure Internet commerce. Unique SecureLink commerce objects allow for distributed commerce while providing tamperproof messages and authentication. Transact keeps all sensitive information behind not one, but two firewalls. All customer payment credentials are independently encrypted. And Transact provides support for the world's most secure payment protocols, including SET.

Scalable

Secure Transact provides an end-to-end solution for secure Internet commerce. Unique SecureLink commerce objects allow for distributed commerce while providing tamperproof messages and authentication. Transact keeps all sensitive information behind not one, but two firewalls. All customer payment credentials are independently encrypted. And Transact provides support for the world's most secure payment protocols, including SET.

Expansion costs are low, too. When the time comes to commerce-enable other divisions, lines of business — even other companies — all you'll need to do is tap the existing centralized infrastructure of Transact.