NetCache FAQ (NOTE: NetCache give away ends September 30)

In the last couple of months we have received many questions from Squid users
regarding NetCache and our current offer for free software. The following
email is meant to answer these questions. If you have no interest in
NetCache please ignore this message and accept my apology; my intention is
to supply interested parties with as much information as possible without
sounding like an advertisement.

NetCache Frequently Asked Questions
http://www.netcache.com

Contents:

1. What is NetCache?
2. Is the special offer *really free*?
3. How does NetCache compare to Squid?
4. Does NetCache support ICP and is this compatible with Squid/Harvest?
5. Is Network Appliance building a caching appliance?
6. Where can I get more information?

1. What is NetCache?

   NetCache is a high performance proxy server based upon the Harvest Object
   Cache (which Squid is also derived from). After the Harvest project
   ended in December of 1995, a number of the Harvest developers (including
   Peter Danzig and Anawat Chunkhuthod) formed Internet Middleware
   Corporation (IMC) to produce a commercial version of Harvest. They focused
   on making the code faster, more reliable, less memory intensive, and easier
   to use. The result of this effort is NetCache (formerly called Cached).
   In March 1997, Network Appliance acquired IMC (including the services of
   all the IMC developers) and added several more resources to this team
   including developers, test engineers, documentation writers, and support
   technicians.

   NetCache is available for several versions of UNIX and Windows NT.
  
   A complete history of the evolution of NetCache is available at:
   http://www.netapp.com/products/level3/netcache/evolution.html.

2. Is the special offer *really free*?

   Until September 30, 1997 Network Appliance is giving away:
        - One non-expiring copy NetCache or
        - Four non-expiring copies of NetCache Lite (NetCache Lite has
          all the functionality of NetCache, but is limited to 15,000 URLs/HR)
   Limits are on a per company/organization basis.

   We would like as many people to try NetCache during this period as
   possible and realize that some people may be opposed to installing
   infrastructure software that will expire after 30 days. This offer
   is meant to allow people to try NetCache without worrying about their
   software expiring.

   If you would like to take advantage of this free offer, please register
   at http://www.netcache.com.

   After September 30, 1997 we will revert to our free 30 day trial offer.

3. How does NetCache compare to Squid?

   I'll try to keep this section as short and objective as possible. If you
   have any other questions or want a more detailed comparison (I've
   focused on high level features for this comparison) please email me at
   echow@netapp.com.

   Advantages of NetCache:
   - Persistent caching via HTTP 1.1
   - HTML interface and online documentation
   - Compatible NT version
   - Memory reductions. NetCache currently uses one half the memory of
     Squid/Harvest caches.
   - Performance. Internal tests show that NetCache has up to 3x the throughput
     and 2-20x faster response time than Squid. We current have customers
     who are supporting over 3,600 simultaneous users with acceptable
     response time with a single copy of NetCache.
   - Multi-threaded to support multi-processor machines
   - Fast recovery. Following an ungraceful shutdown, NetCache rebuilds the
     disk in under 2 minutes.
   - 24 hour phone support available

   Advantages of Squid:
   - Free
   - Source code is freely available
   - Almost all versions of UNIX are supported. Since Squid is available
     in source form, it can be modified and compiled for almost any platform.
     Network Appliance will only support platforms that we have the resources to
     thoroughly test in our labs.

   Other comparisons between NetCache and Squid are available:
   - NetCache vs. Squid thread on Squid mailing list:
     http://www.cineca.it/proxy/search/html/9707/0344.html

4. Does NetCache support ICP and is this compatible with Squid/Harvest?

   Yes. NetCache's support of ICP (including the NT version) is completely
   compatible with Squid and Harvest caches.

5. Is Network Appliance building a caching appliance?

   We haven't formally announced any product yet, but our company name is
   "Network Appliance" :)

6. Where can I get more information?

   Web page: http://www.netcache.com
   Email: netcache-info@netapp.com
   Support: support@netapp.com
   Phone: (888)352-2996 (U.S. and Canada)
              (408)367-3000 (Everywhere else)
Received on Mon Sep 22 1997 - 16:54:15 MDT