Fax Server Software Gets The Fax Right

by Eric Carr

We recently tested 10 software-based fax servers in Network Computing's San Mateo Lab. The servers run on several different operating system platforms and support various fax cards. We used Intel's (now PureData's)400e, GammaLink's CPi and Brooktrout's TR114, with a Dell 466/M and a Compaq 386N as our fax servers.

There's little difference between our top finishers, yet each product has a distinct personality and feature set, varying in network operating system (NOS) compatibility, multiple fax card support, e-mail integration, ease of use or the ability to route faxes automatically.

RightFAX did everything right, and then some, but it requires OS/2. Optus' FACSys and Alcom's LanFax Redirector were close finishers, and each runs on a dedicated DOS machine. LanFax Redirector supports a number of different networks (Vines included), while the version of FACSys we tested only works with NetWare.

If you're running NetWare and want to set up billing for fax use, the accounting and reporting tools from Intel (NetSatisFAXtion) and Cheyenne (FAXserve) excel. If you're looking for products that don't require a dedicated machine, RightFAX and Global Village's FAXworks can run as LAN Manager or LAN Server processes, while Cheyenne's FAXserve can run as aNetWare Loadable Module (NLM). ZanTel's FAX<HQ and Trio's Datafax offer many handy features for international faxing.

The Benefits of Software

These software-based fax servers are more scalable than their plug-and-play hardware brethren. It's easy to add a fax card or two, and your i ncremental cost is just for the fax card. They also have built-in support for a number of different fax modems, which are, among other benefits, more effective at sending compressed files than a Class 1 or Class 2 modem (see "Which FAX Card to Use," p. 114). On the other hand, these products require more initial setup and configuration work.

Each product shipped with at least one client. In some cases, the clients can use communications applications specification (CAS) and/or FAXBIOS to establish communications with the server, making them interchangeable to an extent. In other cases, client features are tightly coupled to the server, prohibiting interchange.

RightFAX RightFAX v3.5

RightFAX offers a greater depth of features than any other product we tested in every important category. It provides every routing method, supports all major messaging transport systems and offers a number of different methods to communicate with the server. RightFAX runs as a native OS/2 process. So it's right at home running as multiple processes in an OS/2-based file server or as a networked OS/2 workstation.

Since Named Pipes are used between the workstations and fax server, our NetWare DOS/Windows workstations had to load the DOSNP shell, taking precious RAM.

Although it's an added option, RightFAX connects right into all three of the major e-mail messaging systems-Vendor-Independent Messaging (VIM), Mail Applications Programming Interface (MAPI) and Message Handling System (MHS)-something none of the other products could do. Inbound routing capability is also very strong, supporting every possible routing method, either as part of the base package or as an option. We're still wary of the OCR ability of any of these products in the real world. Most of the faxes that we get have our names (and the message) handwritten on them. OCR software cannot do handwriting recognition yet.

RightFAX only runs on the smart fax cards from Brooktrout and GammaLink. While this is paltry compared with the number of choices offered by FACSys or FAXworks, in an enterprise setting you'd probably consider using one of these cards anyhow.

Optus Software FACSys v3.40 and
Alcom LanFax Redirector v2.15-GL

Both FACSys and LanFax Redirector (LFR) represent a level of functionality above most of the other products. While close to RightFAX functionally, they don't quite have the "soup-to-nuts" feature set RightFAX does. FACSys edges out LFR in application and e-mail integration. But LFR supports all three of the major NOS environments, where FACSys requires NetWare.

Like RightFAX, FACSys is exceptionally strong on the inbound routing front. You'll need to get optional RightFAX modules to provide equivalent routing capability. FACSys and FAXworks were the only products to support all of our test cards. Still, RightFAX has better e-mail integration.

While LFR doesn't have all the e-mail connections or client support that RightFAX does, it integrates into NetWare environments more easily. Wide multiplatform support is available via the three different client redirectors (IPX/SPX, NetBIOS and Banyan). Overall, LFR and FACSys matched each other feature for feature.

Like many of the products we tested, LFR runs as a DOS application on a dedicated workstation. LFR consumes conventional memory-at least 550 KB must be available-and will not run without it. EMS and XMS are barely used. On our Dell 466/M, we ended up using upper memory normally reserved for video.

We set up LFR to run in a NetWare environment, with clients and the server talking via Sequenced Packet Exchange (SPX). LFR doesn't use the NetWare queue architecture, freeing up file server CPU cycles. It makes a direct, dynamic connection between the fax client and the fax server. The connection lasts as long as necessary, and then the user gets detached from the fax server. No other product uses this method of communication, where the file server is relegated to the role of router. It minimizes network traffic, file server CPU utilization and allows a maximum number of users o n the fax server-a good idea.

User addition is cleverly conceived as well. There was no need to set up a list of authorized users with LFR. Using the "learn" mode the first time we used the device, we were automatically registered as authorized users. After a certain point, we simply instructed the fax server to only accept connections from authorized users.

Trio Information Systems Datafax v4.1e

Datafax is a strong contender in many areas. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of RightFAX, FACSys or LFR, but is more complete than most others.

Datafax client software is Windows on Jolt. It has every Windows gimmick, detracting from the ease of use. For example, when you invoke the queue manager, four separate tiled windows appear, each with its own button bar. Granted, you can create a single button bar for all four windows, but who really needs all this?

Datafax is one of several products that provides OCR capability. Unlike FACSys, however, the OCR capability does not extend to fax routing. When we tried to OCR a document, Datafax correctly deciphered about 70 percent of the text-enough to figure out most of the words. However, it's difficult to view the image and the converted text on the same screen, which is essential for correcting all the OCR engine's mistakes.

Trio uses the OCR ability: It can process every received fax and index on keywords. Retrieving the fax is just a matter of entering the words contained in the original document and letting the system find the documents.

Cheyenne Communications FAXserve v2.0

Although FAXserve doesn't provide as many routing options as our top products and its e-mail integration is limited to MHS, it scales very well. That's primarily because it's a NLM-based product. On the other hand, it's limited in multiplatform capability.

FAXserve is actually multiple 32-bit programs, similar to RightFAX. Running as NetWare processes, all fax image manipulation and queuing come out of the server's CPU cycle budget. We found that this can impact the server. While the actual faxing process takes one or two percent of a server's utilization, getting the fax images to that point takes a little more-upwards of 20 to 25 percent on our Compaq 486/25, using the Intel SatisFAXtion 400 modem. The same is true for converting from the fax bit stream into a DCX file. Images stay on the server and only tie up bandwidth when being viewed or sent via e-mail.

We did appreciate the tools to administer and monitor operation. FAXserve presents its own system console, displaying system operation. It's easy to see if there's a problem somewhere, since you can monitor modem communication in real time.

Traffic Software Object-Fax v3.01

Object-Fax scores very high on network portability. The advanced Windows client makes extensive use of Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) to make desktop faxing as simple as dragging the document to the fax icon. The ability for AS/400, Macintosh and other non-PC platforms to send text files to the fax server with embedded commands deserves strong praise. But Traffic has paid little attention to user administration, making the product unsuitable for larger installations.

While Object-Fax will operate on a variety of different networks, a lack of network-specific features limits its expandability. For example, you can't use a network's directory services to add users.

We also had problems getting the DOS-based server to work. After following the documented instructions, we could receive but not send. There was no explanation of server messages and no tools to help troubleshoot. Traffic suggested that we reinstall the GammaLink software, which solved the problem.

Intel Corp. NetSatisFAXtion v3.0

If you need to account for fax use, Intel's product provides the richest and easiest set of accounting features. It is very limited, however, in the number of fax cards supported and only runs in a NetWare environment. It also has no e-mail integration.

NetSatisFAXtion has an elegant way to add users to the fax system. It firs t builds user tables by reading entries from the bindery, and then the individual users are added and configured via the AUTOCFG command, which is inserted into the login script. We tried it, and it worked well. After going through the process the first time, AUTOCFG recognized that we were configured during subsequent logins and did nothing.

Global Village FAXworks ProLAN for OS/2 v2.0

FAXworks, an OS/2 product like RightFAX, doesn't have the feature set RightFAX offers. It does have a large number of different fax clients, however.

In addition to print drivers, FAXworks presents an unusual and intuitive method for OS/2 and Windows users creating a fax. You're presented with a blank sheet of paper and a set of tools across the top of the screen, much like the Windows Paintbrush application. You can import and place text and graphics, and click on the "send" button. The faxes looked great.

TransFax Corp. TransFAX

TransFAX is simple to install and set up but doesn't have many key features. For instance, there's no ability to route received faxes into your e-mail system. Yet TransFAX seems to get everything done with a minimum of fuss.

It installs on virtually any network-a real bonus. But with network independence comes manual administration, so it doesn't fit well in a large environment with lots of people moving in and out. TransFAX was one of two products that comes with a Windows-based fax server. None of the high-end products use Windows as an environment for the server, and we're somewhat wary of this situation for a fax server with many cards and lines.

TransFax provides a set of server-monitor threshold parameters we found very useful. When the values of these parameters (there are 16 of them) are exceeded, the fax server notifies the administrator via a broadcast message. For example, to monitor continued operation remotely, we set one of the parameters to let us know whenever the fax server had not identified itself within a 10-minute period.

ZanTel FAX<HQ for Networks v2.30

Lack of any e-mail interoperability and no automatic routing capability limits the suitability of FAX<HQ. It excels at sending international faxes, with complete databases of country codes and time zone differences.

We could find the best time to send a fax to Malaysia very easily, but these are client features. The server (Windows based) offers no support for Brooktrout or GammaLink cards, but you can use the Intel/Pure Data cards, or Class 1 and Class 2 modems. As such, FAX<HQ is not as scalable as the others.

[Editor's note: ZanTel released FAX<HQ v2.4 too late for this review. It incorporated substantial improvements in routing options, which would have made its final score 2.83]

Eric Carr owns F1, an independent consulting agency in Mountain View, Calif. He can be reached at 73770.2235@compuserve.com.

Which FAX Card To Use?

by Eric Carr

Your fax board will probably have the biggest impact on fax server performance (not to mention your pocketbook). Most of the products support many Class 1 and Class 2 fax modems.

These modems-while cost effective-rely on the host CPU to do much of the fax protocol processing and all of the manipulation as the image is converted from a digital to analog format. This is fine if you have a powerful CPU and it's not too busy with other tasks. But what happens when you have multiple fax cards asking for directions? CPUs have been brought to their knees for less.

Enter the so-called "smart cards." These cards have a dedicated processor driving the fax process. For example, the GammaFax CPi has a 10-MHz 80186 driving the fax channels; an on-board operating system (known as the GammaFAX dispatcher) gets downloaded into the board as the server comes up. The Brooktrout TR114 board we used had a Direct Inward Dial (DID) channel and a conventional send/receive channel, each powered by its own 32-bit processor. With all this horsepower, the smart card effectively offloads all of the fax protocol negotiation and image convers ion from the host and can perform image compression and decompression as it communicates with the other fax device on the fly. These cards also employ sophisticated (and proprietary) algorithms for ensuring a maximum call completion rate, especially when connecting with other phone systems.

Indeed, the cards are significantly more expensive than Class 1 or Class 2 modems. But they'll more than pay for themselves over time, via reduced connect time charges and fewer disconnections.

VENDOR INFORMATION

RightFAX v3.5 : $995; single channel/unlimited users multichannel upgrade: $1,000; additional channels: $495. RightFAX, 4400 E. Broadway #312, Tucson, AZ 85711. (602) 327-1357;fax (602) 321-7456. Circle reader service #392.

FACSys v3.40 : $2,995. Optus Software, 100 Davidson Ave., Somerset, NJ 08873-9931. (908) 271-9568; fax (908) 271-9572. Circle reader service #393.

LanFax Redirector v2.15-G L: $1,995. Alcom Corp., 1616 North Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View, CA 94043. (415) 694-7000;fax (800) 873-1329. Circle reader service #394.

Datafax v4.1e : 2 users, $199; 5, $429; 10, $795; 25, $1,295; 50, $1,795; 100, $2,295. Trio Information Systems, 8601 Six Forks Rd. #105, Raleigh, NC 27615. (800) 880-4400; fax (919-846-4997. Circle reader service #395.

FAXserve v2.0 : 5 users, $395; 1,000 users, $4,995. Cheyenne Communications, 3 Expressway Plaza, Roslyn Heights, NY 11577. (800) 243-9462; fax (516) 484-3446. Circle reader service #396.

Object-Fax v3.01 : $990 to $4,480. Traffic Software, P.O. Box 12445, IS-132 Reykjavik, ICELAND. (407) 995-5282; fax (407) 995-5272. Circle reader service #397.

FAXworks ProLAN for OS/2 v2.0 : 1 server with 30 users, $699. Global Village Communications, 1144 E. Arques Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94086. (800) 736-4821; fax (408) 523-2407. Circle reader service #398.

NetSatisFAXtion v3.0 : 25 users, $1,195; 1,000 users, $1,995. Intel Corp., 520 0 N.E. Elam Young Pkwy., Hillsboro, OR 97124-6497. (800) 538-3373;fax (800) 525-3019. Circle reader service #399.

TransFAX : 3 users, $395; 50 users, $2,695; 100 users, $3,695. TransFax Corp., 307 Orchard City Dr. #110, Campbell, CA 95008. (800) 329-9929; fax (408) 378-7573. Circle reader service #400.

Fax<HQ for Networks v 2.30 : $395 to $3,190. ZanTel Corp., 81 Victoria Cir., Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. (800) 417-6389; fax (510) 942-5059. Circle reader service #401.