14 DAY TRIAL // Softpedia was informed today, February 8, 2017, by NethServer Community Manager Alessio Fattorini about the general availability of the NethServer 7 Linux-based operating system.
Based on CentOS 7.3, NethServer 7 launches with the ability for the Linux server OS to act as a Samba 4 Active Directory controller, replacing a Microsoft Active Directory domain controller. This is possible by implementing support for native Microsoft Windows management tools like AD PowerShell and RSAT.
It's also possible now to deploy group policies through native Microsoft Windows tools, allowing Windows workstations to seamlessly join the Active Directory domain without any registry tweaks or special configuration. NethServer 7 also introduces a centralized account management called multi-site.
"We’re confident that it will be the best NethServer ever and it will achieve our mission. Making sysadmins’ life easier with Open Source. This is thanks to the most vibrant, supportive and friendly community in the Open Source space (and not only Open Source)," said Alessio Fattorini, NethServer Community Manager.
Nextcloud 10 support, updated Certificate Management panel, more
Among other exciting new features implemented in NethServer 7, we can mention support for the latest Nextcloud 10 self-hosting cloud server, updated Certificate Management panel to allow you to upload a custom certificate file from a private provider or from Let's Encrypt, as well as to edit the default self-signed certificate.
The behavior of the built-in transparent HTTPS proxy has been modified with a brand-new functionality that sniffs only the beginning of a connection to identify the destination website, deep packet inspection was added to the firewall through nDPI, and there's now a new interface for traffic shaping to allow the creation of complex rules.
NethServer 7 will also allow system administrators to create new firewall rules based on a specific time, such as to allow Facebook access during lunch time, the open-source Suricata network threat detection engine is now the new default Intrusion Prevention System (IPS), and a new WebUI lets you configure the reverse proxy feature much faster than before.
Other than that, it looks like the built-in mail server received a new POP3 connector module and offers better full-text search for IMAP clients, the MultiWan and DNS Servers configuration was moved to the Network page, the Network Service panel was greatly simplified with new Firewall rules and zones, and you can now configure a Green interface in DHCP mode.
Last but not least, NethServer 7 brings a new Upstream proxy panel, implements advanced static routes, adds a brand-new look and feel to the interface, a new landing page, a new bandwidth monitoring module, a new Virtual Host panel, as well as a new web-based interface that allows you to restore data from old backups.
A "Reload page" button was also added to Software Center, the First Configuration Wizard received various improvements, and the "Shared folder" page has been revamped. You can download the NethServer 7 64-bit ISO image right now from our website if you want to perform a new installation, or simply update from NethServer 6.
