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A Telephony Server NLM was software that ran on a Novell NetWare server and connected telephony applications to a PBX or business communications system. NLM stands for NetWare Loadable Module, NetWare’s format for loading server services.
What the Telephony Server NLM did
In Novell’s historical NetWare Telephony Services platform, the module provided the server side of computer telephony integration (CTI). It linked the NetWare environment with telephone switching equipment and made telephony functions available to client applications through interfaces such as TSAPI.
Novell described the broader platform as supporting call control and routing, associating calls with related information, and providing call monitoring and reporting. Those are platform functions; the cited material does not define every capability of every NLM or PBX configuration.
How it fit into the system
- NetWare server: Hosted the NLM. Novell described NLMs as service components that could be loaded or unloaded without taking the server down.
- PBX or business communications system: Supplied the telephone switching side. A 1993 report described the Telephony Server NLM as linking that system with a NetWare server.
- TSAPI and client applications: Client applications used telephony APIs to communicate with the server and access telephony services.
- Driver and CTI link: The server’s connection to switching equipment depended on a driver and a configured CTI link. Novell support material refers to Tserver drivers and CTI links, but is not a complete installation guide.
What NLM means here
NLM means NetWare Loadable Module. It does not refer to a separate telephony protocol or hardware device. It describes how the server-side software was packaged and loaded into NetWare.
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Is Telephony Server NLM current?
The available descriptions are historical: they include a 1993 report, Novell material from the 1990s, and a technical glossary published in 1996. They establish the term’s historical meaning and architecture, but do not establish present-day product availability, vendor support, security status, or compatibility with modern systems. Treat Telephony Server NLM as a legacy NetWare term rather than an indication of a currently supported deployment option.
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