ZENworks


ZENworks, a suite of software products developed and maintained by OpenText for computer systems management, aims to manage the entire life cycle of servers, of desktop PCs, of laptops, and of handheld devices such as Android and iOS mobile phones and tablets. Novell planned to include Full Disk Encryption functionality within ZENworks.
ZENworks supports multiple server platforms and multiple directory services.

History

The name, "ZENworks", first appeared as "Z.E.N.works" in 1998 with ZENworks 1.0
and with ZENworks Starter Pack - a limited version of ZENworks 1.0 that came bundled with NetWare 5.0. Novell added server-management functionality, and the product grew into a suite consisting of:
  • "ZENworks for Desktops"
  • "ZENworks for Servers"
  • "ZENworks for Handhelds"
Novell has continued to add components to the suite, which it sells under the consolidated name "ZENworks Suite".
The initial ZENworks products had a tight integration with Novell Directory Service. With the release of ZENworks Configuration Management 10 the product architecture completely changed, the product became directory agnostic and ZENworks Suite products were integrated into a single management framework.
ZENworks Releases:
ProductVersionRelease dateNotes
Novell Application Launcher 11996Pre-ZENworks
Z.E.N.works1.018 May 1998Initial release
Z.E.N.works1.116 Nov 1998
Z.E.N.works Starter Pack16 Nov 1998
ZENworks228 Jun 1999
ZENworks for Servers17 Mar 2000
ZENworks for Desktops322 Aug 2000
ZENworks for Servers231 Jan 2001
ZENworks for Desktops3.213 Aug 2001
ZENworks for Servers33 Apr 2002
ZENworks for Desktops427 Aug 2002
ZENworks for Desktops4.0.114 Apr 2002
ZENworks Suite614 Apr 2003Version number jumped to version 6 as the ZENworks Suite merged ZFD 4, ZFS 3 and ZFH 5
ZENworks Suite6.53 Jun 2004
ZENworks Suite726 Aug 2005
ZENworks Configuration Management1021 Sep 2007First release of new architecture, version 10 as ZENworks existed for 10 years
ZENworks Configuration Management10.128 Jan 2009
ZENworks Configuration Management10.22 Jan 2010
ZENworks Configuration Management10.36 Apr 2012
ZENworks Configuration Management115 Jan 2011
ZENworks Configuration Management11.18 Nov 2011
ZENworks Configuration Management11.213 Dec 2012Full Disk Encryption
ZENworks Configuration Management11.39 Jul 2013
ZENworks Configuration Management11.4Jul 2015
ZENworks Configuration Management2017Dec 2016Integration of Mobile Device Management
ZENworks Configuration Management2017 Update 111 Jul 2017
ZENworks Configuration Management2017 Update 224 Jan 2018
ZENworks Configuration Management2017 Update 316 Aug 2018
ZENworks Configuration Management2017 Update 4Jan 2019
ZENworks Configuration Management2020Sep 2019
ZENworks Configuration Management2020 Update 1Apr 2020Patching and tracking CVEs
ZENworks Configuration Management2020 Update 2Aug 2021Includes Antimalware
ZENworks Configuration Management2020 Update 3May 2022
ZENworks Configuration Management23.3July 2023New Patch Management Architecture
ZENworks Configuration Management23.4Nov 2023Baseline version, New appliance installer
ZENworks Configuration Management24.2Jun 2024
ZENworks Configuration Management24.4Nov 2024

Elements of the ZENworks Suite

In the latest version of ZENworks known as ZENworks 2017 the ZENworks Suite consists of seven individual products:
Additionally, Novell offers an ITIL version of "Novell Service Desk". This version is ITIL-certified by PinkVERIFY and supports ten ITIL v3 processes, e.g. Change, Incident, Problem and Service Level Management.
In terms of implementation, the ZENworks Agent installs, updates and removes software. The ZENworks Configuration Management addresses patching, endpoint security, asset management and provisioning.