Timothy
Parker Consulting Incorporated
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VSI-Fax 4.0 VSI’s VSI-Fax is a well known server-based fax system for
many UNIX platforms as well as Windows NT.
They have recently unveiled a Linux version, too, which we discuss here.
The VSI-Fax server component sits on a server and can be accessed by any
clients on the network. VSI-Fax
allows faxing from practically any application, whether they are fax-enabled or
not natively. One of the strengths of VSI-Fax has always been its scalability,
from a single user up to any size network without requiring reinstallation of
the package. The VSI-Fax system is supplied on CD-ROM with binaries for most supported platforms. An activation key must be obtained from the company Web site or by phone to enable the evaluation or purchased versions of the software. Installing the software is simple: mount the CD-ROM and run an install script. The process takes a couple of minutes. After installation, the fax server is started and a quick test can be conducted to ensure the system is working well. On our three test machines it worked perfectly after the install. VSI-Fax supports a good variety of fax modems, including
practically every device you’ll find on a Linux or recent UNIX server. In
addition, dedicated fax boards from major manufacturers are supported, but only
under Windows NT. We tested our copy of VSI-Fax on several Linux machines,
two having internal modems and one an external modem. The primary test platform
ran Caldera OpenLinux and included two internal fax modems, one dedicated to
outbound traffic and one to inbound. Multiport serial cards can be used to host
the modems for VSI-Fax, although there can be problems with modem control on
some. VSI supplies a list of tested
units. VSI-Fax includes a fax
server administration routine, but it appears to run only under Windows NT. If there’s a weak point to the VSI-Fax package, it is the
documentation. It tends to be more
Windows-oriented than UNIX or Linux. It
can also be difficult to find information you want quickly.
Just finding the installation routine took a few minutes of digging
through 25 pages of the Getting Started manual. The index at the back of the
Server manual points to pages that bear no relationship to the actual subject
you’re looking for, which was frustrating for us. On the VSI-Fax CD-ROM are several integration utilities for
Windows, including a fax client for Outlook and a client for Netscape Navigator
and Internet Explorer. Neither of
these clients work under emulation modes with the Linux setups we tried, but
Windows clients on the same network could run them perfectly, relying on the
Linux server to handle the faxing. You
can access fax in and out boxes through any Web browser on the network simply by
pointing the browser to the server’s address, which worked well from our
Linux, Windows, and SCO UnixWare test clients.
One notable component of the VSI-Fax system is the Software Developer’s
Kit. The SDK can be used to allow
integration with custom applications, as well as commercial packages that lack a
fax interface. The VSI-Fax system can be used from a command line, from an
application, or from a GUI. The command line interface takes a little while to
get used to, with a plethora of options and flags. Since the command line interface is not likely to be used by
many people, we concentrated more on the fax enabling capabilities with
applications like Corel Office Suite 8 for Linux and Star Office. For these,
sending a fax was as easy as choosing a print device, then filling in the cover
sheet details (if one is required). To
receive faxes, you have to log in to the fax server using a login and password.
We tried loading up the fax server on our network by submitting over 500
fax requests in an hour, all directed to an incoming modem port.
VSI-Fax handled the two queues perfectly without dropping a single fax.
Success at faxing the test pages from one modem to another was 98 percent
(two percent had transmission errors and had to be resent). VSI-Fax performed
well for us in our tests. The
addition of Linux to the supported operating system list is attractive, but the
price of the package will put of many potential users. VSI-Fax Summary: Server-based fax solution with very good application integration and web interfaces. Pricey, but powerful under Linux. |
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Send mail to
tparker@tpci.com with
questions or comments about this web site.
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