Purity Software: WebSentinel 2 End-of-life

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The Future of WebSentinel?
Though there will be no further versions of WebSentinel 2.x released for Mac OS 9, a new solution is being developed which will allow migration to Mac OS X or other serving platforms.
Please take the time to communicate with us your needs so we can serve you best!

Back to Index Portrait of The Sentinel

WebSentinel 2 End-of-life

(Summer 2003)

WebSentinel 2 is designated an end-of-life product;
v2.1.2 is the final release

We are quite proud of WebSentinel and it's accomplishments in ease-of-use for web server security installations. A properly configured and operating WebSentinel plug-in can perform very well in a wide variety of scenarios. The Data Target interface allows unparalleled flexibility with WebSentinel users interfacing with external authentication servers, custom databases, and even custom FileMaker Pro clients. There is clearly a demand in the marketplace for improved usability, even with sysadmin-oriented tasks such as network and server security.

The original developer is no longer available to work on WebSentinel, and it is mired in the world of OS 9 and other technologies which aren't available or don't make sense under OS X. There are no further maintenance or bug fix releases planned for WebSentinel 2.

Unfortunately this leaves WebSentinel in a bit of a regrettable state. Some issues remain in the final version which we could have improved upon, notably:

The GUI is tainted by general instability in using the WebSentinel Admin application, particularly with large sets of users. In some cases, it is necessary to use the web-based admin or author a custom script in order to make a configuration modification. These instability issues affect only the client workstation running WebSentinel Admin, the authentication plug-in or web server is not directly affected by these instabilities.

The FileMaker Pro Data Target does not support WebSentinel workstations.

Why are we sharing all of this?
We want to make sure you are making an educated purchase decision that you will be happy with. WebSentinel is a great product, but a decision should be made based on the current version and planning on it being the last. If you are troubled by issues in the current release, then we suggest you do not purchase a license as there will be no further updates.

Download a demo copy and 30-day key and give it a try
If WebSentinel 2 works for you then by all means we greatly appreciate your support in developing these types of tools. Every sale helps further future development of projects.

Will there be a future WebSentinel product for other platforms?
Possibly. Our current prime directive is to focus 100% of our efforts on WebSiphon technologies. With that said, we recognize WebSentinel has spawned a certain yearning for more usable administration products and we think it would be great to see such tools available on platforms like Mac OS X. We would enjoy very much to invest in a product based on the concepts introduced in WebSentinel, but for now that remains a possibility of the future.

What about support for the current version?
We will continue to offer e-mail support to current and future purchasers of WebSentinel 2, within the confines restricted by remaining issues outline above and perhaps yet undiscovered in the final release, WebSentinel 2.1.2. We will also continue to host the WebSentinel-Talk mailing list.