What Novell does

Novell is a legacy enterprise software company founded in 1979 in Provo, Utah, historically specializing in identity and security management, systems and resource management, and open platform solutions. Its core product portfolio spans identity governance and access management (NetIQ Identity Manager, NetIQ Identity Governance, NetIQ Privileged Access Manager, NetIQ Advanced Authentication), collaboration and file access (GroupWise, Filr), server and file platform (Open Enterprise Server), and the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server line acquired in 2003 for $210 million. Novell pursued an aggressive roll-up strategy through the 2000s, completing 19 documented acquisitions between 1989 and 2009, including the transformative SUSE and Cambridge Technology Partners ($245 million) deals.

Following its 2011 acquisition by Attachmate Group, Novell ceased to operate as an independent company. Attachmate was acquired by Micro Focus in 2014, and Micro Focus was itself acquired by OpenText in 2023. Novell now exists as a brand within OpenText's Device and Data Protection portfolio, with its installed base of enterprise customers maintained on legacy licensing and support contracts. The company's go-to-market as a standalone entity historically targeted large enterprises and government customers requiring directory, authentication, and Linux infrastructure; today, that commercial motion is absorbed into OpenText's global enterprise sales organization. No pricing models, customer logos, revenue figures, or active product launches are disclosed in the available source material, reflecting the brand's transition into a maintenance-mode asset under successive corporate owners.

Name

Novell

Website

https://novell.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Novell is a legacy enterprise software brand, founded in 1979, specializing in identity management, security, and open platform solutions. Now a subsidiary brand under OpenText following acquisitions by Attachmate, Micro Focus, and OpenText, it maintains a global enterprise installed base.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Enterprise Identity and Security Management

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132), Security Systems Services (except Locksmiths) (561621)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

User Lifecycle Provisioning & SCIM Automation (HDAEAJAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Single Sign-On (SSO) & Federation (SAML/OIDC, Identity Providers) (HDAEAJAB)

Keywords

• Enterprise identity management
• Security management software
• Directory services
• Linux enterprise server
• Privileged access management

Headquarters

HQ city

Provo

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Core offering

Novell developed and sold enterprise software for identity and security management, systems and resource management, and open platform solutions. Its flagship offerings included the NetIQ identity and access management portfolio (Identity Governance, Privileged Access Manager, Identity Manager, Advanced Authentication), SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, Open Enterprise Server, GroupWise collaboration, and Filr secure file access — all targeting large enterprise and government IT environments with on-premises and hybrid deployments.

Product overview

Novell was a software company specializing in enterprise software, most notably the NetIQ and SUSE product lines. The company was acquired by Attachmate Group in 2011, and subsequently Micro Focus acquired Attachmate Group in 2016. In 2023, OpenText acquired Micro Focus. The primary Novell-branded products referenced in the source data include NetIQ Identity Governance, NetIQ Privileged Access Manager, NetIQ Identity Manager, NetIQ Advanced Authentication, and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, which were integrated into the Micro Focus/OpenText portfolio following these acquisitions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NetIQ Identity Governance Enterprise identity governance solution providing access certification, role management, policy enforcement, and compliance auditing for large organizations managing complex user populations and regulatory requirements.
• NetIQ Privileged Access Manager Privileged access management product that secures, controls, and monitors privileged account usage across enterprise environments, mitigating insider and external threats to critical systems.
• NetIQ Identity Manager Identity management platform that automates user provisioning, de-provisioning, and lifecycle management across directories and connected enterprise systems, supporting consistent identity data and access controls.
• NetIQ Advanced Authentication Advanced authentication solution providing multi-factor authentication, risk-based authentication, and adaptive access controls to strengthen enterprise login security beyond passwords.
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Enterprise-grade Linux server operating system offering a stable, supported open-source platform for mission-critical workloads, including virtualization, cloud, and high-availability deployments.
• Open Enterprise Server Novell's open enterprise server platform that integrates NetWare services with SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, enabling customers to run legacy NetWare workloads alongside Linux on modern infrastructure.
• GroupWise Enterprise collaboration and messaging platform providing email, calendaring, contacts, and task management for organizations requiring on-premises groupware capabilities.
• Filr Secure enterprise file access and sharing solution that provides mobile and remote access to corporate files while maintaining access controls and IT governance over data.

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Micro FocuscoreOthersNovell was acquired by Micro Focus as part of the Attachmate Group acquisition. Micro Focus later merged with OpenText in 2023. Novell products including GroupWise, Filr, and Open Enterprise Server are now part of OpenText's Device and Data Protection portfolio.
• Attachmate GroupcoreOthersAttachmate Group (which included Novell, NetIQ, and SUSE) was acquired by Micro Focus in 2014. This acquisition brought Novell under the Micro Focus umbrella before Micro Focus itself was acquired by OpenText in 2023.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• CyberArk: CyberArk is the dominant privileged access management (PAM) vendor; its Privileged Access Manager and Endpoint Privilege Manager compete directly with Novell's NetIQ Privileged Access Manager in the credential vaulting and least-privilege segments.
• BeyondTrust: BeyondTrust provides privileged access management and identity security solutions that compete directly with NetIQ Privileged Access Manager across password vaulting, session management, and endpoint privilege use cases.
• Okta: Okta is a cloud-native identity and access management platform covering SSO, adaptive MFA, and lifecycle management; it competes head-on with NetIQ Advanced Authentication and Identity Manager, particularly in modern cloud-first enterprise deployments.
• Ping Identity: Ping Identity delivers federation, SSO, and identity security capabilities that overlap with NetIQ's authentication and federation offerings, particularly in customer identity and large enterprise federation deployments.
• SailPoint: SailPoint is a leading identity governance and administration (IGA) vendor; its IdentityIQ and SailPoint Identity Security Cloud overlap directly with Novell's NetIQ Identity Governance and Identity Manager offerings for enterprise compliance and provisioning use cases.
• One Identity (Quest Software): One Identity offers identity governance, privileged access, and AD management products (One Identity Manager, Safeguard) that overlap closely with the NetIQ portfolio and target similar regulated enterprise customers.

Broad incumbents

• IBM Security Verify: IBM Security Verify and the broader IBM IAM portfolio (including IGI) compete with NetIQ Identity Governance and Identity Manager in regulated industries where IBM holds deep enterprise relationships.
• Microsoft (Entra ID / Azure AD): Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) bundles SSO, identity governance, and PAM-adjacent capabilities into the broader Microsoft 365 / Azure ecosystem; it is a default incumbent that constrains NetIQ's enterprise upsell motion.
• OpenText Cybersecurity: OpenText's Cybersecurity portfolio (which now houses the NetIQ line) competes as a broader enterprise security suite; the parent company's identity offerings position it as a direct comparator from a portfolio perspective.

Emerging players

• Saviynt: Saviynt is a cloud-born identity governance and cloud entitlement management platform that increasingly competes with NetIQ Identity Governance, particularly for enterprises migrating IGA workloads off-premises.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/novell
• Facebookfacebook.com/NovellWorldwide
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/novell

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A19 records

Investments9 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Novell