MS Annual Report - BackOffice

Behind every vision, there are all the gears, bolts, and ratchets that make it work. In our case, these moving parts are invisible lines of code. Just like the best machines have an elegant simplicity, we try to design this same simple, direct sense of purpose into our code.

A new purpose for the PC. With its increasing power and continually decreasing cost, the PC has become more than the client in client/server computing. It can be an excellent server, for both Internet and corporate intranet solutions. Especially when these PCs are equipped with Microsoft BackOffice server software, which helps them run at optimal efficiency. Because this server suite is so tightly integrated, a number of the world's largest companies are discovering that the PC can be a more flexible, responsive server than larger, more expensive systems.

The value of absolute consistency. When new business-critical applications are created, instead of patching together a number of different back-end solutions, there is now one single solution: Microsoft BackOffice software. This suite of networking and server solutions delivers absolute consistency at every level. Not only do BackOffice products integrate seamlessly with each other, but they integrate with our entire Office suite as well. This unprecedented degree of integration has a dramatic effect on administration and training costs. More important, it lets our customers focus on their own business needs, and not on the problems of maintaining a complex infrastructure.

Unlimited potential for growth. BackOffice offers the highest level of scalability. Its cornerstone is Microsoft Windows® NT Server, the world's fastest-growing network operating system. In 1996, we released Windows NT Server 4.0. We also delivered Microsoft Internet Information Server, the most powerful platform for the new generation of Web applications and the most effective way to create a corporate intranet. Other BackOffice releases included Microsoft Exchange Server, the only scalable messaging system with built-in groupware, and the beta version of the Windows NT-based proxy server, which brings secure Internet access to every desktop within an organization. We also introduced SQL Server™ 6.5, a high-performance database designed for client/server computing, and Systems Management Server 1.2, for centralized management of Windows-based systems.

Where do you want to go today?® In 1994, we began to ask this deceptively simple question. In 1996, more than ever, we're helping people get there. Every line of code we write, every interface we design, and every product we release are all working toward the same goal: to create the most exciting new ways to think, work, communicate, and play. And to offer these new possibilities to millions and millions of people, in every country in the world. As dramatic as the last 21 years have been, we have every reason to believe that 1997 will prove to be the most exciting year in our history.