Microsoft Corporation purchased a small company called Nevod in January, opening the door for a technology called Network Address Translation (NAT, sometimes called IP forwarding as well) to be integrated into the OSR release of Windows 98. Nevod sold a product called NAT 1000 that ran on Windows 9x and NT, allowing users to share a single Internet connection--be it a dial-up account, or dedicated line such as cable modem, DSL, ISDN, or whatever--among numerous computers.
"Microsoft is pleased to add Nevod’s leading-edge technology and key personnel to its networking efforts," said Jawad Khaki, general manager for Windows Networking at Microsoft. "Nevod’s technology for Windows 98 complements Microsoft’s Connection Sharing solution developed for Windows 2000."
As Khaki notes, Windows 2000 will also feature NAT, though the company is calling in Internet Connection Sharing (ICS). This means that home networks and small office networks will be able to share a single Internet connection for free when Windows 2000 and Windows 98 OSR ship later this year. Nevod has stopped selling its NAT 1000 software due to its purchase by Microsoft