Query : ttytype over Ethernet

[Phil Ngai]

In article <318 at euroies.UUCP> traw at euroies.UUCP (Tony Raw) writes:
>We have several different terminals at our site connected to a
>Sun 2 (and other hosts) via a Bridge Communication Server and Ethernet.
>
>My problem is quite simple - since getty is no longer called,
>what is the best method for informing UNIX of the terminal type ?
>(neither setting .cshrc environment variables nor defining pty*(s)
>in ttytype are adequate solutions).

I have used both a Bridge CS100 and an Encore Annex and prefer the
Annex by far. For your particular problem the Annex offers an rlogin
style of connection. The network administrator tells the Annex what
type of terminal your port is connected to and the Annex tells the
host when you connect.

The Annex has a few other advantages:

 1) boots over network instead of from floppies. Makes upgrading
firmware a breeze. You can have multiple boot servers running on your
hosts, the first one that answers is used.
 2) Uses Unix syntax instead of something weird that Bridge invented.
How nice to say telnet and rlogin instead of connect. Because Unix
ruptime is supported, you can use symbolic names instead of network
addresses without having to program them into the floppies of each
terminal server like you have to on the CS100.
 3) Configured over network instead of from floppies. If you have
a lot of ports to configure all alike, you can use your editor to
prepare a file and then feed it into the Network Adminstrator program.
 4) All host executable code is supplied in source format on a tar tape.
 5) Unix "ruptime" command to see which hosts are up before you try
to connect to one.
 6) Unix RIP support means you can dynamically use multiple routers
without any extra effort. Bridge requires you to define a default
router on the floppy. You only get one. If you need to access one and
someone else on the box needs to access a different router, you lose.
 7) You get to deal with people who care about TCP instead of people
who really don't understand (and don't want to understand) anything
but XNS. For example, Bridge doesn't fully implement ICMP. (no echo
response) Also, for file transfer they recommend the use of kermit
like programs. They don't understand why you would want to do the
things Excelan and Micom do, which is to provide full Ethernet TCP/IP
functionality *and* offload telnet overhead from the host. All they
offer for the host is something which looks like a DMF on the Unibus
side and telnet on the Ethernet side. (IVECS) This may be great for
terminal support but it's not what I would call real networking.  Also
I have doubts about the quality of their telnet implementation if they
don't even fully implement ICMP, which is a required part of TCP/IP.

-- 
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 Phil Ngai +1 408 749 5720
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