Date: Tue, 23 Jul 1996 06:33:03 +0200 (SAT) From: John Hay <jhay@mikom.csir.co.za> To: louie@TransSys.COM (Louis A. Mamakos) Cc: hackers@FreeBSD.org Subject: Re: Ethernet-like loopback & IPX Message-ID: <199607230433.GAA17649@zibbi.mikom.csir.co.za> In-Reply-To: <199607230410.AAA24684@whizzo.transsys.com> from "Louis A. Mamakos" at "Jul 23, 96 00:10:32 am"
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
> > > > > > > > ... > > > > > > > > > > By the way, I have fixed the bug (in my opinion) in IPX. It allowed > > > > > only one link-level (i.e. Ethernet) address for all interfaces. > > > > > Was it a real bug or feature ? > > > > > > > > > > > > > It is a leftover from its XNS days. If you send me the patches for > > > > IPX, I will look it over and commit it. > > > > > > It's not a bug, but a feature. Having a single address for your > > > end-station make quite a few other weirdnesses in the protocol stack > > > and application just go away. > > > > But if you have a single address you need to set it for all > > Ethernet cards or they will not accept the packets with this > > address. The current implementation does not do this and I > > think that it's not a very good idea. > > Sure, it's true that the current drivers do not allow the MAC address > to be set on the various LAN interfaces, but this would argue for > fixing the device drivers, and not the protocol design. > > While you may believe that the single address per IPX host is an > error, it is fundamental to the protocol's design. I wouldn't > characterize changing this as "fixing" it, unless it's the same way a > veteranarian "fixes" something. > Why do you say that it is "fundamental to the protocol's design"? Novell have never used it like that. All their routers and servers use the original MAC address of the card for its IPX address on that interface. Netware servers from 3.0 onwards do have a sepperate internal network, but that did not change how the external interfaces' addresses are used. I do think it is an problem if not an error because it is very confusing if you debug a network or do something like snmp management and all the interfaces of a router have the same MAC address. John -- John Hay -- John.Hay@mikom.csir.co.za
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?199607230433.GAA17649>