Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/17/84 chuqui version 1.7 9/23/84; site nsc.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!ihnp4!nsc!chuqui
From: chuqui@nsc.UUCP (Chuq Von Rospach)
Newsgroups: net.works,net.mail
Subject: Re: loopback testing
Message-ID: <3040@nsc.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 27-Jul-85 23:11:44 EDT
Article-I.D.: nsc.3040
Posted: Sat Jul 27 23:11:44 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 29-Jul-85 07:12:05 EDT
References: <433@olivee.UUCP>
Reply-To: chuqui@nsc.UUCP (Chuq Von Rospach)
Followup-To: net.mail
Distribution: net
Organization: The Dreamer Fithp
Lines: 54
Xref: watmath net.works:1097 net.mail:941

Note: I've set this article up to move future discussions into net.mail,
which is a more appropriate place for it.

In article <433@olivee.UUCP> gnome@olivee.UUCP (Gary Traveis) writes:
>Is anyone thinking of adding an override to the auto-routing
>software running at a number of net-mail sites?

I've looked at this as an offshoot of my playing with sendmail and routing
here at nsc. There are two ways I can see of doing it within the normal
mail naming space:

    o a pseudo-site. If the mailer sees a special site name, it knows to
    turn off path routing. Example: "nsc!no-opt!hplabs!foo!bar" doesn't
    get optimized. The problem is that we need a name that is a legal 
    site name that doesn't turn into a real site name at some point in
    the future....

    o a pseudo-domain. If the mailer sees a special domain name, it turns
    off path routing. Example: "nsc.NOOPT!hplabs!foo!bar" or
    "nsc!hplabs.NOOPT!foo!bar" depending on where you want to put it.
    Problems: lots, actually, including mucking around with the domain
    space in undefined ways and multiple domains on a single site
    (nsc.UUCP.NOOPT or nsc.NOOPT.UUCP?)

Generally, I don't like either of these, because they muck with the naming
space and paths in a non-standard way. What happens if someone who ignores
the protocol routes it around someone who does? It could get really nasty.

>It would make loop-back testing of net mail paths a whole lot
>easier!

I'm not at all sure that loop-backs are really neccessary, and the aims of
a loop-back are directly against that of routing -- loop-backs require a
specific path, and routing software is suppose to help hide a route from an
address. If you really NEED a loop-back, you can get it through routing
software in a couple of ways:

    o mail it to the SA at the site you're trying to loop to, and ask them
    to return the message to you.

    o mail to a non-existant site beyond the site you are trying to loop
    to, and let MAILER-DAEMON return it to you (as in
    ..!nsc!nothere!foobar)

Neither of these require a way to get around the routing software, and I
have never seen a reasonable reason beside loopback to be able to get
around the routing software. Because of that, I've pretty much given up
looking for a way to disable it in a way which works on the network as it
currently stands.
-- 
:From the carousel of the autumn carnival:        Chuq Von Rospach
{cbosgd,fortune,hplabs,ihnp4,seismo}!nsc!chuqui   nsc!chuqui@decwrl.ARPA

Your fifteen minutes are up. Please step aside!