Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!bloom-beacon!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!osu-cis!att-cb!clyde!rutgers!topaz.rutgers.edu!ron
From: ron@topaz.rutgers.edu (Ron Natalie)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.lans
Subject: Re: Ethernet-Ethernet Bridges
Message-ID: <Apr.7.17.46.30.1988.12230@topaz.rutgers.edu>
Date: 7 Apr 88 21:46:32 GMT
References: <1716@aecom.YU.EDU>
Organization: The Office of Mismanagement and Bean Counting
Lines: 15
Keywords: Ethernet Mac Layer Bridge

Well, I think you are shooting yourself in the foot using bridges not because
of their bandwidth, but because I don't think joining all the segments together
at the MAC level is the right place.  We manage a large multiethernet network
spanning six campuses here.  Even the learning bridges don't provide enough
isolation between the segments.  For example, broadcast messages are obligated
to go everywhere, but these very packets can melt down diskless nodes, and
cause other bugs normally unnoticed in a small network to leap up and strangle
the net.  For a good lesson read Len Bosack and Charles Hedricks paper in the
recent IEEE Network Magazine.

What we use are protocol specific routers which allow us a much tighter level
of control.  The two major vendors Proteon and Cisco both make good products
and each supports multiple protocols (if you must, I'm an IP bigot).

-Ron "Bridges freeze before routers" Natalie