Xref: utzoo comp.protocols.appletalk:1029 comp.sys.mac:21344 Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!rutgers!uwvax!oddjob!mimsy!dftsrv!ames!pasteur!ucbvax!decwrl!sun!pitstop!sundc!seismo!uunet!munnari!basser!metro!ipso!runx!geo From: geo@runx.ips.oz (George Bray ) Newsgroups: comp.protocols.appletalk,comp.sys.mac,aus.pyramid Subject: GatorBox - NFS for Mac (LONG) Message-ID: <1780@runx.ips.oz> Date: 8 Oct 88 03:30:53 GMT Organization: RUNX Un*x Timeshare. Sydney, Australia. Lines: 668 The GatorBox from Cayman Systems is an Apple LocalTalk to Ethernet protocol converter that translates unix NFS server architecture to Apples Filing Protocol (AFP). In response to requests, here is a file of 20 questions and answers. One is being installed on a Pyramid here in Australia soon. I'll post the results. I have no affiliation with Cayman, Pyramid, or Apple. Just a protocol junkie. George Bray Voice: +61-2-484-1163 VoiceMail: +61-2-552-0210 The Sand Group uucp: uunet!munnari!ditsyda.oz.au!gbray Compu$erve: 76526,1404 MacNet: geo ____________________ Keylink/Dialcom: 07:geo001 ClubMac: George Bray Macintosh Consulting Internet: gbray@ditsyda.oz.au and Development P.O. Box 165 Beecroft, NSW, 2119. A U S T R A L I A ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ >From solution@ditsyda.oz Sun Aug 28 20:37:56 1988 Date: Sun, 28 Aug 88 20:37:56 EST From: solution@ditsyda.oz (Logical Solutions - George Bray) To: beranrd@ditmela.oz Subject: GatorBox stuff - Whaddya think Cc: hales@ditmela.oz Sunday, August 28, 1988 Dear acb: Re: GatorBox - Have a gander at this. Hope to try one at DIT RSN. Doc Rev 1.0 3/8/88 Twenty Questions About the GatorBox 1. How is the GatorBox different from a Kinetics FastPath? Though the GatorBox does everything the FastPath does as a subset of its functionality, it goes beyond the FastPath in offering Macintosh users an application-level gateway to file, terminal, mail, printing and presentation services found in standard local area network environments. The FastPath provides transport-level connectivity between Macintoshes on LocalTalk and other Macintoshes or computers which support the TCP/IP protocols on Ethernet. Using the FastPath for file services or terminal services typically requires installing software on both the Macintosh client and the Ethernet-based host, as well as downloading software into the FastPath. sharing, and terminal emulation is available from Macintosh software developers or from the public domain. The GatorBox was designed to run sophisticated networking software. This GatorBox software provides application-level connectivity between Macintoshes on LocalTalk and Macintoshes or other computers on Ethernet. The GatorBox translates the entire AppleTalk protocol suite--from the LocalTalk cabling all the way up to AFP, the AppleTalk file-sharing protocol--into a dominant suite of protocols found on Ethernet--the file-sharing protocol NFS from Sun Microsystems and the TCP/IP protocols from the Department of Defense. The GatorBox lets Macintosh users view all Ethernet-based computers which support NFS as AppleShare file servers. No Cayman software runs on any Macintosh client or on any NFS server. Because the GatorBox was designed to run sophisticated networking software, it is substantially more powerful than a FastPath. The FastPath is based on a Motorola 68008 microprocessor and 48 KB of static RAM. The GatorBox employs a 10-MHz Motorola 68000 CPU and 1 MB of dynamic RAM. This extra power will allow the GatorBox to run the additional network gateway software Cayman plans to offer in the future. Cayman's software architecture was designed to make the GatorBox the first "intelligent gateway". The GatorBox was designed to translate any suite of network protocols into any other protocol suite, allowing microcomputers to use their respective native network protocols while exploiting the file, terminal, mail, printing, and presentation services available anywhere on the network. 2. Does the software I use with my Kinetics FastPath work with the GatorBox? Yes. Because the GatorBox can fully emulate the Kinetics FastPath, any software designed to work with the FastPath--like NCSA Telnet, Mac IP from Carnegie Mellon, or commercial software from TOPS, Alisa Systems or Pacer Software--runs transparently through the GatorBox. The GatorBox still performs AFP-to-NFS translation--i.e. lets Macintoshes see NFS servers as AppleShare servers--while emulating the FastPath. 3. How and where do I install the GatorBox software? The GatorBox software is installed on the GatorBox by a "download server", which can be either a Macintosh, an IP host, or another GatorBox. The network administrator uses "GatorKeeper", the GatorBox configuration and administration application, to provide the GatorBox with the address of its download server. The GatorBox stores this address in non-volatile RAM, which allows the GatorBox to restart itself automatically after power failures. GatorKeeper uses the familiar Macintosh user interface to provide a simple, powerful tool for configuring and monitoring any number of GatorBoxes connected to an IP network. 4. What special GatorBox software do I need to put on my Macintosh? No special GatorBox software runs on the Macintosh; the GatorBox software runs entirely on the GatorBox. The only software GatorBox users need install on their Macintoshes is the Appleshare Workstation software. Apple has licensed Cayman to distribute this Apple software along with the GatorBox, and users can freely install it on every Macintosh on the network. Cayman's GatorBox configuration program, "GatorKeeper", does run on the Macintosh, but GatorKeeper is only used by the network administrator . 5. What if I want to put all my Macintoshes on Ethernet? Macintoshes can access the GatorBox's networking software from a LocalTalk network or an "EtherTalk" network (EtherTalk is Apple's term for Macintoshes connected by Ethernet), so GatorBox users can put any or all of their Macintoshes on EtherTalk (with Ethernet cards from Apple, 3Com or Kinetics) and still "see" all of the NFS servers on the network as AppleShare servers. The GatorBox also serves as a full AppleTalk-to-EtherTalk bridge, allowing EtherTalk-based Macintoshes to access local and remote LocalTalk-based devices. 6. How many Macintoshes can share one GatorBox? One GatorBox can service all of the Macintoshes on a LocalTalk network as well as all of the Macintoshes on an EtherTalk network. The limit on simultaneous use of the GatorBox by multiple Macintoshes is performance-driven, not theoretically imposed. The relatively slow transmission speed of LocalTalk (230 Kbaud) will generally be the performance bottleneck visible to GatorBox users. As the number of Macintoshes on LocalTalk simultaneously using the GatorBox rises, at some point the performance bottleneck will shift from LocalTalk to the GatorBox. When this crossover occurs, the Macintosh users will notice a gradual performance degradation as the intensity of simultaneous GatorBox use rises. At some point, adding another GatorBox to share the LocalTalk-to-Ethernet gateway traffic is an appropriate way to restore the lost performance. If all of the Macintosh clients are using the GatorBox from the Ethernet side, the network bandwidth will never be the transmission bottleneck, and performance degradation will be a linear function of simultaneous GatorBox use. 7. Can I use the GatorBox as an AppleTalk bridge? Yes. The GatorBox is a full AppleTalk bridge. It allows Macintoshes on LocalTalk to access "EtherTalk"-based Macintoshes and other Ethernet-based computers which support the AppleTalk protocols. The GatorBox also lets Macintoshes on Ethernet access LocalTalk-based devices--like LaserWriters and AppleShare servers. The GatorBox also supports the bridging of LocalTalk networks across IP networks, making it possible for Macintosh users on one LocalTalk network to communicate across one or more Ethernet or other IP networks with Macintosh users or LaserWriters on other, remote LocalTalk networks. Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 4 8. Does the GatorBox support TCP/IP? Yes. The GatorBox uses TCP/IP to establish reliable connections between Macintoshes and Ethernet-based computers. These connections form the basis for the file and terminal services the GatorBox provides Macintosh users. 9. How does the GatorBox help me if my VAX doesn't support NFS? While the GatorBox won't let Macintoshes "see" a VAX as an AppleShare server unless it supports NFS, it will let Macintoshes share files with VAXs which support the AppleTalk protocols. So VAXs running software from Alisa Systems or Pacer Software are accessible to Macintosh users on LocalTalk or Ethernet through the GatorBox. 10. Does the GatorBox let me run my UNIX applications on the Macintosh? No. The GatorBox lets Macintosh users store and access Macintosh files and applications on UNIX-based computers which support the NFS file-sharing protocol. That doesn't mean that Macintosh users can run UNIX applications stored on these computers. With or without a GatorBox, Macintoshes can only execute application software which has been created or modifed to run on the Macintosh operating system. 11.Does the GatorBox let me print from my UNIX workstation on Ethernet to a LaserWriter on LocalTalk? Yes. Software running in the GatorBox provides a printing gateway from UNIX terminals or workstations on Ethernet to LaserWriters on LocalTalk. To the UNIX computer user, these LaserWriters look just like other printers connected to UNIX hosts. 12.Can I print from my Macintosh on LocalTalk to a PostScript-based laser printer attached to my NFS server? Not yet. This capability will be available to GatorBox users in the fourth quarter of 1988. 13.Can my Macintosh applications access data created by UNIX applications running on my NFS server? It depends. If the UNIX application can save files in a data format readable by Macintosh applications (ASCII text, for example), then the GatorBox gives Macintosh users a way to move data created by UNIX applications into Macintosh applications. 14.Can my UNIX applications access data in Macintosh files stored on my NFS server? Yes, in theory. The GatorBox supports several methods of storing Macintosh Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 5 files on an NFS server. One of these is a file format called "AppleDouble" which Apple designed for the storage of Macintosh files on foreign file systems. AppleDouble separates the data in a Macintosh file from Macintosh-specific information. The AppleDouble format was intended to be easily readable by applications based on non-Macintosh operating systems, like UNIX and DOS. If the UNIX application can read data from an AppleDouble file, it can access data created on a Macintosh. 15.Can I buy the GatorBox software only and run it on my Macintosh? No. The GatorBox software was designed to run on the GatorBox. Running the GatorBox software on a Macintosh would require dedicating a Macintosh II configured with an Ethernet card to act as a gateway. Since Ethernet cards currently available for the Macintosh II don't support DMA, this Macintosh-based solution couldn't offer acceptable performance. The GatorBox's design reflects Cayman's belief that an integrated hardware-and-software solution is the best approach from a price/performance standpoint. 16.Can I buy a card for my Mac II and run the GatorBox software on that? No. Add-in cards currently available for the Macintosh II do not possess the requisite intelligence and network interfaces necessary to run the GatorBox's software. 17.Is the GatorBox an IP gateway? The GatorBox does not fully meet the specifications required of IP gateways. The GatorBox looks like an IP host to other IP hosts, and uses one IP address. It does support several options associated with IP networks, like subnetting, settable broadcast addresses (by network), fragmentation, "loose source routing", "strict source routing", "record route", and others. 18.How does the GatorBox handle passwords and security? All of AppleShare's security features apply to Macintosh users accessing NFS servers through the GatorBox. AppleShare allows its users to designate three different levels of access to folders stored on an AppleShare server: "see folders", "see files" or "make changes". Any one of these three access levels can be applied to the "owner" of the folder, a "group" of users associated with the folder, or "everyone" with access to the server. The GatorBox maps these access privileges into the NFS directory-access privileges "search directory (but don't read or write)", "read", and "write"; these NFS privileges can also vary by directory owner, group, and everyone else. The GatorBox also lets the network administrator restrict volume-level access to NFS servers by password-protecting the associated AppleShare "folders". 19.Does the GatorBox let Macintoshes on LocalTalk share files with each other? Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 6 While the GatorBox makes NFS servers look like AppleShare servers to Macintoshes on LocalTalk or Ethernet, it has no disk storage and doesn't act as an AppleShare server itself. The GatorBox forwards read and write requests from AppleShare clients to NFS servers or AppleShare servers. So if the GatorBox is used to connect LocalTalk and Ethernet networks which have no NFS servers or AppleShare servers, software like TOPS or MacServe is required to enable Macintoshes on LocalTalk to share files with each other. 20.Is there a 220-volt GatorBox available for the international market? Not yet. Cayman intends to work with its international distributors to make 220-volt versions of the GatorBox available overseas. Doc. Rev. 1.1 3/6/88 For more information on the GatorBox, contact Cheryl Alexander at (617) 494-1999. Cayman, the Cayman logo, GatorBox and GatorKeeper are trademarks of Cayman Systems, Inc., One Kendall Square, Building 600, Cambridge, MA 02139. Cayman Systems GatorBox Technical Overview The GatorBox is an intelligent network gateway which connects a LocalTalk (formerly called AppleTalk) network with an Ethernet network, and allows computers which support the AppleTalk protocol suite on either network to communicate with Ethernet-based computers which support the Department of Defense's TCP/IP protocol suite. Cayman has designed two removable network-interface "GatorCards" for the GatorBox--one for LocalTalk and one for Ethernet or Thin Ethernet. In the future, Cayman will design additional GatorCards which allow the GatorBox to support other network media standards, like Token Ring, FDDI and twisted-pair Ethernet. The GatorBox software provides a transparent connection between two standard filing protocols, Apple Computer's AppleShare and the widely-implemented Network FileSystem (NFS) from Sun Microsystems. File-Sharing Software AFP-to-NFS Translation The GatorBox allows AFP (Apple Filing Protocol, the basis of AppleShare) clients to share files with NFS servers without requiring users to install any Cayman software on the AFP clients or the NFS servers. All of Cayman's Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 7 file-sharing software runs on the GatorBox. This file-sharing software translates AFP requests into NFS requests and NFS responses into AFP responses. The GatorBox lets Macintoshes running Apple's AppleShare Workstation software "see" NFS servers as AppleShare servers. Since the GatorBox's AFP-to-NFS translation software supports 100% of AFP's functionality, AppleShare clients can't distinguish NFS servers from ordinary AppleShare servers. Apple has licensed Cayman to distribute the AppleShare Workstation software along with the GatorBox, and GatorBox users can copy this software onto all of the Macintoshes on a Local Talk network. NFS servers "see" each Macintosh using the GatorBox as an ordinary NFS clien The network administrator uses Cayman's "GatorKeeper" administration program tell GatorBoxes which exported file systems or "mount points" are available on the various NFS servers. Macintosh users running AppleShare Workstation software see these mount points as the volumes available on the "AppleShare" servers. Security The GatorBox uses the Yellow Pages (YP) protocol to handle user and group authentication. YP distributes user and group access information in authentication databases across a network. If YP is not used on the network, the GatorBox can obtain user and group authentication information from a UNIX-style authentication file on one of the NFS servers. GatorKeeper allows the network administrator to password-protect AppleShare volumes. AppleShare folder access privileges are mapped directly from the NFS directory authentication information. Macintosh File Formats To facilitate storage of Macintosh files on non-Macintosh file systems, Appl has defined two new file formats--AppleSingle and AppleDouble. Unlike the standard Macintosh file format, AppleSingle and AppleDouble both have headers which are readable by other operating systems. AppleSingle appends standard Macintosh file information to this header, including some information germane only to the Macintosh user interface. Consequently AppleSingle files can't be understood by non-Macintosh operating systems without special decoding software. AppleDouble splits a Macintosh file into two separate files for storage on a foreign file system. One of these files contains all the Macintosh-specific information, and the other contains data in the format specified by the Macintosh application. So by accessing the "AppleDouble Data File" and ignoring the "AppleDouble Header File", non-Macintoshes can use data generated by Macintosh applications. The network administrator uses GatorKeeper to indicate which file format sho be used to store Macintosh files; this selection is done on a mount-point by Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 8 mount-point (volume by volume) basis. Network Software AppleTalk Bridging The GatorBox is a full AppleTalk bridge. It lets Macintoshes on LocalTalk access EtherTalk-based Macintoshes (i.e. Macintoshes connected to Ethernet via an Apple,3Com or Kinetics Ethernet card), and it also lets EtherTalk-based Macintoshes access LocalTalk-based devices, like other Macintoshes and Apple LaserWriters. Other Ethernet-based computers which support the AppleTalk protocol stack--l VAXs running software from Alisa Systems or Pacer Software--are also accessible to LocalTalk- and Ethernet-based Macintoshes via the GatorBox. The GatorBox protects any investment users have made in software which utilizes the Kinetics FastPath, because the GatorBox offers all of the FastPath's capabilities as a subset of its functionality. Users can configure the GatorBox's AppleTalk bridging capability to accept "hard" routes, i.e. pathways between remote LocalTalk networks which the network administrator designates for the GatorBox. GatorBoxes which have been configured to accept hard routes can bridge two LocalTalk networks across a larger TCP/IP network by encapsulating AppleTalk packets in TCP/IP packets. A hard route might span several Ethernet or fiber-optic networks connected by IP gateways. IP "Front-Ending" While not a full IP gateway, the GatorBox acts as an "IP front-end" for Macintoshes on LocalTalk or Ethernet. The GatorBox understands and retains internet routing information issued in Routing Information Protocol (RIP) broadcasts and Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) messages, so it knows how to connect Macintoshes on local Ethernet or LocalTalk networks to IP hosts on remote networks. The GatorBox looks like an IP host to other IP hosts, and it uses one IP address. It also supports subnetting, settable broadcast addresses (by network), fragmentation, and IP options like "loose source routing", "strict source routing", "record route", and others. AppleTalk and IP Encapsulation The GatorBox supports encapsulation of AppleTalk or EtherTalk packets in TCP and encapsulation of TCP/IP packets in AppleTalk. When acting as an AppleTalk bridge across an IP network, the GatorBox performs this encapsulation of AppleTalk in TCP/IP. When using "AppleTalk-encapsulated IP" packets to communicate with a LocalTalk-based Macintosh running file transfer or terminal emulation software, the GatorBox adds or removes the AppleTalk header and passes the packet to the Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 9 appropriate AppleTalk client or IP host. Serial IP In the second-half of 1988, the GatorBox will support Serial IP (SLIP). Sin GatorBoxes configured with a LocalTalk GatorCard have an additional serial port, users will be able to connect a modem to these LocalTalk-to-Ethernet GatorBoxes, then communicate with IP hosts from remote Macintoshes running SLIP-based file-transfer or terminal-emulation software. GatorBox Configuration First-Time Power Up The GatorBox has one megabyte of random-access memory (RAM); this is where m of its network software resides. A subset of the GatorBox's TCP/IP and AppleTalk software is stored in 64K of read-only memory (ROM). The GatorBox also has 2K of non-volatile random-access memory (NVRAM), which is used to store the GatorBox's network address and the network address and type of the GatorBox's primary and secondary "download" servers. When a GatorBox is powered up for the first time, it uses the AppleTalk Name-Binding Protocol (NBP) to announce its presence to all Macintoshes on its LocalTalk and Ethernet networks. It then waits for a reponse from the "GatorKeeper" network administration program, which the network adminstrator runs on one of these Macintoshes. GatorKeeper tells the GatorBox the addresses of its download servers, which GatorBox stores in NVRAM along with its own network address. The GatorBox then sends a Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) message to its primary download server, which sends the GatorBox its network software. On subsequent power-ups, the GatorBox requests its software directly from this download server. If the primary download server fails to respond, the GatorBox gets its software from its secondary download server. GatorKeeper GatorKeeper is Cayman's GatorBox configuration program. GatorKeeper is a Macintosh application which can be used by the network administrator to configure any number of GatorBoxes on an IP network. No other Macintosh user needs to run GatorKeeper in order to use the GatorBox. GatorKeeper exploits the Macintosh's graphical interface in providing a simple tool for configuring and monitoring GatorBoxes. GatorKeeper's "QuickStart" option gives the network administrator a simple, fast way to configure a GatorBox. When QuickStart is selected, GatorKeeper walks the user through a series of screens, each of which requires input of some required network parameters. Where possible, GatorKeeper suggests defaults which should work in most network environments. The parameters QuickStart requires from the network administrator include th Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 10 GatorBox's IP address, the addresses of its primary and secondary download servers (these servers can be IP hosts, Macintoshes, or other GatorBoxes), the name-serving method used (BIND, IEN116, or Domain name serving), and the IP addresses and exported file systems of the available NFS servers. GatorKeeper also allows the administrator to configure a new GatorBox throug more detailed Configuration Window. The Configuration Window presents configuration information for a variety of GatorBoxes, and lets the administrator "cut" and "paste" attributes from one GatorBox to other GatorBoxes. GatorKeeper also has windows which let the administrator monitor the status multiple GatorBoxes. The Status Window shows the activity status of any group of GatorBoxes defined by the administrator. The Diagnostics Window lets the administrator monitor the severity of the errors any GatorBox is experiencing. Error statistics for any GatorBox can be saved in a format readable by a Macintosh spreadsheet, like Microsoft Excel. GatorBox Hardware The GatorBox has three circuit boards. The GatorBox motherboard houses all the GatorBox's intelligence. It also has stacking connectors for each of the GatorBox's two GatorCards. The GatorCards house all of the network interface hardware. Motherboard The GatorBox motherboard features the following components: % Motorola 68000 processor, 10-Mhz clock speed. % 1 MB dynamic random access memory (DRAM) for downloadable network softwa % 64 KB erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) contains GatorBox operating system. % 2 KB non-volatile random-access memory (NVRAM) for downloadable configur parameters. % Watchdog timer. % Software timer interrupt. % Stacking connectors for two GatorCards. LocalTalk GatorCard The LocalTalk GatorCard features the following components: % Stacking connector to motherboard. % LocalTalk port, uses Apple-standard "mini-8" circular DIN connector, sup Aug 29 23:54 1988 inbox/7 Page 11 230 K baud ALAP connections. % Serial port, uses Apple-standard "mini-8" circular DIN connector, suppor asynchronous and synchronous connections up to 56 K baud. Ethernet GatorCard The Ethernet GatorCard features the following components: % National NIC Ethernet chip set. % Stacking connector to motherboard. % Hardware direct memory access (DMA) from local storage to CPU memory. % Sliding-lock DB-15 connector to standard Ethernet transceiver. Provides volts at 0.5 amps for transceiver power. % BNC connector to RG 58 coaxial "Thin Ethernet" networks. George Bray Voice: +61-2-484-1163 SAND Consulting Pty Ltd Compu$erve: P.O. Box 165, Keylink/Dialcom: 07:geo001 Beecroft, NSW, 2119. Internet: gbray@ditsyda.oz.au A U S T R A L I A uucp: uunet!munnari!ditsyda.oz au!gbray GeoPac: Geo ClubMac: George Bray MacNet: geo sorry about the junk in this file. I'm a unix neophyte.