[HECnet] Multinet Tunnel Connections to SG1::

[Rob Jarratt]

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-hecnet at Update.UU.SE [mailto:owner-
hecnet at Update.UU.SE] On Behalf Of Brian Hechinger
Sent: 05 June 2012 18:36
To: hecnet at Update.UU.SE
Subject: Re: [HECnet] Multinet Tunnel Connections to SG1::

On 6/5/2012 12:53 PM, Rob Jarratt wrote:

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-hecnet at Update.UU.SE [mailto:owner-
hecnet at Update.UU.SE]
On Behalf Of Johnny Billquist
Sent: 04 June 2012 23:17
To: hecnet at Update.UU.SE
Subject: Re: [HECnet] Multinet Tunnel Connections to SG1::

FYI - Update now have a Cisco box, which will be setup within a few
days
to
be able to route DECnet over IP, so that will become another options
to
hook
into HECnet at the Update site.

For people who don't need LAT and have a Cisco box, this is way
better
than
the bridge program.
(If you really want LAT with other parts of HECnet, then there is no
alternative to the bridge...)

	Johnny

I assume you are using GRE on the Cisco box. I am not an expert in
this stuff so pardon the na  ve question but, what is it about Cisco
that makes it better than the bridge? After all aren't they really doing
the
same thing?
Is it just that you don   t need a server running the bridge (could use
a Raspberry Pi for that now) or is it the use of GRE? From a skim of
RFC 2784 and 2890 GRE doesn't look too complicated, perhaps the bridge
could be changed to implement GRE if that helps in some way.

I don't know much about "professional" routers and Cisco stuff in
particular. If there are advantages to using a Cisco router, what
should I be looking for if I wanted to pick up something cheap on
EBay? Could this work in a domestic environment with an ISP that gives
out dynamic IP addresses?


The cisco isn't bridging traffic across the GRE link it's doing actual
DECnet
routing.

It's closer in function to a Multinet tunnel.

-brian

Forgive my ignorance, but when you say "actual DECnet routing", it must be
transporting it over something, what is that something? I assume it is IP,
in which case it would still need to encapsulate the DECnet in IP wouldn't
it? Have I misunderstood something here?

Regards

Rob