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DOS Networking Client

MikeS said:
of course you need a dedicated pair of ports & cable
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Thats a pretty big catch. My server is in the server closet (i.e. the tiny back room off the office) while the systems are mainly in the office a distance of 20-40 feet depending on the system. So I either need to move the server or the systems next to each other for this or I need a really long serial cable. I could be wrong but I am pretty sure serial won't work over those distances. However, the house is all wired up w/ CAT 6 cables, all the systems have a NIC, and are connected in to the network through a switch. So as far as the physical/HW aspects go I need something that works off of Ethernet the way I am already wired. Dave Dunfield actually has a utility on his site that almost does this. In concept it is similar to Interlink but it will also work over Ethernet using only a packet driver. The catch is that I think you need a cross over cable and that you can't have switches/hubs/etc in between the two systems.

Using std. MS networking I can use the physical layout I have and achieve most everything I want. Even the SW setup is easy (to me). The only cost is memory as the clients needs a lot of memory and the 640KB limit hurts.
 
Shadow Lord said:
...the house is all wired up w/ CAT 6 cables, all the systems have a NIC, and are connected in to the network through a switch. So as far as the physical/HW aspects go I need something that works off of Ethernet the way I am already wired.
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Well, bypassing the switch and sticking CAT6<>DA9/DB25 adapters on the ends is no big deal and I doubt that 40 feet would be a problem; I've run longer lengths than that, even using parallel ports. One system I set up had 12 clients talking to one server, all > 50 feet away (although the really distant ones needed line drivers).
Using std. MS networking I can use the physical layout I have and achieve most everything I want. Even the SW setup is easy (to me).
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The physical layout is almost identical and there's essentially no SW setup at all.
The only cost is memory as the clients needs a lot of memory and the 640KB limit hurts.
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Well, yes, that's why I mentioned it; I find >700k free on a mono networked machine pretty handy sometimes.

Anyway, not here to argue or sell you anything; just thought I'd mention it again since it's usually overlooked and dismissed out of hand when talking about networking DOS clients, even though that's the way most 8088 machines were actually networked in the early days
Dave Dunfield actually has a utility on his site that almost does this. In concept it is similar to Interlink but it will also work over Ethernet using only a packet driver. The catch is that I think you need a cross over cable and that you can't have switches/hubs/etc in between the two systems.
Click to expand...
I take it you're talking about DDLINK; yeah, I don't think it plays well with other nodes on the network and I'm not sure if you can actually run programs on the server or use its printer.

Anyway, good luck!
 
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Did some research and found this in a MS KB Article: Q1222297

Basic redirector

- Supports connecting to shared files and printers

- Uses 10K RAM, plus memory for protocols

- Required for 8088 processors

This client does not support RemoteBoot.

This client does not support SPX, nor asynchronous-named pipes when the client is
running Windows in enhanced mode. It does support all other client APIs,
including NetBIOS, TCP/IP, and IPX.
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So the client itself is pretty anemic at 10KB compared to LanMan. Also this would seem to indicate that TCP/IP should run on an 8088 - i.e. not require a 286. The same article also explicitly states that for the full redirector you need a 80286. Now, why taht is (i.e. is it a protocol issue, or actual redirector) I don't know.
 
Shadow Lord said:
Dave Dunfield actually has a utility on his site that almost does this. In concept it is similar to Interlink but it will also work over Ethernet using only a packet driver. The catch is that I think you need a cross over cable and that you can't have switches/hubs/etc in between the two systems.
Click to expand...

MikeS said:
I take it you're talking about DDLINK; yeah, I don't think it plays well with other nodes on the network and I'm not sure if you can actually run programs on the server or use its printer.
Click to expand...

DDLINK works fine through switches and hubs - basically anywhere raw ethernet can go. Since it does not use IP, it cannot be routed through a gateway to another network.

You can also have multiple DDLINK sessions on a network - the trick is you have to start them in pairs. When the client starts, it finds an idle server and attaches to it. They will not talk to anyone else until you close the session. If you want to have multiple servers and pick the one you connect to, you can use different packet types (command line option).

DDLINK however does not emulate a disk drive, nor does it run as a background server. It is a simple file transfer program. You start the server, then the client and use the interactive split-screen directory display on the client to copy files/directories back and forth etc. It is however a very simple protocol to implement, and I've done background servers for a number of embedded systems that I use DDLINK to manage. I also use DDLINK to manage DOS systems which start the server from a batch file and resume operations when it shuts down at the end of the session - the trick here is you have to have a way to remotely launch the server if you are not co-located with it.

Regards,
Dave
 
Dave,

Welcome to the forums. Thanks for the clarification on the routers/hubs. The few times I tried it I could not get it to find the server and I ASSUMED it was because of the fact it had to go through a switch and a router. I'll have to try it out again because it would be great to have a program that lets me xfer files over the LAN (all my systems are already connected to the network). I'll have to play with it some more.
 
Shadow Lord said:
Dave,

Welcome to the forums. Thanks for the clarification on the routers/hubs. The few times I tried it I could not get it to find the server and I ASSUMED it was because of the fact it had to go through a switch and a router. I'll have to try it out again because it would be great to have a program that lets me xfer files over the LAN (all my systems are already connected to the network). I'll have to play with it some more.
Click to expand...

As long as raw ethernet goes through, DDLINK should work - most wired LAN cards work fine - some (many) wireless block non-IP traffic.

Basically, install packet drivers, then:
Server: DDLINK /S P=
Client: DDLINK P=

Connection should happen very quickly.

You can use my packet sniffer (also on my download page) to debug the connection ... it can send/receive raw ethernet and show you what is going on.

Dave
 
Ah, the famous Dave Dunfield has decided to join us ...

Welcome!
Mike
 
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