CERFnet User's Guide May 1990
Revision II
Contents:
(I) Introduction
(II) Administrative Information
* Mailing Address, Telephone
* CERFnet Staff
(III) CERFnet Topology
* CERFnet Logical Topology Map & Key
* The Internet & NSFNET
(IV) Member Institutions and Representatives
(V) Technical Liaison Responsibilities
(VI) User Liaison Responsibilities
(VII) Problem Resolution Procedures
(VIII) Network Information Center
* Publications
* Network Management Reports
* CERFnet Mailing Lists
* Seminars & Workshops
* Online Information
* Hotline
(IX) Other Network Information Services
* How to Internet: A Recipe for Campus
Connection
* User's Introduction to the NSFNET
* MERIT & NSFNET Information Services
* "Internet-Accessible Library
and Database Catalog"
* "Internet Resource Guide"
* Bibliography of Suggested Readings
* "Hitchhikers Guide to the Internet"
(X) CERFnet Participation in Outside Organizations
* Calinet
* IETF
* FARNet
(XI) CERFnet Summer Research Fellowship
Sections updated in this release :
Addresses
CERFNet Staff
Network Information Center
Internet-Accessible Library Catalogs and Databases
Internet Resource Guide
New in this revision:
ORION, UCLA Online Information System
`
INTRODUCTION
The CERFnet User's Guide is intended to provide users with useful information
on the CERFnet services available, the CERFnet administration, and the
technical and operational details of CERFnet. This guide also aims to provide
information on the resources available on the Internet and the NSFNET.
This guide is intended to be used in a three-ring binder allowing
updates to be issued electronically and easily replace old versions. Notices
announcing the updates to the guide will be released over user-guide@cerf.net.
Updates will be accessible via anonymous ftp to nic.cerf.net in the
subdirectory cerfnet_guide.
Your opinions and recommendations for this guide will be very much
appreciated. Please direct your comments to help@cerf.net.
ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
Addresses and Telephone Numbers
Mailing Address
California Education and Research Federation Network
c/o San Diego Supercomputer Center
P. O. Box 85608
San Diego, CA 92186-9784
Shipping and Express Mail
California Education and Research Federation Network
San Diego Supercomputer Center
10100 Hopkins Drive
La Jolla, CA 92037
Telephone
Hotline: (619) 534-5087
Fax: (619) 534-5167
Electronic Mail
help@cerf.net
CERFnet Staff
CERFnet currently supports four full-time staff and three part-time staff. The
four full-time staff include an executive director, a project leader of
technology, an external relations representative, and a network technician and
operator. The three part-time staff include a network consultant and two
administrative assistants.
CERFNET LOGICAL TOPOLOGY KEY
[This document can be retrieved via anonymous ftp to NIC.CERF.NET in the
subdirectory cerfnet_info, filename topology.ps.]
KEY:
ACC Advanced Computer Communications
AGI The Agouron Institute
API Agouron Pharmaceuticals Incorporated
CALTECH California Institute of Technology
CLRMNT The Claremont Colleges
CPD Custom Product Design
CMC Communication Machinery Corporation
CSU The California State University's twenty campuses and
Chancellor's Office
EMULEX Emulex Corporation
HUGHES Hughes Aircraft Company
ISX ISX Corporation
LOS NETTOS Los Nettos Network
NSFNET National Science Foundation Network
OXY Occidental College
QCOM Qualcomm Incorporated
QUOT Quotron Systems Incorporated
RISC Research Institute of Scripps Clinic
SAIC Science Applications International Corp.
SCI HORIZ Science Horizons
SDSC San Diego Supercomputer Center
SUPER SOLN Supercomputing Solutions
UCI University of California at Irvine
UCLA University of California at Los Angeles
UCOP University of California Office of the
President
UCR University of California at Riverside
UCSB University of California at Santa Barbara
UCSD University of California at San Diego
USD University of San Diego
WALT Walt Disney Imagineering
XEROX Xerox Corporation
THE INTERNET & NSFNET
CERFnet is an NSFnet mid-level network and is part of the Internet. The
Internet is composed of many administratively and technically diverse networks
that intercommunicate using a standard protocol, TCP/IP. Interactive
communications, including remote login, file transfer and electronic mail, are
everyday occurrences between the various computer networks. Currently, more
than 800 networks, 50,000 computers and 70,000 users are part of the Internet.
The Internet is composed of the following networks:
Arpanet Sponsored by DARPA since 1969
Milnet Sponsored by the Department of Defense
NSFNET Sponsored by the National Science Foundation
The following is a list of NSFnet regional networks and their principal
geographic service areas:
BARRNET Northern California
CERFNET California
CICNET Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota,
Ohio, Wisconsin
CREN IP Sites International and National
JVNCNET New Jersey and Southern New
England
LOS NETTOS Southern California
MERIT Michigan
MIDNET Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri,
Nebraska, Oklahoma
MRNET Minnesota
NCSANET Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin
NEARNET New England
NORTHWESTNET Alaska, Idaho, Montana, North
Dakota, Oregon, Washington
NYSERNET New York
OARNET Ohio
PREPNET Pennsylvania
PSCNET Maryland, Michigan, Ohio,
Pennsylvania
SESQUINET Texas
SURANET Southeastern United States
THENET Texas
USAN National
WESTNET Southwestern United States
Additional networks that can exchange electronic mail with the Internet include:
BITNET National network of primarily academic
institutions (also NETNORTH, in Canada, and
EARN in Europe)
CREN Phonenet International network of research institutions
CREN International Affiliates are:
CSNNET Canada
SUNET Sweden
CHUNET Switzerland
Inria France
DFN Holland
JUNET Japan
Finnish University Network Finland
AC.UK United Kingdom
ASCNET Australia
New Zealand Academic Network New Zealand
Israeli Academic Network Israel
MFENET/ESNET Sponsored by the Department of Energy
SPAN Sponsored by NASA
USENET International electronic "bulletin board"
service
UUCP International electronic mail network
This document was extracted from materials received from NEARNET. CERFnet
would like to thank the NEARNET staff for this document.
MEMBER INSTITUTIONS & REPRESENTATIVES TO THE PLENARY
Organization Representative
Agouron Institute Rich Showalter
505 Coast Blvd. So.
La Jolla, CA 92037
(619) 456-5318
rich@kanga.agi.org
California Institute Robert Logan
of Technology 158-79
Pasadena, CA 91125
(818) 356-4631
bob@iago.caltech.edu
California State Chris Taylor
University Chancellor's Office
800 N. State College Blvd.
Computer Center M #38
Fullerton, CA 92634
(714) 773-3924
1gtlfct@calstate.bitnet
Brent Auernheimer
CSU Fresno
Department of Computer Science
Fresno, CA 93740-0109
(209) 294-4636
brent@csufresno.edu
The Claremont Colleges Robert Wolf
Computing Services
Harvey Mudd College
Claremont, CA 91711
(714) 621-8006
wolf@hmcvax.bitnet
Emulex Corporation Gil Larson
3545 Harbor Blvd.
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 668-5458
Hughes Aircraft Company Peter Ho
P.O. Box 9399
Long Beach, CA 90810
(213) 816-6431
ho@hac2arpa.hac.com
ISX Corporation Scott Fouse
501 Marin Street
Suite 214
Thousand Oaks, CA 91360
(805) 495-8265
sfouse@isx.com
Los Nettos Walt Prue
USC/ISI
4676 Admiralty Way
Suite 1000
Marina Del Rey, CA 90292-6695
(213) 822-1511 ext. 191
prue@isi.edu
Occidental College Tom Slobko
1600 Campus Road
Los Angeles, CA 90041
(213) 259-2880
slobko@oxy.edu
Qualcomm Vicki Hutchison
10555 Sorrento Valley Road
San Diego, CA 92121
(619) 587-1121 ext. 229
vicki@qualcomm.com
Quotron Systems Incorporated Todd Booth
5300 McConnell Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90066
(213) 302-4368
todd@janus.quotron.com
Harry Felder
12731 W. Jefferson Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90066
(213) 827-4600
harry@quotron.com
San Diego Supercomputer Paul Love
Center 10100 Hopkins Drive
La Jolla, CA 92037
(619) 534-5043
loveep@sds.sdsc.edu
Science Applications Mark Waldschmidt
International Corporation 10210 Campus Point Drive
Mail Stop 42
San Diego, CA 92121
(619) 546-6240
markw@cpva.span
Science Horizons Kevin Sweet
710 Encinitas Blvd
Encinitas, CA 92024
(619) 942-7333
sweet@neri.horizon.com
Supercomputing Solutions Martin Morris
6175 Nancy Ridge Rd
San Diego, CA 92121
(619) 452-7100
marty@ssi.com
University of California Office Michael Shannon
of the President 300 Lakeside Drive
Room 383
Oakland, CA 94612-3550
(415) 987-0371
ccpmms@uccvma.bitnet
University of California at David Walker
Irvine Network and Telecommunications Services
Irvine, CA 92717
(714) 856-7037
dhwalker@uci.bitnet
Dave Tomcheck
Network and Telecommunications Services
2209 Central Plant
Irvine, CA 92717
(714) 856-5555
tomcheck@ucivmsa.bitnet
University of California at Luis Llambias
Los Angeles 405 Hilgard Avenue
MSA 5623
Los Angeles, CA 90024-1557
(213) 825-1604
cnetlal@oac.ucla.edu
University of California at Claudia Jordan
Riverside Telephone Building
Riverside, CA 92521
(714) 787-4100
cjordan@ucrvms.ucr.edu
University of California at Vince Sefcik
Santa Barbara Communication Services
Santa Barbara, CA 93106
com1vs@ucsbvm.bitnet
University of California at Jim Madden
San Diego Academic Network Operations
B-028
La Jolla, CA 92093
(619) 534-2684
madden@ucsd.edu
University of San Diego Jack Pope
Alcala Park
Serra Hall, Room 118E
San Diego, CA 92110
(619) 260-4810
pope@usdcsv.acusd.edu
Walt Disney Imagineering Scott Watson
1401 Flower Street
Glendale, CA 91221-5020
(818) 956-6790
scott@disney.com
Xerox Corporation David Stokes
10200 Willow Creek Road
SD-5038
San Diego, CA 92131
(619) 695-7829
stokes.sd@xerox.com
TECHNICAL LIASION RESPONSIBILITIES
Each site is responsible for providing the interconnection to the gateway,
including necessary protocol conversion. The technical liaison will assist in
the network and communications coordination and troubleshooting and will act as
the consulting focal point, answering questions from users on campus or
interfacing with the network manager to find the answers.
In addition, the liaison will need to have access to the cisco box and
CSU/DSU. The liaison should have a basic understanding of communications and
TCP/IP, and have an electronic mail address.
There are one or two contacts at each site. This will keep CERFnet
from answering questions from the general public, and cut down on the number of
unnecessary phone calls.
CERFnet is planning on placing modems at each site for use of CERFnet
management to dial into the console port on the cisco box. The liaison may need
to reset this modem from time to time.
The liaison should call the hotline number when there are troubles. If
the liaison is replaced by somebody else, CERFnet staff should be notified as
soon as possible, so that a site doesn't remain in the dark on networking
events.
USER LIASION RESPONSIBILITIES
The user liaison at each site must ensure that all CERFnet users are educated
on the acceptable use of CERFnet. CERFnet users are responsible for adhering
to the terms and conditions listed in the CERFnet -Acceptable Use Policy (shown
below). Failure to adhere to these terms and conditions may result in
disconnection from the network.
The user liaison should be available to consult with users in person,
by telephone, and by electronic mail. The user liaison may also be needed to
teach introductory workshops for users on their campus. Also, they are
responsible for working on documentation for users, including introductory
guides and detailed reference manuals.
Helpful Hints
1. Make a folder.
*Keep CERFnet information in one spot.
*If someone else becomes the user liaison for your
organization,let us know and pass the folder on the the new
liaison.
2. Let your users know what is available from CERFnet.
*We will send you CERFnet newsletters and periodic online
announcements.
*Please pass this information along to the user support or
computer center personnel in your organization for inclusion in
newsletters, billboards, or login banners.
3. Let CERFnet know what your users say about the network and its
services.
*Is it easy to use? Hard to use?
*What services or information would users like to have? In
what format?
*Comments to: help@cerf.net
CERFNET ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
Purpose of CERFnet
"The purpose of the California Education and Research Federation is to advance
education and research in general by assisting in the interchange of
information among research and educational institutions by means of high-speed
data-communications and related telecommunications techniques."
This statement represents a guide to the acceptable use of the CERFnet
facilities.
(1) All use must be consistent with the purpose of CERFnet.
(2) The intent of the use policy is to make clear certain cases which are
consistent with the purpose of CERFnet, not to exhaustively enumerate all such
possible uses.
(3) The Chairperson of CERFnet and his designees, may at any time make
determinations that particular uses are or are not consistent with the purpose
of CERFnet . Such determinations will be reported in writing to the Board of
CERFnet for consideration and possible revision at the next meeting of the
board.
(4) If a use is consistent with the purpose of CERFnet, then activities
necessary to that use will be considered consistent with the purpose of
CERFnet. For example, administrative communications which are part of the
support infrastructure needed for research and instruction are acceptable.
(5) Use for scholarly and scientific research or instruction at
institutions of research or instruction is acceptable.
(6) Use for a project which is part of or supports scholarly and scientific
research or instruction activity for the benefit of an institution of research
or instruction is acceptable, even if any or all parties to the use are located
or employed elsewhere. For example, communications directly between
Subscribers engaged in support of a project for such an institution is
acceptable.
(7) Use for scholarly and scientific research or instruction at for-profit
institutions may or may not be consistent with the purpose of CERFnet, and will
be reviewed by the Chairperson or his designees on a case-by-case basis.
Adopted May 12, 1988
CERFnet Board of Directors
Ref:1-16-89I
PROBLEM RESOLUTION PROCEDURES
Hotline Number: (619) 534-5087
Electronic Mail: help@cerf.net
CERFnet maintains a 24-hour hotline. CERFnet members and interested parties
are encouraged to use the hotline for both urgent technical problems and
general information. During regular business hours calls are usually answered
directly. If a call is not answered directly, you may leave a message on the
hotline voice-mail.
After hours, contact the San Diego Supercomputer Network Operations at
(619) 534-5090 and a systems operator will assist you.
When troubleshooting, before calling the hotline, be sure you test
connections by using the IP address of the site, not its name. This will
eliminate any name service problems.
When reporting troubles, you may be asked the following questions:
1. What are the symptoms?
2. Can you reproduce this problem?
3. Has any work been done in the general vicinity of the cisco box? the
CSU/DSU?
4. What lights are displayed on the CSU/DSU? the cisco box?
5. What sites are unreachable?
We may ask you to reboot the cisco box and/or the modem.
Remember - SRI-NIC doesn't always answer ping packets, so don't
use this as a trouble shooting site.
Send mail to help@cerf.net if you have questions. Someone from the
CERFnet staff will respond as soon as possible.
Additionally, backbone sites should send e-mail tohelp@cerf.net to
alert us of scheduled down times that will affect other sites.
NETWORK INFORMATION CENTER
Publications
In December 1988, CERFnet began production of its bimonthly newsletter called
the CERFnet News. The newsletter includes such information as interviews with
users, profiles of member institutions, network-related technical information,
activity within the CERFnet organization, and information about access to
online resources.
The newsletter is distributed electronically and in hard-copy.
Literary contributions to the newsletter are accepted and welcomed. Back
issues of the newsletters are available in electronic form via anonymous ftp to
nic.cerf.net in the subdirectory cerfnet_news. Type cd cerfnet_news to change
to this directory. The filenames for the postscript and text versions are in
the format Month-MonthYear.txt (text version) and Month-MonthYear.ps (for
postscript version). For back issues in hard- copy contact the CERFnet office.
CERFnet brochures are also available upon request. Electronic versions
of CERFnet brochures and miscellaneous information is available via anonymous
ftp to nic.cerf.net in the subdirectory cerfnet_info.
Network Management Reports
CERFnet produces weekly network management reports that summarize network
activity for a particular week. Included in these reports are network
statistics, site outages, circuit outages, and miscellaneous network activity.
These reports are distributed via electronic mail over the ops@cerf.net mailer.
Reports can also be retrieved via anonymous ftp to nic.cerf.net in the
cerfnet_stat subdirectory. Type cd cerfnet_stats to change to this directory.
The filenames are in the format Day-Month-Year.txt, for example
18-Sept-89.txt.
CERFnet Mailing Lists
ops@cerf.net
Is used to distribute and discuss technical and operational information about
CERFnet. It is also used to distribute management reports. Anyone at your
site who is technically involved with your CERFnet connection should be on this
list.
info@cerf.net
Is used to distribute miscellaneous information, such as meeting and seminar
announcements. This mailer is used to distribute announcements about updates
to this user's guide. Anyone at your site who may be interested in this type
of information should be on this list.
user-guide@cerf.net
This mailer will also be used to distribute announcements about updates to the
user's guide.
help@cerf.net
Is used to subscribe to any of the CERFnet mailers, to obtain information on
CERFnet, and to reach CERFnet personnel for reporting and discussing
operational problems with CERFnet.
Seminars & Workshops
CERFnet sponsors quarterly seminars on network related issues. Information
about CERFnet seminars is distributed over info@cerf.net and is announced in the
"CERFnet News".
Online Information
Information is available online via anonymous ftp to nic.cerf.net. The
following subdirectories exist:
cerfnet_guide
To retrieve sections or all of the "CERFnet User's Guide".
cerfnet_news
To retrieve text and postscript versions of the CERFnet newsletter, "CERFnet
News".
cerfnet_stats
To retrieve network management reports and operational information.
cerfnet_info
To retrieve miscellaneous documents. (For example, a glossary of network
terms, topology map.)
Hotline
(619) 534-5087
This hotline is used to reach any of the CERFnet staff for general business or
to report network operation problems.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THESE SERVICES, AND/OR TO BE ADDED TO ANY OF
THESE MAILING LISTS, CONTACT THE CERFNET HOTLINE AT (619) 534-5087 OR SEND
YOUR REQUEST TO HELP@CERF.NET.
OTHER NETWORK INFORMATION SERVICE
This section contains various useful information including how to get an IP
address, an introduction to the NSFNET, MERIT/NSFNET information services, and
guides to the resources available on the Internet.
* How to Internet: A Recipe for Campus Connection
* User's Introduction to the NSFNET
* MERIT and NSFNET Information Services
* "Internet-Accessible Library and Database Catalog"
* "Internet Resource Guide"
* Bibliography of Suggested Readings
* "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Internet"
* "ORION, UCLA Library Online Information System"
HOW TO INTERNET: A RECIPE FOR CAMPUS CONNECTION
By Steve DeJarnett
"How exactly do I connect to the Internet?" Since the topic has come up, and
since I appear to have been the latest one to have done it, I guess I should
share my experiences. In response to those of you who are new to the CERFnet
(and Internet) game, I put together this 'how to' as a recipe for how to
get your campus connected. There are no guarantees this is fully correct but
if you find any errors, I'd appreciate hearing about them. Nevertheless, I
think it covers the main points.
Getting an Internet Address
You should get an Internet-registered address. You need to decide what type of
address should be requested. There are three types of addresses:
* Class A Network--65,536 hosts
or more (almost unobtainable)
* Class B Network--256 - 65,535 hosts
* Class C Network--1 - 255 hosts
The Network Information Center (NIC for short) will try to convince you to take
a class C address if you don't know what you want or can't make a
somewhat decent argument for a class B. There's not a
snowball's-chance-in-a-machine-room that the NIC will give you a class A
address, so don't bother asking (How many of us could even fathom their
campus having enough hosts to rate a class A address?) Most CSU campuses will
want a class B address, simply because the possibility of your campus getting
more than 255 hosts within the next few years, is probable (especially with
some types of network hardware). Even if you think the chances of your
exceeding 255 hosts are nonexistent, get one anyway. Technology changes so
fast, you never know what you'll be working with this time next year.
Therefore, state that you think you'll have something like 200 hosts within
5 years. This seems to work.
To get the application for an Internet address, send mail to
HOSTMASTER@SRI- NIC.ARPA and ask them for the Internet Address Application
Form.
A note on filling this application out: There is an item on the form
that asks for your sponsor. This is necessary to be advertised on the Internet
and on NSFNET. You should consult with CERFnet. Contact help@cerf.net for
assistance. Once you have done this, skip to part III (Becoming Physically
Connected).
Registering an Existing Network as a Connected
Network
If you already have an Internet Address, but do not have it registered as a
Connected Network, you will need to do this before you can have the network
'advertised' as being connected.
This is necessary to do any form of communication with the Internet.
The reason for this is that, until you are advertised, you can send stuff out
to people, but they cannot figure out how to get back to you. This leads to a
less-than-useful connection.
The proper procedure for this entails getting a 'Sponsor' to
sponsor your existence on the Internet and NSFNet (mentioned above). This is
normally someone at DARPA, NSF, or another Federal Government Agency associated
with the Internet. This can be easily arranged by talking to Susie Arnold at
CERFnet. She should have all of the necessary information (our sponsor, for
instance, is Dr. Stephen Wolff of the NSF).
At this point, you must submit a new Internet number request form to
HOSTMASTER@SRI-NIC.ARPA. In this form, the section you left blank when you got
the number (Section I, which talks about who your sponsor will be if you are
going to connect to the DARPA Internet (ARPANET, or the Internet) or the DDN
Internet (MILNET)) will be filled in with the information you obtained about
your sponsor. Also, you will need to tell them what kind of gateway hardware
you will be using (see below). You then need to send it to
HOSTMASTER@SRI-NIC.ARPA. The following is a sample application (note: this is
only a partial form. The rest should be composed of what you said when you
initially applied for the network number) Also, send a copy of this form to
Susie Arnold of CERFnet so she can notify the NSF.
Becoming Physically Connected
Once your cisco box is installed it must be configured in order to pass network
traffic. Configuration information is specific to a given site and generally
CERFnet staff will be responsible for configuring your cisco box.
Setting up a Domain Nameserver
The last great challenge is setting up your domain nameserver. Since you have
a domain, you need to define a nameserver that is authoritative for your
domain. This is generally one of your computers (most likely a Unix machine,
but there are no requirements that this be the case) that also runs nameservice
software. The overhead produced by this is not too high, although on smaller
systems you may see more performance impaction, especially during busy portions
of the day. The actual configuration of the software is left to you (since you
know your machine much better than any of us do), however, note that this is
not an easy process. Your best bet is to read the manuals on BIND and named
(part of BIND) from Berkeley (since this is (presumably) the software you will
be using). Once that is complete, you could ask any questions you might have
to OPS@cerf.net. This is the CERFnet technical mailing list.
Once this is working, you need to register this Domain Nameserver with
the NIC. To do this, submit forms in the form of (NOTE: submit in all CAPS):
HOST : Address : Machine Name :
Hardware type : OS : Services :
Where:
HOST = hostname (e.g. polyslo, csufres, etc.)
Address = Internet Address of the machine (e.g. 129.65.17.1)
Machine Name = hostname + domain name (e.g. polyslo.calpoly.edu)
Hardware Type = Processor Info (e.g. Pyramid 98x)
OS = Operating System running on host (e.g. Unix, TOPS-20, VMS)
Services = Functions provided by your system that other systems can remotely
use -- e.g.TCP/TELNET,TCP/FTP,TCP/SMTP,TCP/FINGER,TCP/TIME, etc
You are also (technically) required to have a Secondary Nameserver. This
should be another of your machines running a nameserver. If you don't have
2 machines that can run nameservice, or if you have none at all, you should
send a note to OPS-@cerf.net, asking for one of the other sites to act as your
nameserver. You should definitely try to get at least a primary nameserver
running on your campus. Since other machines may be down from time to time, and
you don't want to lose access to your machines.
Currently, the latest version of the Berkeley named can be obtained
from polyslo.calpoly.edu. This can be UUCPed or (in very extreme cases) sent by
tape, providing you supply the tape, and that you can read Unix tar-format
tapes (it is also available for anonymous ftp from ucbarpa.berkeley.edu, but
if you could do that, you probably wouldn't be going through all of this,
now would you?)
Setting up Internet Mail
For this one, you're pretty much on your own. Basically, this consists of
changing sendmail, but anyone who has ever dealt with sendmail knows that this
is nothing to be taken lightly. The best place to start would be the
sendmail.cf file that can be obtained from SRI-NIC.ARPA (26.0.0.73). There are
a great number of files that can be obtained from SRI. They include:
* All Internet RFCs (Requests for Comment)
* Various files detailing what a 'good' Internet site should do.
* The DDN Host Table
* Various programs for obtaining information about sites and networks
* Lots more miscellaneous stuff
You should definitely spend some time looking around their archive.
Conclusion
I hope this has helped those of you who are trying to get up to speed on the
whole thing. We went around in circles a few times trying to get things set up
and running, but it appears that everything is finally in order. I hope this
will help some of you avoid some of the major pitfalls that we ran into.
This article was written by Steve De Jarnett then of CSU San Luis Obispo.
-Sample Form-
Request for Cal Poly State University
San Luis Obispo, CA
Change to Connected Network
This form is being submitted to change the status of non-connected network
number 129.65 to connected status. We plan to be hooking in to the Internet
via San Diego Supercomputer Center in the next 2 weeks. If there are any
problems, please send them to me (steve@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU). We request that
the same network number be used.
Thanks,
Steve DeJarnett , System Administrator
Cal Poly State University
Computer Science Dept.- Computer Systems Lab
San Luis Obispo, CA 93407
(805) 756-7180
steve@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU
1) If the network will be connected to the DARPA Internet or the DDN Internet,
you must provide the name of the sponsoring organization, and the name, title,
mailing address, phone number, net mailbox, and NIC Handle (if any) of the
contact person at that organization. This is the contact point for
administrative and policy questions about the authorization for this network to
join the DARPA Internet or the DDN Internet.
Sponsoring Organization:
Org: National Science Foundation
Name: Dr. Stephen S. Wolff
Title: Director, Division of Networking and Communication
MailAdd: NSF
1800 G Street, NW
Washington, DC 20550
Phone: (202) 357-9717
NetMail:steve@brl.arpa
NIC: SSW
8) Gateway information:
8a) A description of the Gateway that connects the new network to the DARPA
Internet or the DDN Internet, and the date it will be operational. The gateway
must be either a core gateway supplied and operated by BBN, or a gateway of
another Autonomous System. If this gateway is not a core gateway, then some
gateway in this gateway's Autonomous System must exchange routing
information with some core gateway via EGP.
We use a cisco HES gateway to the San Diego Supercomputer Center. This will
gateway to their local network, and from there to the DARPA Internet. This
will be operational by Sept. 1, 1988.
8b) A description of the gateway machine, including
(a) hardware: cisco HES gateway.
(b) addresses: 92.12.207.11 on NSFnet/
ARPANET
(c) software: cisco-supplied software,
Release 6.2(105)
10) Unless a strong and convincing reason is presented, the network (if it
qualifies at all) will be assigned a class C network number. Is a class C
network number acceptable for your purposes, and if not why not? (Note: If
there are plans for more than a few local networks, and more than 100 or so
hosts, we strongly urge you to consider subnetting. [See RFC 950]) Class B
address already assigned (129.65). Subnets already in existence, so we request
that network number remain a Class B address.
12) What is the purpose of the network? To economically connect computers
used in research projects to the NSF Internet to provide communication
capability with similar projects at other Universities.
USER'S INTRODUCTION TO THE NSFNET
(Excerpted from "NSF Network News".) In theory, computer networks should behave
like telephone networks. They both provide communication services, but a user
does not need to understand how these networks operate to use their services.
Nonetheless, people are often curious about how a network is put together, or,
in less benign cases, they find themselves trying to figure out why they
can�t connect to another machine. This article attempts to answer some of
those questions and explain network concepts and buzzwords.
How the Network Is Constructed
NSFNET is part of a larger network of networks, called the Internet. The
Internet comprises several interconnected wide-area networks such as ARPANET,
the MILNET, and the SATNET, and the various local area networks like Ethernets,
that are attached to them. The term NSFNET is generally used to refer to the
portion other than the Internet that relies on the NSF backbone network, a
wide-area network that links the national supercomputing centers.
Various regional networks such as SURAnet (the Southeastern
Universities Research Association Network) and NYSERNet (the New York State
Educational and Research Network) link institutions in a geographical area.
These regional networks are interconnected by the NSF Backbone. Many of the
NSFNET sites have connections to other wide-area networks.
Each component network of NSFNET supports IP, the Internet Protocol;
i.e., each component network has a mechanism that permits IP packets to be
passed between hosts on the network. These component networks are linked
together using gateways (also called routers), which are special (often
dedicated) hosts that know how to move IP packets from one component network to
another.
The method by which the system decides how to move packets between
component networks is called routing. Each packet contains a certain amount of
information about how to reach machines on other networks, and each network has
a distinct IP network number (for example, the ARPANET is net 10). Some
machines keep more information than others. Hosts reach a gateway that will
handle IP packets destined for hosts on other networks. Gateways tend to know
how to reach most networks in the Internet. Special gateways, known as core
gateways, are required to know how to reach all networks on the Internet, and
are used as references by other, less well-informed gateways.
Routing information is maintained dynamically; it changes in response
to changes in the network, such as gateway crashes and changes in traffic
load. One of the most common network problems is that corrupted routing
information can get passed around the network and effectively disconnect some
parts of the networks (because no one knows how to reach them). Another common
problem is that nonoptimal routing information may be circulated, causing IP
packets to take circuitous routes to their destination.
Even after the routing information is right and the packets are
correctly and efficiently routed to their destinations, reliable data delivery
still remains an issue. IP is not a complete data transfer protocol (and is not
intended to be). IP only promises 'best effort' delivery, which means
that while IP will do its best to get the packet to its destination, the packet
may be lost, damaged, or discarded in transit. That level of reliability is not
good enough for many applications--we usually want to be sure that all the
data gets to its destination. In addition, IP only moves data between hosts
(the computer to which your terminal is connected and the computer to which the
sender's terminal is connected), while we want to move data between
applications (your mail program, for example, and the sender's mail
program). IP thus acts like the zip code on a letter, ensuring only that the
letter arrives at the right post office; it doesn't ensure that the letter
will reach the right person in the town served by that post office.
Transport protocols are used to provide the reliability and
application-to- application services not provided by IP. Examples of transport
protocols are the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and the User Data
Protocol (UDP). More than one transport protocol can be used on an IP network
at the same time. Each IP packet contains a field indicating which transport
protocol is being used so that the receiving host can figure out how the packet
should be processed.
All transport protocols allow us to indicate unambiguously which
application is sending a packet and which application is receiving it. To
provide this service, each transport protocol includes a piece of information,
called the protocol header, in front of the data in the packet. Among other
values, the header contains information (typically a unique identifying number
called a port) about which applications sent the packet and which one should
receive it. Thus, when an IP packet arrives at a host, the host "reads" the
protocol field in the IP header plus the port field in the transport protocol
header to figure out which application should get the data.
Some transport protocols, such as UDP, provide nothing more than this
service. UDP is designed to simply allow applications to send packets to each
other. It does not ensure that a packet will get through (indeed, they often
get lost), and it only checksums the packet if the sender or receiver requests
it. [Ed. note: a checksum is a value that a computer generates by running a
specific function on your data. Each transport protocol has its own checksum
function. Thus, a sender using UDP would run the UDP checksum on his data,
generate a checksum value, and incorporate that value in the transport protocol
header. The receiver would run the same UDP checksum on the data at this end
and check to be sure that the resulting checksum value was the same as the one
in the header.] This service is primitive but has a surprising number of
applications, such as synchronizing clocks across a network or implementing
distributed file systems.
At the other end of the service spectrum is TCP. In addition to
providing application-to-application delivery, TCP promises that any data sent
will be reliably delivered without errors to the remote end (or, if this is not
possible, that the connection will be severed, the idea being that all data
should get through or the exchange should fail). Furthermore, TCP promises to
deliver all data in the order in which they were sent. To provide this service,
TCP uses a system of checksums, acknowledgements, flow-control, and packet-loss
discovery mechanisms. Currently, these mechanisms are the subject of active
research as computer scientists continue to discover ways to make TCP perform
substantially better.
Applications use transport protocols to provide useful services to
network users. For example, TELNET, the remote virtual terminal service, allows
users to log into a remote host on the network and use their terminals as if
they were physically connected to that remote machine. To use TELNET, users run
the TELNET program (often called TELNET or tn) on their local machine and
specify the remote host to which they want to connect. The TELNET program then
establishes a TCP connection to the remote host. This connection can be thought
of as a virtual wire stretched from your terminal, through your machine, and
across the network to the terminal driver on the remote machine. While real
wires use some simple protocols to ensure that data are properly exchanged
between your terminal and your host, TELNET provides similar services over a
virtual wire. Services such as remote or local echo of characters are
negotiated over the TCP connection between the two TELNET peers.
Readers interested in a more comprehensive overview are encouraged to
look at Andrew Tanenbaum's Computer Networks, which, while somewhat out of
date, is still a good general introduction to computer networks. Those
interested in detailed information can read the specifications for the various
network protocols and applications mentioned here. These specifications are
called Internet Requests For Comments (RFCs) and are available from the Network
Information Center (NIC) at SRI International and the NNSC, and from
information centers on many of the regional networks.
CERFnet would like to thank Karen Roubicek of "NSF Network News" for allowing
us to reproduce this article here.
MERIT & NSFNET INFORMATION SERVICES
NSFNET Information
Electronic mail
nis-info@nis.nsf.net
Online Information
nis.nsf.net
NSF Network Service Center (NNSC)
NNSC is located at the BBN Systems and Technologies Corporation and is a
project of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) under
contract to the National Science Foundation. NNSC can provide you with more
information on the NSFNET. How to reach NNSC:
Hotline: (617) 873-3400
Electronic Mail: nnsc@nnsc.nsf.net
U. S. Mailing Address: NSF Network Service Center
BBN Systems Technologies Corporation
10 Moulton Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Newsletter
nnsc@nnsc.nsf.net
Use this e-mail address to request "NSF Network News". This newsletter is
published four times a year by the NSF Network Service Center (NNSC). To
request this newsletter send a request to nnsc.nnsc.nsf.net.
MERIT
Merit Computer Network, a consortium of eight Michigan universities, manages
and operates NSFNET for the National Science Foundation, along with MERIT's
two corporate partners, IBM and MCI. Additional funding is provided by the
State of Michigan Strategic Fund. How to reach MERIT:
Telephone: 800-66 MERIT
Electronic Mail: nsfnet-info@merit.edu
U. S. Mailing Address: Information Services
The MERIT Computer Network
1075 Beal Ave
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2112
Newsletter
NSFNET-Linkletter-Request@merit.edu
Use this to request MERIT's monthly newsletter, "Linkletter".
INTERNET-ACCESSIBLE LIBRARY CATALOGS & DATABASES
"Internet-Accessible Library and Database Catalog" is coauthored by Dr. Art
-St. George of the University of New Mexico and Mr. Ron Larsen of the
University of Maryland. Dr. St. George says this document "began as an
effort to provide additional service to the network community locally. However,
it became apparent that the library resources were of broader appeal than
that."
It contains a listing of approximately 100 online library catalogs and
databases available within the United States and is -organized by state, and
then by catalog and database source. Each listing gives a brief description of
the resource and instructions on how to access it, as well as places to contact
for more information. Listings include such material as Columbia
University's online library catalog (CLIO), Pennsylvania�s State
University online card catalog system (PENpages), and the Colorado Alliance of
Research Libraries (CARL) and its 25 individual resource listings of libraries
and information databases, such as the Metro Denver Facts database.
"Internet-Accessible Library and Database Catalog" is available via
anonymous ftp to nic.cerf.net in the subdirectory cerfnet_guide, and filename
Internet_Accessible.txt. Portions of this document appear in the "Internet
Resource Guide" produced and distributed by the National Network Service Center
(NNSC).
This catalog is an ongoing project. If you have any suggestions,
comments, or additions, please direct them to Dr. St. George by electonic mail
to stgeorge@ unmb.bitnet.
[This catalog can be retrieved via anonymous ftp to NIC.CERF.NET in the
subdirectory cerfnet/cerfnet_guide, filename internet-accessible-catalog.txt
(for text version) and internet- accessible-catalog.ps (for postscript
version).]
INTERNET RESOURCE GUIDE
The NSF Network Service Center (NNSC) produces the "Internet Resource Guide",
which educates users and others on the resources available on the Internet.
Included in this document are descriptions of computational resources (such as
the San Diego Supercomputer Center), regional networks (such as CERFnet) and
library catalogues (such as MELVYL�). The guide is available via electronic
mail and anonymous ftp. To receive it by e-mail, send a request to
resource-guide-request@nnsc.nsf.net.
Please follow the directions listing in the "Internet Resource Guide"
to keep your version current
[This guide can be retrieved via anonymous ftp to NIC.CERF.NETin the
subdirectory cerfnet/cerfnet_guide/resource_guide. Read the README file before
retrieving the guide.]
Bibliography of Suggested Readings
* Internetworking with TCP/IP Principals, Protocols, and Architecture
by Douglas E. Comer.
(Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey 07632.)
* A Directory of Electronic Mail Addressing & Networks
by Donnalyn Frey and Rick Adams.
(O'Reilly & Associates, Inc. 632 Petaluma Avenue, Sebastopol, California 95472.)
This book, a Nutshell Handbook, provides readers with a directory to
approximately 100 research and educational networks, plus a few commercial
networks.
The book will allow readers to become more familiar with networks they
can use to reach other people around the world. It also assists readers in
finding someone else�s electronic mail address and sending mail. The book is
in an easy-to-use short-reference format and will be updated every 6-10 months.
Updating will mean greater accuracy. It should be of use to system
administrators who field electronic mail questions, researchers who want to get
in touch with other researchers, conference attendees with many contacts, and
others who routinely send electronic mail. Each network section contains
general information on the network, address format, connections to other sites
or networks, facilities available to users, contact name and address,
cross-reference to other networks, and the date of the last update. Also
included is a three-way index to network name, network type, and country.
The book was released in mid- September1989. For more information on
this book, contact the publisher, O'Reilly & Associates, at 617-354-5800, or,
in the US, call toll-free 1-800-338-6887, or, in California, call
1-800-533-6887.
* The Matrix: Computer Networks and Conferencing Systems Worldwide by John S.
Quarterman. Digital Press, 1989.
HITCHHIKERS GUIDE TO THE INTERNET
The "Hitchhikers Guide to the Internet" is a Request for Comments (RFC). RFCs
are available online and cover a variety of subjects. This guide is RFC 1118
and is an introduction to the Internet.
How to get RFCs from SRI
Many RFCs are available online; if not, this is indicated by (Not online).
Paper copies of all RFCs are available from the NIC, either individually or on
a subscription basis(For more information, contact NIC@NIC.DDN.MIL.) Online
copies are available via FTP or Kermit from NIC.DDN.MIL as RFC:RFC####.TXT
(#### is the RFC number without leading zeroes).
Additionally, RFCs may be requested through electronic mail from the
automated MIC mail server by sending a message to SERVICE@NIC.DDN.MIL with a
subject line of 'RFC ###'
(This parapgraph is an excerpt from the RFC-Index file, which explains all of
this.)
[This guide can be retrieved via anonymous ftp to NIC.CERF.NET in the
subdirectory cerfnet/cerfnet_guide, filename hitchhikers-guide.txt.]
ORION, UCLA LIBRARY ONLINE INFORMATION SYSTEM
ORION, the UCLA Library Online Information System, contains over three million
bibliographic records for materials owned, inprocess, or on order in the 18
UCLA libraries, including, for many libraries, information about whether items
have been charged out and when they are due back in. ORION also supports
separate databases with records of other campus information resources. All
records are keyword Boolean searchable. Access to ORION requires an account
and password and is subject to usage charges, with a $25/month minimum for
non-UCLA users. For more information, including a fact sheet and account
application form, contact ORION User Services at (213)825-7557 or
ecl1ous@oac.ucla.edu.
CERFNET PARTICIPATION IN OUTSIDE ORGANIZATIONS
California Internet Federation (Calinet)
Chairperson: Russ Hobby
The California Internet Federation of computer network organizations has the
purpose of providing coordination and support of educational and research
networking in California. California is recognized as a leader in high
technology. To maintain this leadership, however, California's educational
and research institutions require the communication tools to share information,
resources and ideas. Isolated facilities can no longer compete in today�s
fast paced age of information. The California Internet Federation has been
formed to insure that high quality communication tools are available for
education and research to keep California in its position of leadership in
these areas.
California Internet Federation Objectives
1) Coordinate interconnection of educational and research
networks in California. Areas of coordination include:
a) Design of cost-effective and reliable interconnection
among these computer networks.
b) Assist with agreements among network administrations in
support of interconnections.
c) Implementation of connections and routing strategies.
d) Management schemes for the connection of interconnected
networks.
2) Provide coordination for the connection of California networks
with national and international networks.
3) Support of educational and research networking by promoting:
a) Use of standards and compatibility of networks.
b) The understanding of internetwork technologies.
c) Dissemination of information about resources available
via the Internet.
d) Development of new resources available via the Internet.
e) Collaboration between private and public sectors.
4) Increase visibility of internetworking and demonstrate its
importance to California.
Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
Chairperson: Phill Gross
The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), a subsidiary of the Internet
Activities Board, deals primarily with engineering the TCP/IP Internet,
improving its performance, and analyzing problems that arise as a consequence
of the Internet"s rapid growth. This task force is charged with addressing
nearer term Internet problems and protocol evolution such as the coordination
of the development of an internet network management framework, a new set of
internet gateway routing protocols, electronic mail and internet host name
servers among a number of other parallel efforts.
There are currently 24 Working Groups within the IETF, comprised of
volunteer researchers (industry and university), government agency
representatives, government contractors, vendors, and users (managers of both
campus and wider area nets). Plenary meetings are held quarterly and the
ambiance is somewhat that of a Usenix conference that focuses solely on
networking. The group has grown from what was originally a purely technical
group of approximately 25 DARPA contractors (organized and chartered by DARPA)
to an attending membership of 120-160. (Membership is open and at no cost to
the participant.) The IETF is now endorsed and sponsored by the Federal
Research Internet Coordinating Committee (FRICC), a consortium of government
agencies whose goal is to sponsor national networking infrastructure for
scientific research.
For more specific details on IETF contact ietf-request@venera.isi.edu.
FEDERATION OF AMERICAN RESEARCH NETWORKS (FARNET)
FARNet is an organization currently consisting of twenty-five so-called
'midlevel' networks, such as CERFnet, who provide access from local
networks to the national research and education network community (the
Internet). The purpose of the Federation is the advancement of science and
education through the aiding of communication among research and educational
organizations. The Federation endorses the coordination and interconnection of
regional and backbone networks to encourage the formation of a unified network
environment, thus providing enhanced access to scientific and educational
resources, both nationally and internationally.
CALIFORNIA EDUCATION AND RESEARCH FEDERATION NETWORK
SUMMER RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP
Description
CERFnet is an NSF-sponsored regional network linking colleges, universities and
industries in California to the nationwide NSFnet. Up to two $5,000 fellowships
will be awarded for the development of tools and techniques to further this
goal. Proposals are particularly encouraged in the following areas:
* Tools for network configuration and management.
* Models of network traffic for prediction of bottlenecks and forecasting
resource needs.
* Tools and techniques for detection and tracing of network security
violations.
* Dynamic addressing and routing techniques for restricting access of
particular network nodes.
* NSFnet compatible protocols and techniques for very low cost connection of
nodes.
* Introduction of network services to K-12 schools and instructors.
As part of the fellowship, participants must submit an article to the "CERFnet
News" describing their work and its availability and submit a technical report
to an approprate academic journal or conference.
Eligibility
Fellows must be full-time graduate students during the spring term of 1990 at a
CERFnet member university or college. Fellows are expected to devote their
effort full- time to their project during summer 1990. Payment of the
fellowships will be in three installments: $2,000 on June 1, 1990, $2,000 on
July 2, 1990, and $1,000 when the article for "CERFnet News" is complete and
the work has been submitted to a conference or journal for publication.
Selection
A selection committee will review the application materials and make awards.
The selection committee will not make awards if it determines that there are no
qualified candidates. The selection committee will be made up of
representatives from CERFnet member institutions.
Application
The following application materials are required.
* A completed CERFnet Fellowship Information Form.
* A recommendation from the supervising professor at the applicant's
school. The recommendation must include a commitment to supervise the proposed
research, and discuss the applicant's ability to conduct the research.
* A vita of the applicant including related coursework and grades earned, and
previous research projects.
* A narrative describing the research problem, approaches to its solution, and
specific tools or techniques that should result from this research. The
narrative must be no longer than four pages.
Deadline
Application materials must reach the selection committee by February 9, 1990.
Successful applicants will be notified by April 2, 1990. Application materials
must be delivered to:
Dr. Brent Auernheimer
CERFnet Fellowship Committee
Department of Computer Science
California State University
Fresno, CA 93740-0109
(209) 294-4373
brent@CSUFresno.edu
DISCLAIMER
Any opinions, recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the
author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF, other funders,
General Atomics, SDSC, or CERFnet.
CERFnet is operated under grant number NCR 8819851.
Editor: Karen Armstrong
Other Contributors: Susan Estrada
Stephanie Sides
Nancy Jensen
Michelle Margolis