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Conference 7.286::fddi

Title:FDDI - The Next Generation
Moderator:NETCAD::STEFANI
Created:Thu Apr 27 1989
Last Modified:Thu Jun 05 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:2259
Total number of notes:8590

306.0. "CTF supports FDDI datalink?" by TKTVFS::IDO (Naoki Ido, CSC/TOKYO, 207-2456) Tue Jul 23 1991 05:24

Hi,

Are we able to capture FDDI frame in future with CTF(Common Trace Facility) 
from DEC FDDI controllers (or other FDDI products)? This means whether or not
DEC FDDI controllers(or others) have implemented this capability, or planed
this in future.

Thank you,
Naoki  
T.RTitleUserPersonal
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306.1CTF is VMS onlyMARVIN::DAVISONEric DavisonTue Jul 23 1991 10:0018
When the DECnet-VAX Extensions (aka Wave 1) software supports the FDDI
controllers then you should be able to use CTF to capture the same information
as you get with CTF for the Ethernet drivers. I don't know whether Wave 1 SSB
will include FDDI support (I hope it does, but I'm not directly involved with
it), you may be better off asking in MARVIN::DECNET-VAX_EXTENSIONS.

CTF is a SW package, not part of the HW/FW. It's unlikely that bridges will
implement CTF since it requires a Transport connection to a host to capture
the data. Our current bridges don't support OSI TP4, NSP or TCP (UDP isn't
enough). Future high speed brouters (i.e. DECnis 600 for the moment) won't
support tracing of the running state of the datalink or network layers either
although they will support tracing of initialisation, control and upper layers.

CTF is only available for VMS systems, there are people talking of building
a common CTRF but no project proposals that I've seen.

Eric
306.2it's my dreamTKTVFS::IDONaoki Ido, CSC/TOKYO, 207-2456Wed Jul 24 1991 23:1410
My dream is to be able to see any frame on FDDI ring even it's corrupted.To 
do this hardware devices have to be able to monitor and buffer below the 
datalink during repeate frames for next station, and is needed by some software
help such as CTF.

For the CTF, I'm not familier with UNTRIX but I'v ever seen some CTF module in
DECnet/OSI ULTRIX FT kit.  Do you mean we cann't use CTF under ULTRIX?

Thank you,
Naoki
306.3Not yet.MIPSBX::thomasThe Code WarriorThu Jul 25 1991 01:483
We don't support CTF at the datalink level -- yet.  Anyways, it requires quite
a bit of CPU to keep up a fully saturated FDDI ring.  More at least than any
of the current MIPS boxes DEC has.
306.4KONING::KONINGEesti vabaks!Thu Jul 25 1991 11:345
Re .2: in general, for that sort of capability you need to look for a 
"datascope".  DTI is one of the companies that makes one that should serve;
there is at least one other whose name I forgot.

	paul
306.5TekelecCVG::LEKASFrom the Workstation of Tony LekasThu Jul 25 1991 18:325
The other company is Tekelec (Not sure about the spelling).
We have ordered a unit from them and expect to receive
it early August.

		Tony