Re: Comments on NHRP spec.,, modes of deployment etc.

[Grenville Armitage <[e-mail]>]

Bruce,

	[..I think shur@arch4 wrote..]
>>> I would like the spec to define and differentiate between the NHRP
>>> client-server interface
>>
>>I see no difference from a protocol point of view.  Any station within
>>the NBMA can potentially send both request and response packets.
>>
>>> and the NHRP server-server interface, and keep
>>> these separate from any discussion of modes of deployment.
>>
>>There is no server to server protocol.

I understood the original question to request a clarification
of the fact that there can be two identifiable 'interfaces' involved
in NHRP (the host-NHS and the NHS-NHS), even though the same
packet format is used to propagate NHRP messages in each case.
So, in one sense there is indeed a server to server 'protocol',
it just happens to be the same as the client-server case.

The alternative interpretation is that every NHS is considered
a client of the NHS it forwards the query to, so ensuring
you only ever have a client-NHS case. Is this they way you
visualise it? (forgive me it says this in the spec - my memory
is not what it might be sometimes :)

The advantage of the former approach is that you'd then have
a conceptual framework for evolving the client-NHS and
NHS-NHS protocols in different ways if it seemed reasonable
in the future (e.g. to hide loop avoidance or black-hole detection
mechanisms from the clients?).

cheers,
gja