Kent Covert ([log in to unmask]) wrote:
> So why doesn't this work at Miami?  Primarily, because the world is now run
> by TCP/IP which has no concepts of redundancy or load balancing for
> services.  A domain name only points to 1 system (ok...it can point to
> multiple systems...but is only served in a round robin fashion...not load
> balanced or allowing for a down system).
 
Kent, you're not trying to start a DECNet vs. TCP/IP Holy War, are you?
:)
 
There is nothing inherent to the TCP/IP protocol that wouldn't allow for
it. It just hasn't been widely distributed yet. In fact there is an RFC
(1631) that addresses this issue, using a protocol called NAT, which
operates at the router level to translate IP addresses. Cisco's
LocalDirector router uses it to intelligently load balance among the
servers for which it provides routing services.
 
It does have limitations (Kerberos will *not work*, nor will anything else
that relies on IP addresses for more than just routing), but it's still
pretty neat.
 
--
   Randy Kaelber:  [log in to unmask]  http://avian.dars.muohio.edu/~randy/
        DARS Programmer/Analyst, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056 USA