Mac OS 8.6: Open Transport 2.0.3 Read Me

This Read Me document contains late-breaking information about Open Transport and 3rd party software compatibility information. For instructions about how to use the Open Transport control panels (AppleTalk and TCP/IP), choose Mac OS Help in the Finder's Help menu.

For additional technical information about Open Transport, see the "OT 2.0 Technical Info - Part 1" and "OT 2.0 Technical Info - Part 2" documents. These documents can also be found in the OT Extras folder in the CD Extras folder on your Mac OS 8.6 CD.

Contents
What's new in Open Transport 2.0 - general
Bugs addressed
Network interface options
General compatibility
Apple product compatibility update
Known limitations and other issues

What's new in Open Transport 2.0 - general

Open Transport 2.0 now supports AppleScript. Through the use of Network Setup Scripting (NSS) Macintosh users can use AppleScript to configure all network communication options currently available in the AppleTalk, Infrared, Modem, Remote Access, and TCP/IP control panels. NSS operates locally and remotely, offering powerful automation capabilities to end users and network administrators.
Open Transport's implementation of the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) has been improved to support Client Identification and retention of the lease on a given IP address across reboots.
The Open Transport DHCP implementation now supports RFC 2131, and the temporary generation of an IP address when no DHCP server is available. For more information, see "OT 2.0 Technical Info - Part 1" for more information.
When using the new DHCP Client ID feature, the Client ID is entered into a new field in the TCP/IP control panel.
Support for the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is available for Open Transport. Support for the version 2 Management Information Base (MIB II), instrumentation for AppleTalk and TCP/IP protocols and transports, administrative tools, and system agent support for the PCI bus is now provided. For more information, see the Open Transport SNMP Read Me on your Mac OS 8.6 CD.
In the TCP/IP 2.0 control panel, users can now enter an IP address in standard "dot" notation in the IP Address text box, and immediately follow it with a slash ("/") and a number ranging from 1 to 32 (indicating the number of contiguous one bits in the subnet mask, counted from the high-order bit). For example, if a user's IP address is "198.162.22.10", and the appropriate subnet mask is "255.255.255.252", the user can enter "198.162.22.10/30" in the IP Address text box.

Issues Addressed

The following issues have been addressed in Open Transport 2.0.3:
Open Transport fixes several issues with DHCP:
- DHCP now sends out a decline packet when detecting a duplicate IP address.
- An issue was fixed which could cause a computer to become unresponsive when acquiring a DHCP lease.
- Issues with DHCP and some brands of cable modems have been fixed.
The AppleTalk control strip can now be used to turn AppleTalk on and off.
Open Transport 2.0.3 now fixes several issues with the OT Printer Access Protocol (PAP) Client.
Miscellaneous fixes are included in Open Transport that increase overall performance and reliability.

Network interface options

Open Transport supports PCI bus, NuBus, communications slot, and PC Card network interface cards, as well as Token Ring, Ethernet, and built-in LocalTalk network adapters. Open Transport 2.0 also supports a SCSI-attached network adapter for computers without expansion options. Third party network interface options available for Open Transport include Ethernet, ATM, and FDDI.

General compatibility

Open Transport is compatible with the following existing products:applications that use AppleTalk as specified by Apple, Inc.

applications that use MacTCP as specified by Apple, Inc.
devices (such as printers) that you select in the Chooser
Ethernet PCI and NuBus network interface cards for the Mac OS Computers running Open Transport can be added to an existing AppleTalk or TCP/IP network without upgrading other computers on the network.

Apple product compatibility update

At Ease version 2.x or 3.x may encounter difficulties when starting up with Open Transport. At Ease Update 1.0 will update non-Workgroup versions of At Ease 2.x or 3.x to include Open Transport compatibility. If you are using At Ease for Workgroups, you should upgrade to version 3.0.2 or later. Both can be found on Apple Software Update sites on the Internet and selected online services.
Apple exited the market as a vendor for Token Ring products. Apple has no plans for any new Apple-branded Token Ring products for Mac OS. Apple is no longer a vendor for Token Ring products. Apple has no plans for any new Apple-branded Token Ring products for Mac OS. However, Apple continues to work with Madge Networks to ensure the availability of 3rd party Token Ring products that are compatible with the latest Apple hardware and the Mac OS operating system. Madge Token Ring products are available through authorized Madge resellers. For more information, see the Madge Web site at http://www.madge.com.

Known limitations and other issues

Open Transport 2.0.3 has been qualified with Mac OS 8.6 only, using Open Transport 2.0.3 with any other version of the Mac OS may result in anomalous behavior.
To make sure your computer is "pingable" at all times, turn off the "Load only when needed" option in the TCP/IP control panel, and restart your computer. (To turn off "Load only when needed," open the TCP/IP control panel, choose User Mode from the Edit menu and select Advanced. Then click the Options button, and click the "Load only when needed" checkbox to remove the checkmark.)
When TCP/IP is set to "Load only when needed," the first TCP/IP application opened will cause Open Transport to load into memory. Some older applications don't cause Open Transport to load, and then report errors similar to those encountered when MacTCP is not installed. If this is a problem, turn off "Load only when needed" and restart your computer. For instructions, see above.
Generally, you should turn on the "Load only when needed" option in the TCP/IP control panel when using a modem. If TCP/IP is always loaded ("Load only when needed" is not checked), your modem may attempt to initiate a dialup connection at startup. Some MDEVs require more system heap memory than is available at startup, which may cause the computer to hang. Also, some Internet service providers charge by connect time, so you may be charged for the connection, even if you weren't using it.
To make AppleTalk active or inactive, use the AppleTalk control panel or the AppleTalk control strip. Using the Chooser to make AppleTalk inactive may not completely deactivate AppleTalk.
The TCP/IP control panel is able to obtain and utilize multiple gateway and name server addresses from DHCP and BootP servers. However, TCP/IP currently displays only the first address, and only in Basic user mode.
You should only specify use of 802.3 framing in the TCP/IP control panel if you have been directed to do so by your network manager, or if you are sure that all other stations on your network segment, including your IP router(s), are also configured to use 802.3 and not Ethernet version 2.0 framing.
Claris Emailer version 1.1 v3 or later and Claris Emailer Lite version 1.1 v4 or later is compatible with Open Transport 1.1.2 and later. Earlier versions of Claris Emailer may not be compatible with Open Transport's "Load only when needed" configuration option. If you experience a system crash 2-3 minutes after quitting Emailer, turn off the "Load only when needed" option. (Open the TCP/IP control panel and click the Options button, then click the "Load only when needed" checkbox to remove the check mark.)
NFS/Share versions 1.4.4 or later are compatible with Open Transport. NFS/Share is now part of Intragy Access from Ascend http://www.ascend.com/.
When using Netware Client version 5.11 configured for NetwareIP service, the first login may yield a Netware Configuration error message. To avoid this error, open the NetwareIP control panel and change the value under Domain SAP Server (DSS) Retry Attempts from 1 to 2. You can also change Open Transport TCP/IP control panel to always load TCP/IP into memory (open the TCP/IP control panel, click the Options button, and click the "Load only when needed" box to remove the check mark).
eXodus 5.2.2 and later versions are compatible with Open Transport.
If an Apple Remote Access (ARA) user is on a non-routed, extended (Ethernet) network, and there are devices on the local network with the same network number as devices on the remote network, the user won't be able to see the local devices. This issue can be fixed by installing a router. Another work around is to clear the PRAM on the ARA computer. (Hold down the Command, Option, and PR keys simultaneously while starting up the computer). Clearing PRAM causes the computer to start up with a new network number, which should not conflict with the remote network number.