On 6 Mar 2001, at 15:50, David R. Robinson wrote:

To: "'ib-support@yahoogroups.com'" <ib-support@yahoogroups.com>
From: "David R. Robinson" <drobinson@...>
Date sent: Tue, 6 Mar 2001 15:50:16 -0600
Send reply to: ib-support@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [ib-support] IB for NetWare & Win2000 IPX/SPX

> >> Microsoft client ... Novell client
>
> Same problem exits regardelss of whether it is the MS or Novell
> client. We have customers with each and both have the same problems.
> We can duplicate it with both as well. Next idea? Can you or anyone
> get the BDE Administrator to work using an IPX/SPX connection to an
> InterBase for NetWare database?

Let me see if I have this right,

If the client is running Win9x, 3.1, NT 3.51 or NT4 then everything
is OK, but if the client is running Win2K it bungs up? If I assume
this is correct, then it's an incompatability some where.

Can I make the assumption, that the Win2K clients see the Netware
server, and can do anything except access the BDE stuff. Then it's
either that BDE or the IB client is the problem.

> >> Don't knock Netware
>
> You get no argument from me that NetWare is a great file and print
> server. I used NetWare for several years and for the most part, it
> worked great (as you said much better than NT does when it comes to
> running without having to reboot or fiddle with it). However, NetWare
> had/has its own bugs and problems too--like the nasty bug where the
> server just crashed if you exceeded the default setting for the
> maximum number of TTS transactions. We've been an InterBase VAR since
> 1997. We have over 7,000 users on InterBase and probably 1/3 or more
> of them are on NetWare. We rarely, if ever, have problems with people
> running IB for NT. We frequently have problems with people running IB
> for NetWare. Perhaps the company that Borland outsourced the NetWare
> port to did a lousy job--who knows. With that said, I'm not here to
> get into an OS war, so let's please drop this irrelevant part of the
> discussion.

Okay, solutions,

1) Put a Linux box running IB6 or Firebird into the server rack, with
a DHCP server running, no fuss, no muss TCP/IP, client machines get
their IP address from the server, assigned from the 192.168.x.x
blocks, these addresses can not be used to access the internet, and
the internet can't find them either. If the client at some future
date wants Internet Access, a firewall and NAT server can be
installed. The client uses Netware and IPX/SPX for everything else,
such a dual protocol network runs fine for me, here. You avoid the
IPX protocol for IB completely, and many of the other problems as
well.

2) If the app is purely IB based, TRY IBObjects (www.ibobjects.com)
as the database interface, it doesn't use the BDE. This would fix a
BDE vs Win2K problem, it can be a big project to port the app though.

3) Try a different IB Client, your either using a 5.6 client that
doesn't like Win2K, or your using a 6.0 client that doesn't like the
5.6 server. Try a different client, if your using 5.6 try the 6.0
client or Firebird Client, if your using the 6.0 client, try the 5.6
NT client or Firebird Client. One of these might work better.

> The bottom line is that we have customers that are using NetWare with
> IPX/SPX and aren't going to change to NT and probably won't change to
> TCP/IP, so we need a solution. All I'm trying to do is see if someone
> has a work around or knows how to get the BDE to talk to an IB
> database using IPX/SPX on a NetWare box.
>

If one of the above three doesn't help, then there is nothing else I
can think of.

Paul
Paul Schmidt,
Tricat Technologies
Email: paul@...
Website: www.tricattechnologies.com