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Configuring LAT

Configuring LAT

The Digital Equipment Corporation (Digital) Local Area Transport (LAT) protocol is the one used most often to connect to Digital hosts. LAT is a Digital-proprietary protocol. Cisco provides LAT technology licensed from Digital. This chapter describes how to configure the LAT transmission protocol on the protocol translators. For a complete description of the commands in this chapter, see the Protocol Translator Command Reference publication. For information about establishing LAT connections, refer to the Communication Server and Protocol Translator Connection Guide.

Cisco supports the LAT 5.2 specification.

Cisco's Implementation of the LAT Protocol

The LAT protocol allows a user to establish a LAT connection to a host at another site, then pass the keystrokes from one system to the other. A user can establish a LAT connection through the protocol translator to a LAT host simply by entering the host name.

Unlike TCP/IP, LAT was designed to be used on local-area networks LANs) and it cannot be routed because it does not have a routing layer. However, a bridge or combined bridge and router, such as the Cisco router, can be used to carry LAT traffic across a wide-area network (WAN). Protocol translation can be used to carry LAT traffic over a WAN by first translating LAT to X.25 or Telnet, as shown in Figure 1-1.


Figure 1-1: Comparing LAT and TCP/IP Protocol Stacks



Master and Slave Functionality

The LAT protocol is asymmetrical; it has master and slave functionality. First, the LAT master starts a LAT circuit by sending a circuit start message, and then a LAT slave responds with its own circuit start message. From 1 to 255 LAT sessions can then be multiplexed on this circuit.

In a typical setup, where a user's terminal is connected to a protocol translator, the protocol translator acts as the master, and the target VMS host acts as the slave.

For example, the following command will result in the protocol translator PT1 acting as the master (or server) and the target VMS host, wheel, acting as the slave (or host).

PT1> lat wheel

A protocol translator can also act as a slave. This happens if the user connects from one protocol translator to another.

For example, the following command will result in PT1 acting as the master (server) and PT2 acting as the slave (host).

PT1> lat pt2

In a LAT host-initiated connection, the VMS system always acts as the LAT slave. For example, a print job originating from a VMS system initiates or triggers the protocol translator to which the printer is connected to act as the LAT master. In short, the master-slave relationship also applies to host-initiated sessions from a LAT slave.

LAT Services

Resources such as modems, computers, and application software are viewed in a LAT network as services that, potentially, any user in the network can use. A LAT node can offer one or more such LAT services and more than one LAT node can offer the same LAT service.

A LAT node that offers one or more services, collectively called advertised services, broadcasts its services in the form of Ethernet multicast messages, called LAT service announcements. Conversely, a LAT node can listen for LAT service announcements on the network. These messages are cached in a dynamic table of known LAT services, collectively called learned services.

Your protocol translator supports both learned and advertised services and, therefore, it also supports incoming and outgoing LAT sessions. The services rating of its advertised nodes are determined dynamically but can also beset statically.

To establish outgoing connections to a LAT service, the protocol translator searches for the service in the learned services cache. If one or more nodes is offering the same service, the node with the highest rating is chosen. For example, a LAT connection to a service offered by a VAXcluster connects to the node in that cluster that has the smallest load and thus the highest service rating. This is how load-balancing works in relation to a group of nodes offering the same service. An incoming LAT session connects from another LAT node to the service advertised by the local LAT node.

LAT Groups

Because potentially any user on a LAT network can access any of the services on the network, a LAT server manager uses the concept of group codes to allow or restrict access to the services.

When the group codes on both the protocol translator and the LAT host share a common group code, a connection can be established between the two. If the default group codes have not been changed, on either the protocol translators or the LAT hosts, a user on any protocol translator can connect to any learned service on the network.

You might want to design a plan that correlates group numbers with organizational groups, such as departments. You can define subgroups using the global line configuration commands described in this chapter. The "Define a Group List for Outgoing Connections" section later in this chapter describes how to enter group code lists in your protocol translator configuration file.

However, if you define groups for protocol translators and LAT hosts, you can partition these services into logical subnetworks. You can organize the groups so that users on one protocol translator view one set of services, and users on another protocol translator (or another line on the same server) view a different set. You may also wish to design a plan that correlates group numbers with organizational groups, such as departments.

A LAT host node's services cannot be accessed in part; access is granted, per node, on an all-or-none basis.

LAT Sessions and Connection Support

A LAT session is a two-way logical connection between a LAT service and the protocol translator. All this is transparent to the user at a console connected to a LAT session; to the user it appears that connection has been made to the desired device or application program.

When a host print job connects to a protocol translator, this is called a host-initiated connection. The protocol translator maintains a queue of hosts requesting connection by sending periodic status messages to the requesting host.

You can establish host-initiated connections by specifying a port number or by defining a service on the protocol translator. These same services are used for connections from other protocol translators.


Note If a connection request is received that specifies a service and a destination port name, the port name is used to determine the line number for connection purposes. This allows a user to connect to a specified port of the protocol translator simply by specifying any service on the server and a port number. (Earlier versions of the protocol translator software ignored the service name on inbound connections.)

Connecting a VMS Host to a Protocol Translator using LAT

Connecting a VMS host to a protocol translator using LAT is slightly different if you are connecting to a VMS host running VMS V5.4 or earlier or VMS V5.5 or later software.

VMS V5.4 or Earlier System

If a host-initiated connection is received that specifies a destination port number that corresponds to a virtual port on the protocol translator, a virtual EXEC process will be created for the user to log in with. This process can be used, in conjunction with the Digital set host/dte command on VMS, to connect to a Cisco protocol translator named ABLE from a VMS host node, as shown in the following example:

$lcp :==$latcp $lcp create port lta300: $lcp set port lta300:/service=able /node=able $set host/dte lta300:
VMS V5.5 or Later System

Turn on the VMS LAT hosts's outgoing connections and use the Digital set host/lat command, as shown in the following example:

$lcp :== $latcp $lcp set node/connection =outgoing $set host/lat able

Port Names When Configuring a LAT Printer

When you configure a LAT printer, the LAT port name is the line number without the "tty." For example, if you configure line tty10 of your protocol translator, named ABLE, to be a LAT printer port, the OpenVMS command to associate an arbitrary LTA device to a LAT port name is as follows:

$lcp :== $lcp $lcp create port lta300: $lcp set port/node=ABLE/port=10 lta300:

The LAT port name is the line number without the "tty," regardless of whether the format of the tty line number is decimal or octal. Refer to the line configuration chapter in this manual for more information about configuring the protocol translator's line to the correct terminal characteristics (for example, baud rate, EXEC, flow control, and so forth).

Additional LAT Capability

Cisco's protocol translator software fully supports the LAT protocol suite, and provides these features:

LAT Configuration Task List

Cisco's LAT protocol is supplied with a default configuration and does not require additional configuration for you to use it. The software does provide commands for customizing the LAT software for your environment, if desired.

Perform the following tasks to enable LAT, to customize LAT for your particular network environment, and to monitor and maintain LAT connections:

The steps to perform these tasks follow are described in the following sections. See the examples at the end of this chapter for ideas on how to configure LAT in your network.

Enable LAT

LAT is enabled by default on the protocol translator. If it has been disabled, you must reenable it. Perform the following tasks in interface configuration mode:

Task Command
Enable the LAT protocol. lat enabled
Disable the LAT protocol. no lat enabled

Define a LAT Node Name

You can give the protocol translator a node name that is different than the host name. Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Define a LAT node name. lat node node-name

Define a Group List for Outgoing Connections

You can define the list of services to which a user can connect. Do this by defining the group code lists used for connections from specific lines. Perform the following task in line configuration mode:

Task Command
Define the group list for an out-going connection on a specified line. lat out-group {groupname | number | range}

You limit the connection choices for an individual line by defining the group code lists for an outgoing connection. When a user initiates a connection with a LAT host, the user's line must share a common group number with the remote LAT host before a connection can be made.

Specify a Group List Logical Name

You can specify a name for group lists to simplify the task of entering individual group codes. In other words, a name makes it easier to refer to a long list of group code numbers. Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Specify logical names for group lists. lat group-list groupname {groupname | number | range}[enabled | disabled]

To display the defined groups, use the show lat groups command.

Specify Groups To Be Advertised

You can specify a group code mask to use when advertising all services for a node. You can enter more than one group code by listing the numbers. You can also enter both a group code name and group codes.

Task Command
Specify logical names for group lists. lat service-group {groupname | number | range} [enabled | disabled]

Enable Inbound Services

Just as LAT services are offered by host computers, they also can be offered by protocol translators. A protocol translator implements both the host and server portions of the LAT protocol. This allows connections from either hosts or protocol translators. When a host connects to a protocol translator, this is called a host-initiated connection. Collectively, both types of connections are referred to as inbound connections.

The tasks described in this section define support for host-initiated connections. This support includes refining the list of services that the protocol translator will support. An incoming session can be to either a port or a service. The port name is the terminal line number, as reported by the EXEC command show users all. Perform any of the following tasks in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Set the LAT password for a service. lat service service-name password password
Set the LAT service ID for a specific service. lat service service-name ident identification
Specify a static service rating for a specific service. lat service service-name rating static-rating
Configure a LAT rotary group. lat service service-name rotary group
Associate a command with a specific service for auto-execution. lat service service-name autocommand command
Enable inbound connections to a specific service. lat service service-name enabled
Display LAT services offered to other systems on the network. show lat advertised

A service must be specifically enabled, but not all of the attributes in the previous task table are necessary in a particular environment.

Control Service Announcements and Service Solicitation

Your protocol translator can be configured to support the service responder feature that is part of the latest LAT V5.2 specification.

Specifically, the DECserver90L+, which has less memory than other DECservers, does not maintain a cache of learned services. Instead, the DECserver90L+ solicits information about services as they are needed.

LAT V5.2 nodes can respond for themselves but LAT Version 5.1 nodes, for example VMS Version 5.4 or earlier nodes, cannot. Instead, a LAT Version 5.2 node configured as a service responder can respond in proxy for those LAT Version 5.1 nodes.

Your protocol translator can be configured as a LAT service responder. Of course, if all your nodes are LAT Version 5.2 nodes, you do not need to enable the service responder features.

You can control service announcements and service solicitations in the following ways:

Enable Proxy Solicitation Support

You can configure the protocol translator to respond to solicit-information requests addressed to LAT Version 5.1 nodes. This function allows nodes that do not cache service advertisements to interoperate with nodes that do not respond to solicit requests. Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Enable a proxy node to respond to solicit-information multicast messages. lat service-responder

Figure 1-2 shows how a protocol translator can act as a proxy for LAT servers.


Figure 1-2: Protocol Translator as Proxy for LAT Server



The DECserver 90L+ broadcasts a solicit information request in search of service "stella's" address. The VMS host, Stella, is unable to respond to the request because it is running LAT Version 5.1. The protocol translator is running LAT V5.2 with service responder enabled and informs the DECserver 90L+ of Stella's address.

Disable Broadcasts of Service Announcements

You can disable periodic broadcasts of service announcements. If service announcements are enabled, the LAT node will periodically broadcast service advertisements. If service announcements are disabled, the LAT node will not send service announcements; therefore a remote node requiring a connection to such a node must use solicit information messages to look up node information.

Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Disable periodic broadcasts of service advertisements. no lat service-announcements

Note Service announcements should only be disabled if all of the nodes on the LAN support the service responder feature.

Adjust the Time Between Service Announcements

You can adjust the time between LAT service advertisements for services offered by the protocol translator. This is useful in large networks with many LAT services and limited bandwidth. Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Adjust the time between service announcements. lat service-timer interval

Configure Traffic Timers

You can customize the environment for transmitting LAT messages. Cisco's implementation of LAT allows you to set these features:

These features affect all LAT connection types. Perform the following tasks, as necessary:

Task Command
Set the message retransmit limit. lat retransmit-limit number
Set the keepalive timer. lat ka-timer seconds
Set the virtual-circuit timer. lat vc-timer milliseconds

Optimize Performance

You can optimize performance for your LAT environment by performing the following tasks:

Set the Number of Sessions on a Virtual Circuit

You can set the number of sessions multiplexed over a single a LAT virtual circuit. The maximum (and default) number of sessions is 255. Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Set the maximum number of sessions on a LAT virtual circuit. lat vc-sessions number

Set the Number of Messages Received by a Host Node

You can set the number of messages received by a host at one time. Increasing this number can enhance performance. Before LAT Version 5.2, LAT allowed only one outstanding message at one time on a virtual circuit. This could limit the performance of large protocol translators. For example, only one Ethernet packet of data could be in transit at a time. With LAT Version 5.2, nodes can indicate that they are willing to receive more than one message at a time. During virtual circuit startup, each side communicates to the other how many outstanding messages it is willing to accept. Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Allow LAT host node to receive more than one message at a time. lat host-buffers number

Set the Number of Messages Received by a Server Node

You can set the number of messages received by a server at one time. Increasing this number can enhance performance. Before LAT Version 5.2, LAT allowed only one outstanding message on a virtual circuit at a time. This could limit the performance of large protocol translators because only one Ethernet packet of data could be in transit at a time. With LAT Version 5.2, nodes can indicate that they are willing to receive more than one message at a time. During virtual circuit startup, each side communicates to the other how many outstanding messages it is willing to accept. Perform the following task in global configuration mode:

Task Command
Allow a LAT server node to receive more than one message at a time. lat server-buffers receive-buffers

Define Access Lists

Since LAT groups were not intended to implement security or access control, the protocol translator software supports access lists to provide these functions. An access list is a sequential collection of permit and deny conditions that serve to restrict access to or from LAT nodes on a specific terminal line. Each access list statement defines a permit or deny condition and a matching criterion for the node name.

When a LAT connection is attempted (either incoming or outgoing), the node name of the destination service (not the service name) is compared against the regular expression. If they match, the connection is permitted or denied as specified.

Perform the following tasks to define access lists and conditions:

Task Command
Specify an access condition. lat access-list number {permit | deny} regular-expression
Restrict incoming and outgoing connections between a particular terminal line or group of lines and the node names in an access list. access-class list {in | out}

Monitor and Maintain LAT

To monitor and maintain LAT activity, perform one or more of the following tasks in EXEC mode:

Task Command
Display queued host-initiated connections. show entry
Delete an entry from the queue. clear entry number
Display active LAT sessions. show lat sessions [line-number]
Display traffic and resource utilization statistics. show lat traffic
Display information about LAT nodes. (display is like DEC interface.) show node [all | node-name] [counters | status | summary]
Display information about LAT nodes. show lat nodes
Display LAT learned services. show service [service-name]

LAT Examples

This section provides configuration examples that illustrate the tasks described in this chapter. Examples are as follows:

Example of Establishing Basic LAT Service

The following example establishes the LAT service ABLE for your protocol translator. Subsequently, your protocol translator will advertise ABLE (with default group code 0) on the LAN. Other LAT nodes can connect to your protocol translator using LAT service ABLE, provided the group codes on the LAT nodes and the group codes for ABLE intersect. By default, most LAT nodes, such as OpenVMS Version 5.5 hosts, have user group code set to 0, so you have default access to ABLE.

! Create LAT service with password protection and ! identification string using the following global configuration commands lat service ABLE password secret lat service ABLE ident Welcome to my machine

Example of Establishing a LAT Service with Selected Group Codes

The following example establishes the LAT service ABLE from your protocol translator with selected group codes 1, 4-7 and 167. This limits inbound access to those LAT nodes that have group codes that intersect with those for LAT service ABLE.

! Establish a LAT group list lat group-list HUBS 1 4-7 167 ! ! Enable LAT group list for the service-group lat service-group HUBS enabled ! ! Create LAT service with password protection and ! identification string lat service ABLE password secret lat service ABLE ident Welcome to my machine

Example of Displaying the LAT Services on the Same LAN

The following example demonstrates how you can check which LAT services are on the same LAN as your protocol translator. Note that your protocol translator's own LAT service ABLE is also listed, with the "Interface" column listing the interface as "Local."

able> show lat services Service Name Rating Interface Node (Address) CAD 16 Ethernet0 WANDER ABLE 16 Local CERTIFY 33 Ethernet0 STELLA

Example of Establishing an Outbound LAT Session

The following example establishes a LAT session to remote LAT service HELLO using an interactive session:

able> lat HELLO

Example of Logically Partitioning LAT Services by the Terminal Line

At the example site, lines 1 through 7 goes to the shop floor, line 8 through 11 goes to the Quality Assurance department and lines 12 through 16 goes to a common area.

LAT service CAD has group codes 3, 7, and 9 turned on and LAT service CERTIFY has group codes 4 and 120 through 125 turned on.

The example site wants users on the shop floor to be able to access LAT service CAD and those in Quality assurance to access LAT service CERTIFY. General users are to access all LAT services accepted by the protocol translator.

! Define LAT groupnames lat group-list DEFAULT 0 lat group-list FLOOR 3 lat group-list QA 4 line 1 7 lat out-group FLOOR enabled lat out-group DEFAULT disabled line 8 11 lat out-group QA enabled lat out-group DEFAULT disabled line 12 16 lat out-group DEFAULT QA FLOOR enabled

Note that you must not rely on group code partitioning as a security feature. Password protecting the LAT services, in this case, CAD and CERTIFY, at the remote nodes offering these LAT services is one security option. If the remote nodes are also protocol translators, you can enable TACACS and access lists.

Example of Configuring LAT Rotary Groups

The following example illustrates how to configure a range of lines for rotary connections, then establishes the LAT service named Modems for rotary connection:

! ! Establish rotary groups line 3 7 rotary 1 ! ! Establish modem rotary service ! lat service Modems rotary 1 lat service Modems enabled

Example of LAT Access Lists

The following is an example illustrating incoming permit conditions for all IP hosts and LAT nodes with specific characters in their names and a deny condition for X.25 connections to a printer. Outgoing connections, however, are less restricted.

! ! Permit all IP hosts, LAT nodes beginning with "VMS" and no X.25 ! connections to the printer on line 5 ! access-list 1 permit 0.0.0.0 255.255.255.255 lat access-list 1 permit ^VMS.* x29 access-list 1 deny .* ! line 5 access-class 1 in ! ! Meanwhile, permit outgoing connections to various places on all the ! other lines. ! ! Permit IP access within cisco access-list 2 permit 131.108.0.0 0.0.255.255 ! ! Permit LAT access to the Stella/blue complexes. lat access-list 2 permit ^STELLA$ lat access-list 2 permit ^BLUE$ ! ! Permit X25 connections to infonet hosts only. x29 access-list 2 permit ^31370 ! line 0 99 access-class 2 out

The following example illustrates how to define access lists that permit all connections, thereby conforming to software behavior prior to Release 9.0. Keep in mind that the value supplied for the list argument in both variations of the access-class line configuration commands is used for all protocols supported by the protocol translator. If you are already using an IP access list, it will be necessary to define LAT (and possibly X.25) access lists permitting connections to everything, to emulate the behavior of earlier software versions.

access-list 1 permit 131.108.0.0 0.0.255.255 access-list 1 permit 150.136.0.0 0.0.255.255 ! line 1 40 access-class 1 out ! define LAT access list that permits all connections lat access-list 1 permit .*

Example of Associating a Rotary Group with a Service

The following example defines a service that communicates with a specific line, defines a rotary with only that line specified. Establish rotary groups using line configuration commands and the rotary line configuration command.

hostname ciscots ! Service name for the protocol translator as a whole lat service ciscopt enable ! Set up some lines with unique service names line 1 rotary 1 lat service ciscopt1 rotary 1 lat service ciscopt1 enable ! line 2 rotary 2 lat service ciscopt2 rotary 2 lat service ciscopt2 enable

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