ATM Configuration at the ICSI

The local ATM network at ICSI consists of an ATM switch and nine ATM Workstations. All Workstations are connected directly to the ATM Switch at OC3 Speed (155Mbit/s). Four of these workstations are connected to the Bay Area Gigabit Network (BAGNet) , a high speed ATM test bed in the San Francisco Bay Area. The other workstations are used in the Multimedia Applications on Intercontinental-Highway (MAY) network. All management tasks for the ATM network can be done by members of a the atmdevel group.

Related Pages

ICSI Switch Configuration Page
ICSI Adapter Configuration Page
ICSI ATM troubleshooting page
Interconnection between MAY and BAGNet Hosts

ATM Switch

We are using the LattisCell ATM Switch Model 10114-SM . This Switch offers 16 Sonet/SDH 155Mbit/s ports, 14 of these ports are multimode fiber two are singlemode fiber interfaces. The driver for the BayNetworks (formerly SynOptics) switch runs on icsib23. This machine is connected to the switch via ethernet. The management software runs on icsib8. For detailed information on how to setup and close connections check out the ICSI Switch Configuration Page .

ATM Hosts

Currently four BAGNet and five MAY hosts are connected to the ATM Switch. The BAGNet and MAY network are two totally isolated networks, i.e. usually there doesn't exist a route between both IP subnets and also no routes between these networks and the Internet. If you want to set up a connection between a BAGnet workstation and a MAY host you have to do this.
All hosts within one subnet are connected by fully meshed PVC connections. For the encapsulation of the IP packets the LLC/SNAP encapsulation method (RFC 1477) is used. Additionally to the interconnection of the local workstations there are a lot of connections to remote hosts. For further information about the BAGnet connectivity look at the ICSI's BAGNet Configuration. Besides the point to point connections several BAGNet workstations are interconnected via a fully meshed multicast tree.
We are using Fore SBA-200E and Interphase 4615 ATM adapters for our SUN sparc Workstations. The names of the workstations and the ATM adapters, video boards Operating Systems used are shown in the table below. How to setup and close PVCs and what has to be done if a new workstation is setup is on the ICSI Adapter Configuration Page.

1. ATM Adapter Configuration: These scripts are located in /n/tuna/da/tenet/MAY/atm_adapter_config/.
   • setup_pvcs_HOSTNAME - For each host there is a script that sets up all the PVCs for the local fully meshed interconnection on the Host ATM adapter. This script is usually run during boot time by the /etc/local/rc.HOSTNAME file, i.e., no user action is needed to setup the local connections on the Hosts.

2. ATM Switch Configuration: The Switch configuration scripts are located in /n/tuna/da/tenet/MAY/atm_switch_config/.
   • setup_all_pvcs - This script sets up all point to point and point to multipoint connections needed for BAGNet and the local interconnection of all MAY Hosts (the VCIs are chosen by the following rule: For the connection to workstation icsimayX the vci 90X is used. Connections to remote MAY Hosts has to be setup with the open_ext script (see below). This script has to be run at reboot time of the switch.
   • open port1 vci1 port2 vci2 speed[Mbit/s] - This script sets up a connection in the ATM switch between the ports and vcis specified by the port1, vci1, port2 and vci2parameters (the vpi is automatically set to zero). The traffic class is UBR (Unassigned Bit Rate) with a sustainable and peak bit rate specified by the speed[Mbit/s] parameter.
   • drop port1 vci1 port2 vci2 - This script drops a connection in the ATM switch between the ports and vcis specified by the port1, vci1, port2 and vci2parameters, vpi is always set to zero.

3. Connections to External Workstations: These Scripts are also located in /n/tuna/da/tenet/MAY/atm_switch_config/. They are using the open and drop ATM switch configuration scripts and a Database File (INTERNAL_VCIs) containig the definition of the internally used VCIs (between ICSI workstation and ICSI switch) for the connection to the external worksation. What to do if a set up connection doesn't work can be found on the ICSI ATM troubleshooting page.
   • open_ext local_workstation external_workstation external_vci speed[MBit/s] - This script reads the INTERNAL_VCIs file and retrieves the right number for the external_workstation. With this information it sets up the PVC in the local workstation with the traffic shaping parameter specified by the speed parameter. Moreover it sets up the PVC in the ATM switch with the specified external_vci which is one of the four currently available VCIs to Germany (272-275), the VCI which should be used for the connection has to be discussed with Falk Schulz from DeTeBerkom.
   • drop_ext local_workstation external_workstation external_vci - This script closes the connection previously installed with the open_ext script between the local workstation and the external_workstation using the external_vci.