PPP and Shell
What is PPP?
PPP (Point to Point Protocol)
is a way of establishing a network connection over a phone line.
PPP, the official serial line protocol of
the Internet, is in many ways very similar to SLIP. PPP is more
flexible than SLIP, though. PPP gathers important IP information from
the server (the network being contacted), and allows other protocols
beyond TCP/IP.
What does it do?
PPP allows a remote computer to become part of a network with only
some software and a modem. When you connect to Interport using PPP,
the connection has three main stages, or "layers:"
- The Physical Layer is the actual connection over a phone line of one
computer to another. This is usually accomplished with a modem.
- The Network Layer is a software connection that establishes your
computer as part of a TCP/IP network. In other words, your computer
becomes part of the Internet, with it's own, unique IP address. This
layer is accomplished with special software such as Trumpet Winsock, or
Mac TCP and Mac PPP.
- The Application Layer describes the programs that you run to make use
of this network connection. Netscape is an example of a network
application.
How do I establish a PPP connection?
To establish a PPP network connection, you will need special
software. SCESCAPE clients use Trumpet Winsock(PC) and Mac
PPP(Mac). These programs are designed to use a modem to establish a
connection (physical layer), and then use PPP protocol
to establish a network connection. Once the network layer has been
established, this network connection can be used by applications like
Netscape.
What is Shell Access?
Before PPP, remote computers could only log in as dumb terminals
of the the main system. This 'dumb terminal' mode is now called "Shell
Access." Many people still prefer the high speed of using Shell access
to the Internet, or using the main network for its resources. But
most people prefer the flexibility that PPP allows.
SCESCAPE subscribers have access to PPP or Shell. For information
on how to access the Unix Shell at SCESCAPE, click here.