Subject: Do LERs/LSRs Perform PPP Negotiation ?

From: "Michael Koller" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 14 Aug 2000 17:36:30 -0000

This may be off-topic. If so, let me know.

Here goes:

Since PoS uses PPP as its datalink, is it true that every PoS router 
perform PPP LCP/NCP negotiation? Or do routers just use the PPP 
packet format for transport without any link or network negotiation?

Thanks.

---

From: James Carlson <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 14 Aug 2000 13:43:45 -0400 (EDT)

Michael Koller writes:
> perform PPP LCP/NCP negotiation?

Generally, yes, as long as they conform with the standards.  There are
other things (such as SRP) that run Packet-over-SONET without using
PPP.

> Or do routers just use the PPP 

No.  If you're using PPP, you must negotiate LCP and (if you're an LER
or LSR) IPCP and MPLSCP.

Avoiding accidental misconfiguration is a Good Thing; that's what PPP
negotiation is for.

More to the point -- I don't know of any routers that claim to do PPP
without negotiating and I know several that do negotiate.  I can't say
I know all of the implementations that exist.  Perhaps there are also
broken ones out there ...

-- 
James Carlson, Internet Engineering       <[email-masked]>
SUN Microsystems / 1 Network Drive         71.234W   Vox +1 781 442 2084
MS UBUR02-212 / Burlington MA 01803-2757   42.497N   Fax +1 781 442 1677
"PPP Design and Debugging" --- http://people.ne.mediaone.net/carlson/ppp