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[KB84]How multi-station communication works

Tags: Multistation, Networking

Communication interfaces
14 years ago
By RM
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Applies to:

PcVue version 7.10c onwards. From PcVue version 9.0 onwards the NETBIOS technology referenced in this article is supported for backwards compatability only.
While the basic content of this article remains valid, details may have changed since it was written.
Summary:

A server station (or ‘producer’) is always in listening mode on the network, ready to establish connections. A client station uses a function call to establish a connection with each server

The recipient station is identified by its NETBIOS identifier as defined by the AddName function

  • When a connection is established, a receive function is executed to receive data.
  • On receipt of data, a further receive function is executed.
  • When a connection is broken, the client station issues a call to restore the connection.
Details:

How the communications protocol and the network card are selected

The transport protocol (TCP/IP or NETBEUI etc.) as well as the network card are identified by a ‘LANA’ number (LAN adapter). This is used by all of the NETBIOS functions outlined above. It enables a NETBIOS application to identify a combination of a protocol and network card manager.

For more information on the Microsoft LAN Manager and the NETBIOS interface, see the Microsoft Knowledge base, e.g. article no. 103275 on ‘How to Find Lana Numbers for Applications’.

Created on: 22 Oct 2010 Last update: 13 May 2024