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TERMINAL SERVERS
4.6 Accessing the Terminal Server from Remote/Network (Reverse-Telnet)
One can Telnet to the Terminal Server as well as to each of its specific ports,
including its parallel port, without needing separate IP numbers for each.
This allows you to share asynchronous devices such as modems and parallel
devices such as printers.
The Terminal Server is pre-configured with a Telnet listener function on
TCP port 23. Once a Telnet session is initiated to the Terminal Server on this
TCP port from any Telnet client, the user sees the same interface as if he was
accessing the server from a terminal connected directly to one of its serial
ports. This is useful for accessing the Terminal Server from a Telnet client
for management purposes.
The Telnet listener function is also associated with a TCP port in order
to differentiate between the serial ports of the Terminal Server, (bearing in
mind that the Terminal Server owns only one IP address and that several
printers may be connected at once). Therefore, there may be several Telnet
listeners defined on one specific Terminal Server, each listening on its own
TCP port and directing the information received by the session to a specific
serial or parallel port.
The Reverse Telnet (or Telnet Listener) service of the Terminal Server
may be used for many common applications:
• Connecting printers to the Terminal Server in a TCP/IP environment—
Terminal Server ports that are connected to printers are configured as
a Telnet listener. Hosts that need to print on these printers will use the
Telnet protocol to communicate with the Terminal Server.
• Communicating with serial devices from LAN stations—A Telnet listener
can also be configured to connect a Telnet client through the Terminal
Server to a specific serial (RS-232) device such as a modem.
In a specific case, the connecting Telnet client could be that of another
Terminal Server. In this case, its serial device connects and starts a Telnet
session on its behalf with a similar device. This is referred to as a back-to-
back application, and allows the transfer of serial traffic over TCP/IP
backbones.
Summary of Contents for LE2101A-BT-R2
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