[heads up] axing AppleTalk and IPX/SPX

[Bob Bishop]

Hi,

On 28 Oct 2013, at 12:42, Gleb Smirnoff wrote:

>  Hello!
> 
>  [Cc to stable@, for wider audience]
> 
>  The plan is two axe two old networking protocols from FreeBSD head/,
> meaning that FreeBSD 11.0-RELEASE, available in couple of years would
> be shipped without them.
> 
> 1) AppleTalk
> 
>   Last time claimed to be supported by vendor in 2007[1]. In practice
>   had very little use since 90th.
>   Discontinued by major routing equipment vendors since 2009[2].

More pertinantly, netatalk dropped AppleTalk support with v3.0 in 2012[a].

[a] http://netatalk.sourceforge.net/3.0/ReleaseNotes-3.0-alpha1.html

> 2) IPX
> 
>   Last time claimed to be supported by vendor in 2007[3]. In practice
>   had very little use since 90th.
>   Discontinued by major routing equipment vendors since 2011[4].
> 
> Current status of these protocols in FreeBSD is "compilable". For the
> next couple of years, we plan a lot of changes in networking stack,
> many of which will require changing the protocols, as well. Keeping
> them in compilable state would require additional manpower, but it
> is very probable, that after all the changes they will be utterly
> broken, albeit compilable.
> 
> P.S. I account any objector as taker of maintainership :)
> 
> [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X_v10.5
>    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mac_OS_X_v10.6
> [2] http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/iosswrel/ps8802/ps5460/product_bulletin_c25-520459.html
> [3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Enterprise_Server#OES-NetWare
> [4] http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/ios/novipx/configuration/guide/Novell_IPX_Discontinuation.html
> 
> -- 
> Totus tuus, Glebius.
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Bob Bishop          +44 (0)118 940 1243
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