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keywords: Remote kernel without using rsh, mathlink, firewall

  • To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
  • Subject: [mg13531] keywords: Remote kernel without using rsh, mathlink, firewall
  • From: ostiffel <ostiffel at leland.stanford.edu>
  • Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1998 04:33:39 -0400
  • Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com

Hi,

I would like to use a remote kernel, but I am behind a firewall.

I need to know the details of how the remote kernel connects and
communicates with the front end.  My understanding is that


   -------------------------------------------
   In[1]:= LinkOpen[LinkMode -> Listen, LinkProtocol -> "TCP"]

   Out[1]= LinkObject[4649 at machine.domain.com, 1, 1]
   -------------------------------------------

followed by


   -------------------------------------------
   In[2]:= $ParentLink = %
   -------------------------------------------

makes the kernel wait on port 4649 on machine.domain.com for any TCP
connection.

I need to know if once the front end contacts the machine on port 4649,
if that is the only TCP connection involved.  Because of the firewall,
I can initiate connections, but I can't receive any TCP connections, so
if the remote math kernel tries to contact the front end, it will fail.
I also need to know if the math kernel verifies the front end client
when it connects, or if it expects the client's port to be a special
port (i.e. a reserved port).

For the connection to work in the presence of our firewall, the math
kernel needs to be passive, in that it accepts all TCP connections on
the specified port, and does not try to authenticate the client or to
contact the client through a new tcp connection.  Is this the default
behavior, or is it possible to make it act like this?


Thanks,

Oscar Stiffelman
Stanford University Computer Science Deparment, Masters Student in
Artificial Intelligence



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