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1. Introduction.

This is the Linux NET-2/3-HOWTO. This document is a complete rewrite of the earlier NET-FAQ and of the subsequent NET-2-HOWTO versions 1.0+. This document is for the new NET-2/NET-3 tcp/ip networking code for Linux kernels 1.0 and above.

1.1 Changes from the previous release.

Additions:

Corrections/Updates:
        updated ipalias to apply to new 1.3.* kernels
        pointed IPX questions to IPX-HOWTO

1.2 A brief development history of Linux Networking.

Ross Biro <[email protected]> wrote the original kernel based networking code for Linux. He used ethernet drivers written by Donald Becker <[email protected]>, a SLIP driver written by Laurence Culhane <[email protected]> and a D-Link driver by Bj0rn Ekwall <[email protected]>.

The further development of the Linux networking code was later taken up by Fred van Kempen <[email protected]>, who took Ross's code and produced the NET-2 release of network code. NET-2 went through a number of revisions until release NET-2d, when Alan Cox <[email protected]> set about debugging Fred's code with the aim of producing a stable and working release of code for incorporation into the standard kernel releases. This code was called originally called NET-2D(ebugged) and was incorporated into the standard kernel releases some time before Linux version 1.0 was released.

PPP support was added by Michael Callahan, <[email protected]> and Al Longyear, <[email protected]>, originally as patches to the kernel and in later releases as part of the standard kernel distribution.

The latest version of the code, NET-3, appears in kernel releases 1.1.5 and later and is essentially the same code, but with many fixes, corrections and enhancements.

Alan has added such features as IPX and AX.25 modules. Florian La Roche, <[email protected]> has produced an updated distribution of network applications.

NIIBE Yutaka has enhanced the PLIP driver.

Jonathan Naylor has taken up development work on the AX.25 code and has added many features including NetRom support.

Many other people have made contributions by way of bug fixes, ports of applications and by writing device drivers.


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