by @Macarlo
Team OS/2 registered
Screenshots by Embellish registered

Hi All.
Last week I denounced here that Brazilian free Internet Service Providers was forcing Windows agreement, using a special dialer that runs only on Windows environment:
 Free ISPs Forces Windows Agreement

But yesterday March 21 the problem is solved: SafeFire PPP 1.0 Beta 2 has been released by russian developers and uploaded on Hobbes. I downloaded it (sfppp1b2.zip, 477KB) and tested it on my Warp 4 FP12. This new file replaces sfp09b60.zip available in Hobbes. Using this dialer all free ISP can be connected just fine from OS/2. In the photo below you can see the OS/2 Supersite loaded on my Warp 4 FP12 OS/2 Client through a connection made quickly and easy with SafeFire PPP using the Brazilian free ISP IG:

   Ordering

    SafeFire PPP is shareware and can be ordered at The GammaTech Mall at
    http://www.gt-mall.com

  The SafeFire PPP installation have not any mystery. You simply unzip the downloaded pack into a temp directory and click the install.cmd. This fine release will ask you about the directory that you have reserved for SafeFire PPP as you can see in the photo below:

...When you have chose the desired options the soft makes easy the install process, creating a folder and an object in your desktop and updating your Config.sys, as you can see in the photo below:

SafeFire PPP have a nice notebook where you can make the desired configuration and several scenario are available. I used the Dial-up client (simple), as you can see in the photo below:

You put the telephone number, the username and the password and that is all, man! Modem and port has automatically detected by SafeFire PPP and also the DNS numbers of the ISP will be detected! Click connect and enjoy, as you can see in the photo below:

SafeFire PPP 1.0 Beta 2 overview

Copyright (C) 1999, 2000  Link Guard Solutions Ltd.

SafeFire PPP is a new, powerful implementation of a PPP protocol.
SafeFire PPP is native OS/2 software, implemented from scratch by highly experienced developers. This means solid 32 bit, heavy multithreaded, completely modular design. It provides the greatest possible performance and flexibility. SafeFire PPP can handle virtually any task which can be imagined for PPP: from simplest dial-up PPP to multilink ISP. Modular design provides incredible configuration flexibility while retaining consistence and unification of components and its configuration.

Most notable SafeFire PPP features are:

• PPP implementation compatible with latest RFC

  1332 The PPP Internet Protocol Control Protocol (IPCP)
  1334 PPP Authentication Protocols
  1570 PPP LCP Extensions
  1661 The Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)
  1662 PPP in HDLC-like Framing
  1877 PPP Internet Protocol Control Protocol Extensions for Name Server Addresses
  1962 The PPP Compression Control Protocol (CCP)
  1994 PPP Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP)
  2138 Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS)
  2139 RADIUS Accounting
  2433 Microsoft PPP CHAP Extensions
  2516 A Method for Transmitting PPP Over Ethernet (PPPoE)

• Callback
  Reduce your phone bills by using this feature. Provider will call you back and make a connection.

• Dial-On-Demand
  This money saving feature is complemented with powerful packet filtering feature.

• Modular design
  Full control over which parts of SafeFire PPP will be loaded and how they will be connected together to accomplish the task.

• Three packet filters for various purposes:

  • Incoming filter to filter out dangerous packets before it will reach TCP/IP stack or NAT engine.

  • Secondary filter placed after NAT engine to filter, gathering statistics, logging and other tasks. Placed after NAT engine it sees packets just like there is no NAT.

  • Dial-On-Demand filter which makes possible to fine tune conditions when SafeFire PPP will start outgoing connection.

• NAT (Network Address Translation)
  NAT enables transparent Internet access for workstations in LAN without any need of special client software or complicated setup for it.

• CCP (Compression Control Protocol)
  CPP makes your Internet access as fast as possible by using modern compression methods.

• Most of modern authentication protocols
  Supported protocols are:

  • PAP (Password Authentication Protocol)

  • CHAP (Challenge Authentication Protocol), including MD5 (standard) and Microsoft extension (MS-CHAP). for you to have no problems with any ISP.

• REXX API for connection script.
  Standard PPP.EXE which comes with OS/2 provides REXX API for connection scripts.
  SafeFire PPP retains compatibility with that API and extends it with some new useful functions which allows setting and getting modem control lines.

• REXX API for authentication.
  Authentication modules also implemented as plugins. One of the plugins contains a REXX API for user defined authentication functions. Example of using this API provided with SafeFire PPP uses standard pap.sct/chap.sct files.

• A set of predefined configuration files for most common cases:

  • Dial-Up client

  • Dial-Up server

  • Leased line client

  • Leased line server

SafeFire PPP has very flexible configuration. This means that if you don't need some of it's features (like NAT or CCP) they will not be loaded and will not consume RAM or CPU. To make the configuration simple we have provided set of prepared configuration file templates for different roles.

CONTACT AUTHOR

Link Guard Solutions Ltd

devppp@lgs.kiev.ua

http://www.lgs.kiev.ua

@Macarlo, Inc.
@Macarlo's Shareware & Web
OS/2
Java Lobby Member
Java Site Accredited

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