dillon@POSTGRES.BERKELEY.EDU (Matt Dillon) (01/28/89)
I have decided to support BBS like operations under DNET. Several people have approached me with this in mind. To do this I need to add some new features: A new option or two to the DNET command line, like to be able to set the client which is automatically run on connect (currently DNET automatically runs FTERM on connect). i.e. set it to the bbs server. (1) a user-name / password server. On initial connect DNET will set an enviroment variable, DNET_LEVEL, to "0". User X will be able to connect to the password server to modify the access level. (2) A BBS server. This will also have an incorporated password server in it and set the DNET_LEVEL according to user name and password. I don't in tend to make a full fledged bbs server .. I'll leave that to others, but what I do make will be quite usable. I.E. this would be automatically run by DNET on the BBS side and open a standard STERM (remote user interactive window) on the user side. The BBS server would be like the interactive menu driven stuff you see today, just that it is a server now rather than the whole shebang. (3) DNET_LEVEL will be read by all the servers. For example, it would limit which directories you can download to. (The user can also limit his own servers in the same manner so hostile BBSs will not be able to overwrite his C: directory or something). The SCLI server would only run if the highest access were granted. (Currently, the only way to prevent servers from being run is to remove their entries from the S:dnet.servers file) (4) A new server called GETFILES will be written. Currently, there is only PUTFILES (i.e. the BBS would have to do a 'putfiles' to download to you). Adding a GETFILES puts all file uploading and downloading at the user's discretion. (5) Better handling of error conditions in the file transfer servers. i.e. allow you to ^C your putfiles/getfiles to abort a transfer. PUTFILES/GETFILES will restrict directories you are allowed to upload to and download from by comparing the comment field of the root of the directory tree to the current access level. (i.e. have LEVEL=<blah> in the commnet field for the directory) Access privilages to files would be restricted according to their parent directory. (I'll keep on ParentDir()ing until I hit root or a valid comment field to determine access privilages). The SCOPY server (server for putfiles & getfiles) will look at various new enviroment variables for limits on download/upload total-group-size. This can be used by the BBS server to warn users if a download/upload will take too much time. And, of course, since DNET is a general client/server oriented program It would be really keen to have a MAIL server that automatically downloads mail destined for the user and automatically uploads mail from the user (that he had queued beforehand). And, how about this: have some kind of automatic-dialup program. Every so often or on a schedule (cron?) the BBS would dial up other local BBSs to exchange mail and whatnot. Say... do you think we could span the nation on local lines? -Matt