The GatorBox is a LocalTalk-to-Ethernet bridge, a router used on

Macintosh The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and software en ...

-based networks to allow AppleTalk communications between clients on

LocalTalk LocalTalk is a particular implementation of the physical layer of the AppleTalk networking system from Apple Computer. LocalTalk specifies a system of shielded twisted pair cabling, plugged into self-terminating transceivers, running at a rate ...

and

Ethernet Ethernet () is a family of wired computer networking technologies commonly used in local area networks (LAN), metropolitan area networks (MAN) and wide area networks (WAN). It was commercially introduced in 1980 and first standardized in 1 ...

physical networks. The GatorSystem software also allowed

TCP/IP The Internet protocol suite, commonly known as TCP/IP, is a framework for organizing the set of communication protocols used in the Internet and similar computer networks according to functional criteria. The foundational protocols in the suit ...

and

DECnet DECnet is a suite of network protocols created by Digital Equipment Corporation. Originally released in 1975 in order to connect two PDP-11 minicomputers, it evolved into one of the first peer-to-peer network architectures, thus transforming DEC ...

protocols to be carried to LocalTalk-equipped clients via tunneling, providing them with access to these normally Ethernet-only systems. When the GatorBox is running GatorPrint software, computers on the Ethernet network can send print jobs to printers on the

network using the 'lpr' print spool command. When the GatorBox is running GatorShare software, computers on the

network can access

Network File System Network File System (NFS) is a distributed file system protocol originally developed by Sun Microsystems (Sun) in 1984, allowing a user on a client computer to access files over a computer network much like local storage is accessed. NFS, lik ...

(NFS) hosts on Ethernet.

Specifications

* The original ''GatorBox'' (model: 10100) is a desktop model that has a 10 MHz

Motorola Motorola, Inc. () was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, United States. After having lost $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009, the company split into two independent public companies, Motorol ...

68000 The Motorola 68000 (sometimes shortened to Motorola 68k or m68k and usually pronounced "sixty-eight-thousand") is a 16/32-bit complex instruction set computer (CISC) microprocessor, introduced in 1979 by Motorola Semiconductor Products Secto ...

CPU, 1 MB

RAM Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to: Animals * A male sheep * Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish People * Ram (given name) * Ram (surname) * Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director * RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch * ...

, 128 KB

EPROM An EPROM (rarely EROM), or erasable programmable read-only memory, is a type of programmable read-only memory (PROM) chip that retains its data when its power supply is switched off. Computer memory that can retrieve stored data after a power s ...

for boot program storage, 2 KB

NVRAM Non-volatile random-access memory (NVRAM) is random-access memory that retains data without applied power. This is in contrast to dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) and static random-access memory (SRAM), which both maintain data only for as lon ...

for configuration storage, LocalTalk

Mini-DIN The mini-DIN connectors are a family of multi-pin electrical connectors used in a variety of applications. Mini-DIN is similar to the larger, older DIN connector. Design Mini-DIN connectors are in diameter and come in seven patterns, wit ...

-8 connector, Serial port Mini-DIN-8 connector,

BNC connector The BNC connector (initialism of "Bayonet Neill–Concelman") is a miniature quick connect/disconnect radio frequency connector used for coaxial cable. It is designed to maintain the same characteristic impedance of the cable, with 50 ohm and 7 ...

, AUI connector, and is powered by an external power supply (16 VAC 1 A

transformer A transformer is a passive component that transfers electrical energy from one electrical circuit to another circuit, or multiple circuits. A varying current in any coil of the transformer produces a varying magnetic flux in the transformer' ...

that is connected by a 2.5 mm plug). This model requires a software download when it is powered on to be able to operate. * The ''GatorBox CS'' (model: 10101) is a desktop model that uses an internal power supply (120/240 V, 1.0 A, 50–60 Hz). * The ''GatorMIM CS'' is a media interface module that fits in a Cabletron Multi-Media Access Center (MMAC). * The ''GatorBox CS/Rack'' (model: 10104) is a

rack Rack or racks may refer to: Storage and installation * Amp rack, short for amplifier rack, a piece of furniture in which amplifiers are mounted * Bicycle rack, a frame for storing bicycles when not in use * Bustle rack, a type of storage bi ...

-mountable version of the GatorBox CS that uses an internal power supply (120/240 V, 1.0 A, 50–60 Hz). * The ''GatorStar GXM'' integrates the GatorMIM CS with a 24 port LocalTalk

repeater In telecommunications, a repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it. Repeaters are used to extend transmissions so that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an obstruction. Som ...

. * The ''GatorStar GXR'' integrates the GatorBox CS/Rack with a 24 port LocalTalk repeater. This model does not have a

and the serial port is a female

DE-9 connector The D-subminiature or D-sub is a common type of electrical connector. They are named for their characteristic D-shaped metal shield. When they were introduced, D-subs were among the smallest connectors used on computer systems. Description, no ...

. All "CS" models have 2 MB of memory and can boot from images of the software that have been downloaded into the EPROM using the GatorInstaller application.

Software

There are three disks in the GatorBox software package. Note that the content of the disks for an original GatorBox is different from that of the GatorBox CS models. * ''Configuration'' - contains GatorKeeper, MacTCP folder and either GatorInstaller (for CS models) or GatorBox TFTP and GatorBox UDP-TFTP (for original GatorBox model) * ''Application'' - contains GatorSystem, GatorPrint or GatorShare, which is the software that runs in the GatorBox. The application software for the GatorBox CS product family has a "CS" at the end of the filename. GatorPrint includes GatorSystem functionality. GatorShare includes GatorSystem and GatorPrint functionality. * ''Network Applications'' - NCSA Telnet, UnStuffit

Software Requirements

* The GatorKeeper 2.0 application requires

System version 6.0.2 up to 7.5.1 and Finder version 6.1 (or later) *

MacTCP MacTCP was the standard TCP/IP implementation for the classic Mac OS through version 7.5.1. It was the first application-independent implementation of a TCP stack for a non-Unix platform and predates Winsock by over 5 years. Released in 1988, it is ...

(not

Open Transport Open Transport was the name given by Apple Inc. to its implementation of the Unix-originated UNIX System V, System V STREAMS networking stack. Based on code licensed from Mentat's Mentat Portable Streams, Portable Streams product, Open Transport wa ...

)

References

External links

GatorBox CS configuration information
* ttp://juiced.gs/backissues/ ''Juiced.GS'' magazine Volume 10, Issue 4 (Dec 2005)– contains an article on how to set up a GatorBox for use with an

Apple IIGS The Apple IIGS (styled as II), the fifth and most powerful of the Apple II family, is a 16-bit personal computer produced by Apple Computer. While featuring the Macintosh look and feel, and resolution and color similar to the Amiga and Atari ST ...

Software and scanned manuals for the GatorBox and GatorBox CS
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gatorbox Networking hardware

Specifications

Software

Software Requirements

See also

References

External links