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Q101150: Operating Characteristics and Restrictions of Named Pipes

Article: Q101150
Product(s): Microsoft LAN Manager
Version(s): 
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): 
Last Modified: 26-FEB-2002

SUMMARY
=======

Named pipes are provided as a LAN Manager or Windows for Workgroups redirector
component. The redirector uses the NetBIOS session layer which may be
implemented over many data communications protocols such as NetBEUI or TCP/IP
(NetBIOS over TCP/IP is sometimes referred to as RFC NetBIOS). Named pipe
applications may be restricted in their use by operating system and network
protocols.

On other network operating systems such as Novell Netware, named pipes are
supported not by the redirector or NetBIOS session layer, but by a Novell
IPX/SPX session layer.

NAMED PIPE COMPONENTS
---------------------

Each application that makes use of named pipes has a "server" component and a
"client" component. The server component creates named pipe instances and
listens for requests. Clients call the named pipe and the two applications begin
communicating.

Named Pipe Server Component:

The server component of a named pipe application creates named pipes using a
DOSMakeNamedPipe API. Typically, this API is supported by network servers such
as LAN Manager Servers, LAN Manager peer service, Windows NT or Windows NT
Advanced Server--the only platforms in a LAN Manager or Windows NT environment
that can share the InterProcess Communications resource IPC$ over which named
pipes transactions are carried. The "server" component of a named pipes
application is designed to run on one of these platforms, so that it can support
any "client" named pipe application that uses these protocols to connect to the
IPC$ resource.

Novell Netware also enables named pipe "server" applications to be supported on
OS/2 using the Novell Netware OS/2 requester. In this environment only clients
using Novell's IPX/SPX protocols are supported. The Novell NT requester which is
still in beta has not been shown to support named pipe server applications.

Named Pipe Client Component:

The client component of a named pipe application initiates a connection to a
named pipe application using the DOSConnectNamedPipe API. In a LAN Manager or
Windows NT environment this is supported once the client has established a
connection to the server's InterProcess Communications shared resource (IPC$).
This is typically done in a LAN Manager or Windows NT environment by the client
performing a NET USE command (for example: NET USE \\SERVERNAME\IPC$).

Therefore any client that can establish a connection to a server's IPC$ resource
is capable of running a named pipe "client" application.

In a Novell Netware environment, named pipe client applications communicate with
named pipe server applications by establishing a session using the IPX/SPX
protocols directly. There is no requirement for them to access a redirector
resource such as IPC$.

MULTIPLE CLIENTS
----------------

A named pipe server application can use named pipes to communicate with different
types of networking clients simultaneously (Windows NT, Windows for Workgroups
or DOS/Windows 3.1/LAN Manager) if the underlying protocols are all supported.
For example, if the OS/2 LAN Manager server is running the named pipe server
application and is using the TCP/IP protocol and all the clients are running
TCP/IP, then they all can communicate.

It has not been demonstrated whether a named pipe server application running on
an OS/2 LAN Manager server or a Windows NTmachine, and using the appropriate
requester, can support named pipe clients simultaneously over the redirector
(IPC$ resource) and the Novell IPX/SPX session layer.

MULTIPLE NETWORKS
-----------------

When two networks are connected by a router or bridge to form a wide area
network, named pipe applications may be supported across it. For example, if the
Microsoft LAN Manager TCP/IP (using RFC NetBIOS) is used as the data
communications protocol on both LANs, and the routers are capable of routing
TCP/IP data, then a named pipe client application can communicate to the named
pipe server application across the WAN.

Additional query words: wfw wfwg 2.00 2.1 2.10 2.10a 2.1a 2.20 2.2

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Keywords          :  

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