Re: [cobalt-users] [RaQ 4] how to use the 2nd network connection

[elmer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

On Thu, 1 Feb 2001, Mike Mulder so wrote:

} I like to setup the 2nd network connection for backup purposes, so that the
} first connector handles the normal network traffic (www etc) and the backup
} (using FTP) is send through a separate network. Is this possible, and if so,
} how?

	Yes and no... we've been playing with this here for some
time now. Using multiple connections for different services is
possible, but there are limitations and you probably won't be able
to get everything to work exactly as you'd like it to as a result of
those limitations.

	You can terminate multiple connections into one switch or
hub and access them by their respective address space from any
machine on the network. While static routes tend to get a bit messy,
you can add static routes to your server's routing table and thereby
utilize both connections. For example, you could put all anonymous
ftp on the address space from one connection and www traffic on the
other connection.

	None of this is hard to do. But you need to know enough
about routing to set up the routes and to keep yourself out of
trouble. typing man route at the shell prompt will provide the
information you'll need to do just that.

	For what it's worth, I've found that doing this blind is
sure to result in one getting in trouble... connecting a box to
a circuit doesn't require a great deal of expertise, neither
does connecting a box to two circuits but using both circuits to
your best advantage does. Thus I'd personally recommend that you get
a good handle on the nuances involved:

	I started playing with this after reading the "Load
Balancing" mini-howto associated with the Linux Router Project.
Section 3 of the mini-howto specifically. You can find it by doing a
search for the "Linux Router Project". It contains everything you
need to know but, IMO, it assumes that the reader has a solid
understanding of the basics of routing. I didn't and it wasn't until
I read Christian Huitema's book, "Routing in the Internet" (I
ordered it through a local bookstore) and Craig Hunt's "TCP/IP
Network Administration" (available from O'Reilly) that I became
comfortable enough with what we were doing to successfully manage
and maintain it.