In networked or remote situations, when two workstations connect, the response time from one workstation to the other can vary, partly due to CPU loading, but mostly due to link throughput limitations. The solution to this matter is to set up link tolerances for particular workstations so that other workstations can link them using the specified tolerance values, thereby solving the response time variance.
A "tolerance factor" is specified as a percentage value, so a tolerance factor of "100" is unity, "300" is 3 times the value, and "50" is half of the value. This allows the specification of a set of base and system default values and tolerances for each peer-to-peer connection that requires them.
You ultimately have a series of choices in how you set up the link tolerance values for a particular workstation; in each of the instances outlined below, you must use "[LINKTOLERANCE–" followed by one of the suffixes reflected below.
|
Suffix |
Description |
Example |
|
Workstation Name |
Specify the name of the local workstation or a remote workstation (e.g. "FREDSPC"). |
[LINKTOLERANCE–FREDSPC] |
|
Workstation IP |
Specify the IP address of the local workstation or a remote workstation (e.g. "192.168.5.50"). |
[LINKTOLERANCE – 198.168.5.50] |
Note: Having stated that it is possible to use IPs, it should be noted that we strongly recommend that you use workstation names over IP addresses wherever possible, especially in networks where the workstations may be dual-homed, or where dynamic IPs are assigned. This will help to avoid any miscommunication that could occur in the event that an IP is reassigned to a third workstation while transmissions between two workstations is in progress. Since workstation names are unique, it is good practice to condition yourself to use workstation names, rather than IP addresses, even if yours system configuration does not currently require the use of workstation names.
Once you've established the [LINKTOLERANCE–…] section for a given workstation, you can list the names or IPs of the workstations that will connect to this workstation, followed by the specific link tolerance value each workstation listed should use. Further, you can specify a default tolerance for all workstations (not otherwise specified) to use when connecting to this workstation. An example is shown below:
[LINKTOLERANCE – JOESPC]
Default = 200
[LINKTOLERANCE – FREDSPC]
TARASPC = 300
Default = 150
BILLSPC = 100
The above example will cause workstation JOESPC to have a 200% tolerance of all workstations connected to it. FREDSPC will have a 300% tolerance of workstation TARASPC, a 100% tolerance of BILLSPC, and a 150% tolerance of all other workstations.
To resolve ambiguity and provide flexibility, each workstation uses a set of methods and rules to extract the tolerance variable from the Setup.ini file when a connection is established. For further information on these methods and rules, link tolerances, and RPC, see Link Tolerances.