Configure Support for NASI Clients to Access Network Resources

This chapter describes how to allow your router to function as a NetWare Asynchronous Services Interface (NASI) server.

For a complete description of the NASI commands in this chapter, refer to the "NASI Commands" chapter of the Dial Solutions Command Reference. To locate documentation of other commands that appear in this chapter, use the command reference master index or search online.

General NASI Concepts

A NASI server enables a NASI client to connect to asynchronous network resources (such as modems) without having these resources located on the client's desktop, as shown in Figure 117.

Figure 117: NASI Setup in a NetWare Environment

You can configure the Cisco IOS software to enable NASI clients to connect to asynchronous resources attached to your router. The NASI client can connect to any port on the router other than the console port to access network resources. (See Figure 118.) The NASI clients are connected to the Ethernet interface 0 on the router. When the user on the NASI client uses the Windows or DOS application to connect to the router, a list of available tty and vty lines appears, beginning with tty1. The user selects the desired outgoing tty or vty port. You also can configure TACACS+ security on the router so that after the user selects a tty or vty port, a username and password prompt appear for authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) purposes.

Figure 118: NASI Clients Accessing Asynchronous Resources through an Access Server

Note The Cisco IOS implementation of NASI functions best with NASI client software version 2.0 and later.

The NASI client can be on a local LAN or can also be on a remote LAN. If it is on a remote LAN, the following two requirements must be met:

A router routing IPX forwards NetWare Connect Server SAP advertisements from the remote LAN to the LAN to which the local router is connected.
The same router routing IPX spoofs Get Nearest Server (GNS) replies for the GNS requests that the client sends out.

The fact that you can connect to many different ports on the router means that you can provide access to more than one asynchronous device. When the user accesses the vty line, the user can connect to the user EXEC facility and issue a Telnet or NASI command to access a remote network (see Figure 119). Only the first available vty line appears in the list of available ports on the router (and it is titled RCONSOLE).

Figure 119: NASI Clients Gaining Access to IP Hosts on a Remote Network

Configuring NASI

To configure your router as a NASI server, perform the following tasks, beginning in global configuration mode:

Task	Command
Step 1 Enable IPX routing on the router.	ipx routing
Step 2 Define an internal IPX network number.	ipx internal-network
Step 3 Enter interface configuration mode.	interface type number
Step 4 Enable IPX routing on an interface.	ipx network [network \| unnumbered]
Step 5 Exit to global configuration mode.	exit
Step 6 Enable NASI.	ipx nasi-server enable
Step 7 Configure TACACS+ security on all lines on the router (optional).	aaa authentication nasi {list-name \| default} {methods list}
Step 8 Enter line configuration mode.	line [aux \| tty \| vty] line-number [ending-line-number]
Step 9 Configure TACACS+ security on a per-line basis (optional).	login authentication nasi {list-name \| default}

You also can configure SAP filters to filter SAP updates, and access lists to filter NASI traffic between interfaces on the router.

Note If a NASI server is already on the LAN segment connected to the router, the router cannot respond to Get Next Server (GNS) requests for NASI services.

If you have configured NetWare asynchronous services interface (NASI) on your router, you can use IPX client applications to make IPX dial-out connections to a shared pool of asynchronous devices. For example, a NASI client on the LAN can connect to a serial (synchronous or asynchronous) port on the router, which provides access to remote modems, printers, and networks. The command the user issues depends on the application being used to connect to the NASI server.

NASI relies on Sequenced Packet Exchange (SPX).

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