Support for AppleTalk on Earth Sciences network ends April 7, 2008
Last revision March 14, 2008
This page primarily applies to people using Apple Macintosh computers,
or managing networked printers.
Windows PCs and Linux systems are not affected, unless you specifically
installed third-party AppleTalk software, or have configured your
system to
print via pangea.
AppleTalk is a networking protocol invented by Apple Computer
in the 1980s to provide simple printer and file sharing on
local area networks.
Because it was never really adopted by other computer
manufacturers, and does not scale well to large networks, Apple
began providing alternative networking support in the 1990s using the
Internet standard TCP/IP protocols.
Although all Macs and most printers still ship with AppleTalk support,
it is no longer enabled by default and not recommended for general use.
We have always supported AppleTalk on the Earth Sciences network,
primarily to access printers, but also to access an AppleShare
file server installed on pangea, which is also
being discontinued.
In order to support a large number of devices on AppleTalk
in an organized way, we have used an AppleTalk router to create
"zones", mostly named geographically, for example,
ES-Mitchell-B or ES-Green-West.
On April 7, support for AppleTalk on the Earth Sciences network
will end.
Our AppleTalk router will be permanently disabled.
This will collapse all zones into a single, unnamed one, which
will disrupt any existing uses.
At the same time,
the AppleShare server and most printer queues on pangea
will be disabled,
as they are configured to use AppleTalk.
Neither our
CRC desktop consultants nor the School's network support staff
will provide any help with further use of AppleTalk, except to
transition you to the more modern TCP/IP protocols.
Here is what you should do to prepare for the end of AppleTalk
support. Or put in a request to have our CRC consultants help you
via the web form at
http://helpsu.stanford.edu/
-
Macintosh computer users - check printing:
On your Macintosh computer, check if you are using AppleTalk to connect
to any printers and convert to TCP/IP. Our CRC desktop consultants
have identified the users of most AppleTalk printers and already
converted them to TCP/IP. If you use one of these
printers with AppleTalk still enabled,
then you need to check your printing setup and possibly convert,
following the instructions on that page.
-
Macintosh computer users - disable AppleTalk:
Mac OS X systems come with AppleTalk
disabled
by default.
Some people enable AppleTalk so they can print or share files via AppleTalk.
Both printing (above) and file sharing (below)
are handled better in Mac OS X via TCP/IP, so AppleTalk should be
completely disabled.
Open
System Preferences
from the Apple menu, and then click on the
Network
pane.
In the
Show
drop-down menu at the top, select the
Built-in Ethernet
item.
Click on the
AppleTalk
tab. If you see an "X" in the checkbox named
Make AppleTalk Active,
uncheck it!
Then click the
Apply Now
button. Your preferences should look like
this screenshot
when you are done.
-
Printer managers:
If you manage one of these
printers with AppleTalk still enabled,
you should disable AppleTalk support (sometimes called "EtherTalk")
after the users have converted their Macintosh computers to print
via TCP/IP.
Modern printers generally have a web interface that allows you to
disable AppleTalk in the network settings.
You can request configuration help via
HelpSU.
-
Pangea printing:
If you print files from a program that runs directly on pangea,
you can request that the
pangea system manager
create a new print queue using TCP/IP protocols to access the printer.
-
Macintosh file sharing:
Disabling AppleTalk does not affect file sharing functionality for
Mac OS X. It will connect to other Macintosh computers using TCP/IP
protocols by default. Simply type in the remote computer network
name in the
Server Address
field of the
Connect to Server
item of the
Finder's
Go
menu, as shown in
this screenshot.
