I've got a laptop that, in its current state, can have either a CD-ROM or a
floppy, but not both simultaneously. The logical inference: do an ftp
install.

But, my local gateway is outside my control and drops traffic aimed directly
at it (e.g., icmp).

Since sysinst requires that my local gateway be pingable--and quits the
install if it isn't--I can't install, _even though I have both internet
connectivity and DNS resolution._

So I guess this is a suggestion that in a coming version, the sysinst make
some concession to folks in this situation.

Some ideas:
 - If the gateway doesn't return pings, notify the user and explain "it is
increasingly common that firewalled gateways do not respond to echo
requests, or other traffic addressed directly to the gateway. If you know or
suspect that your gateway behaves this way (or are otherwise sure you have
internet connectivity and DNS resolution), choose 'Continue'. Otherwise you
can choose to reconfigure your network settings or abort the installation

 - Check to see if the DNS server is on a different subnet.
	If it is, try a name lookup to determine both external connectivity
and DNS
		if the lookup fails, ping the nameserver to see if it's a
DNS or connectivity problem
	If it is not on a different subnet, do a DNS lookup of an external
server to see if name resolution works
		if the lookup succeeds, test external connectivity to the
server just resolved

 - Do all connectivity and name resolution tests, and then return a full
status to the user (ping gateway: no; connectivity through gateway: yes;
ping nameserver: no; DNS resolution: yes).


Easy for me to say, right?

Thanks,

michael


----michael cannella     -     mailto:mcannella@iss.net
----Internet Security Systems  -  Secure U
----The Power to Protect - The Power to Educate