
Using NetBIOS Services
117351-A Rev. A 3-3
Establishing Sessions
Once a NetBIOS application determines that its name is unique on the network,
the application establishes a session with another NetBIOS application. The
following steps describe how the application establishes the session:
1. The originating station sends out a NetBIOS name query to determine the
route to the destination application. The query is a spanning tree explorer
(STE) frame that invites a specific remote application to respond. (See
Cha
pter 2, “Using Source Routing Bridge Services,” for details on STE
frames.)
2. As the name query STE frame propagates along its spanning tree route, the
frame accumulates routing information field (RIF) data that traces its unique
path through the loop-free topology of the network.
• If you do not have a source routed spanning tree configured on your
network, the STE propagates along all available routes to the destination
application. Multiple copies of the name query STE frame may arrive at
the destination station.
• If your network has a spanning tree topology, only one copy of the name
query STE frame arrives at the destination remote station.
3. The NetBIOS interface on the destination station “recognizes” the name of
one of its own applications in the query frame. The NetBIOS interface
responds by broadcasting a name-recognized All-Routes Explorer (ARE)
frame. (See Cha
pter 2 for details on ARE frames.)
4. As the name-recognized ARE frame propagates toward the calling station
along multiple paths, each frame accumulates RIF information that traces its
unique path through the network. The originating source routing interface
receives multiple copies of the name-recognized frame.
5. Depending on the number of parallel paths from the destination application
back to the calling application, one or more copies of the name-recognized
ARE response frame arrive at the originating station. The originating station
accepts only the first name-recognized frame it receives, assuming that this
frame contains the RIF for the shortest path to the destination station. The
calling station uses this RIF for any subsequent frames sent to the destination
station. All subsequent frames associated with the impending session are
specifically routed frames (SRFs). (See Cha
pter 2 for details on SRF frames.)
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