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RLogin

The Synchronet RLogin module (exec/rlogin.js) is used to create an outbound proxy gateway connection between a Synchronet Terminal Server user and a remote server using the BSD Rlogin protocol (1282) over TCP (traditionally, TCP port 513). The BBS user can be connected to the host BBS using any supported terminal protocol (Telnet, RLogin, or SSH).

RLogin is often used to connect BBS users to “door game servers” because of the protocol's ability to transparently pass the login-ID of the user as part of the initial connection establishment. If the door game server recognizes the user's credentials, it can automatically authenticate the user and in some cases immediately launch a specific door game of interest.

Protocol

Only the initial RLogin connection establishment is supported; the other RLogin protocol features (“cooked mode”, out-of-band sequences, e.g. Window size) are not supported.

Binary Data

Unlike Telnet, there is no “binary mode” option that can be negotiated, so some characters (e.g keystrokes) sent from the remote user will always be interpreted on the host BBS and not sent to the remote server. This means that binary data transfers (e.g. file transfers) through an RLogin gateway may not always work as expected.

Telgate

The RLogin module is just a thin script that calls the Synchronet JavaScript bbs.rlogin_gate() method which in turn is just a thin wrapper function around the Synchronet C++ telnet_gate() function. Although this function was originally created for creating proxy gateways using the Telnet protocol, it was later enhanced to also support the RLogin protocol, but was not renamed. So the Synchronet internal Telnet Gateway (telgate) functionality is utilized to create RLogin gateway connections as well.

While the gateway is connected, the BBS user can use the Ctrl-] key sequence to display a host-BBS menu to perform specific functions, like:

  • Disconnect from the remote server
  • Toggle local echo off/on
  • List users on the host BBS
  • Send a private message to another user on the host BBS

Note: If the TG_CTRLKEYS mode flag is specified on the rlogin.js command-line, then the host BBS's global control key commands (e.g. ^P, ^U, ^T, etc.) will also be captured and handled by the host BBS and not sent to the remote server.

Usage

The RLogin module is normally executed via a command-line configured in SCFG, often as an “External Program”. By convention, JavaScript modules are executed from the Synchronet Terminal Server by starting the command-line with a question mark (?) symbol. An asterisk (*) prefix will also work, but will fallback to execute the old exec/rlogin.bin if the rlogin.js file is absent.

Command-line

The RLogin module accepts command-line arguments to control its behavior when invoked. The command-line syntax is:

?rlogin <address>[:port] [mode]

Where:

  • <address> is the IPv4 address or host name to connect to
  • [:port] is the TCP port number to connect to (default is 513)
  • [mode] is an optional set of one or more telgate mode flags (TG_*) separated by pipe (|) symbols

Connection

The RLogin protocol allows the client to pass 3 strings to the server during connection establishment. These 3 strings defined by the protocol specification are, in order:

  1. client-user-name
  2. server-user-name
  3. terminal-type

By default, the Synchronet telnet gateway sends the following values for the RLogin connection strings:

  1. User's alias
  2. User's real name
  3. Users' terminal type/speed (e.g. “ANSI/30000”)

If you wish to reverse the order of the first 2 strings sent, pass the TG_RLOGINSWAP mode flag on the rlogin.js command-line.

See Also

module/rlogin.1606935321.txt · Last modified: 2020/12/02 10:55 by mortifis
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