An approach for interconnecting SNA and XNS Networks

Interest in computer internetworking has resulted from the proliferation of wide area and local area networks. The CCITT, DARPA/DoD, and ISO/ECMA internetworking models, which have become widely accepted for doing this, do not address the pragmatic problem of interconnecting computer networks that are based upon closed-system, vendor-proprietary network architectures. This paper presents an approach for interconnecting private data networks that are based upon IBM's System Network Architecture (SNA) and Xerox's Network System (XNS). Paramount to the solution of the SNA/XNS network interconnection problem is the identification and definition of a number of gateway-provided data transport and application protocol support services, which can be incorporated into a multi-function, multi-level, protocol translation gateway.