[openbeosnetteam] Re: one replicant for everything?

I guess I'm paranoid, but I'm thinking that using something like the Media 
Server's parameter web might be a better solution: don't have all the various 
things running in the same process, but rather have them send data representing 
their state to the same process, so if one goes pear-shaped, it doesn't affect 
all the others.  I may be misunderstanding what you're saying, though: do you 
mean create an Uber Replicant that can be copied from one machine to another, 
sort of like an executable version of what Windows does with roaming profiles?  
If so, using a replicant in that manner scares me that much more: it only 
requires one unexpected bit of missing or wrong data for something in that 
replicant to fail and seg fault, if the replicant isn't written correctly to 
handle that, and then you're likely to have a Mutantcant (mutant replicant 
where it didn't replicate successfully) that's sort of like a virus, in that 
each time you move it to another machine, it messes up that machine, too.  Did 
I interpret things wrong?

Jonathan Thompson

>Hi,
>what do you think about moving all those per-connection replicants (PPP, 
>WiFi, ethernet) into one single (modular) replicant that handles all 
>up/down/status requests for every interface type and allows for 
>switching between profiles and opening the networking preflet?
>Mobility and networking becomes more and more important. The number of 
>users owning a notebook is growing. Many users have WiFi at home. Gamers 
>take their computer with them, so they need mobility functions, too.
>Also, one single replicant keeps the Deskbar clean. Some users have 
>multiple connection symbols in their WinXP taskbar (all looking the same).
>BTW, we could extend the profiles to also handle printers and other 
>devices and possibly even the timezone.
>
>I'd like to move the current ppp_up functionality into that replicant in 
>order to simplify the kernel code.
>Also, I'll make PPP interfaces single-threaded (i.e.: one active thread 
>per interface). This should further simplify the code.
>Next, I'll drop all this DialUpPreflet modularity code and make a 
>static, but much more compact + simpler preflet. The UI should become a 
>little bit simpler, too.
>I won't spend a lot of time on coding, but hopefully I can finish a 
>complete PPP+PPPoE implementation this year. ;)
>
>Bye,
>Waldemar
>

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