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o+ Lack of public domain documentation and example programs have kept
proprietary protocols such as RRRReeeellllaaaayyyy,,,, BBBBllllaaaasssstttt,,,, and others tightly bound
to the fortunes of their suppliers. These protocols have not
benefited from public scrutiny of their design features.
Chapter 2 Rev 10-27-87 Typeset 10-27-87 2
Chapter 2 ZMODEM Protocol 3
o+ Link level protocols such as XXXX....22225555,,,, XXXX....PPPPCCCC,,,, and MMMMNNNNPPPP do not manage
application to application file transfers.
o+ Link Level protocols do not eliminate end-to-end errors. Interfaces
between error-free networks are not necessarily error-free.
Sometimes, error-free networks aren't.
o+ The KKKKeeeerrrrmmmmiiiitttt protocol was developed to allow file transfers in
environments hostile to XMODEM. The performance compromises
necessary to accommodate traditional mainframe environments limit
Kermit's efficiency. Even with completely transparent channels,
Kermit control character quoting limits the efficiency of binary file
transfers to about 75 per cent.[1]
A number of submodes are used in various Kermit programs, including
different methods of transferring binary files. Two Kermit programs
will mysteriously fail to operate with each other if the user has not
correctly specified these submodes.
Kermit Sliding Windows ("SuperKermit") improves throughput over
networks at the cost of increased complexity. SuperKermit requires
full duplex communications and the ability to check for the presence
of characters in the input queue, precluding its implementation on
some operating systems.
SuperKermit state transitions are encoded in a special language
"wart" which requires a C compiler.
SuperKermit sends an ACK packet for each data packet of 96 bytes
(fewer if control characters are present). This reduces throughput
on high speed modems, from 1350 to 177 characters per second in one
test.
A number of extensions to the XMODEM protocol have been made to improve
performance and (in some cases) the user interface. They provide useful
improvements in some applications but not in others. XMODEM's unprotected
control messages compromise their reliability. Complex proprietary
techniques such as CCCCyyyybbbbeeeerrrrnnnneeeettttiiiicccc DDDDaaaattttaaaa RRRReeeeccccoooovvvveeeerrrryyyy((((TTTTMMMM))))[2] improve reliability,
but are not universally available. Some of the XMODEM mutant protocols
have significant design flaws of their own.
o+ XXXXMMMMOOOODDDDEEEEMMMM----kkkk uses 1024 byte blocks to reduce the overhead from transmission
delays by 87 per cent compared to XMODEM, but network delays still
__________
1. Some Kermit programs support run length encoding.
2. Unique to DSZ, ZCOMM, Professional-YAM and PowerCom
Chapter 2 Rev 10-27-87 Typeset 10-27-87 3
Chapter 2 ZMODEM Protocol 4
degrade performance. Some networks cannot transmit 1024 byte packets
without flow control, which is difficult to apply without impairing the
perfect transparency required by XMODEM. XMODEM-k adds garbage to
received files.
o+ YYYYMMMMOOOODDDDEEEEMMMM sends the file name, file length, and creation date at the
beginning of each file, and allows optional 1024 byte blocks for
improved throughput. The handling of files that are not a multiple of
1024 or 128 bytes is awkward, especially if the file length is not
known in advance, or changes during transmission. The large number of
non conforming and substandard programs claiming to support YMODEM
further complicates its use.
o+ YYYYMMMMOOOODDDDEEEEMMMM----gggg provides efficient batch file transfers, preserving exact file
length and file modification date. YMODEM-g is a modification to