System information

Troubleshooting AppleTalk
Book Title
9-186
In software releases prior to Cisco IOS Release 11.0, the ping appletalk exec command serves a
similar function. Use this command to verify that a node is reachable from the router (for example,
ping appletalk 2.24 pings AppleTalk node 2.24).
The following display shows input to and output from the user ping command:
Router> ping appletalk 2.24
Type escape sequence to abort.
Sending 5, 100-byte AppleTalk Echoes to 2.24, timeout is 2 seconds:
!!!!!
Success rate is 100 percent, round-trip min/avg/max = 4/4/8 ms
The ping privileged exec command also supports several AppleTalk parameters that provide
additional troubleshooting capabilities. In particular, use the NBP option when AppleTalk zones are
listed in the Chooser but services are not available. If a configuration contains the
appletalk name-lookup-interval global configuration command, the NBP option of the AppleTalk
ping function displays nodes by their NBP registration names.
Preventing Internetwork Reconfiguration Problems
Configuration conflicts can occur when zone names or cable range numbers are changed. In
particular, problems arise when routing devices about which you are not administratively aware exist
on the internetwork.
Many devices can act as routers (for example, Novell servers, Pathworks servers, or UNIX
workstations running CAP to do print and file sharing). In general, if you are changing zone names
or cable range numbers in your internetwork, shut down all routers so that a Cisco router does not
see a conflict and prevent AppleTalk from initializing on the interface.
Before changing the configuration, use the show appletalk neighbors exec command to determine
on which routers you should disable AppleTalk routing.You should disable AppleTalk on all routers
that are on the same network segment and that have sent RTMP updates in the past 10 seconds.
Disable AppleTalk routing on all of the appropriate interfaces, wait approximately 10 minutes, and
then bring up the seed router.
Changing Zone Names
When changing a zone name on an existing network, perform the following actions:
Step 1 Disable AppleTalk on all router interfaces on the cable for approximately 10 minutes.
This allows all routers in the internetwork to age out the network number from their
routing tables.
Step 2 Configure the new zone list.
Step 3 Re-enable AppleTalk on all interfaces.
These actions are required because AppleTalk makes no provisions for informing neighbors in the
internetwork about a changed zone list. Routers make ZIP queries only when a new (or previously
aged-out) network appears on the internetwork.
Adding a new zone to an extended cable configuration prevents the router from bringing up an
AppleTalk interface after the interface has been reset. This is because its configuration no longer
matches that of its neighbors (that is, it detects a configuration mismatch error).
AppleTalk Discovery Mode
When bringing up an interface on an existing cable where a long zone list is defined, using
AppleTalk discovery mode helps you save effort and avoid mistakes.