Please upgrade to version 1.1
 

A few weeks ago we released NFSNET client software which speaks version 1.1 of the protocol. Those of you who are being allocated tasks from the Texas or the Bristol pools are already using this software. This post is addressed to those of you who have not yet upgraded and are still getting tasks from either Longhorn, Fenland or Cantab (though there are very few in the latter pool now).

Distribution kits for all the popular machine/OS combinations are available at [url]http://www.nfsnet.org/join.html[/url] where, in response to a few requests, we have also added a set of statically linked binaries for x86-Linux, so those of you who have had problems with mismatched library versions can now contribute.

Upgrading should be very simple. Just download and unpack the appropriate distribution kit(s). Inside you should find instructions on how to proceed after that. If the instructions aren't clear, get back to us as we want to know how to improve them for the future. One minor point for those using the Windows GUI. Although the command line tools are all using the V1.1 protocol, the GUI announces itself as V1.0a. This was a slight oversight on our part.

Being a procrastinator myself, I know how easy it is to ignore requests to change something that is apparently working. Perhaps an advance warning may persuade you to change. In a few weeks the hardware that hosts the Cantab and Fenland pools will be retired. It was built in early 1998 and has given very good service. It is also getting a bit old and crotchety; if it breaks it will stop broken as it's no longer worth repairing it.

So, you'll have to change in a few weeks anyway...

Thanks for all your contributions to date and I apologize for having to ask you to put in extra personal effort. I hope you continue to be at least as productive in the future!

Paul

is there any speed-up with this new release compared to the old one ?
what's the major changes ?

The computation loops in the siever are unchanged.
We have improved the protocol to handle teams and some other things in anticipation of future changes.
The guid handling, etc. has improved.

This new release will run much faster than the previous ones when certain machines are retired and the old clients can no longer find a server that is willing to give them assignments. (At best weeks from now)

well why it called 1.1 when client says 1.17?

[QUOTE=Death]well why it called 1.1 when client says 1.17?[/QUOTE]
The '.' between the '1' and the '7' is very, very tiny. So tiny you probably didn't notice it.

Paul

So tiny it's essentially invisible. :wink:

Hey, gang!

Give Paul a break!

He said [QUOTE]which speaks version 1.1 of the protocol.[/QUOTE]

The client is revision 1.17, the GUI is 1.0a, the siever is ...

but, the PROTOCOL is 1.1 (because I say so, and I wrote it).


OK, I admit that we could do a better job of versioning,

but I don't see YOU helping ....

Richard
Protocol Officer
The NFSNET Factoring Project