JmDNS

A Cross-Platform zeroConf & Rendezvous-Compatible Java API
for Ad Hoc Services Announcement & Discovery

JmDNS is a cross-platform and open-source Java-based implementation of the IETF zeroConf proposal, and it interoperates with Apple's Rendezvous. I plan for this site to provide access to a few local resources which I use and which other developers may find useful, and pointers to useful non-local resources, and maybe some tutorial materials (not yet). I also plan for this site to host real-world projects to support these activities; concrete projects will help me make sense out of how to use zeroConf.

Oh, and for the terminally-curious there is also an Other Info list.

Some Project Ideas

1. Replacing the sneakernet file transport system

Replacing the sneakernet file transport system

The obvious first problem to address in a project is sneakernet. How often have you needed to physically go somewhere in order to exchange files with someone on an ad hoc basis? How easy is it for a naive/casual user to find out the IP address assigned to where they want some files to end up and then to figure out how to get those files there? How often have you watched people

1. save files from the source machine onto some removable media
2. physically walk the removable media to the other side of a divider or room or down the hall
3. insert the removable media in the destination machine
4. and finally copy the files from the removab le media onto the destination machine

The traditional answer to this perennial workplace problem is sneakernet.

How about a file transfer mechanism using zeroConf for service advertisement/discovery? Maybe a mechanism which keeps to nice safe loop-local addresses for the sake of simplified security? Maybe something like this might begin to replace sneakernet in the office/workgroup setting.

jeffs
10 FEB 2004

Resources

Local Resources

• View Javadocs online
• Download JavaDocs archive

Non-Local Resources

• The Zeroconf Working Group of the Internet Engineering Task Force
• Protocol requirements for zero configuration networking
• Protocols that could meet the requirements
• Zeroconf tutorial article by Erik Guttman
• How a host can detect when some other host on the same link is trying to use the same IP address
• How IP hosts can assign addresses in the absence of outside configuration information
• How IP hosts can assign multicast addresses in the absence of outside configuration information
• Multicast DNS
• Extending Multicast DNS to also provide simple service discovery
• JmDNS SourceForge Project (original code by Arthur van Hoff)
• Apple Rendezvous and Zeroconf article
• Apple Rendezvous site

Other Information

• Who am I?

Created: 3 February 2004 Last updated: 11 February 2004 jeffs at it.rit.edu