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Macintosh System Software and TCP/IPThis document describes what software you need to install to use TCP/IP on a Mac. The guide covers System 6 through to Mac OS 9.x. It includes specific information on configuring MacTCP. Information provided here does not apply to Mac OS X.
You may find it helpful to refer to two other guides.
Old Macintosh Networking Primer describes the components that make up an ethernet network and some TCP/IP basics.
Sharing Your Internet Connection with an Older Mac describes how you might access the internet using your existing dial-up or broadband connection.
Macs running System 6 should be upgraded to 6.0.7 or 6.0.8 to get the most out of internet applications. All System 6 Macs use the MacTCP control panel and cannot use Open Transport. MacTCP does not work with systems older than System 6.
If you intend connecting a System 6 Mac via a dial-up internet conenction, take a look at my guide Internet Access with System 6. The guide also provides some useful general tips about MacTCP.
System 6 does not include drivers for any ethernet cards. Drivers for older PDS and NuBus ethernet cards from Apple (and clones) are included in the Network Software Installer 1.4.5 or 1.4.4 from the links below. This software installs hardware drivers and updates support for AppleTalk networking.
If your system software is not US English, check for suitable national language software at: http://download.info.apple.com/Apple_Support_Area/Apple_Software_Updates/MultiCountry/
System 6 drivers are available for some but not all third party ethernet cards. As a starting point to locate drivers, try the Mac Driver Museum at http://host59.ipowerweb.com/~macdrive/.
Always install drivers for your ethernet card (if you are using one) before installing the MacTCP control panel.
Depending on the model, Macs running System 7.x may run "Classic Networking" (a generic description for MacTCP and AppleTalk) or Open Transport. "Classic networking" has nothing to do with Mac OS X Classic mode.
Macs with a PCI expansion bus can only use Open Transport.
Apple dropped Open Transport (OT) support for Macs running Mac OS 7.0 before OT 1.1.1, the first reliable version of OT. Upgrade to System 7.1 if you really need Open Transport.
For System 7.0 and 7.1, you should install drivers for Apple ethernet cards (and clones) and update support for AppleTalk networking using the Network Software Installer 1.5.1 from:
If your system software is not US English, check for suitable national language software at: http://download.info.apple.com/Apple_Support_Area/Apple_Software_Updates/MultiCountry/
System 7.5 onwards includes ethernet drivers for Apple cards, Apple-compatible third party cards (eg Sonic) and other cards (eg Asante). It is recommended that you install the drivers provided by the card manufacturer as these may enable features such as a larger cache that are not present on Apple cards. As a starting point to locate drivers, try the Mac Driver Museum at http://host59.ipowerweb.com/~macdrive/.
Always install drivers for your ethernet card (if you are using one) before installing the MacTCP control panel or Open Transport 1.1.1.
From Mac OS 8.0, Open Transport is built-in to the operating system. Some "Road Apples" such as the 5200 may not be able to run Mac OS 8 without a ROM upgrade; the Mac OS installer CD includes a utility to check whether it can be installed.
The version of OT that is supplied with Mac OS 8.0 onwards is more robust than older versions. However it is always worth checking to see if there is a potential upgrade for the version of Mac OS that you run (check the ReadMe with the relevant upgrade).
"Classic Networking" refers to the software that precedes Open Transport. It comprises the MacTCP control panel (for TCP/IP) and the classic AppleTalk components. Updates for the classic AppleTalk components are provided on Apple's "Network Software Installer" disks. MacTCP 2.0.6 is available for download separately.
Open Transport (OT) is the most recent and familiar networking software for pre-OS X Macs; it includes both TCP/IP and AppleTalk components. OT runs on Macs running System 7.1 or higher with a 68030 processor; for older Macs (eg LCIIs, Mac II series, first generation PowerMacs), OT is optional but it is mandatory on any Mac with a PCI bus. The OT installer requires a built-in 68030 processor and will not install on a 68000 or 68020 Mac with a third party 68030 accelerator; if you can fool the installer to run, OT itself may work.
Realistically, OT requires a fast 68030 processor and at least 8Mb RAM. For a Mac running System 7.6.1 or earlier, upgrade to OT 1.1.2 or 1.1.1 whenever possible.
Some Macintosh models from the 5200, 5300, 6200 and 6300 families may not be able to run later versions of Open Transport. More information is available in the Open Transport 1.1.2 Read Me files
Note that the installer for OT 1.1.2 provided by Apple is an updater that requires that OT is already installed on your Mac. The recommended procedure is to install OT 1.1.1 before running the OT 1.1.2 updater.
Versions of the Mac OS after 7.6.1 incorporate a later version of OT. These versions of OT cannot be installed on older versions of Mac OS.
Initial releases of OT had lots of problems with DHCP so use OT 1.1.1 or later whenever possible. If you are forced to use an older version of OT, you should configure the TCP/IP control panel manually to include the gateway address and DNS server addresses.
When OT is installed on an older Mac that supports "Classic Networking", a utility called "Network Software Selector" is provided. This allows you to switch between the two networking types. If you've just installed OT and can't see the "AppleTalk" and "TCP/IP" control panels, run the utility.
99% of applications that were designed to run on MacTCP will happily work with Open Transport. One exception that comes to mind is White Pine's eXodus X11 server.
The TCP/IP control panel is relatively straightforward to configure and there are many existing guides (see Google search results). OT 1.1.1 or later should work without problems but earlier versions are best avoided.
DHCP automatic addressing may be problem with older OT versions and you may need to configure the TCP/IP control panel manually to include the gateway address and DNS server addresses. To over ride settings applied by DHCP, select User Mode from the Edit menu and set the User Mode to Advanced. You will then be able to edit fields in the TCP/IP control panel.
MacTCP is the only option for 68000 and 68020 Macs (SE, Plus, Classic I, LC, original Mac II etc) and for low spec 68030 Macs. MacTCP was designed to work with the Mac Plus onwards so it will not work with a Mac 128 or 512; it *may* work with a Mac 512Ke.
Many people choose to use OT on 68030 Macs and higher because it is easier to configure than MacTCP. This is certainly true if you are using a PPP dial-up connection but if you are happy to do a bit of tinkering, MacTCP is a potentially faster and less memory hungry option.
MacTCP cannot obtain an IP address from a DHCP server; the options for automatic addressing will only work if your network provides a RARP or BootP address server. Automatic addressing works with dial-up networking using MacPPP.
To use a shared connection with MacTCP, the easiest solution is to configure a fixed IP address manually. The instructions below assume that you are using a Class C IP address with Subnet Mask 255.255.255.0.
Whenever reinstalling or reconfiguring MacTCP, delete the files MacTCP Prep and MacTCP DNR from your system folder first. Don't forget to reserve the fixed IP address so that it is not allocated to another Mac if you are using a DHCP server.
The final official release of MacTCP is 2.0.6 which is available from Apple's MacTCP software developers' kit at:
ftp://ftp.apple.com/devworld/Development_Kits/MacTCP.sit.hqx.
MacTCP 2.1 is the latest unofficial update from a New Zealand developer, Glenn Anderson. MacTCP 2.1 may be required for some ISPs (see the University of Oregon description of this problem). You will need a clean, unused copy of the MacTCP 2.0.6 control panel that you can patch to version 2.1. MacTCP 2.1 has a simpler user interface.
Your mileage may vary...
System 6: You must use MacTCP. If running System 6 and MacTCP 2.0.6, System 6.0.7 or higher is recommended.
68000 and 68020 Macs: You must use MacTCP. MacTCP will work fine for you using System 6 through to 7.5.5.
68030 Macs: Don't try OT unless you have at least 8Mb RAM.
LCII, Classic II: OT not recommended.
SE/30, IIx, IIcx, IIvi, IIvx: Marginal. OT works better on accelerated models.
IIci, LCIII, IIfx: Probably the oldest models on which it is diffcult to measure a difference between MacTCP and OT.
68040 and PowerMacs: Use OT unless you're feeling particularly perverse.
The three most popular PPP dial-up packages for older Macs are described briefly below. A web search on any will throw up loads of configuration information.
My guide to Internet Access with System 6 describes how to configure MacPPP 2.0.1. This configuration will work reliably with Macs running System 6, System 7.0 and System 7.1. MacPPP is usually the best choice for Macs running MacTCP.
MacPPP with MacTCP 2.0.6 can be downloaded from http://www.jagshouse.com/software/MacPPP.sit.hqx.
FreePPP is based on MacPPP. It works with MacTCP and Open Transport. Apparently the company behind the product still exists but their web pages are unreadable.
OT/PPP works with Open Transport 1.1.1 onwards (not MacTCP) and is widely considered the best PPP choice for Macs running OT. It was shipped with MacOS from Mac OS 7.6 before being integrated with the rest of the operating system. For pre-Mac OS 7.6 Macs, it can be downloaded directly from Apple:
If your system software is not US English, check for suitable national language software at: http://download.info.apple.com/Apple_Support_Area/Apple_Software_Updates/MultiCountry/
If you are using a card that was not made by Apple, install the specific drivers supplied by the manufacturer whenever possible. If you have an old AppleShare server (eg a System 7 or Mac OS 9 Mac with file sharing enabled) on your network, test that the card and drivers work by connecting to it using the AppleTalk protocol. Mac OS X file sharing uses AppleShare-IP (AppleTalk routed over the TCP/IP protocol) and is not a reliable test.
Whenever possible, you should test your ethernet card for AppleTalk connectivity. AppleTalk is the native network protocol for olde Macs and it should work automatically. It is much easier to debug or resolve TCP/IP problems if you know that the ethernet card and drivers work corectly by tesing AppleTalk connectivity first.
As a starting point to locate ethernet drivers, try the Mac Driver Museum at http://host59.ipowerweb.com/~macdrive/.
The standard Mac OS (pre OS X) does not include any useful tools for checking an IP connection. However there are many freeware or shareware tools that you can download (see links below) to help resolve any problems.
If you have an old AppleShare server (eg a System 7 or Mac OS 9 Mac with file sharing enabled) on your network, test that the card and drivers work by connecting to it using the AppleTalk protocol. Mac OS X file sharing uses AppleShare-IP (AppleTalk routed over the TCP/IP protocol) and is not a reliable test. This will confirm that your ethernet drivers are correctly installed.
The most useful tool for testing IP connections is Ping; testing an IP connection using a web or mail application is not an effective approach. Run the tests from the old Mac (ie the one with a questionable TCP/IP connection) and try to ping another Mac with a working TCP/IP connection. Run through the following tests in order:
Macs using MacTCP or Open Transport with the default settings do not load the TCP/IP protocol on startup. TCP/IP is only loaded into memory when an application that uses TCP/IP is run. The Mac will only respond to a ping request if you have already run an application that uses TCP/IP.
If you are testing the TCP/IP connection of a Mac running MacTCP, run the ping application on that Mac.
If you are testing the TCP/IP connection of a Mac running Open Transport, you can set TCP/IP to be "always on". Select User Mode from the Edit menu and set the User Mode to Advanced. An Options button will be displayed on the main configuration dialog. Press the button and uncheck the option Load only when needed. Alternatively run the ping application on that Mac.
A reliable source of links to TCP/IP software can be found at http://www.macorchard.com/. The utilities below are for use with System 7 through to 9.x.
MacTCP Ping is Apple's ping tool for older Macs that works with MacTCP and Open Transport.
Network Toolbox from Black Cat Systems is great collection of tools for older Power Macs.
IPNetMonitor provides another good collection of tools that will run on a 68K Mac with System 7.5.3.
WhatRoute runs on 68K and PPC Macs and includes ping, traceroute and Telnet server utilities.
A reliable source of links to TCP/IP software can be found at http://www.macorchard.com/.
the pickle's Low-End Mac FAQ (http://macfaq.org/index.shtml) has a review of browsers that work on older Macs.
A list of SSH clients for the Mac can be found at http://www.openssh.com/macos.html.
Copyright information: If you wish to use any images on these pages, please contact the author, Phil Beesley on beesley@mandrake.demon.co.uk.