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FuzzBall 6 feature support: SSL and MCP

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Posted by Shadowfyr   USA  (1,766 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Tue 05 Nov 2002 05:50 PM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
Just one comment one the 'black box' theory.. This is fine in a unix environment where 90% of the system is dependant on those black boxes and there are a half dozen alternative boxes to employ. Under windows the effect of black boxing is the exact opposite. Often the same box will break going from one system to the next exa: there is a bug for instance in CreateProcess on 9x systems that results in a console app inheriting the stdin/stdout/stderr pipes from the calling program, even when you tell it not to - result NT/XP will work right if you fail to take this into account, but 9x gives no output. The other problem is availability.

There are one or two programs I would like to get for use with a program called POVRay that are impossible to find anymore. They also took the 'our program does just X and to extend it use Y approach'. The result has been an extremely good 3D photorealistic renderer, that takes as much time to learn to use properly as coding C++, because there are very few graphical front ends and even Moray, which was specifically designed to be used with it, doesn't correctly support all the features of the prior version, let alone the current one.

If you want to black box things you have to do one of three things. A) be absolutely sure that there are real alternatives around you can use that you are reasonably sure will still be available in a year from now, B) encourage people to design them and provide a plae to keep them 'along side the program' or C) code them yourself.

The problem is that A) is nearly certain to not be true, B) isn't entirely possible with your server set up, so stuff end up on other site, where it may not be available later and C) means time spent working on the black boxes instead of the client. It is imho better to find eligant solutions to some of these things internally than rely on the assumption that a windows product can function based on a black box design, especially considering the prevalence of item A above.

That said.. There may be some things like the graphics support that can be done the easy way. For instance as I stated in another thread, I have a fairly decent browser that is a mere 455k, runs quite fast and does everything IE can (using the IE core). My only complaint with it is that since it was designed to be used in a game, it doen't correctly keep track of the last pages scroll position and pop-up windows are opened in the full IE, which I hate. It wouldn't be that hard to make a black box that implimented a simple browser window to support nearly anything a person wanted to throw at the client, with the exception of full pages (and if you wanted to give it back, forward, stop, etc. buttons...). I wouldn't mind in the least having such a thing 'packaged' with the client as a black box, but I can't see myself relying on the full IE or something 3rd. party that I can't find a week from now.
main {
__if (Schrodinger_Cat is Alive or version >= "XP"){
____if version = "Vista" then Performance /= Number_of_Cores;
____call Functional_Code();}
__else
____call Crash_Windows();}
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Posted by Nick Gammon   Australia  (15,726 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Tue 05 Nov 2002 11:38 PM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
I am inclined to agree with most of what Magnum says, however there are cases where something that is complex to implement, and is only wanted by a handful of players, might be better done as an external program. Once you have a program that works, you can always keep that copy along with MUSHclient.

MUSHclient itself is a blend of hand-written stuff (eg. XML parser), compiled-in routines (eg. regular expression handling), and external routines (eg. spell checker, scripting support).
- Nick Gammon

www.gammon.com.au, www.mushclient.com
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Posted by Shadowfyr   USA  (1,766 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Wed 06 Nov 2002 07:59 PM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
Magnum?? lol Skimming the names instead of the posts this time? ;)
main {
__if (Schrodinger_Cat is Alive or version >= "XP"){
____if version = "Vista" then Performance /= Number_of_Cores;
____call Functional_Code();}
__else
____call Crash_Windows();}
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Posted by Gedrean   USA  (12 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Thu 07 Nov 2002 04:16 AM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
Okay, here goes my only response: I can't seem to figure out how to make these programs work right. So, I'd like to ask the question:
Nick, do you feel it is possible to do this with Plugins, or is that not possible? If so, lemme know how to write one (I checked the documentation but could not do that, it didn't seem to exist, the plugin wizard) so, I think I could port the C++ code over if there's a standard plugin system to code in.
I'm not special! I just code my brains out for you!
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Posted by Nick Gammon   Australia  (15,726 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Thu 07 Nov 2002 05:12 AM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
I don't really see this working in a plugin. You need to intercept the incoming encrypted text and decrypt it, and decrypt outgoing text. MUSHclient doesn't allow you to change the incoming text in this way.

The way I see it working is for a SSL program to act as a proxy, not that I got it to work yet, but it would go like this:


MUSHclient --> (plaintext) --> proxy --> (encrypted) --> Internet --> MUD

- Nick Gammon

www.gammon.com.au, www.mushclient.com
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Posted by Shadowfyr   USA  (1,766 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Thu 07 Nov 2002 08:23 PM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
Which of course sounds simple..

Client -> Request link to proxy port using local 127.0.0.1.
Proxy -> Checks is from local and tells client link
established if not remote.
Client -> Sends the server and port for the remote location
to proxy.
Proxy -> Attempts to connect to remote addr:port.
If successful -> send client a 'success' message.
Client -> Begins 'normal' telnet operation.

In theory at least this is how it 'should' work, unless some clown out there came up with some stupidly more complex method. I would try writing a proxy to do this stuff myself, assuming I could find the encryption info, but mushclient doesn't support the above transaction needed to establish the communications. I do however have to wonder what it is I am missing that makes it so hard to impliment.. :p But then I am by no means an expert on this. ;)
main {
__if (Schrodinger_Cat is Alive or version >= "XP"){
____if version = "Vista" then Performance /= Number_of_Cores;
____call Functional_Code();}
__else
____call Crash_Windows();}
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Posted by Gedrean   USA  (12 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Thu 07 Nov 2002 10:13 PM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
How's this for luck?
Got it to work, and here's the main explanation with security.

Please note that other options are available at the website
http://www.stunnel.org/
where you can find out other ways to configure Stunnel.

Instructions:
Obtain Stunnel from the above address.

Go to the Download Tab, and from there go to the download directory.

Currently available highest version is "stunnel-4.03.exe"

Put this anywhere you like. I put mine in a folder in Program Files, and set up a StartUp folder link to it, so that it would start every time.

If you're running NT, 2k or XP you may wish to set up Stunnel as a service. Look on the website.

You'll need the OpenSSL library for the encryption. In the download directory, go to the OpenSSL directory of your choice, preferrably the highest version. As of this writing, the highest version in that directory is openssl-0.9.6g. Download the zip file within, it will contain all the files you need. Extract that file to the same folder as you put Stunnel in.

Now, in notepad, create a new text file. Save it in the same directory. Remember the filename.

This text file will be our configuration file. The following options should be first in the file.

client = yes
output = out.log

I put client = yes so the program would know it's designed to tunnel to a server with SSL, and I put output = out.log because I wanted a definite file that the Stunnel program would record its output to. This can be changed or left out. client = yes is required.

Now for the fun part. You'll need to set up each service you wish to connect to with MUSHClient. I'll walk you through it.

Simplest way:
(Any Line with a # at the beginning is a comment and not necesary)

[servicename]
#This is the name of the service in stunnel's logs.
#whatever you wanna call it. I call them muck1 muck2 etc.
connect = muck.muck.com:9999
#This is obvious. 9999 should be the SSL port.
accept = localhost:5555
#5555 to be replaced with whatever port you wish.

Example:

client = yes
output = out.log

[mymuck]
connect = mymuck.mymucksdomain.com:8989
accept = localhost:5555

[mysecond]
connect = othermuck.com:4205
accept = localhost:5556

Remember the accept lines, those are what you configure MUSHclient to connect to. 'localhost' at port 5555 and 5556.
Please note that further options can be gotten from the stunnel website (see the 'man page listing') or from running the command line 'stunnel -help'

By the way, this way works such that in ZoneAlarm, set stunnel to be allowed to access the internet and local, be a server to local, and block it from being a server to internet. In the newest version of ZoneAlarm, the first three boxes are check-marks, and the fourth is an X.

That's all!
I'm not special! I just code my brains out for you!
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Posted by Gedrean   USA  (12 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Thu 07 Nov 2002 10:16 PM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
Forgot.

Rename the configuration file stunnel.conf

Alternately, you may keep the name as any name you wish, and make a shortcut to stunnel, with the name of the textfile as the argument.

So it might be: stunnel stconf.txt

There you go!
I'm not special! I just code my brains out for you!
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Posted by Nick Gammon   Australia  (15,726 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Fri 08 Nov 2002 12:18 AM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
Quote:

Okay I'm a little frightened that you compiled it all yourself but okay.


There was an alternative?
- Nick Gammon

www.gammon.com.au, www.mushclient.com
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Posted by Nick Gammon   Australia  (15,726 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Fri 08 Nov 2002 12:27 AM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message

Brilliant! Thanks very much. I have reworked your documentation to make it part of the main MUSHclient web page, because of its general appeal.

See How to connect to a secure MUD using MUSHclient .

- Nick Gammon

www.gammon.com.au, www.mushclient.com
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Posted by Nick Gammon   Australia  (15,726 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Fri 08 Nov 2002 12:36 AM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
And is there an equivalent to a SOCKS proxy? ie. tunnel through a similar program where you need to use SOCKS proxying?
- Nick Gammon

www.gammon.com.au, www.mushclient.com
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Posted by Gedrean   USA  (12 posts)  [Biography] bio
Date Sun 10 Nov 2002 04:28 AM (UTC)  [ quote  ]
Message
Oh Gods, I don't even want to think about that right now. I'll try to find some option in the near future.:)
I'm not special! I just code my brains out for you!
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