> "You can implement a NAT by mounting a /net from a perimeter machine > with a public IP, while connecting to it from an internal network of private > IP addresses, using the Plan 9 protocol 9P in the internal network." > > This is from the wikipedia page on Plan 9 OS. > > Is something like iptables like in linux needed to be implemented for > Plan 9 ? > > Again forgive me if I came out looking like an idiot !
not at all. of course this only works for computers that can import /net. just theoretically suppose that your gateway is a plan 9 machine and someone in the house has a windows box. nat would be useful for supporting the windows box that can't import /net. some people would argue that a lot of modems can do the nat so why bother. the reason to bother is to (a) avoid buggy modem firmware and (b) to integrate nat into the rest of one's network services so things like logging, etc. are uniform. and you don't have to deal with the modems dumb http interface. :-) - erik
