[labnetwork] Static IP Addresses needed for hardware interlocks

[Thomas Lohman]

> We utilize a large array of hardware interlocks within our equipment 
> fleet that interfaces with our software for access, training requests, 
> reservations, invoicing, etc. Each of these relay boxes requires a 
> static IP address.  With recent security certificate requirements in our 
> institution getting a static IP address for new systems is becoming very 
> arduous.

Hi Julia,

I think everyone else has answered this but in general, the most 
straight forward approach is to assign the interlocks IP addresses that 
are part of a private network and then have a "proxy device" that 
handles processing the interlock communications between the LMS software 
(that I assume is running in a "cloud" somewhere) and the interlocks 
themselves. It would reside on both the public and private network. 
This way the interlocks are not visible outside their private network 
that you control and you don't have to go through getting an official 
static IP address from your institution for them.  How exactly to 
implement this will depend on the specifics of your institution's 
current networking setup and your LMS.  Hopefully, your 
computer/networking folks can assist with exploring an option along 
these lines.
  cheers,


--tom