Alcatel Carrier Internetworking Solutions Omni Switch/Router - Manual (Page 501)

The RIF Field
Page 18-5
The RIF Field
The same source routing standard is supported by FDDI and Token Ring so the RIF fields can
be switched without problems between these media.
Ethernet does not support source routing thus frames with RIF fields cannot be switched onto
these media. However, if you enable “RIF Stripping” you can switch source route frames with
RIFs less than 2 bytes long.
The alternative of stripping fields, remembering them and reinserting them on replies, i.e. to
terminate a source routed connection and act as a proxy to a transparent device is not well
standardized and is difficult to execute and manage.
Source Route Termination by Proxy Not Supported
The Omni Switch/Router will not therefore allow RIF based frames onto Ethernet media
unless RIF Stripping is enabled.
Ethernet frames are allowed onto rings if they support transparent bridging, i.e. the port is
configured as either Transparent or Source Route/Transparent. Otherwise all communication
between SR configured ring ports and transparent Ethernet ports is barred.
MAC Header RIF Encapsulation Network Header Data