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> there are many such obviously basic functions which still aren't built into all PCs You can already manually configure TCP/IP networking to run over FireWire

> there are many such obviously basic functions which still aren't built into all PCs You can already manually configure TCP/IP networking to run over FireWire, USB, or Thunderbolt cables connecting PCs or Macs. However, this assumes you understand enough to manually configure network settings and then manually configure file sharing to run on top of that. The value add would come from making file sharing dead simple for unsophisticated users while retaining the speed advantage of the Thunderbolt connection. Something like Apple's Airdrop sets up a temporary adhoc WiFi network and configures its TCP/IP settings for you as well as handling the file-sharing details, but is limited to WiFi speeds. It's a huge ease of use win for unsophisticated users, but if you need to transfer huge 8k video files, you may prioritize speed over ease of use. Macs also have Target Disk mode that allows you to plug two Macs together using a Thunderbolt cable and have the shared Mac's disk show up in the Finder of the other. It's also been around since the FireWire days, but always on disk encryption means you have to be logged onto the computer before you can share its disk today. I would assume that this Intel software also handles the details of setting up simple point to point file-sharing for the user, although the article doesn't make this clear.

jauntywundrkind 2y ago
Thunderbolt-net on Linux will set up a link local ipv6 connection automatically. There's dozens of not hundreds of filesharing options that'll just work from there. Samba being advertised by avahi or systemd.dns-sd will be immediately visible. LocalDrop will work instantly. File Sharing is super solved, albeit not via generally with "slick" drag and drop (Samsung notably has a suite of proprietary protocols which also geant drag and drop across devices too.) What's actually interesting is literally everything other than networking (already in thunderbolt) and filesharing (good options abound). I'm far more interested in the entire rest of the capabilities than I am the easy already done one: > Install it on two Thunderbolt . . . computers, connect them . . ., and you should be able to share your mouse, keyboard, screens, storage, and other USB peripherals; That's cool and worth doing and new. That starts to blur the boundaries of what a conventional computer is, draws outside the box of the typical system design. It sounds like an applicationized usb-ip. It sounds like shit MediaTek was trying to make protocols for 9 years ago, CrossMount, https://www.eetimes.com/why-mediatek-pushes-cross-device-sharing/ https://www.eetimes.com/why-mediatek-pushes-cross-device-sha...
- schmidtleonard 2y ago
  People keep saying that thunderbolt/usb4 networking Just Works, so I went and tried. I plugged my PC (ubuntu 23.10, Maple Ridge) into my NAS (ubuntu 23.10, Maple Ridge) with my good USB4 cable which I just tested to have full connectivity on my LED tester and transfer above USB3 speeds to my NVMe enclosure. No network interfaces appeared. I also tried plugging my PC into my M2 macbook and again no network interfaces appeared on either end. I booted into Windows and tried PC-NAS and PC-Macbook. No auto-configured network interfaces. Windows did make the "connect" sound with the Macbook, but that was it. Until connecting the computers by USB4 results in: 0. Drivers already installed and configured without additional effort 1. Automatic appearance of network interfaces 2. Automatic configuration of network interfaces for peer connectivity 3. Automatic peer and service discovery on auto-configured network 4. Automatic presentation of sharing options through a popup or other icon 5. At least some of those options actually work. then it shouldn't be called automatic, "already done," "super solved," or any related phrases. Linux can probably get away with having a few of those steps broken by default, but for everyone else 0-5 above are minimum viable. I'm not even including things that really ought to happen like bad cable detection. The theoretical possibility of getting this to work if you are willing to compile custom drivers, learn an undocumented configuration format, iterate a few times with it, and then proceed to do 1-5 above manually is so far from being minimally viable for public consumption that it might as well not exist and definitely does not deserve any of the praise being heaped upon it here. From the user perspective, it is approximately 0% done, not 100% done.
  - jauntywundrkind 2y ago
    Based off guides like https://gist.github.com/scyto/67fdc9a517faefa68f730f82d7fa3570 https://gist.github.com/scyto/67fdc9a517faefa68f730f82d7fa35... it seems likely that thunderbolt-net module isn't being loaded by udev. Or it seems like none of these things you are plugging into are loading thunderbolt networking on their side. Can you try modprobe-ing the module and seeing if you see the network device? Should take nothing more than that As for network connectivity/configuration, there's going to be a lot of different options depending on daemons. I tend to think NetworkManager is the most likely to do something. But anyone who brings the interface up should get link local which should be good enough for these use cases.

jauntywundrkind 2y ago

Thunderbolt-net on Linux will set up a link local ipv6 connection automatically. There's dozens of not hundreds of filesharing options that'll just work from there. Samba being advertised by avahi or systemd.dns-sd will be immediately visible. LocalDrop will work instantly. File Sharing is super solved, albeit not via generally with "slick" drag and drop (Samsung notably has a suite of proprietary protocols which also geant drag and drop across devices too.) What's actually interesting is literally everything other than networking (already in thunderbolt) and filesharing (good options abound). I'm far more interested in the entire rest of the capabilities than I am the easy already done one: > Install it on two Thunderbolt . . . computers, connect them . . ., and you should be able to share your mouse, keyboard, screens, storage, and other USB peripherals; That's cool and worth doing and new. That starts to blur the boundaries of what a conventional computer is, draws outside the box of the typical system design. It sounds like an applicationized usb-ip. It sounds like shit MediaTek was trying to make protocols for 9 years ago, CrossMount, https://www.eetimes.com/why-mediatek-pushes-cross-device-sharing/ https://www.eetimes.com/why-mediatek-pushes-cross-device-sha...

schmidtleonard 2y ago
People keep saying that thunderbolt/usb4 networking Just Works, so I went and tried. I plugged my PC (ubuntu 23.10, Maple Ridge) into my NAS (ubuntu 23.10, Maple Ridge) with my good USB4 cable which I just tested to have full connectivity on my LED tester and transfer above USB3 speeds to my NVMe enclosure. No network interfaces appeared. I also tried plugging my PC into my M2 macbook and again no network interfaces appeared on either end. I booted into Windows and tried PC-NAS and PC-Macbook. No auto-configured network interfaces. Windows did make the "connect" sound with the Macbook, but that was it. Until connecting the computers by USB4 results in: 0. Drivers already installed and configured without additional effort 1. Automatic appearance of network interfaces 2. Automatic configuration of network interfaces for peer connectivity 3. Automatic peer and service discovery on auto-configured network 4. Automatic presentation of sharing options through a popup or other icon 5. At least some of those options actually work. then it shouldn't be called automatic, "already done," "super solved," or any related phrases. Linux can probably get away with having a few of those steps broken by default, but for everyone else 0-5 above are minimum viable. I'm not even including things that really ought to happen like bad cable detection. The theoretical possibility of getting this to work if you are willing to compile custom drivers, learn an undocumented configuration format, iterate a few times with it, and then proceed to do 1-5 above manually is so far from being minimally viable for public consumption that it might as well not exist and definitely does not deserve any of the praise being heaped upon it here. From the user perspective, it is approximately 0% done, not 100% done.
- jauntywundrkind 2y ago
  Based off guides like https://gist.github.com/scyto/67fdc9a517faefa68f730f82d7fa3570 https://gist.github.com/scyto/67fdc9a517faefa68f730f82d7fa35... it seems likely that thunderbolt-net module isn't being loaded by udev. Or it seems like none of these things you are plugging into are loading thunderbolt networking on their side. Can you try modprobe-ing the module and seeing if you see the network device? Should take nothing more than that As for network connectivity/configuration, there's going to be a lot of different options depending on daemons. I tend to think NetworkManager is the most likely to do something. But anyone who brings the interface up should get link local which should be good enough for these use cases.