Handbook:Alpha-numeric pager support:Introduction

This chapter describes how to configure the support for transmitting messages to alpha-numeric pager devices using the IXO/TAP or the UCP protocol. This facility is implemented with the sendpage(1) client program, the hfaxd(1M) server program that implements the Simple Network Pager Protocol (SNPP), and the pagesend(1M) server program that does the actual delivery.

Alpha-numeric pages are transmitted by contacting a server machine that speaks SNPP and requesting that one or more messages be delivered to one or more paging terminals. HylaFAX implements SNPP within the framework of the hfaxd client-server protocol process (SNPP is one of several protocols it supports). Pager messages submitted through hfaxd result in jobs being submitted to the HylaFAX scheduler process and these jobs are in turn handed to the pagesend program for delivery by placing a phone call to a pager service provider and communicating the requests using the IXO/TAP or the UCP protocol. The used protocol can be configured in the hylafax-info(4F) files according capabilities of the service provider.

Note that by using SNPP to communicate between client and server, client applications other than sendpage can be used to submit pager messages. There supposedly are several client applications for Mac and Windows-based systems that use SNPP to submit pages and a growing number of pager service providers are providing on-line SNPP services via the Internet.