diff --git a/server/include/node.h b/server/include/node.h
index 78dba6987..2b97294be 100644
--- a/server/include/node.h
+++ b/server/include/node.h
@@ -131,4 +131,10 @@ struct node_vtable const * node_lookup_vtable(const char *str);
  */
 struct node* node_lookup_name(const char *str, struct node *nodes);
 
+/** Reverse local and remote socket address.
+ * This is usefull for the helper programs: send, receive, test
+ * because they usually use the same configuration file as the
+ * server and therefore the direction needs to be swapped. */
+int node_reverse(struct node *n);
+
 #endif /* _NODE_H_ */
diff --git a/server/include/utils.h b/server/include/utils.h
index 4e822af04..b4eb8a028 100644
--- a/server/include/utils.h
+++ b/server/include/utils.h
@@ -39,6 +39,12 @@
 
 #define ARRAY_LEN(a)	( sizeof a / sizeof a[0] )
 
+#define SWAP(a, b)	do { \
+	 			__typeof__(a) tmp = a; \
+				a = b; \
+				b = tmp; \
+			} while(0)
+
 /** The log level which is passed as first argument to print() */
 enum log_level { DEBUG, INFO, WARN, ERROR };
 
diff --git a/server/src/node.c b/server/src/node.c
index 0b722f85e..216e200e2 100644
--- a/server/src/node.c
+++ b/server/src/node.c
@@ -105,3 +105,17 @@ int node_stop(struct node *n)
 	
 	return ret;
 }
+
+int node_reverse(struct node *n)
+{
+	switch (n->vt->type) {
+		case IEEE_802_3:
+		case IP:
+		case UDP:
+		case TCP:
+			SWAP(n->socket->remote, n->socket->local);
+			break;
+		default: { }
+	}
+	return n->vt->open == socket_open;
+}
diff --git a/server/src/receive.c b/server/src/receive.c
index 16738b864..18f131c0e 100644
--- a/server/src/receive.c
+++ b/server/src/receive.c
@@ -33,21 +33,36 @@ void quit(int sig, siginfo_t *si, void *ptr)
 	exit(EXIT_SUCCESS);
 }
 
+void usage(char *name)
+{
+	printf("Usage: %s CONFIG NODE\n", name);
+	printf("  CONFIG  path to a configuration file\n");
+	printf("  NODE    name of the node which shoud be used\n\n");
+	printf("Simulator2Simulator Server %s (built on %s %s)\n",
+		BLU(VERSION), MAG(__DATE__), MAG(__TIME__));
+	printf(" Copyright 2014, Institute for Automation of Complex Power Systems, EONERC\n");
+	printf("   Steffen Vogel <stvogel@eonerc.rwth-aachen.de>\n");
+	exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
+}
+
 int main(int argc, char *argv[])
 {
+	char c;
+	int reverse = 0;
+	
 	struct config_t config;
-
-	if (argc != 3) {
-		printf("Usage: %s CONFIG NODE\n", argv[0]);
-		printf("  CONFIG  path to a configuration file\n");
-		printf("  NODE    name of the node which shoud be used\n\n");
-		printf("Simulator2Simulator Server %s (built on %s %s)\n",
-			BLU(VERSION), MAG(__DATE__), MAG(__TIME__));
-		printf(" Copyright 2014, Institute for Automation of Complex Power Systems, EONERC\n");
-		printf("   Steffen Vogel <stvogel@eonerc.rwth-aachen.de>\n");
-		exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
+	
+	while ((c = getopt(argc, argv, "hr")) != -1) {
+		switch (c) {
+			case 'r': reverse = 1; break;
+			case 'h':
+			case '?': usage(argv[0]);
+		}
 	}
 
+	if (argc - optind != 2)
+		usage(argv[0]);
+
 	/* Setup signals */
 	struct sigaction sa_quit = {
 		.sa_flags = SA_SIGINFO,
@@ -59,11 +74,16 @@ int main(int argc, char *argv[])
 	sigaction(SIGINT, &sa_quit, NULL);
 
 	config_init(&config);
-	config_parse(argv[1], &config, &set, &nodes, NULL);
+	config_parse(argv[optind], &config, &set, &nodes, NULL);
 	
-	node = node_lookup_name(argv[2], nodes);
+	node = node_lookup_name(argv[optind+1], nodes);
 	if (!node)
-		error("There's no node with the name '%s'", argv[2]);
+		error("There's no node with the name '%s'", argv[optind+1]);
+
+	node->refcnt++;
+	
+	if (reverse)
+		node_reverse(node);
 
 	node_start(node);
 	node_start_defer(node);
diff --git a/server/src/send.c b/server/src/send.c
index 51db9cc99..2dd7bae2a 100644
--- a/server/src/send.c
+++ b/server/src/send.c
@@ -35,20 +35,36 @@ void quit(int sig, siginfo_t *si, void *ptr)
 	exit(EXIT_SUCCESS);
 }
 
+void usage(char *name)
+{
+	printf("Usage: %s [-r] CONFIG NODE\n", name);
+	printf("  -r      swap local / remote address of socket based nodes)\n");
+	printf("  CONFIG  path to a configuration file\n");
+	printf("  NODE    name of the node which shoud be used\n");
+	printf("Simulator2Simulator Server %s (built on %s %s)\n",
+		BLU(VERSION), MAG(__DATE__), MAG(__TIME__));
+	printf(" Copyright 2014, Institute for Automation of Complex Power Systems, EONERC\n");
+	printf("   Steffen Vogel <stvogel@eonerc.rwth-aachen.de>\n");
+	exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
+}
+
 int main(int argc, char *argv[])
 {
+	char c;
+	int reverse = 0;
+
 	struct config_t config;
-	
-	if (argc != 3) {
-		printf("Usage: %s CONFIG NODE\n", argv[0]);
-		printf("  CONFIG  path to a configuration file\n");
-		printf("  NODE    name of the node which shoud be used\n\n");
-		printf("Simulator2Simulator Server %s (built on %s %s)\n",
-			BLU(VERSION), MAG(__DATE__), MAG(__TIME__));
-		printf(" Copyright 2014, Institute for Automation of Complex Power Systems, EONERC\n");
-		printf("   Steffen Vogel <stvogel@eonerc.rwth-aachen.de>\n");
-		exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
+
+	while ((c = getopt(argc, argv, "hr")) != -1) {
+		switch (c) {
+			case 'r': reverse = 1; break;
+			case 'h':
+			case '?': usage(argv[0]);
+		}
 	}
+	
+	if (argc - optind != 2)
+		usage(argv[0]);
 
 	/* Setup signals */
 	struct sigaction sa_quit = {
@@ -61,11 +77,16 @@ int main(int argc, char *argv[])
 	sigaction(SIGINT, &sa_quit, NULL);
 
 	config_init(&config);
-	config_parse(argv[1], &config, &set, &nodes, NULL);
+	config_parse(argv[optind], &config, &set, &nodes, NULL);
 	
-	node = node_lookup_name(argv[2], nodes);
+	node = node_lookup_name(argv[optind+1], nodes);
 	if (!node)
-		error("There's no node with the name '%s'", argv[2]);
+		error("There's no node with the name '%s'", argv[optind+1]);
+	
+	node->refcnt++;
+	
+	if (reverse)
+		node_reverse(node);
 
 	node_start(node);
 	node_start_defer(node);