=;The OpenVMS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)D

The OpenVMS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)



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14.29 CD and DVD device requirements?



HRead access to DVD-ROM, DVD+R/RW, DVD-R/RW, CD-ROM, and CD-R/RW devices on ATAPI (IDE) connections isGgenerally handled transparently by SYS$DQDRIVER, and SYS$DQDRIVER will Gtransparently de-block the media-native 2048 byte disk blocks with the C512-byte blocks expected by OpenVMS and by native OpenVMS software.

HRead access to DVD-ROM, DVD+R/RW, DVD-R/RW, CD-ROM, and CD-R/RW devices 3on SCSI is handled by DKDRIVER, though SYS$DKDRIVERFwill not transparently de-block the native 2048-byte disk blocks into Hthe 512-byte blocks expected by OpenVMS. The drive or external software Fis expected to provide this de-blocking, thus either a 512-byte block Gcapable drive (such as all RRD-series SCSI CD-ROM drives) is required, For host software is required for a 2048-byte block drive. Third-party HSCSI drives with UNIX references in their support documentation or with Gexplicit 512-byte selectors or swiches will generally (but not always, of course) operate with OpenVMS.

HAt least some of the Plextor PlexWriter SCSI drives can be successfully "accessed (for read and write) fromHOpenVMS, as can at least one Pioneer SCSI DVD drive (for CD media). The PioneerB SCSI DVD drive switches to 2048 byte blocks for DVD media, and a I block-size conversion tool (written by Glenn Everhart) or other similar  tool can be applied.

AOpenVMS also has supported HP DVD drives for the ATAPI (IDE) bus.

CFor some related information (and details on a commercial DVDwrite package), please see:



CNo device driver currently presently permits direct block-oriented ?recording on DVD-RAM nor DVD+RW media, nor other recordable or rewritable media.

HRecording (writing) of CD and DVD optical media requires a recording or =media mastering application or tool, and both commercial and fnon-commercial options are available. See Section 9.7 for related Fdetails on CDRECORD (both non-DVD and DVD versions are available, and Eat least one commercial version is available), and also see DVDwrite ((commercial) or DVDRECORD (open source).

.For information on the GKDRIVER (SYS$GKDRIVER)6generic SCSI device driver and of the the IO$_DIAGNOSEC$qio[w] interfaces (of SYS$DKDRIVER, SYS$DNDRIVER and SYS$DQDRIVER)Fthat are utilized by most CD and DVD recording tools to send commands Bto SCSI, USB or ATAPI devices (most USB and ATA devices---or more Dcorrectly, most ATAPI devices---can use SCSI-like command packets), -please see the SYS$EXAMPLES:GKTEST.C example,-and see DECW$EXAMPLES:DECW$CDPLAYER.C exampleBand please see the various associated sections of the OpenVMS I/O User's Reference Manual.

FFor information on creating bootable optical media on OpenVMS, please ;see Section 9.7.3.


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Chapter 15
Information on Networks and Clusters


A

If you are searching for something here, please (consider using the text-format FAQ.



FThe following sections contain information on OpenVMS Networking with @IP and DECnet, and on clustering and volume shadowing, on Fibre 4Channel, and on related products and configurations.]

15.1 How to connect OpenVMS to a Modem?



FPlease see the Ask The Wizard area topics starting with (81), (1839), (2177), (3605), etc.



HFor additional information on the OpenVMS Ask The Wizard (ATW) area and Bfor a pointer to the available ATW Wizard.zip archive, please see 0Section 3.8.V

15.2 OpenVMS and IP Networking?



=The following sections contain information on OpenVMS and IP *networking, as well as IP printing topics.J

15.2.1 How to connect OpenVMS to the Internet?



ESome tutorial information and tips for connecting OpenVMS systems to the Internet are available at:

A

15.2.2 Connecting to an IP Printer?



FTo connect a printer via the IP telnet or lpr/lpd protocols, you will Hneed to install and configure an IP stack on OpenVMS, and configure the appropriate print queue.

AWith current OpenVMS IP implementations, the choice of telnet or Glpr/lpd really amounts to determining which of these works better with the particular printer involved.

ETo support network printing, the printer must include an internal or externalE NIC or JetDirect; an adapter connecting the network and the printer.

EWhile it is normally possible to use a host-connected printer---when Fthe host supports an LPD or telnet daemon, and OpenVMS and most other Foperating systems have the ability to serve locally-attached printers Hto other hosts on the network---it is generally far easier and far more Heffective to use a printer that is directly attached to the network. If Dyour present printer does not have a NIC or a JetDirect, acquire an Einternal (if available) or external NIC or JetDirect. Or replace the Eprinter. And obviously, most any operating system that can serve its Elocal printers usually also provides a client that can access remote network-connected printers.

FPlease see the Ask The Wizard (ATW) area topics---starting with topic A(1020)---for additional information on IP-based network printing.



HFor additional information on the OpenVMS Ask The Wizard (ATW) area and Bfor a pointer to the available ATW Wizard.zip archive, please see 0Section 3.8.

ePlease see Section 15.2.3 for information on Postscript printing.U

15.2.3 How do I connect a PostScript printer via TCP/IP?



CUsing TCP/IP Services (UCX) as the TCP/IP stack, it is possible to Cconfigure queues using the UCX$TELNETSYM (TCP/IP Services prior to DV5.0) or TCPIP$TELNETSYM (with V5.0 and later) in order to print to FPostscript printers. This assumes however that the printer itself can Dconvert whatever is passed to it into something intelligible. As an Fexample, if the printer has an IP address of 123.456.789.101 and jobs $should be passed to port 9100 then :

 

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/$ INITIALIZE/QUEUE/ON="123.456.789.101:9100" -      /PROCESSOR=UCX$TELNETSYM  -     my_ip_queue 




 

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/$ INITIALIZE/QUEUE/ON="123.456.789.101:9100" - "    /PROCESSOR=TCPIP$TELNETSYM  -     my_ip_queue 




DThe port number of 9100 is typical of HP JetDirect cards but may be (different for other manufacturers cards.

FAs a better alternative, DCPS Version 1.4 and later support IP queues Husing either HP TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS software or Process Software MultinetG for OpenVMS. The usage of this type of interface is documented in the D DCPS documentation or release notes, and the DCPS$STARTUP.TEMPLATE  startup template file.

EFor general and additional (non-Postscript) IP printing information, Bplease see topic (1020) and other topics referenced in that topic )elsewhere within the Ask The Wizard area.



HFor additional information on the OpenVMS Ask The Wizard (ATW) area and Bfor a pointer to the available ATW Wizard.zip archive, please see 0Section 3.8. Also see:



nPlease see Section 15.2.2 for pointers to an introduction to IP printing.[

15.2.4 How do I set a default IP route or gateway on OpenVMS?



FIf you have TCP/IP Services, then use the command for TCP/IP Services V5.0 and later:

 

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$ TCPIP )SET ROUTE/GATE=x.x.x.x/DEFAULT/PERMANENT 




:And for earlier TCP/IP Services versions, use the command:

 

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$ UCX )SET ROUTE/GATE=x.x.x.x/DEFAULT/PERMANENT 


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15.2.5 How can I set up reverse telnet (like reverse LAT)?



FThough it may seem obvious, Telnet and LAT are quite different---with (differing capabilities and design goals.

DPlease see the documentation around the TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS ETELNET command CREATE_SESSION. This command is the equivilent of the Eoperations performed in LTLOAD.COM or LAT$SYSTARTUP.COM. There is no GTELNET equivilent to the sys$qio[w] control interface for LTDRIVER (as Adocumented in the I/O User's Reference Manual) available, though Bstandard sys$qio[w] calls referencing the created TN device would likely operate as expected.\

15.2.6 Why can't I use PPP and RAS to connect to OpenVMS Alpha?



HOpenVMS Alpha IP PPP does not presently support authentication, and the CMicrosoft Windows NT option to disable authentication during a RAS Dconnection apparently doesn't currently work---RAS connections will Drequire authentication---and this will thus prevent RAS connections.

HFuture versions of OpenVMS and TCP/IP Services may add this, and future Hversions of Microsoft Windows may permit operations with authentication disabled.^

15.3 OpenVMS and DECnet Networking?



AThe following sections contain information on OpenVMS and DECnet networking.E

15.3.1 Can DECnet-Plus operate over IP?



GYes. To configure DECnet-Plus to operate over IP transport and over IP Fbackbone networks, install and configure DECnet-Plus, and install and configure the PWIPE mechanism available within the currently-installed IP stack. Within G TCP/IP Services, this is a PWIPDRIVER configuration option within the D UCX$CONFIG (versions prior to V5.0) or TCPIP$CONFIG (with V5.0 and  later) configuration tool._

15.3.2 What does "failure on back translate address request" mean?



The error message:

 

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;BCKTRNSFAIL, failure on the back translate address request 




Eindicates that the destination node is running DECnet-Plus, and that Bits naming service (DECnet-Plus DECdns, LOCAL node database, etc) Ecannot locate a name to associate with the source node's address. In Eother words, the destination node cannot determine the node name for 7the node that is the source of the incoming connection.

HUse the DECNET_REGISTER mechanism (on the destination node) to register Hor modify the name(s) and the address(es) of the source node. Check the &namespace on the source node, as well.

HTypically, the nodes involved are using a LOCAL namespace, and the node Hname and address settings are not coherent across all nodes. Also check Dto make sure that the node is entered into its own LOCAL namespace. ?This can be a problem elsewhere, however. Very rarely, a cache Gcorruption has been known to cause this error. To flush the cache, use the command:

 

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$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCL -flush session control naming cache entry "*" 




HAlso check to see that you are using the latest ECO for DECnet-Plus for ?the version you are running. DECnet-Plus can use the following namespaces:



GOf these, searching DNS/BIND and LocalFile, respectively, is often the most appropriate configuration.L

15.3.3 Performing SET HOST/MOP in DECnet-Plus?



/First, issue the NCL command SHOW MOP CIRCUIT *

 

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$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCL SHOW MOP CIRCUIT * 




EAssume that you have a circuit known as FDDI-0 displayed. Here is an Eexample of the SET HOST/MOP command syntax utilized for this circuit:

 

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8$ SET HOST/MOP/ADDRESS=08-00-2B-2C-5A-23/CIRCUIT=FDDI-0 




=Also see Section 15.6.3.Z

15.3.4 How to flush the DECnet-Plus session cache?



 

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$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCL -FLUSH SESSION CONTROL NAMING CACHE ENTRY "*" 


j

15.4 How to determine the network hardware address?



EMost Alpha and most VAX systems have a console command that displays Dthe network hardware address. Many systems will also have a sticker Cidentifying the address, either on the enclosure or on the network controller itself.

BThe system console power-up messages on a number of VAX and Alpha Asystems will display the hardware address, particularly on those <systems with an integrated Ethernet network adapter present.

DIf you cannot locate a sticker on the system, if the system powerup Cmessage is unavailable or does not display the address, and if the @system is at the console prompt, start with the console command:

 

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HELP 




GA console command similar to one of the following is typically used to display the hardware address:

 

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SHOW DEVICE SHOW ETHERNET SHOW CONFIG 




FOn the oldest VAX Q-bus systems, the following console command can be @used to read the address directly off the (DELQA, DESQA, or the ;not-supported-in-V5.5-and-later DEQNA) Ethernet controller:

 

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E/P/W/N:5 20001920 




FLook at the low byte of the six words displayed by the above command. H(The oldest VAX Q-bus systems---such as the KA630 processor module used Bon the MicroVAX II and VAXstation II series---lack a console HELP >command, and these systems typically have the primary network Hcontroller installed such that the hardware address value is located at &the system physical address 20001920.)

HIf the system is a VAX system, and another VAX system on the network is ?configured to answer Maintenance and Operations Protocol (MOP) Ebootstrap requests (via DECnet Phase IV, DECnet-Plus, or LANCP), the /MOM$SYSTEM:READ_ADDR.EXE tool can be requested:

 

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B/R5:100 ddcu Bootfile: READ_ADDR 




HWhere ddcu is the name of the Ethernet controller in the above command. AThe primarly local DELQA, DESQA, and DEQNA Q-bus controllers are Eusually named XQA0. An attempt to MOP download the READ_ADDR program Gwill ensue, and (if the download is successful) READ_ADDR will display the hardware address.

FIf the system is running, you can use DECnet or TCP/IP to display the 4hardware address with one of the following commands.

 

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$! DECnet Phase IV $ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCP  SHOW KNOWN LINE CHARACTERISTICS 




 

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$! DECnet-Plus $ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCL "SHOW CSMA-CD STATION * ALL STATUS 




 

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!$! TCP/IP versions prior to V5.0 $ UCX SHOW INTERFACE/FULL 




 

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"$! TCP/IP versions V5.0 and later $ TCPIP SHOW INTERFACE/FULL 




FA program can be created to display the hardware address, reading the Bnecessary information from the network device drivers. A complete Aexample C program for reading the Ethernet or IEEE 802.3 network Fcontroller hardware address (via sys$qio calls to the OpenVMS network 4device driver(s)) is available at the following URL:



DTo use the DECnet Phase IV configurator tool to watch for MOP SYSID #activity on the local area network:

 

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$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCP ;SET MODULE CONFIGURATOR KNOWN CIRCUIT SURVEILLANCE ENABLED 




FLet the DECnet Phase IV configurator run for at least 20 minutes, and 5preferably longer. Then issue the following commands:

 

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$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCP >SHOW MODULE CONFIGURATOR KNOWN CIRCUIT STATUS TO filename.txt <SET MODULE CONFIGURATOR KNOWN CIRCUIT SURVEILLANCE DISABLED 




DThe resulting file (named filename.txt) can now be searched for the Einformation of interest. Most DECnet systems will generate MOP SYSID Gmessages identifying items such as the controller hardware address and Dthe controller type, and these messages are generated and multicast roughly every ten minutes.

DInformation on the DECnet MOP SYSID messages and other parts of the Emaintenance protocols is included in the DECnet network architecture *specifications referenced in section DOC9.]

15.4.1 How do I reset the LAN (DECnet-Plus NCL) error counters?



On recent OpenVMS releases:

 

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$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:LANCP 3SET DEVICE/DEVICE_SPECIFIC=FUNCTION="CCOU" devname 


Q

15.4.2 How do I install DECnet Phase IV on VMS 7.1?



BOn OpenVMS V7.1, all DECnet binaries were relocated into separate @installation kits---you can selectively install the appropriate Fnetwork: DECnet-Plus (formerly known as DECnet OSI), DECnet Phase IV, ,and HP TCP/IP Services (often known as UCX).

GOn OpenVMS versions prior to V7.1, DECnet Phase IV was integrated, and Gthere was no installation question. You had to install the DECnet-Plus A(DECnet/OSI) package on the system, after the OpenVMS upgrade or installation completed.

ADuring an OpenVMS V7.1 installation or upgrade, the installation Fprocedure will query you to learn if DECnet-Plus should be installed. GIf you are upgrading to V7.1 from an earlier release or are installing HV7.1 from a distribution kit, simply answer "NO" to the question asking Ayou if you want DECnet-Plus. Then---after the OpenVMS upgrade or Binstallation completes -- use the PCSI PRODUCT INSTALL command to Binstall the DECnet Phase IV binaries from the kit provided on the "OpenVMS software distribution kit.

GIf you already have DECnet-Plus installed and wish to revert, you must Ereconfigure OpenVMS. You cannot reconfigure the "live" system, hence Dyou must reboot the system using the V7.1 distribution CD-ROM. Then <select the DCL ($$$ prompt) option. Then issue the commands:

 

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'$$$ DEFINE/SYSTEM PCSI$SYSDEVICE DKA0: -$$$ DEFINE/SYSTEM PCSI$SPECIFIC DKA0:[SYS0.] =$$$ PRODUCT RECONFIGURE VMS /REMOTE/SOURCE=DKA0:[VMS$COMMON] 




HThe above commands assume that the target system device and system root Bare "DKA0:[SYS0.]". Replace this with the actual target Cdevice and root, as appropriate. The RECONFIGURE command will then Hissue a series of prompts. You will want to reconfigure DECnet-Plus off Bthe system, obviously. You will then want to use the PCSI command DPRODUCT INSTALL to install the DECnet Phase IV kit from the OpenVMS distribution media.

HInformation on DECnet support, and on the kit names, is included in the 4OpenVMS V7.1 installation and upgrade documentation.

HSubsequent OpenVMS upgrade and installation procedures can and do offer 3both DECnet Phase IV and DECnet-Plus installations.q

15.5 How can I send (radio) pages from my OpenVMS system?



CThere are third-party products available to send messages to radio Epaging devices (pagers), communicating via various protocols such as 7TAP (Telocator Alphanumeric Protocol); paging packages.

RamPage (Ergonomic Solutions)@is one of the available packages that can generate and transmit Emessages to radio pagers. Target Alert (Target Systems; formerly the DECalert product) is another.=Networking Dynamics Corp has a product called Pager Plus. TheASystem Watchdog package can also send pages. The Process SoftwareHpackage PMDF can route specific email addresses to a paging service, as well.

DMany commercial paging services provide email contact addresses for Gtheir paging customers---you can simply send or forward email directly +to the email address assigned to the pager.

FSome people implement the sending of pages to radio pagers by sending Ecommands to a modem to take the "phone" off the "hook", and then the Fpaging sequence, followed by a delay, and then the same number that a ?human would dial to send a numeric page. (This is not entirely Hreliable, as the modem lacks "call progress detection", and the program Ecould simply send the dial sequence when not really connected to the 3paging company's telephone-based dial-up receiver.)

jSee Section 13.1 for information on the available catalog of products.f

15.6 OpenVMS, Clusters, Volume Shadowing?



DThe following sections contain information on OpenVMS and Clusters, 8Volume Shadowing, and Cluster-related system parameters.




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