From: hoffman@xdelta.zko.dec.nospam Sent: Friday, January 07, 2000 9:38 PM To: Info-VAX@Mvb.Saic.Com Subject: OpenVMS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), Part 1/3 Archive-name: dec-faq/vms/part1 Posting-Frequency: monthly Last-modified: 7 January 2000 Version: VMS-FAQ-1.TXT(3) Changes since last edition ========================== Various update numerous references from DIGITAL to Compaq Update ALPHA4 removed the OEM pointer Update ALPHA8 add restrictions Update ALPHA11 add another bit Update DECW3 add pointer to sys$qio example Update DECW10 add CDE backdrop customization information Add DECW12 Why do the keyboard arrow keys move the DECwindows cursor? Update DOC2 update URL Update FILE5 IDE capacity information added Update FILE8 new pointers Update MISC13 Add information on compression, overhead Add MISC14 So what happened to sys$cmsuper? Add MISC15 How can I send radio pages from my OpenVMS system? Add MISC16 What is flow control and how does it work? Add MISC17 How do I reset the LAN (DECnet-Plus NCL) counters? Update MGMT2 new product owners Update MGMT7 updated title, additional DTSS information Update MGMT12 Correct the syntax Update MGMT20 ftp options Update MGMT22 add link Update MGMT25 additional URLs Update MGMT30 fix typo Add MGMT31 How do I reset the error count(s)? Add MGMT32 How do I find out if the tape drive supports compression? Add MGMT33 Can I copy SYSUAF to another version? To VAX? To Alpha? Update SOFT1 new pointers, more inclusive title Add SOFT6 Obtaining user input in DCL CGI script? Add SOFT7 How do I get my own batch entry number? Add SOFT8 How do I convert to new CMS libraries? Add SOFT9 Where can I get new certificates for Netscape Navigator? Add SOFT10 Why doesn't DCL symbol substitution work? Add SUPP1 Where can I get software and hardware support information? Add SUPP2 Where can I get hardware self-maintenance support assistance? Update UTIL3 new URL, Ensoniq information Update VAX8 the in grammar the title fix Add VAX9 Which serial port is the console on the MicroVAX 3100? Update VMS7 Add source listings part numbers, point to SPD Add VMS12 Are there any general-access OpenVMS systems available? Add Y2K7 ANSI tape headers and Y2K Overview ======== This is part 1/3 of the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) posting for the comp.os.vms and vmsnet.misc newsgroups. (comp.os.vms is bidirectionally-gatewayed to the INFO-VAX mailing list - see INTRO3 for further details.) It contains answers to frequently asked questions about Compaq's OpenVMS operating system and the computer systems on which it runs. (Please see INTRO5 before posting.) The OpenVMS FAQ is archived in the following locations: http://www.openvms.digital.com/wizard/openvms_faq.html ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/dec-faq/OpenVMS.txt ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/dec-faq/vms ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/dec-faq/vms comp.answers and news.answers newsgroups Other internet FAQs are generally available in these locations: comp.answers and news.answers newsgroups ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/... User-created HTML versions of the OpenVMS FAQ are located at: http://www.kjsl.com/vmsfaq http://eisner.decus.org/vms/faq.htm Please do NOT send technical questions to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) editor -- well, please do not email any questions that do not also include the answer(s). Please post these questions to the appropriate newsgroup instead -- and see INTRO5 before posting. To make suggestions for changes or additions to this FAQ list, please send mail to the FAQ editor at hoffman@xdelta.zko.dec.com. Again, the FAQ editor is *not* in a position to answer general questions. Some general notes: The term "VMS" is synonymous with "OpenVMS". "Alpha", "AlphaGeneration" or "AXP" generally refers to any system or product based on or related to Compaq's Alpha processor architecture. OpenVMS manual names mentioned are those as of V7.2 -- names may be different in other editions of the documentation set. World-Wide Web Universal Resource Locator (URL) notation is used for FTP addresses. Many people have contributed to this list, directly or indirectly. In some cases, an answer has been adapted from one or more postings on the comp.os.vms newsgroup. Our thanks to all of those who post answers. The name (or names) at the end of an entry indicate that the information was taken from postings by those individuals; the text may have been edited for this FAQ. These citations are only given to acknowledge the contribution. Although the editor of this FAQ is an employee of Compaq Computer Corporation, this posting is not an official statement of Compaq. AlphaGeneration, AlphaServer, AlphaStation, Alpha AXP, AXP, DEC, DECstation, DECsystem, OpenVMS, ULTRIX, VAX and VMS are trademarks of Compaq. Compaq and the names of Compaq products are trademarks and/or registered trademarks and/or service marks of Compaq Computer Corporation. OSF/1 is a registered trademark of the Open Software Foundation. UNIX is a registered trademark in the United States and other countries, licensed exclusively through X/Open Company Ltd. Other names are properties of their respective owners. Table of Contents - Part 1/3 ____________________________ Introduction ======================================== INTRO1. What is the scope of comp.os.vms? INTRO2. What other newsgroups carry VMS-related information? INTRO3. What is INFO-VAX? INTRO4. How do I subscribe to or unsubscribe from INFO-VAX? INTRO5. How do I submit a question or a response? What is etiquette? INTRO6. What is DECUS? INTRO7. What archives of comp.os.vms/INFO-VAX are available? General questions about OpenVMS ======================================== VMS1. What is OpenVMS? What is its history? VMS2. What is the difference between VMS and OpenVMS? VMS3. How do I port from VMS to OpenVMS? VMS4. Which is better - OpenVMS or UNIX? VMS5. Is Compaq continuing funding and support for OpenVMS? VMS7. What OpenVMS CD-ROM products are available? VMS8. In what language is OpenVMS written? VMS9. How do I obtain or transfer a VMS license? VMS10. What is OpenVMS doing about the Euro currency symbol? VMS11. Why hasn't OpenVMS been ported to Intel (IA32) systems? VMS12. Are there any general-access OpenVMS systems available? Alpha and Alpha-based systems ======================================== ALPHA1. What do the letters AXP stand for? ALPHA2. What are the OpenVMS differences between VAX and Alpha? ALPHA4. How do I join Compaq Solutions Alliance? ALPHA5. Seeking performance information for Alpha (and VAX) systems? ALPHA6. Where can I get updated console firmware for Alpha systems? ALPHA7. How do I boot an AlphaStation without monitor or keyboard? ALPHA8. Will OpenVMS run on a Multia? AlphaPC 164LX? 164SX? ALPHA9. What is the least expensive system that will run OpenVMS? ALPHA10. Where can I get more information on Alpha systems? ALPHA11. What are the APB boot flag values? VAX and VAX-based systems ======================================== VAX1. Please explain the back panel of the MicroVAX II VAX2. What is the layout of the VAX floating point format? VAX3. Where can I find more info on VAX systems? VAX4. Where can I find information on NetBSD for VAX systems? VAX5. What system disk size limit on the MicroVAX and VAXstation 3100? VAX6. How does OpenVMS VAX maintain system time? VAX7. What are the VMB boot flag values? VAX8. What is the Accuracy of the VAX Time of Year (TOY) Clock? VAX9. Which serial port is the console on the MicroVAX 3100? Hardware and Software Support resources ======================================== SUPP1. Where can I get software and hardware support information? SUPP2. Where can I get hardware self-maintenance support assistance? Documentation and other resources ======================================== DOC1. Where can I find online copies of OpenVMS manuals? DOC2. What online information is available? DOC3. What books and publications are available? DOC4. How do I extract a HELP topic to a text file? DOC5. Does OpenVMS Marketing have an e-mail address? DOC6. What OpenVMS-related WWW sites are available? DOC7. Where can I find patches for OpenVMS layered products? DOC8. Where can I find info about undocumented OpenVMS features? DOC9. Where is documentation on the DECnet Phase IV protocols? DOC10. Where can I learn about how the VMS executive works internally? DOC11. Where can new users find tutorial information about OpenVMS? Year 2000 Issues ======================================== Y2K1. Does OpenVMS have a problem with the year 2000? Y2K2. What happens with the C tm_year field in the year 2000? Y2K3. What happens with the year 2038 with C? Y2K4. Is the year 2000 a leap year? Y2K5. What is covered by the OpenVMS Y2K Evaluation? Y2K6. Do I need to consider Y2K? Do I even need the Y2K ECO? Y2K7. Y2K-compatible ANSI tape label support? Table of Contents - Part 2/3 ____________________________ System Management ======================================== MGMT1. What is an installed image? MGMT2. Are there any known viruses for OpenVMS? MGMT3. How do I mount an ISO-9660 CD on OpenVMS? MGMT4. How do I extract the contents of a PCSI kit? MGMT5. I've forgotten the SYSTEM password - what can I do? MGMT6. How do I connect a PostScript printer via TCP/IP? MGMT7. Why can't I do a SET TIME command? Help Managing DTSS? MGMT8. How do I change the timezone differential and time in batch? MGMT9. How do I change the node name of an OpenVMS System? MGMT10. What is the correct value for EXPECTED_VOTES in a VMScluster? MGMT11. Why doesn't OpenVMS see the new memory I just added? MGMT12. How do I write a BACKUP saveset to a remote tape? MGMT13. Tell me about SET HOST/DUP and SET HOST/HSC MGMT14. How do I install DECnet Phase IV on VMS 7.1? MGMT15. How do I change the text in a user's UIC identifier? MGMT16. What are the OpenVMS version upgrade paths? MGMT17. Why do I have negative number in the pagefile reservable pages? MGMT18. Do I have to update layered products when updating OpenVMS? MGMT19. How do I change the volume label of a disk? MGMT20. How do I fix a corrupt BACKUP saveset? MGMT21. How can I set up a shared directory? MGMT22. Why does my system halt when I power-cycle the console terminal? MGMT23. Why do I get extra blank pages on my HP Printer? MGMT24. How do I configure ELSA GLoria Synergy graphics on OpenVMS? MGMT25. How do I acquire OpenVMS patches, fixes, and ECOs? MGMT26. How do I rename a DSSI disk (or tape?) MGMT27. How do I move the queue manager database? MGMT28. How do I set a default IP route or gateway on OpenVMS? MGMT29. How do I switch between AlphaBIOS/ARC and SRM consoles? MGMT30. How do I delete an undeletable/unstoppable (RWAST) process? MGMT31. How do I reset the error count(s)? MGMT32. How do I find out if the tape drive supports compression? MAIL ======================================== MAIL1. How do I send Internet mail? MAIL2. How do I get IN% or MX% added automatically to Internet addresses? MAIL3. How do I automatically append a signature file to my mail messages? MAIL4. Do I have to use VMS MAIL? I like my Unix mailer better. MAIL5. How can I forward my mail? Can I forward it to an Internet address? MAIL6. How can I forward my mail to a list of addresses? MAIL7. MAIL keeps saying I have new messages, but I don't. What do I do? MAIL8. How do I extract all of my mail messages to a file? MAIL9. How do I send or read attachments in VMS MAIL? Other Utilities ======================================== UTIL1. How do I play an audio CD on my workstation? UTIL2. How do I access a MS-DOS floppy disk from OpenVMS? UTIL3. How do I play sound files on an AlphaStation? DECsound doesn't work DCL and command usage ======================================== DCL1. How do I run a program with arguments? DCL2. How can I redefine control keys in DCL? DCL3. How can I clear the screen in DCL? DCL4. How do I do a REPLY/LOG in a batch stream? DCL5. How do I generate a random number in DCL? DCL6. What does the MCR command do? DCL7. How do I change the OpenVMS system prompt? DCL8. Can I do DECnet task-to-task communication with DCL? File System and RMS ======================================== FILE1. How can I undelete a file? FILE2. Why does SHOW QUOTA give a different answer than DIR/SIZE? FILE3. How do I make sure that my data is safely written to disk? FILE4. What are the limits on file specifications and directories? FILE5. What is the largest disk volume size OpenVMS can access? FILE6. What is the maximum file size, and the RMS record size limit? FILE7. How do I write recordable CDs on OpenVMS? FILE8. What I/O transfer size limits exist in OpenVMS? Table of Contents - Part 3/3 ____________________________ Programming ======================================== PROG1. How do I call from ? PROG2. How do I get the arguments from the command line? PROG3. How do I get a formatted error message in a variable? PROG4. How do I link against SYS$SYSTEM:SYS.STB on an Alpha system? PROG5. How do I do a SET DEFAULT from inside a program? PROG6. How do I create a shareable image transfer vector on an Alpha system? PROG7. How do I turn my Fortran COMMON into a shareable image on Alpha? PROG8. How do I convert between IEEE and VAX floating data? PROG9. How do I get the argument count in a Fortran routine? PROG10. How do I get a unique system ID for licensing purposes? PROG11. What is an executable, shareable, system or UWSS image? PROG12. How do I do a file copy from a program? PROG13. What is a descriptor? PROG14. How many bytes are in a disk block? PROG15. How many bytes are in a memory page? PROG16. How do I create a process under another username? PROG17. Why do lib$spawn, lib$set_symbol fail in detached processes? PROG18. Where can I obtain Bliss, and the libraries and supporting files? PROG19. How can I open a file for shared access? DECwindows ======================================== DECW1. How do I let someone else display something on my workstation? DECW2. How do I create a display on another workstation? DECW3. How can I get the information from SHOW DISPLAY into a symbol? DECW4. How do I get a log of a DECterm session? DECW5. Problem - the DELETE key deletes forward instead of backward! DECW6. Problem - On a DEC2000-300, Motif doesn't start DECW7. Problem - My LK401 keyboard unexpectedly autorepeats DECW8. Problem - My LK411 sends the wrong keycodes or some keys are dead DECW9. How do I set the title on a DECterm window? DECW10. How do I customize DECwindows, including the login screen? DECW11. Why doesn't XtAppAddInput() work on OpenVMS? DECW12. Why do the keyboard arrow keys move the DECwindows cursor? Miscellaneous ======================================== MISC1. Looking for connector wiring pinouts? MISC2. Where can I find information on escape and control sequences? MISC3. Can I reuse old keyboards, mice and monitors with a PC? MISC4. What connectors and wiring adapters are available? MISC5. Where can I find performance info and specs for older systems? MISC6. What does "failure on back translate address request" mean? MISC7. How to determine the network hardware address? MISC8. Why does my system halt when I powercycle the console terminal? MISC9. Why can't I use PPP and RAS to connect to OpenVMS Alpha? MISC10. Which video monitor works with which graphics controller? MISC11. Where can I get information on storage hardware? MISC12. Does DECprint (DCPS) work with the LRA0 parallel port? MISC13. How do I check for free space on a (BACKUP) tape? MISC14. So what happened to sys$cmsuper? MISC15. How can I send radio pages from my OpenVMS system? MISC16. What is flow control and how does it work? MISC17. How do I reset the LAN (DECnet-Plus NCL) counters? MISC18. What are the prefixes for the powers of ten? Software ======================================== SOFT1. Where can I find freeware/shareware/software for OpenVMS? SOFT2. Where can I find the UNIX tool for OpenVMS? SOFT3. Where can I get the Netscape Navigator Mozilla.org Web Browser? SOFT4. Where can I get Java for OpenVMS? SOFT5. VAX C and DEC C, and other OpenVMS C Programming Considerations? SOFT6. Obtaining user input in DCL CGI script? SOFT7. How do I get my own batch entry number? SOFT8. How do I convert to new CMS libraries? SOFT9. Where can I get new certificates for Netscape Navigator? SOFT10. Why doesn't DCL symbol substitution work? ------------------------------------------------------------ INTRO1. What is the scope of comp.os.vms? The comp.os.vms newsgroup is the primary newsgroup for discussion of Compaq's OpenVMS operating system and the computer systems on which it runs. Questions about layered products which run on OpenVMS are also welcome, though many of them (in particular, language compilers and database systems) have more specific newsgroups. If a question has some relationship to OpenVMS, it belongs here. ------------------------------------------------------------ INTRO2. What other newsgroups carry VMS-related information? The vmsnet.* hierarchy, run by DECUS, contains several newsgroups of interest, including vmsnet.misc and vmsnet.alpha, the latter being mostly devoted to Alpha topics. There's also vmsnet.sources (and vmsnet.sources.d) to which sources for or pointers to freeware are posted. See the separate "What is VMSNET" monthly posting for further details. The comp.sys.dec newsgroup carries discussions about Compaq systems acquired from Digital Equipment Corporation. ------------------------------------------------------------ INTRO3. What is INFO-VAX? INFO-VAX is a mailing list which is bidirectionally gatewayed to the comp.os.vms newsgroup. This means that postings to comp.os.vms get automatically sent to INFO-VAX subscribers and messages sent to the INFO-VAX list are automatically posted to comp.os.vms. INFO-VAX can be a useful way to participate in the newsgroup if you can't access the group directly through a news reader. An important point to keep in mind is that propagation delays vary, both within the newsgroup and with INFO-VAX mailings. It's possible that postings may not be delivered for several days and some may appear out of order. ------------------------------------------------------------ INTRO4. How do I subscribe to or unsubscribe from INFO-VAX? The address for subscription requests, as well as notes intended for the moderator, is Info-VAX-Request@Mvb.Saic.Com. Subscription requests are handled automatically by a mail server. This mail server ignores the subject line and processes each line of the message as a command. The syntax for subscribing and unsubscribing and setting digest or non-digest modes is: SUBSCRIBE INFO-VAX (ADD is a valid synonym) UNSUBSCRIBE INFO-VAX (REMOVE, SIGNOFF, and SIGN-OFF are valid synonyms) SET INFO-VAX DIGEST (to receive in Digest format) SET INFO-VAX NODIGEST (to receive each message individually) Case is irrelevant and attempts to fetch a copy of the mailing list will be rejected (I consider the information to be confidential). Any message not understood by the mailserver will be forwarded to a human (allegedly) for manual processing. [Mark.Berryman@Mvb.Saic.Com] If you are on Bitnet, send a mail message containing the text "SUBSCRIBE INFO-VAX" to LISTSERV@(nearest listserv system). To unsubscribe, send a message containing the text "SIGNOFF INFO-VAX" to the *SAME* listserv address. If you are on the Internet in the UK, send a message containing the word SUBSCRIBE (or UNSUBSCRIBE) to info-vax-request@ncdlab.ulcc.ac.uk. ------------------------------------------------------------ INTRO5. How do I submit a question or a response? What is etiquette? If you are using a news reader, post your question to comp.os.vms. If you want to submit through INFO-VAX, send the message to Info-VAX@mvb.saic.com. Before posting, please use available local resources, such as the manuals, HELP and this FAQ first. Also make a point of reading the release notes for the product you're using, generally placed in SYS$HELP. Often you'll find the answer, and will save time and effort for all concerned. (And you won't "annoy the natives"...) When posting, please consider the following suggestions: 1. Include a valid e-mail address in the text of your posting or in a "signature" appended to the end. Reply-to addresses in headers often get garbled. 2. If you are submitting a question, please be as specific as you can. Include relevant information such as processor type, product versions (OpenVMS and layered products that apply), error message(s), DCL command(s) used, and a short, reproducible example of problems. Say what you've tried so far, so that effort isn't duplicated. Keep in mind that there's not yet a telepathy protocol for the Internet. (The more detailed your description, the better that people can help you with your question.) 3. If responding to a posting, include in your reply only as much of the original posting as is necessary to establish context. As a guideline, consider that if you've included more text than you've added, you've possibly included too much. Never include signatures and other irrelevant material. 4. Be polite. If the question isn't worded the way you think is correct or doesn't include the information you want, try to imagine what the problem might be if viewed from the poster's perspective. Requests for additional information are often better sent through mail rather than posted to the newsgroup. 5. If you have a problem with Compaq (or any other vendor's) product, please use the appropriate support channel. Don't assume that newsgroup postings will get read, will be responded to by the appropriate developers, or will be later followed up on... Before posting your question to the comp.os.vms newsgroup or sending your message to the INFO-VAX list, also please take the time to review available etiquette information, such as that included in the following documents: ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/primer/part1 ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/faq/part1 ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/emily-postnews/part1 ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/writing-style/part1 ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/posting-rules/part1 This information will document the etiquette of newsgroups, as well as providing you with the knowledge the vast amount of newsgroup-related information that is readily available to you, and where to find it... Please ***DO NOT POST SECURITY HOLES OR SYSTEM CRASHERS ***. Rather, please report these problems directly to Compaq. (Why? So that Compaq has a change to resolve and distribute a fix before other customer sites can be affected. Most folks in the newsgroups are honest and deserve to know about potential security problems, but a few folks can and will make nefarious use of this same information. Other sites will hopefully return the favor, and not post information that will potentially compromise YOUR site and YOUR computer environment. ------------------------------------------------------------ INTRO6. What is DECUS? DECUS, the Digital Equipment Computer Users Society, is a World Wide organization of Information Technology professionals interested in the products, services, and technologies of Compaq and related vendors. Membership in the Chapter is free and provides participants with the means to enhance their professional development, forums for technical training, mechanisms for obtaining up-to-date information, advocacy programs, and opportunities for informal disclosure and interaction with professional colleagues of like interest. For further information, see the separate monthly "What is DECUS" posting, or refer to the US DECUS WWW server at http://www.decus.org or the Canadian DECUS WWW server at http://www.decus.ca/. ------------------------------------------------------------ INTRO7. What archives of comp.os.vms/INFO-VAX are available? Everything posted since 1990 is archived and available at: ftp://crvax.sri.com/info-vax/ [Arne Vajhøj] ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS1. What is OpenVMS? What is its history? OpenVMS, originally called VMS (Virtual Memory System), was first conceived in 1976 as a new operating system for the then-new, 32-bit, virtual memory line of computers, eventually named VAX (Virtual Address eXtension). The first VAX model, the 11/780, was code-named "Star", hence the code name for the VMS operating system, "Starlet", a name that remains to this day the name for the system library files (STARLET.OLB, etc.). VMS version X0.5 was the first released to customers, in support of the hardware beta test of the VAX-11/780, in 1977. VAX/VMS Version V1.0 shipped in 1978, along with the first revenue-ship 11/780s. OpenVMS was designed entirely within Compaq (Digital Equipment Corporation). The principal designers were Dave Cutler and Dick Hustvedt, with a wide variety of other contributors. OpenVMS was conceived as a 32-bit, virtual memory successor to the RSX-11M operating system for the PDP-11. Many of the original designers and programmers of OpenVMS had worked previously on RSX-11M, and many concepts from RSX-11M were carried over to OpenVMS. OpenVMS VAX is a 32-bit, multitasking, multiprocessing virtual memory operating system. Current implementations run on VAX systems from Compaq and other vendors. OpenVMS Alpha is a 64-bit multitasking, multiprocessing virtual memory operating system. Current implementations run on Alpha systems from Compaq, and other vendors. [Paul Winalski] [Arne Vajhøj] For more details on OpenVMS and its features, read the OpenVMS Software Product Description at: http://www.digital.com/info/SP2501/ Additional information on the general features of various OpenVMS releases, release dates, as well as the development project code names of specific releases, is available at: http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvms/os/openvms-release-history.html Additional historical information -- as well as pictures and a variety of other trivia -- is available in the VAX 20th anniversary book: http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvms/20th/vmsbook.pdf ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS2. What is the difference between VMS and OpenVMS? VMS and OpenVMS are two names for the same operating system. Originally, the operating system was called VAX-11/VMS; it changed to VAX/VMS at around VAX/VMS V2.0. When the VMS operating system was ported to the Alpha platform, it was renamed OpenVMS, for both VAX and Alpha, in part to signify the high degree of support for industry standards such as POSIX, which provides many features of UNIX systems. For those versions with POSIX, an OpenVMS license allows you to install and run POSIX for OpenVMS at no additional charge; all you need is the media and documentation which can be found on the Consolidated Distribution and On-Line Documentation CD-ROMs. Support for the POSIX package on more recent OpenVMS releases is not available, various parts of POSIX such as calls from the API are being integrated more directly into OpenVMS. For more information on POSIX for VMS see question SOFT2 What became confusing is that the OpenVMS name was introduced first for OpenVMS AXP V1.0 causing the widespread misimpression that OpenVMS was for Alpha AXP only, while "regular VMS" was for VAX. In fact, the official name of the VAX operating system was changed as of V5.5, though the name did not start to be actually used in the product until V6.0. The proper names for OpenVMS on the two platforms are now "OpenVMS VAX" and "OpenVMS Alpha", the latter having superseded "OpenVMS AXP". [Arne Vajhøj] ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS3. How do I port from VMS to OpenVMS? You already did. Wasn't that easy? (See question VMS2.) ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS4. Which is better - OpenVMS or UNIX? This question comes up periodically, usually asked by new subscribers who are long-time UNIX users. Sometimes, it is ignored totally; other times, it leads to a long series of repetitive messages that convince no one and usually carry little if any new information. Please do everyone a favor and avoid re-starting this perpetual, fruitless debate. [leichter@lrw.com] Seriously, OpenVMS and the better implementations of UNIX are all fine operating systems, each with its strengths and weaknesses. If you're in a position where you need to choose, select the one that best fits your own requirements, considering, for example, whether or not the layered products or specific OS features you want are available. [Steve Lionel] ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS5. Is Compaq continuing funding and support for OpenVMS? Yes. Active development of new OpenVMS releases is underway, as well as the continuation of support. Please see the following URLs for details, roadmaps, and related information: http://www.compaq.com/openvms/ http://www.openvms.digital.com/OPENVMS/strategy.html http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvms/roadmap/index.htm http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvmstimes/ http://www.compaq.com/inform/ ------------------------------------------------------------ [VMS6 removed, replaced by Y2K section] ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS7. What OpenVMS CD-ROM products are available? Various distributions are available. For information on the available part numbers and current products (OpenVMS distribution kits, media, documentation, etc) and associated licensing information, please see the OpenVMS Software Product Description (SPD), available at: http://www.digital.com/info/SP2501/ http://www.digital.com/info/SP4187/ The following CD-ROMs contain just the OpenVMS Alpha operating system. These are bootable, and can be used to run BACKUP from CD-ROM. QA-MT1AP-H8 OpenVMS Alpha V6.1-1H2 hardware release CD-ROM QA-MT1AG-H8 OpenVMS Alpha V6.2-1H3 hardware release CD-ROM QA-MT1AD-H8 OpenVMS Alpha V7.1-1H1 hardware release CD-ROM QA-MT1AR-H8 OpenVMS Alpha V7.1-2 maintenance release CD-ROM QA-MT1AT-H8 OpenVMS Alpha V7.2-1 maintenance release CD-ROM The following are the consolidated ECO distribution kit subscriptions, and these provide sites with eight updates of the current ECO kits per year: QT-3CQAA-C8 OpenVMS Alpha QT-3CRAA-C8 OpenVMS VAX OpenVMS VAX and OpenVMS Alpha source listings CD-ROM sets include the source listings of most of OpenVMS, and these CD-ROM sets are invaluable for any folks working directly with OpenVMS internals, as well as folks interested in seeing examples of various programming interfaces. QB-MT1AB-E8 OpenVMS Alpha Source Listings CD-ROM QT-MT1AB-Q8 OpenVMS Alpha Source Listings CD-ROM Updates QB-001AB-E8 OpenVMS VAX Source Listings CD-ROM QT-001AB-Q8 OpenVMS VAX Source Listings CD-ROM Updates ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS8. In what language is OpenVMS written? OpenVMS is written in a wide variety of languages. In no particular order, OpenVMS components are implemented using Bliss, Macro, Ada, PLI, VAX and DEC C, Fortran, UIL, VAX and Alpha SDL, Pascal, MDL, DEC C++, DCL, Message, and Document. And this is certainly not a complete list. However, the rumor is NOT true that an attempt was made to write pieces of OpenVMS in every supported language so that the Run-Time Libraries could not be unbundled. (APL, BASIC, COBOL and RPG are just some of the languages NOT represented!) There are a large variety of small and not-so-small tools and DCL command procedures that are used as part of the OpenVMS build, and a source code control system capable of maintaining over a hundred thousand source files across multiple parallel development projects, and overlapping releases. ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS9. How do I obtain or transfer a VMS license? If you are a DECUS member and are considering acquiring and using a VAX or Alpha system for hobbyist use, (free) licenses for OpenVMS VAX and OpenVMS Alpha are available to DECUS members. In addition to the license, VAX and Alpha distribution CD-ROM kits are available with OpenVMS, DECwindows Motif, DECnet and TCP/IP networking, compilers, a variety of layered products, and an OpenVMS Freeware kit for a nominal fee. The OpenVMS Freeware is also available separately. For further information, link to: http://www.montagar.com/hobbyist/ Further information on DECUS and on DECUS membership is available at: http://www.decus.org/ To transfer a commercial OpenVMS license from one owner to another, or to purchase a commercial license, you can contact Compaq Computer Corporation at 1-800-DIGITAL (in North America), or your local or regional sales office. [Stephen Hoffman] [Scott Snadow] ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS10. What is OpenVMS doing about the Euro currency symbol? For information on the current status and plans for support of the European Monetary Union's Euro currency symbol in OpenVMS, see: http://www.openvms.digital.com/euro/ ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS11. Why hasn't OpenVMS been ported to Intel (IA32) systems? Why? Business reasons... Because there is a belief that there would be no market to justify the effort and the expense involved in porting OpenVMS to systems using the Intel IA32 architecture. (Each maintainer of a product or package for OpenVMS would have to justify the port to "OpenVMS IA32", akin to a port from OpenVMS VAX to OpenVMS Alpha. The effort involved in porting OpenVMS from VAX to Alpha was huge.) Because every one of the core applications would have to be ported from Alpha to IA32, and then customer and third-party applications would also have to be ported. Because there are design features that required by OpenVMS that are not available on IA32, features that would require redesigning OpenVMS to operate in the environment, making ports rather more difficult. ASTs and interlocked operators are obvious prerequirements. Because Alpha is faster than Intel IA32 systems -- if OpenVMS is to be ported, a port to a slower system is more difficult to sell. Because Intel is expecting to replace IA32 processors with IA64. Because hobbyists have been easily able to acquire OpenVMS systems and the DECUS hobbyist OpenVMS licenses. Because OpenVMS already operates on Compaq and third-party Alpha systems; specific features in support of third-party vendor-customized bootstrap capabilities for use on third-party systems are present in OpenVMS Alpha V7.1-2 and later releases. Because there are assumptions that some of the stability of OpenVMS arises from the stability of the underlying VAX and Alpha hardware, and systems based on components such as ISA and random memory SIMMs might not be as stable. But yes, it would be nice to have. [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ VMS12. Are there any general-access OpenVMS systems available? Yes. o Hobbes Hobbes is a MicroVAX 3100 Model 40 for which free access and accounts are available to OpenVMS enthusiasts. This system has BASIC, Pascal, Fortran, and C compilers installed. If you would like an account on Hobbes, please email to: hobbesthevax@hotmail.com The following information is required: Name, address, telephone number, and what you expect to use it for. This system is strictly for non-commercial use. [Scott Squires] o OpenVMS Galaxy Test Drive Compaq currently offers an OpenVMS Galaxy Test Drive system, based on an AlphaServer 4100 series configured as two instances of the OpenVMS operating system. For details, please see: http://www.testdrive.compaq.com/galaxy/ ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA1. What do the letters AXP stand for? While there are many fanciful "definitions" which have circulated widely, the truth is that AXP is not an abbreviation nor an acronym; the letters do not mean anything. They are just three letters chosen to form a trademark. When it came time to chose a "marketing name" for the Alpha AXP line, the company was in a quandary. The internal "code name" for the project, Alpha, was widely known and would seem the ideal choice, but it was already in common use by a number of other companies and could not be trademarked. A well-known "name search" firm was hired and was asked to come up with two lists of possible names. The first list was intended to evoke the feeling of "extension to VAX", while the second list was to suggest "not a VAX". Unfortunately, none of the choices offered were any good; for example, "VAX 2000" was found on the first list while the second list contained "MONDO" (later to be used for a kids' soft drink). Shortly before announcement, a decision was made to name the new line ARA, for Advanced RISC Architecture. However, an employee in Israel quickly pointed out that this name, if pronounced in the "obvious" manner, sounded very much like an Arabic word with decidely unfortunate connotations. Eventually, AXP was selected; the architecture would be referred to as "Alpha AXP" whereas products themselves would use just "AXP". Use of the AXP term has been phased out in favour of using Alpha. For example, "OpenVMS AXP" is now officially refered to as "OpenVMS Alpha". ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA2. What are the OpenVMS differences between VAX and Alpha? Very few. As of OpenVMS V6.1, the VAX and Alpha platforms are very close to "feature parity". Most applications can just be recompiled and run. Some differences to be aware of: - The default double-precision floating type on OpenVMS Alpha is VAX G_float, whereas on VAX it is usually D_float. D_float is available on Alpha, but D_float values are converted to G_float for computations and then converted back to D_float when stored. Because the G_float type has three fewer fraction bits than D_float, some applications may get different results. IEEE float types are also available on OpenVMS Alpha. - Data alignment is extremely important for best performance on Alpha. This means that data items should be allocated at addresses which are exact multiples of their sizes. Quadword alignment will offer the best performance, especially for character values and those smaller than 32 bits. Compilers will naturally align variables where they can and will issue warnings if they detect unaligned data items. - Compaq C is the only C compiler Compaq offers on OpenVMS Alpha. It is compatible with DEC C on OpenVMS VAX, but is somewhat different from the older VAX C compiler most people are familiar with. Read up on the /EXTERN_MODEL and /STANDARD qualifiers to avoid the most common problems. - The page size on Alpha systems is variable, but is at least 8K bytes. This can have some effect on applications which use the $CRMPSC system service as well as on the display of available memory pages. The page size is available from $GETSYI(SYI$_PAGE_SIZE). There are also a number of manuals which discuss migration to OpenVMS Alpha available on the documentation CD-ROM media, both in the main documentation and in the archived documentation section. On more recent OpenVMS Alpha versions, OpenVMS Alpha has begun to add features and support not available on OpenVMS VAX. Salient new areas include the following: - 64-bit addressing in OpenVMS Alpha V7.0 and later - Multi-host SCSI support (SCSI TCQ) in V6.2 and later - PCI support (platform-dependent) - OpenVMS Galaxy support in V7.2 and later ------------------------------------------------------------ [ALPHA3 removed, information obsolete] ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA4. How do I join Compaq Solutions Alliance? The Compaq Solutions Alliance (CSA) is a (free) program that is open to and that supports software partners, consultants, and service providers: http://www.compaq.com/csa/ CSA provides members with discounts on hardware, porting assistance, and many other benefits. For those familiar with the program, the DIGITAL Association of Software and Application Parterns (ASAP) program has been incorporated into CSA. The Compaq Solutions Alliance Technical Journal (CTJ) is "web-published" monthly, and available at: http://www.intercontent.com/compaq/ ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA5. Seeking performance information for Alpha (and VAX) systems? Compaq makes a wide range of performance documents available through its FTP and WWW Internet servers (see DOC2). The following contain information on current Alpha and VAX products: http://www.digital.com/alphaserver/products.html http://www.digital.com/alphaserver/vax/ The following sites contain information on various retired VAX and Alpha products: http://www.compaq.com/products/workstations/digital/retired/index.html http://www.digital.com/alphaserver/archive/index.html http://www.digital.com/alphaserver/performance/perf_tps.html Also see CPU2000: http://www.spec.org/osg/cpu2000/ http://www.spec.org/osg/cpu2000/results/cpu2000.html ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA6. Where can I get updated console firmware for Alpha systems? Firmware updates for Compaq Alpha systems are available from: ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/Alpha/firmware/ http://www.service.digital.com/alpha/server/firmware/ The files are structured similiar to those on the firmware CD, and are separated by CD release. For example, the contents of the V3.7 firmware CD are located at: ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/Alpha/firmware/v3.7/ The latest and greatest firmware (if released since the last firmware CD) is located at: ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/Alpha/firmware/interim/ Please send your comments and feedback to alpha_server@service.digital.com For information on creating bootable floppies containing the firmware, and for related tools, please see the following areas: ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/utilities/mkboot.txt ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/utilities/mkbootarc.txt ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/utilities/mkntboot.txt ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA7. How do I boot an AlphaStation without monitor or keyboard? The AlphaStation series will boot without a keyboard attached. To use a serial terminal as the console, issue the console command SET CONSOLE SERIAL - after that, it will use the terminal. Older Alpha workstations generally can't be booted without a keyboard. The usual settings for the console serial terminal (or PC terminal emulator acting as a serial console are: 9600 baud, 8 bits, no parity, one stop bit (9600 baud, 8N1). The AlphaStation and AlphaServer series use the PC DIN serial connector for the "COM1" and "COM2" serial lines, see MISC1 for details and pinout. ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA8. Will OpenVMS run on a Multia? AlphaPC 164LX? 164SX? Yes, there are a set of unsupported images that permit recent OpenVMS Alpha versions to bootstrap on the Multia UDB system. These images and the associated instructions are available at the OpenVMS Freeware website: http://www.openvms.digital.com/freeware/multia/ Instructions are included IN the kits. READ THE INSTRUCTIONS. Some of the restrictions involved when running OpenVMS on the Multia system include (but may well not be limited to) the following: o The PCMCIA support was completely removed, because the Intel chip on the Multia was not compatable with the Cirrus chip on the Alphabook. This means, of course, that you will not see and cannot use any PCMCIA cards on a Multia. o The Multia uses shared interrupts, and as a result, a special ZLXp-E series graphics device driver -- one that does not use interrupts -- is needed. This driver is provided in the kit. o The serial lines don't work. o If you have a Multia with a PCI slot, you can't use any PCI card that requires interrupts. o The SRM console on this system is very old and very fragile. (This SRM console was designed only and strictly for diagnostic use, and was not particularly tested or used with OpenVMS.) o If things don't work for you, don't expect to see any OpenVMS updates, nor SRM console updates, nor any support. The Multia images are not included on the OpenVMS Freeware V4.0 CD-ROM kit, the kit that was distributed with OpenVMS V7.2. (These images became available after Freeware V4.0 shipped.) Other sources of information for OpenVMS on Multia include: http://home.earthlink.net/~djesys/vms/hobbyist/multia.html http://home.earthlink.net/~djesys/vms/hobbyist/mltianot.html http://home.earthlink.net/~djesys/vms/hobbyist/support.html http://www.netbsd.org/Ports/alpha/multiafaq.html [Stephen Hoffman] [David J. Dachtera] OpenVMS Alpha is not supported on the AlphaPC 164LX and 164SX, and the OpenVMS CPU-specific routines and images necessary to bootstrap on these systems do not presently exist. ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA9. What is the least expensive system that will run OpenVMS? The cheapest systems presently offered by Compaq that will run OpenVMS are the AlphaServer DS10 server and the AlphaStation XP900 workstation. Other companies sell Alpha-powered systems and Alpha motherboards, some of which will run (and can be purchased with) OpenVMS -- see the OpenVMS Software Product Description (SPD) for details on the supported systems and configurations. There are also many used AlphaStation, AlphaServer, and DEC 3000 models available which are quite suitable. For more experienced OpenVMS system managers, the (unsupported) Multia can bootstrap OpenVMS -- see ALPHA8 for details. Depending on the OpenVMS version and configuration, the OpenVMS Software Product Description (SPD) is available at: http://www.digital.com/info/SP2501/ http://www.digital.com/info/SP4187/ When purchasing a system, ensure that the system itself is supported, that the system disk drive is supported or closely compatible, that the CD-ROM drive is supported or is closely compatable and that it also specifically supports 512 byte block transfers, and particularly ensure that video controller is supported. Use of supported Compaq hardware will generally reduce the level of integration effort involved. A CD-ROM drive is required for OpenVMS Alpha installations. [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA10. Where can I get more information on Alpha systems? Compaq operates an AlphaServer information center at: http://www.digital.com/alphaserver/ Alpha Technical information and documentation is available at: http://www.digital.com/alphaserver/technical.html ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/systems/ Alpha motherboard products and Alpha microprocessor documentation: http://www.digital.com/alphaoem/alpha.htm Compaq OEM Website: http://www.digital.com/oem/ Information on Multia hardware is available at: http://www.netbsd.org/Ports/alpha/multiafaq.html [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA11. What are the APB boot flag values? The following flags are passed (via register R5) to the OpenVMS Alpha primary bootstrap image APB.EXE. These flags control the particular behaviour of the bootstrap: >>> BOOT -FL root,flags bit description --- ---------------------------------------------- 0 Conversational bootstrap 1 Load SYSTEM_DEBUG.EXE (XDELTA) 2 Stop at initial system breakpoints if bit 1 set (EXEC_INIT) 3 Diagnostic bootstrap (loads diagboot.exe) 4 Stop at bootstrap breakpoints (APB and Sysboot) 5 Secondary bootstrap does not have an image header 6 Inhibit memory test 7 Prompt for secondary bootstrap file 8 Halt before transfer to secondary bootstrap 9 Boot from shadow set 10 LAD/LAST bootstrap 11 Unused 12 Transfer to intermediate primary bootstrap 13 Mark CRD pages bad 14 Report unaligned data traps in bootstrap 15 Unused 16 Enable verbose boot messages in EXEC_INIT 17 Enable subset of verbose boot messages (user messages) If you want to set the boot flags "permanently" use the SET BOOT_FLAGS command, e.g. >>> SET BOOT_OSFLAGS 0,1 ------------------------------------------------------------ ALPHA12. What are Alpha console environment variables? Alpha systems have a variety of variables with values set up within the SRM system console. These environment variables control the particular behaviour of the console program and the system hardware, the particular console interface presented to the operating system, various default values for the operating system bootstrap, and related control mechanisms -- in other words, "the environment variables provide an easily extensible mechanism for managing complex console state." The specific environment variables differ by platform and by firmware version -- the baseline set is established by the Alpha Architecture: AUTO_ACTION ("BOOT", "HALT", "RESTART", any other value assumed to be HALT), BOOT_DEV, BOOTDEF_DEV, BOOTED_DEV, BOOT_FILE, BOOTED_FILE, BOOT_OSFLAGS, BOOTED_OSFLAGS, BOOT_RESET ("ON", "OFF"), DUMP_DEV, ENABLE_AUDIT ("ON", "OFF"), LICENSE, CHAR_SET, LANGUAGE, TTY_DEV. OpenVMS Galaxy firmware can add console environment variables beginning with such strings as LP_* and HP_*, and each particular console implementation can (and often does) have various sorts of platform-specific extensions beyond these variables... The contents of a core set of environment variables are accessable from OpenVMS using the f$getenv lexical and the sys$getenv system service. (These calls are first documented in V7.2, but have been around for quite a while.) Access to arbitary console environment variables is rather more involved, and not directly available. [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX1. Please explain the back panel of the MicroVAX II The MicroVAX-series console bulkhead was used with the KA630, KA650, KA655 processors. There are three controls on the console bulkhead of these systems: Triangle-in-circle-paddle: halt enable. dot-in-circle: halt () is enabled, and auto-boot is disabled. dot-not-in-circle: halt () is disabled, and auto-boot is enabled. Three-position-rotary: power-up bootstrap behaviour arrow: normal operation. face: language inquiry mode. t-in-circle: infinite self-test loop. Eight-position-rotary: console baud rate selection select the required baud rate; read at power-up. Those versions of the console bulkhead that do not have an MMJ have a 9-pin submini connector (DB9), and the pinout of this connector predates the PC 9-pin pinout -- the console pinout is consistent with the EIA232 pinout. See MISC4 for details of the DB9 pinout. For those bulkheads not equipped with an MMJ, use the H8575-B adapter to convert the console connector to MMJ. See MISC1 for further details. Also present on the bulkhead is a self-test indicator: a single digit. This matches the final part of the countdown displayed on the console or workstation, and can be used by a service organization to determine the nature of a processor problem. The particular countdown sequence varies by processor type, consult the hardware or owner's manual for the processor, or contact the local hardware service organization for information the self-test sequence for a particular processor module. Note that self-tests 2, 1 and 0 are associated with the transfer of control from the console program to the booting operating system. [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX2. What is the layout of the VAX floating point format? The VAX floating point format is derived from one of the PDP-11 FP formats, which helps explain its strange layout. There are four formats defined: F 32-bit single-precision, D and G 64-bit double-precision and H 128-bit quadruple precision. For all formats, the lowest addressed 16-bit "word" contains the sign and exponent (and for other than H, some of the most significant fraction bits). Each successive higher-addressed word contains the next 16 lesser-significant fraction bits. Bit 15 of the first word is the sign, 1 for negative, 0 for positive. Zero is represented by a biased exponent value of zero and a sign of zero; the fraction bits are ignored (but on Alpha, non-zero fraction bits in a zero value cause an error.) A value with biased exponent zero and sign bit 1 is a "reserved operand" - touching it causes an error - fraction bits are ignored. There are no minus zero, infinity, denormalized or NaN values. For all formats, the fraction is normalized and the radix point assumed to be to the left of the MSB, hence 0.5 <= f < 1.0. The MSB, always being 1, is not stored. The binary exponent is stored with a bias varying with type in bits 14:n of the lowest-addressed word. Type Exponent bits Exponent bias Fraction bits (including hidden) ========================================================================== F 8 128 24 D 8 128 56 G 11 1024 53 H 15 16384 113 The layout for D is identical to that for F except for 32 additional fraction bits. Example: +1.5 in F float is hex 000040C0 (fraction of .11[base 2], biased exponent of 129) [Steve Lionel] ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX3. Where can I find more info about VAX systems? Compaq runs a VAX "InfoCenter" at: http://www.digital.com/alphaserver/vax/ Jim Agnew maintains a MicroVAX/VAXstation FAQ at: http://anacin.nsc.vcu.edu/~jim/mvax/mvax_faq.html James Lothian maintains a VAX-11/750 FAQ at: http://www.dcs.napier.ac.uk/~oose5002/750faq.html The VAXstation 3100 Owner's Guide: http://www.whiteice.com/~williamwebb/intro/DOC-i.html A field guide to PDP-11 (and VAX) Q-bus and UNIBUS modules can be found at: http://metalab.unc.edu//pub/academic/computer-science/ history/pdp-11/hardware/field-guide.txt ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX4. Where can I find information on NetBSD for VAX systems? Gunnar Helliesen maintains a NetBSD VAX FAQ at: http://vaxine.bitcon.no/ ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX5. What system disk size limit on the MicroVAX and VAXstation 3100? System disks larger than 1.073 gigabytes (GB) -- 1fffff hexidecimal blocks -- are not supported on any member of the VAXstation 3100 series and on certain older members of the MicroVAX 3100 series, and are not reliable on these affected systems. (See below to identify the affected systems -- the more recent members of the MicroVAX 3100 series systems are NOT affected.) Various of the SCSI commands used by the boot drivers imbedded in the console PROM on all members of the VAXstation 3100 series use "Group 0" commands, which allow a 21 bit block number field, which allows access to the first 1fffff hexidecimal blocks of a disk. Any disk references past 1fffff will wrap -- this wrapping behaviour can be of particular interest when writing a system crashdump file, as this can potentially lead to system disk corruptions should any part of the crashdump file be located beyond 1.073 GB. More recent systems and console PROMs use "Group 1" SCSI commands, which allow a 32 bit block number field. There was a similar limitation among the oldest of the MicroVAX 3100 series, but a console boot PROM was phased into production and was made available for field retrofits -- this PROM upgrade allows the use of the "Group 1" SCSI commands, and thus larger system disks. There was no similar PROM upgrade for the VAXstation 3100 series. Systems that are affected by this limit: o VAXstation 3100 series, all members. No PROM upgrade is available. o MicroVAX 3100 models 10 and 20. No PROM upgrade is available. o MicroVAX 3100 models 10e and 20e. Only systems with console VMB versions prior to V6.4 are affected. A PROM upgrade for these specific systems is (was once) available. Also see: http://www.whiteice.com/~williamwebb/intro/DOC-i.html [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX6. How does OpenVMS VAX maintain system time? VAX systems maintain an interval clock, and a hardware clock. The VAX hardware clock is called the TOY ("Time Of Year") clock. The register associated with the clock is called the TODR ("Time Of Day Register"). The TOY clock -- as used -- stores time relative to January first of the current year, starting at at 00:00:00.00. It is a 100 Hz, 32-bit counter, incremented every 10ms, and thus has a capacity of circa 497 days. OpenVMS (on the VAX platform) stores system date information -- and in particular, the current year -- in the system image, SYS$SYSTEM:SYS.EXE. The TOY is used, in conjunction with the base date that is stored and retrieved from the system image, to initialize the interval clock value that is stored in EXE$GQ_SYSTIME. Once the interval clock is loaded, the system does not typically reference the TOY again, unless a SET TIME (with no parameters) is issued. The interval clock value is updated by a periodic IPL22 or IPL24 (depending on the specific VAX) interrupt. (When these interrupts are blocked as a result of the activity of higher-IPL code -- such as extensive driver interrupt activity or a hardware error -- the clock will "loose" time, and the time value reported to the user with appear to have slowed down.) Because the TOY has a resolution of 497 days, you need to issue a "SET TIME" (with no parameters) at least once between January 1st and about April 11th of each year. The SET TIME is issued during various OpenVMS procedures such as SHUTDOWN, and can be issued directly. Issuing SET TIME resets the value stored in the TOY, and updates the current year saved in the system image. This usage is the reason that OpenVMS installation kits explicitly prompt for the time during bootstrap, and why the time value can "get weird" if the system crashes outside the 497 day window (if no SET TIME was issued to update the saved values), and why the time value can "get weird" if a different SYS$SYSTEM:SYS.EXE is used (alternate system disk, standalone BACKUP, etc). On most (all?) VAX systems, the battery that is associated with the TOY clock can be disconnected and replaced if (when) it fails -- TOY clock problems in VAX systems do regularly get tracked back to a failed nicad or lithium battery pack. [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX7. What are the VMB boot flag values? The following flags are passed (via register R5) to the OpenVMS VAX primary bootstrap image VMB.EXE. These flags control the particular behaviour of the bootstrap: The exact syntax is console-specific, recent VAX consoles tend to use the following: >>> BOOT/R5:flags Bit Meaning --- ------- 0 RPB$V_CONV Conversational boot. At various points in the system boot procedure, the bootstrap code solicits parameter and other input from the console terminal. If the DIAG is also on then the diagnostic supervisor should enter "MENU" mode and prompt user for the devices to test. 1 RPB$V_DEBUG Debug. If this flag is set, VMS maps the code for the XDELTA debugger into the system page tables of the running system. 2 RPB$V_INIBPT Initial breakpoint. If RPB$V_DEBUG is set, VMS executes a BPT instruction immediately after enabling mapping. 3 RPB$V_BBLOCK Secondary boot from the boot block. Secondary bootstrap is a single 512-byte block, whose LBN is specified in R4. 4 RPB$V_DIAG Diagnostic boot. Secondary bootstrap is image called [SYSMAINT]DIAGBOOT.EXE. 5 RPB$V_BOOBPT Bootstrap breakpoint. Stops the primary and secondary bootstraps with a breakpoint instruction before testing memory. 6 RPB$V_HEADER Image header. Takes the transfer address of the secondary bootstrap image from that file's image header. If RPB$V_HEADER is not set, transfers control to the first byte of the secondary boot file. 7 RPB$V_NOTEST Memory test inhibit. Sets a bit in the PFN bit map for each page of memory present. Does not test the memory. 8 RPB$V_SOLICT File name. VMB prompts for the name of a secondary bootstrap file. 9 RPB$V_HALT Halt before transfer. Executes a HALT instruction before transferring control to the secondary bootstrap. 10 RPB$V_NOPFND No PFN deletion (not implemented; intended to tell VMB not to read a file from the boot device that identifies bad or reserved memory pages, so that VMB does not mark these pages as valid in the PFN bitmap). 11 RPB$V_MPM Specifies that multi-port memory is to be used for the total EXEC memory requirement. No local memory is to be used. This is for tightly-coupled multi-processing. If the DIAG is also on, then the diagnostic supervisor enters "AUTOTEST" mode. 12 RPB$V_USEMPM Specifies that multi-port memory should be used in addition to local memory, as though both were one single pool of pages. 13 RPB$V_MEMTEST Specifies that a more extensive algorithm be used when testing main memory for hardware uncorrectable (RDS) errors. 14 RPB$V_FINDMEM Requests use of MA780 memory if MS780 is insufficient for booting. Used for 11/782 installations. <31:28> RPB$V_TOPSYS Specifies the top level directory number for system disks with multiple systems. ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX8. What is the Accuracy of VAX the Time of Year (TOY) Clock? The VAX Time-Of-Year (TOY) clock (used to save the time over a reboot or power failure) is specified as having an accuracy of .0025%. This is a drift of roughly 65 seconds per month. The TOY value is used in conjunction with a year value stored in SYS.EXE -- the TOY clock resolution is circa 497 days, meaning that a SET TIME must be issued early each year in order to keep the SYS.EXE and TOY clock values synchronized, and must also be issued whenever a new or different SYS.EXE image is in use. The VAX Interval Time is used to keep the running time, and this has a specified accuracy of .01%. This is a drift of approximately 8.64 seconds per day. Any high-IPL activity can interfere with the IPL 22 or IPL 24 (this depends on the VAX implementation) clock interrupts -- activities such as extensive device driver interrupts or memory errors are known to slow the clock. To help keep more accurate system time, NTP, DECdtss, and other techniques are commonly used. If you do not have IP access to a time-base, then you could use dial-up access to NIST or other authoritative site. (There exists code around that processes the digital-format time that is available via a modem call into the NIST clock, and code that grabs the time off a GPS receiver digital link.) The web sites: http://www.eecis.udel.edu/~ntp/ http://www.nist.gov/ http://www.bldrdoc.gov/timefreq/faq/faq.htm are good time-related resources. ------------------------------------------------------------ VAX9. Which serial port is the console on the MicroVAX 3100? Just to keep life interesting, the MicroVAX 3100 has some "interesting" console ports behaviours based on the setting of the BREAK enable switch. When the console is not enabled to respond to BREAK, MMJ-1 is the console port. MMJ-3 will (confusingly) output the results of the selftest in parallel with MMJ-1. When the console is enabled to respond to BREAK, MMJ-3 becomes the console port, and MMJ-1 will (confusingly) output the results of selftest in parallel with MMJ-3. ------------------------------------------------------------ SUPP1. Where can I get software and hardware support information? Contact Compaq Customer Support. Services and information, manuals, guides, downloads, and various other information is available at: http://www.compaq.com/support/ Various hardware and system documentation is available at: http://www.digital.com/lists/QB_archive_HD.html http://www.europe.digital.com/info/CUHOME/BACK_ISSUES.HTM http://www.compaq.com/support/techpubs/user_reference_guides/ ------------------------------------------------------------ SUPP2. Where can I get hardware self-maintenance support assistance? The Compaq Assisted Services program is available to customers that wish to maintain their own systems (self-maintenace), but that require some assistance with acquiring hardware diagnostics, hardware manuals, and with hardware swaps and spares: http://www.digital.com/info/DAHOME/ ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC1. Where can I find online copies of OpenVMS manuals? The Compaq OpenVMS and layered product documentation is copyrighted material. HTML format on-line product documentation sets for specific Compaq OpenVMS products are presently available at: http://www.openvms.digital.com:8000/ http://www.openvms.digital.com/doc/ Documentation is offered on separately orderable CD-ROM media through a subscription to the Consolidated On-Line Documentation (ConOLD) product (see VMS7.) ConOLD manuals are readable with BNU, a viewer that is supplied with the documentation distribution. BNU can display HTML, Bookreader, and documentation in other formats. MGBOOK, a viewer for Bookreader-format documentation is available for character-cell terminals (eg. VTxxx) via the WKU VMS Freeware file server -- see question SOFT1 for details. [Steve Lionel] [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC2. What online information is available? On your OpenVMS system, the HELP command can provide a wealth of information, not only on DCL commands but on system services (HELP System_Services) and Run-Time Library routines (HELP RTL_Routines). The introduction displayed when you type the HELP command with no additional keywords provides further pointers. OpenVMS Marketing runs a WWW server at http://www.compaq.com/openvms/ (http://www.openvms.digital.com/). Here, you will find product information, strategy documents, the contents of the latest OpenVMS Freeware CD-ROM and much more. Product information for just about everything Compaq sells is available from Digital's Internet servers. If you're using a World-Wide-Web (WWW) browser, use http://www.digital.com/info.html For anonymous FTP access, log in to ftp.digital.com. Software Product Descriptions (SPDs) (http://www.digital.com/info/SPHOME/), system performance data (see ALPHA5), product infosheets, release notes and much more are available. In addition, http://www.digital.com/info/forms/search.html provides a handy method to search all of Compaq's public web servers for information of any kind. Compaq's Customer Services organization also hosts an Internet server. Various contract-access and non-contract access ECO (patch) kits are available at the URL: http://search.service.digital.com/ For ftp access use ftp://ftp.service.digital.com/ The Compaq Systems and Options Catalog (SOC) and the Interactive Catalog are available at: http://www.digital.com/info/SOHOME/SOHOMEHM.HTM http://www.systems.digital.com/ The Systems and Options Catalog is being replaced by Compaq QuickSpecs. Compaq's Business Link provides product information, prices and permits online ordering: http://www.businesslink.digital.com/ Information on Compaq hardware, software, products and services is available through various telephone numbers: 1-800-AT-COMPAQ : voice : Compaq (including DIGITAL and Tandem) products and services 1-800-DIGITAL : voice : DIGITAL products and services 1-800-DEC-2717 : voice : The DECchip Hotline 1-508-568-6868 : voice : (alternate number for above) 1-800-STORWORK : voice : The Compaq StorageWorks team David Mathog offers two HTML documents which contain useful information about OpenVMS. http://seqaxp.bio.caltech.edu:8000/www/vms_sheet.html http://seqaxp.bio.caltech.edu:8000/www/vms_beginners_faq.html ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC3. What books and publications are available? A bibliography of current and recent OpenVMS books is available at: http://www.levitte.org/~ava/vms_book.htmlx The Butterworth-Heinemann Digital Press imprint offers a number of OpenVMS books. A website is available at: http://www.bh.com/ Information on specific OpenVMS books is also available at: http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvms/books.html ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC4. How do I extract the contents of a HELP topic to a text file? To extract all the text of a HELP topic (and its subtopics) to a text file for perusal with a text editor, printing out, etc., use the following command: $ HELP/OUT=filename.txt help-topic [help-subtopic] If the help text you want is not in the standard help library (for example, it's help for a utility such as MAIL that has its own help library), add /LIBRARY=libname after the HELP verb. To see the names of help library files, do a directory of SYS$HELP:*.HLB. ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC5. Does OpenVMS Marketing have an e-mail address? Yes - if you can't get the answers to questions elsewhere, if you have comments or complaints about OpenVMS, send mail to openvms-info@compaq.com (This address is NOT a support channel, and is solely intended to provide informal method to communicate directly with members of OpenVMS Marketing.) ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC6. What OpenVMS-related WWW sites are available? http://www.openvms.digital.com/ (Sponsored by OpenVMS Marketing) http://www.montagar.com/ (Sponsored by DECUS - DFWLUG) http://www.levitte.org/~ava/ (Sponsored by Arne Vajhøj) http://www.saiga.com/ (Sponsored by Saiga Systems) http://www.tachyon.com/ (Sponsored by Wayne Sewell) http://www.progis.de/openvms.htm (Sponsored by proGIS Software) http://www.jcameron.com/vms/ (Sponsored by Jeff Cameron) The following web site is sponsored by "The Beave", and provides information that is directly relevent to system managers, security managers, and others interested in ensuring the continued security of OpenVMS systems: http://www.vistech.net/users/beave/hack-vms-faq Suggestions (indirectly) provided by the above include disabling the port 11 and 15 stats provided by IP packages such as Multinet. ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC7. Where can I find patches for OpenVMS layered products? Compaq is now providing many patches (correction kits) for OpenVMS and layered products on the Internet. The easiest way to search for and retrieve the patches is through: http://www.service.digital.com/html/patch_service.html You can also find the patches and the associated README files at: ftp://ftp.service.digital.com/public but you must know what you are looking for. See VMS7 for info on ordering a CD-ROM with patch kits. For a list of OpenVMS ECO kits recently released, you can use: http://Eisner.DECUS.org/conferences/OpenVMS-patches_new_1.HTML You can also sign up for ECO kit email notifications (Digest or individual notifications) directly from Compaq at: http://www1.service.digital.com/patches/mailing-list.html ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC8. Where can I find info about undocumented OpenVMS features? After all this discussion about undocumented VMS features I started a collection of some documentation :-)) about them on http://axp623.gsi.de:8080/www/vms/qaa/undoc.htmlx [zinser@axp603.gsi.de] Also see the following: http://www.levitte.org/~ava/vms_tip.htmlx [Arne Vajhøj] Various examples of undocumented features are also available on the OpenVMS Freeware: http://www.openvms.digital.com/freeware/ DOC9. Where is documentation on the DECnet Phase IV protocols? ------------------------------------------------------------ Specifications for DECnet Phase IV can be found at: http://gatekeeper.dec.com/pub/DEC/DECnet/PhaseIV/index.html ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC10. Where can I learn about how the VMS executive works internally? The OpenVMS Internals and Data Structure book explains how the OpenVMS executive works. The book covers the operating system kernel: process management; memory management; the I/O subsystem; and the mechanisms that transfer control to, from, and among these. It gives an overview of a particular area of the system, followed by descriptions of the data structures related to that area and details of the code that implements the area. The first edition of the OpenVMS Alpha internals book describes Version 1.5. Although there have been several releases of OpenVMS Alpha since Version 1.5 (V6.1, V6.2, V7.0, and V7.1) and many details in the book are no longer accurate, it continues to provide a strong conceptual description of OpenVMS internals. This book has been split into five pieces, each to be updated separately. The first such volume, published in early 1997, was "OpenVMS Alpha Internals and Data Structures: Scheduling and Process Control," which covers the Version 7.0 implementation of true multithreading and the changed scheduling model it implies. The internals books are available through Digital Press, an imprint of Butterworth-Heinemann. You can order by phone (from US and Canada, 1-800-366-2655, or from elsewhere, 781-904-2500). You can also fax an order to 1-800-446-6520 or 781-933-6333. The order form and additional information are available on their web site www.bh.com . ISBN Title 1 55558 156 0 OpenVMS Alpha Internals: Scheduling and Process Control 1 55558 120 X OpenVMS AXP Internals and Data Structures: Version 1.5 1 55558 059 9 VAX/VMS Internals and Data Structures: Version 5.2 [Ruth Goldenberg] ------------------------------------------------------------ DOC11. Where can new users find tutorial information about OpenVMS? First, see if your local site has information on this topic. Each site can have site-specific features and configuration. Some sites will have site-specific new user's documentation, covering various site-specific things that are difficult or impossible for the general OpenVMS documentation to cover. Various introductory manuals are available in the OpenVMS documentation set, including the OpenVMS User's Guide. The OpenVMS manuals -- including the OpenVMS User's Guide -- are available at: http://www.openvms.digital.com:800/ Some of the OpenVMS books available from the Butterworth-Heinemann Digital Press imprint (http://www.bh.com) include: Introduction to OpenVMS, 5th Edition, Lesley Ogilvie Rice ISBN 1 55558 194 3 The OpenVMS User's Guide, Second Edition Patrick Holmay ISBN 1 55558 203 6 Introduction to OpenVMS David W Bynon ISBN 1 878956 61 2 OpenVMS System Management Guide Richard Berry ISBN 1 55558 143 9 Using DECwindows Motif for OpenVMS Margie Sherlock ISBN 1 55558 114 5 Writing Real Programs in DCL, Second Edition Hoffman and Anagnostopoulos ISBN 1 55558 191 9 For various features OpenVMS books, please see: http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvms/books.html Various user-maintained websites are also available, including a beginner's FAQ, various user-written FAQs, a bibliography of books on OpenVMS, and information on various other hardware and software topics: http://www.levitte.org/~ava/vms_faq.htmlx http://www.levitte.org/~ava/vms_book.htmlx http://seqaxp.bio.caltech.edu/www/vms_sheet.html http://seqaxp.bio.caltech.edu/www/vms_beginners_faq.html http://multivac.jb.man.ac.uk:8000/helbig/BOOKMARKS/VMS.HTML Members of the DECUS DFWLUG maintain a website with many materials available, including an Overview of OpenVMS, an Introduction to DCL and the TPU Editor, Advanced DCL Command Procedures, OpenVMS Operations: Batch, Print, Tape, an Introduction to OpenVMS Management, to OpenVMS User Management, to OpenVMS Network Management, and to OpenVMS Cluster Management. These training materials have been presented at various DECUS symposia, and can be downloaded from: http://www.montagar.com/openvms_class/ Compaq offers training information and Technical Resource Kits (TRKs) for OpenVMS at: http://www.compaq.com/training/home.html ------------------------------------------------------------ Y2K1. Does OpenVMS have a problem with the year 2000? There are Year 2000 (Y2K) ECO kits available for the following releases: OpenVMS VAX V5.5-2, V5.5-2H4, V6.2, and V7.1 OpenVMS Alpha V6.2, V6.2-1H1, V6.2-1H2, V6.2-1H3, V7.1, V7.1-1H1, V7.1-1H2 The following releases include integrated Y2K readiness: OpenVMS VAX V7.2, and later OpenVMS Alpha V7.1-2, V7.2, and later No other generally-released Y2K readiness ECO kits for other (older) OpenVMS releases are currently planned. OpenVMS releases after the releases specified above will have integrated Y2K readiness. The Y2K readiness kits for specific OpenVMS releases prior to V7.1 are currently available to customers with an OpenVMS prior version support software support contract, and can also be purchased separately. The V7.1 Y2K readiness kits are presently available at the service area website: http://search.service.digital.com/ http://www.compaq.com/support/ For the official, most complete, and most current information on the status of Y2K compliance of Compaq hardware and software products, including that of OpenVMS and various OpenVMS layered products, please see: http://www.compaq.com/year2000/ http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvms/products/year-2000/ Information on the customer testing procedures recommended by OpenVMS Engineering are also accessable via the second URL above. Failure to follow the recommended Y2K testing procedures -- particularly around the necessity for performing a disk BACKUP and restoration around any Y2K testing -- can and has led to various problems at customer sites. ------------------------------------------------------------ Y2K2. What happens with the C tm_year field in the year 2000? The localtime() function and various other functions maintain the number of years since 1900 in the "struct tm" structure member tm_year. This field will contain a value of 100 in the year 2000, and the yearly incrementation is expected to continue. The VAX C "two digit" documentation for this area is in error, the VAX C Run-Time Library (RTL) returns a three-digit year. The VAX C RTL and the other integrated RTLs are covered under the OpenVMS operating system Y2K evaluation. For curent information on the Y2K status of OpenVMS language compilers and layered products, see section Y2K1. ------------------------------------------------------------ Y2K3. What happens with the year 2038 with C? The C epoch typically uses a longword (known as time_t) to contain the number of seconds since midnight on 1-Jan-1970. At the current rate of consumption of seconds, this longword is expected to overflow (when interpreted as a signed longword) circa 03:14:07 on 19-Jan-2038 (GMT), as this time is circa 0x7FFFFFFF seconds since the C base date. One could see this longword time value used in any C program that manipulates time using the standard C library routines, regardless of the particular operating system platform. There is currently no standard mechanism for dealing with this overflow (short of promoting all longword integers to quadwords), as the format of the time_t value is implementation-specific. Some implementations and applications will treat time_t as an unsigned longword value, while others treat it as a signed longword value -- the format of time_t is specifically left up to the C compiler implementation by the C standards. Applications written in C will likely have to revisit something similar to the current "Year 2000" evaluation process sometime prior to 2038. The OpenVMS Y2K evaluation does not extend into 19-Jan-2038, or later. For information on OpenVMS and 2038, please see the OpenVMS Y2K website. [Stephen Hoffman] ------------------------------------------------------------ Y2K4. Is the year 2000 a leap year? The year 2000 is a leap year. (That is, the year 2000 is a leap year in the Gregorian calendar, the calendar that is currently used in most parts of the world.) The leap year algorithm that was created by Aloysius Giglio, Father Christopher Clavius, and the Coucil of Trent for the Gregorian Calendar dates back to the 16th Century. The algorithm is simple, but effective: the years that are evenly divisible by 4 are leap years, while the years that are divisible by 100 are not, while the years that are divisible by 400 are. Thus, 1800, 1900, and 2100 are not leap years, while 2000 is. And whenever working with dates, please determine what the local calendar, timezone, and daylight savings time rules are: the Gregorian calendar was adopted in 1698 in some areas of the world, in 1752 in others, and in 1918 in yet others. The specific rules vary both by geography and by date. For further details on this, please see the DECwindows Calendar Help, or please see the answer to SPR number 11-60903, dated 13-Oct-1983: http://www.openvms.digital.com/openvms/products/year-2000/leap.html ------------------------------------------------------------ Y2K5. What is covered by the OpenVMS Y2K Evaluation? All supported components of OpenVMS are covered by the OpenVMS Y2K evaluation, including the language run-time libraries and the OpenVMS system-integrated products such as shadowing and RMS journaling. For information on other Compaq products, or for additional details on the OpenVMS Y2K evaluation, please see http://www.digital.com/year2000/. ------------------------------------------------------------ Y2K6. Do I need to consider Y2K? Do I even need the Y2K ECO? To answer this, you will need to trade off the risks of Y2K failures with the time and money that will be spent performing a local Y2K evaluation. The performance of a Y2K evaluation is much like the purchasing of insurance. It is quite possible to create an entirely a Y2K safe environment from tools and products that are not Y2K ready, just as it is also possible to have serious Y2K problems in an environment based entirely on Y2K ready products. In other words -- short of knowing that the product has catestrophic Y2K failures, and short of learning where specific known Y2K problems lurk in the products -- you cannot really determine with any certainty that your site is Y2K ready. The only way to tell for certain that your site is Y2K safe is to test your systems and your applications. For some suggested testing procedures, please see the OpenVMS Y2K website. The OpenVMS operating system is in good shape in regard to Y2K, but there are a few small areas of OpenVMS that do require an update for Y2K readiness -- if you are certain that no local software is using any these areas OpenVMS, then you will likely not require the update. If you are not certain, then you have will likely need to test for Y2K problems at your site, and you will also likely want to acquire and install the update. For details on the update process and on what was found in OpenVMS, please see the information in the Y2K kits. And you will obviously need to consider software products other than OpenVMS when making your Y2K readiness determination, as well. ------------------------------------------------------------ Y2K7. Y2K-compatible ANSI tape label support? A change was made to (as it was then known) VAX/VMS V5.1-1 (back in 1988) that added support for the then-new ANSI X3.27-1987 magnetic tape label standard. Prior to the ANSI X3.27-1987 standard, the date field in the ANSI HDR1 record permits dates only as far as the end of Year 1999. With ANSI X3.27-1987, dates through Year 1999 and dates from Years 2000 to 2099 are permitted. Versions of INIT.EXE and MTAACP.EXE from VAX/VMS releases prior to V5.1-1 will potentially have problems properly processing ANSI magnetic tapes when Y2K and later dates are involved -- the DCL INITIALIZE command is known to encounter access violation (ACCVIO) errors. [Hoffman, Dachtera] [End of Part 1/3] --------------------------- pure personal opinion --------------------------- Hoff (Stephen) Hoffman OpenVMS Engineering hoffman#xdelta.zko.dec.com