AAREADME.2ND =============================================================================== BUILDING / USING THE SOFTWARE 1. If you want to rebuild the software from the sources... Once you have obtained/expanded (etc) the kit files, set default to the [.SRC] subdirectory: $ SET DEFAULT [PROBE.SRC] ! or whatever specification is appropriate Invoke the building process by typing: $ @BUILD This command procedure will assemble (VAX) or compile (Alpha) and link three different images, namely PROBE.EXE, ACQ.EXE and DMS.EXE, which will be moved to the parent directory. All intermediate files will be preserved in place. To rebuild the playback image you will need VAXC. On a VAX, you would type: $ @BUILD PLAYBACK This will compile and link the REPLAY.EXE image and move it to the parent directory. I don't have access to DECC but I have been told that straight compilation will not work cleanly with this compiler. However, you may wish to try to compile manually, using the /STANDARD=VAXC qualifier (or something similar). If this works (I don't know), the resulting image should be moved to the parent directory. Alternately, a precompiled VAX object, [PROBE.VAX]REPLAY.OBJ, is provided should you wish to just relink or if you don't have VAXC. If all else fails, or on Alpha, the DCL procedure [PROBE]FORMAT.COM provides the essential functionality of the native REPLAY image. See the procedure header for more information. 2. Before the programs can be executed... If you ran through the build procedure, covered above, skip to the next paragraph. Otherwise, you need to manually copy or rename the *.EXE image files provided from either [PROBE.VAX] or [PROBE.AXP] into the [PROBE] directory. The *JOB* logical name SYS_PROBE must be defined to point to the directory where the executable files exist. The file [PROBE]SETUP.COM is provided for this purpose and to modify the process command table with the definition for PROBE. You would typically prepare the utility once per session by issuing the following command: $ @[PROBE]SETUP ! or equivalent specification where is the logical or physical specification of the drive where the software is installed. You may wish to update the system command table SYS$LIBRARY:DCLTABLES.EXE so that the PROBE command is permanently available system-wide. You could also define the (JOB) logical name SYS_PROBE as part of your login procedure. If you do both of these steps, the file SETUP.COM is of no further use to you. 3. Reading the documentation... A help library is provided for your perusal: $ HELP/LIBRARY=SYS_PROBE:PROBE PROBE You may wish to merge the help information located in [PROBE.SRC]PROBE.HLP into the VMS library SYS$LIBRARY:HELPLIB.HLB or some other library of your choice and pointed to with a HLP$LIBRARY_x logical name. You would then see PROBE information by issuing an unqualified HELP command. 4. Trying it up... Invoking the utility is simply: $ PROBE /qualifier... as described by the help information. To look at a recording file on Alpha, you will need to do: $ @SYS_PROBE:FORMAT ... as described in that file's header. =============================================================================== A BIT OF HISTORY... Probe evolved from a personal project (EE master's course and research) and was mostly developed circa 1989-1991. Since it proved a useful utility in my then-current job, I enhanced it in my spare time based on co-worker feedback and on my own experience and interests. I consider Probe to be unfinished in some areas. Some parts are unpolished, some I would rewrite for clarity (modularity), some commented-out (future plans) stubs could be expanded (given time!), some development code could be removed... but overall, the software has shown itself to be very robust and stable, even under very heavy network loads. Early implementations have run on VAX/VMS since version 5.2. More recent versions have been tested on OpenVMS VAX 5.5 through 6.1. This software was written with a "low-powered" (microVAX class) machine in mind. It is known to run on (at least): microVAX II / VAXstation 2000 VAX 3x00 / VAXstation 3100/xx VAX 4x00 / VAXstation 4000/xx VAX 6320 VAX 6430 VAX 6610 VAX 7610 VAX 8350 VAX 8550 Recently, I used PROBE 2.2 as a baseline for porting to Alpha. This effort yields the current release 2.2B. It has been tested on an AlphaStation 200 with VMS 6.2 and on some of the above VAXes. =============================================================================== FUTURES One limitation that is hard to get around is that a given node cannot see the details of its own transmissions. DECnet line counters only provide total values so the projected workaround is to have another node on the same segment run a light-weight Probe to listen and feedback to the main node at regular interval. This software has not yet been tested with DECnet/OSI. ===============================================================================