DIGITAL
VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS Release Notes
Order Number AA-LB64B-TE
Revision/Update Information:
These release notes supersede
for MS-DOS Release Notes, Version 2.0, order
number AA-LB64A-TE.
Operating System and Version:
VAX/VMS Version 4.7 or 5.0
Software Version:
VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS Release 2.1
Digital Equipment Corporation
Maynard, Massachusetts
First Published, May 1988
Latest Revision, August 1988
The information in this document is subject to change without
notice and should not be construed as a commitment by Digital
Equipment Corporation. Digital Equipment Corporation assumes
no responsibility for any errors that may appear in this
document.
The software described in this document is furnished under a
license and may be used or copied only in accordance with the
terms of such license.
No responsibility is assumed for the use or reliability
of software on equipment that is not supplied by Digital
Equipment Corporation or its affiliated companies.
Copyright (c) 1988, Digital Equipment Corporation.
All Rights Reserved.
Printed in U.S.A.
The READER'S COMMENTS form at the back of this document
requests the user's critical evaluation to assist us in
preparing future documentation.
MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
The following are trademarks of Digital Equipment
Corporation:
DEC MASSBUS RSX VAXmate
DECmate PDP RT VMS
DECnet P/OS UNIBUS VT
DECUS Professional VAX Work
Processor
DECwriter Rainbow VAXcluster
DIBOL RSTS VAX/VMS
This document was prepared using VAX DOCUMENT, Version 1.0
Release Notes
These release notes provide information that supplements
the VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS Installation Guide and
the VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS Administration Guide. The
information is organized as follows:
o Version 2.0 features
o Version 2.1 features
o Installation
o VAX/VMS server
- File server
- Disk server
o Management utilities
o File server upgrade
Read these release notes before installing VAX/VMS Services
for MS-DOS.
Version 2.0 Features
VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS, Version 2.0 includes both new
and enhanced features, which are described below:
o Virtual disk services
VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS, Version 2.0 includes a new,
high-performance disk server that provides virtual disk
capabilities. Virtual disks (also known as local area
disks) are stored as pre-allocated VMS files. You can
make virtual disks available on a local area network for
read/write access by a single client or read-only access
by multiple clients.
Virtual disk services include network key disks. This
type of disk service allows the user to boot a workstation
using the network as the boot device.
1
o File services
VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS, Version 2.0 also includes
enhanced file services:
- File server performance improvements.
- Improved cluster support.
- Security improvements. The file server now uses
VMS access control lists (ACLs) to grant access to
workstations.
- A service database. You no longer have to add services
to your user authorization file (UAF).
o PCSA_ADMIN.COM
This new, menu-driven utility, which replaces PCFS_
ADMIN.COM, allows you to perform remote boot (booting
a workstation without the use of a local hard disk
or diskette) management, and file and printer service
management.
Using PCSA_ADMIN, you can now add printer queues, forms,
and device control libraries for the LJ250 and LJ252
printers, as well as the previously supported printers.
For a list of supported printers, see Software Product
Description 30.50.
o PCSA_MANAGER.EXE
This new command line utility, which replaces
PCFS_OPERATOR.EXE, includes the new command syntax,
support for service database management, the new file
server security features, and the new virtual disks.
o Printer support
VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS, Version 2.0 has increased
printer support. For a list of supported printers, see
Software Product Description 30.50.
o PCFS_UPGRADE.COM
2
The PCFS upgrade utility allows you to upgrade file
services from previous versions.
Version 2.1 Features
VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS, Version 2.1 includes both new
and enhanced features, which are described below:
o Full support for VMS Version 5.0.
o File services
For version 2.1 of the file server, all failed attempts to
access a file are logged in the system log file. A message
will also appear on the operator's console.
Installation
Before installing VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS, Version 2.1,
consider that:
o The logical name SYSUAF, which points to the system
authorization file, should exist prior to installation. If
SYSUAF does not exist, the installation procedure creates
it. The system authorization file is assumed to exist
in the common system directory [SYSEXE] unless otherwise
specified by SYSUAF prior to installation.
o The logical name NETUAF (VMS Version 4.7) or NETPROXY (VMS
Version 5.0), which points to the network authorization
file, should exist prior to installation. If NETUAF
(VMS Version 4.7) or NETPROXY (VMS Version 5.0) does not
exist, the installation procedure creates it. The network
authorization file is assumed to exist in the common
system directory [SYSEXE] unless otherwise specified by
NETUAF (VMS Version 4.7) or NETPROXY (VMS Version 5.0)
prior to installation.
3
o In some configurations where SYS$SPECIFIC is part of a
search list, the installation verification procedure
(IVP) can fail. The product is installed correctly
and is usable. If the IVP fails, be sure to delete all
files in SYS$SPECIFIC:[PCSA.PCFS-DIR], and then delete
SYS$SPECIFIC:[PCSA]PCFS-DIR.DIR;*.
o You must run the SYSGEN utility and check the current
value for SCSNODE. Type:
$ MC SYSGEN
SYSGEN> SHOW SCSNODE
If the current value is not the same as the server's
DECnet node name, then type:
SYSGEN> SET SCSNODE nodename
SYSGEN> WRITE CURRENT
Where:
nodename Is the VAX computer's DECnet node name.
NOTE
You also can use AUTOGEN to modify the SYSGEN
parameters. For information about AUTOGEN, see
System Manager's Reference Manual (Version 4.7)
or Guide to Setting Up a VMS System (Version
5.0).
o Running PCSA Version 2.1 with disk quotas enabled requires
careful attention to the disk quotas assigned to the
SYSTEM account (UIC [1,4]). For PCSA to work correctly,
the SYSTEM account must have sufficient disk quotas on the
SYS$SPECIFIC disk and the SYS$COMMON disk.
4
Typically, the processes PCFS_SERVER and LAD$KERNEL
are started by the SYSTEM account at startup and as
such run with a UIC of [1,4]. The startup procedure
PCFS_STARTUP.COM removes the privilege EXQUOTA from
the PCFS_SERVER process. If the privilege were not
disabled, MS-DOS clients would be able to use all of the
available disk space regardless of their disk quotas.
However, PCFS_SERVER must be able to create log files
in SYS$SPECIFIC:[PCSA] and extend the file PCFS$SERVICE_
DATABASE.DAT in SYS$COMMON:[PCSA]. If the SYSTEM account
does not have a sufficient disk quota, attempts to open
a log file by PCFS_SERVER will fail. Because a log file
does not exist, PCFS_SERVER will not be able to record the
failure. If the SYSTEM account has a sufficient disk quota
to start PCFS_SERVER, but sometime later goes over quota,
then the PCFS_SERVER could fail to extend a log file or
PCFS$SERVER_DATABASE.DAT.
If the SYSTEM account is not used to start PCSA (PCFS_
STARTUP.COM and LAD_STARTUP.COM), then the account that
starts them should have a sufficient disk quota.
When using disk quotas, it is important to remember that
the disk space used to extend a file is charged to the
disk quota of the owner of the file (not the process
that extended the file). Creating the files LAD$SERVICE_
DATABASE.DAT or PCFS$SERVICE_DATABASE.DAT from an account
other then SYSTEM can cause a problem. If the account does
not have sufficient disk quota, then LAD$KERNEL or
PCFS_SERVER can fail when attempting to extend the
respective database file.
o If the product is installed in a VAXcluster, the network
characteristics and DCL command tables are only modified
on the node that the installation is performed on. To
make this modification on all cluster nodes, you must
either reboot each node in the cluster, as described in
5
the VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS Installation Guide, or
perform the following steps on each node in the cluster:
1. To set DECnet objects, type:
$ MCR NCP
NCP> SET OBJECT PCFS NUMBER 64 PROXY NONE
NCP> SET OBJECT PCSA_RMI NUMBER 0 FILE SYS$SYSTEM:PCSA_RMI.COM
NCP> EXIT
2. To define the PCSA command on each node (assuming that
the initial definition is contained in the shared DCL
tables ), type:
$ INSTALL :== $ INSTALL/COMMAND
$ INSTALL
INSTALL> REPLACE SYS$SHARE:DCLTABLES
INSTALL> EXIT
o Please note that the IVP can now be run independent of the
installation procedure. To run the IVP, type:
$ IVP:== $SYS$TEST:PCFSTEST
$ IVP nodename username password
Where:
nodename Is the DECnet node name of the target system.
username Is a valid VMS username of an account on the
target system.
password Is a valid password for the account.
6
VAX/VMS Server
Before using the VAX/VMS server, consider that:
o The service database and other configuration files
are stored in the directory SYS$COMMON:[PCSA].
SYS$COMMON:[PCFS] is no longer used and can be deleted.
o By default, log files are stored in the directory
SYS$SPECIFIC:[PCSA]. If the directory SYS$SPECIFIC:[PCSA]
does not exist, it is created by the startup procedure.
The directory SYS$SPECIFIC:[PCFS] is no longer used and
can be deleted.
The following sections contain information that applies
specifically to the file server or the disk server.
File Server
Before using the file server, consider that:
o When installing the file server, the value of the SYSGEN
parameter CHANNELCNT must be reviewed. CHANNELCNT is the
maximum number of channels a process can have open at any
one time. CHANNELCNT is not a dynamic parameter. For the
any change to take affect, the system must be rebooted.
In version 2.0, the file server constantly opened and
closed channels (each time a file was opened and closed).
To improve performance in version 2.1, a file is opened
and remains open for the life of the connection. Thus, the
number of channels that the version 2.1 file server has
open may be quite large. If the file server does not have
sufficient channel resources, then the value of CHANNELCNT
must be adjusted. If the file server runs out of channels,
the event is noted in the file server log file.
7
To run the SYSGEN utility and check the current value for
CHANNELCNT, type:
$ MC SYSGEN
SYSGEN> SHOW CHANNELCNT
SYSGEN> SET CHANNELCNT 256
SYSGEN> WRITE CURRENT
NOTE
You also can use AUTOGEN to modify the SYSGEN
parameters. For information about AUTOGEN, see
System Manager's Reference Manual (Version 4.7)
or Guide to Setting Up a VMS System (Version
5.0).
o To provide a better level of performance, the file server
(PCFS_SERVER) should be started with a priority that is
higher than the default base. You should set the PCFS_
SERVER base priority to a value that is four greater then
the default base priority for users (typically this would
result in a priority of eight). To set the priority, login
to the system managers account and type:
$ PRIORITY = F$GETSYI("DEFPRI") + 4
$ IF PRIORITY .GT. 15 THEN PRIORITY = 15
$ SET PROCESS PCFS_SERVER /PRIORITY='PRIORITY'
o To reflect the appropriate configuration, you
should modify the logical definitions in the file
PCFS_LOGICALS.COM. On a cluster, you can store the
file in the directory SYS$COMMON:[SYS$MANAGER] or
SYS$SPECIFIC:[SYS$MANAGER].
o Versions 2.0 and 2.1 implement a cluster-wide locking
mechanism. Thus, cluster file sharing is permitted in
versions 2.0 and 2.1 of VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS.
Previous versions did not allow multiple clients to access
8
the same file in write mode using different nodes of a
VAXcluster.
For performance reasons, you should minimize the number of
files that are shared through multiple cluster nodes.
o The file server's new security scheme does not require
entries in the system user authorization file (UAF).
Versions 2.0 and 2.1 of the file server use a service
database, which is created when the product is installed.
If you are upgrading from version 1.x to version 2.1:
1. Install version 2.1.
2. Use the PCFS_UPGRADE.COM utility to remove existing
PCFS accounts within the UAF and create entries in the
service database.
For more information about the PCFS_UPGRADE.COM utility
see the the section File Server Upgrade in these
release notes. Also, see the VAX/VMS Services for
MS-DOS Installation Guide.
o The installation procedure creates a directory named
PCSA at the root of the system device on which the server
software was installed. System, application, and common
directories can be ``renamed'' (using the VAX/VMS RENAME
command) to appear as subdirectories of the PCSA root.
This facilitates using root directory specifications for
the PCFS logical definitions.
o The dash character ( - ) is no longer mapped in file
names. In previous versions of the file server, this
character was mapped to ``__2D''. If you have files that
contain this sequence, you should rename them (from a VAX
account) using the ``-'' character.
9
Disk Server
Under version 2.0, if an attempt is made to start LAD$KERNEL
from an account that does not own the file LAD$SERVICE_
DATABASE.DAT, and the account does not have BYPASS privilege,
LAD$KERNEL will not start. The following error will be
written to the LAD$KERNEL log file:
%LAD-E-NOSERVERDATAB, Couldn't find server database file
%LIB-F-SIGNO_ARG, signal with no arguments
For version 2.1, LAD_STARTUP determines whether the file
LAD$SERVICE_DATABASE.DAT can be opened by the process
executing the command procedure. If the file cannot be opened
with the current privileges, an attempt is made to enable
BYPASS privilege. If the attempt to enable BYPASS privilege
fails, the following message is displayed and the procedure
exits with status 36:
%LAD_F_CANNOTOPEN, can not open LAD$SERVICE_DATABASE
%SYSTEM-F-NOPRIV, no privilege for attempted operation
When using the disk server, consider that virtual disk
services do not work on a VAX Distributed File Services
(DFS) Version 1.0 client device. To prevent PCSA users from
mounting LAD disks on DFS-served devices, use the following
command:
$ PCSA SET DISK_SERVER CHARACTERISTICS/NOUSER_MOUNT
10
Management Utilities
Before using the VAX/VMS server's management utilities,
consider that:
o Only one user at a time should run Option 17 - Remote Boot
Registration in the PCSA_ADMIN utility. Concurrent access
to the remote boot registration database, PCSA$BOOT_
DATABASE.DAT, is not supported.
o In the documentation, the LASTCP command SHOW STATUS
is not properly documented. The list is incomplete and
documents only six of the ten fields displayed. The
following is correct example:
$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:LASTCP
%LASTCP-I-VERSION, LASTDRIVER V1.0 is running
LASTCP> SHOW STATUS
Status of LASTDRIVER V1.0 on node TDOG at 8-JUL-1988 15:56:55
Protocol version 3.0, Uptime: 15 06:35:43.14, Checksum Off, Slow mode Off
66549 Bytes pool
8 Ethernet buffers
16 I/O request packets
9 Association control blocks
2 Transaction control blocks
9 Circuit status blocks
182 Node data blocks
5 Transmit quota
80 Maximum circuits
0 LAN group code
o When you create a 10 Mbyte, 20 Mbyte, or 32 Mbyte disk
using the PCSA CREATE DISK command with the /ALLOCATE
qualifier, you must allocate at least 16344 blocks for
these disks.
11
o It is suggested that you only back up services with write
access (as these are the only ones that can be changed)
and that you dismount these services to assure that the
files will be closed before backup. Closing the file will
force the revision date to change. Thus, the files will
then be backed up automatically by the incremental backup.
NOTE
Restoring a container file that was backed up
while mounted as a service with write access
(while write activity occurred) could corrupt
the virtual disk.
File Server Upgrade
Before upgrading VAX/VMS Services for MS-DOS, consider that:
o You must be logged into the SYSTEM account to run
PCFS_UPGRADE.
o The upgrade utility deletes all files in the system
directory structure (VXSYS.DIR or ISSYS.DIR). Before you
upgrade the file server, backup any non-DIGITAL files you
may have copied to the directory structure.
o When you use the PCFS_UPGRADE utility to upgrade a file
server printer service from version 1.x to version 2.1,
add the printer queue using the PCSA_ADMIN utility, option
11 ADD a Printer Queue. Ignore the error messages that are
displayed when you add the printer queue. This procedure
creates a proper PCFS_PRINT.COM file.
12