DECdfs 2.4A for VAX distro

[Galen]

I run my two hobbyist VMS systems a few hours a week, and only when I'm actually sitting in front of them.

One is a MacOS-hosted simh VAX running VMS 7.3.

The other is a real Alphaserver DS10 running V8.4-4L2 (if I remember the "L2" right for the DS10's processor generation.)

For the few weeks I have before the VAX hobbyist license expires, I'd like to play around with DECdfs between the two systems--just for the experience of it. (In all the 30+ years I used VMS professionally I never had an opportunity to try DECdfs.)

But I don't have a copy of the distribution media for it. If you can provide me with such, I'd appreciate it.

Those reading this topic, who feel they _must_ again point out the many weaknesses of DECnet both in security terms and in the datedness of its design, you're welcome to do so, but I'm probably not in your target audience:

* I read c.o.v regularly and am already well familiar with those weaknesses.
* Even during the few hours a week that I do run my systems, normally only TCP/IP (TCPware) is running. I don't keep DECnet running when I'm not using it.
* My router and my ISP's router don't route DECnet.

Again, anyone who really wants to take the conversation completely off-topic into an argument against doing this, I can't stop you. I just won't be replying to such posts. (They may even do someone some good, if the right person just happens to ready this conversation.)

You can use the disposable address glt-d...@maskme.us to reach me.

[Galen]

On Monday, October 25, 2021 at 11:46:53 PM UTC-4, Galen wrote:
Dave Froble, you've mentioned before that you have multiple versions of the CONDIST. Do you have the contents catalogued so that you could easily find which version included DECdfs V2.4A?

I wrote:
> The other is a real Alphaserver DS10 running V8.4-4L2 (if I remember the "L2" right for the DS10's processor generation.)

Oops. I don't really have 8.4-4Lanything!
--
If you want to save me from myself :-) (see below for an explanation) and have access to the VAX installation kit for DECdfs, please let me know before it's too late! Consider this a desperate plea for help! :-D


Why I need saved from myself:

The LP1 disk for Alpha 8.4-2 includes a VMSINSTAL kit for DECdfs V2.4A (again, I hope I remember that version number correctly).

Although its KITINSTAL.COM is written so that it will only install on Alpha or Integrity, the files for the VAX version are still there in a now-unused saveset.

So I'm tempted to unpack the necessary savesets, tweak the install .COM files, and repackage them. The number of files to be installed is not large, nor are there a lot of tweaks needed to SYSGEN parameters, and I'm pretty comfortable handling what I expect would be small number of additions to the installed images, making sure to set INSTALLed privileges, etc, as should be needed.

Before installing such a modified kit, I would definitely want to make certain I had a good backup of the system disk! That's pretty simple to do for a simh VAX, unlike the old days of hardware VAXes when you'd need physical media.

I don't know what version(s) of the CONDIST included DECdfs2.4A except that it must have been some time after July 1994, if that helps much.

[Volker Halle]

Galen,

do you know about the Condist Overview tool: http://de.openvms.org/spl.php

Looks like there never was a DECdfs V2.4A kit for OpenVMS VAX.

DECdfs V2.4A is for OpenVMS Alpha and was on the ConDist from DEC-2006 until APR-2010.

The most recent version of DECdfs for VAX was DECdfs V2.3-1 on on the NOV-2010 ConDist.

Volker.

[Volker Halle]

Galen,

a closer look seems to indicate, that the DECdfs kit seems to include software for both Alpha and VAX:

From DECdfs for OpenVMS Installation Guide V2.3-1

http://odl.sysworks.biz/disk$vaxdocdec022/network/decdfs231/dfs231/6547/6547pro.html#preface

The software required to run DECdfs Version 2.3-1 is as follows:

OpenVMS VAX Version 5.5-2 (with DECnet Phase IV only)
OpenVMS VAX Version 6.2, 7.1, 7.2 or 7.3 with DECnet Phase IV or DECnet Phase V
OpenVMS Alpha Version 6.2, 7.1, 7.2 or 7.3 with DECnet Phase IV or DECnet Phase V

Volker.

[Dave Froble]

On 10/27/2021 8:09 AM, Galen wrote:
> On Monday, October 25, 2021 at 11:46:53 PM UTC-4, Galen wrote:
> Dave Froble, you've mentioned before that you have multiple versions of the CONDIST. Do you have the contents catalogued so that you could easily find which version included DECdfs V2.4A?

I tried. The DVD drive on the itanic appears to be inoperative. I have no
working CD or DVD drive on my other systems. The disks are a VMS format,
cannot read on WEENDOZE.

The COnDist is a 6 disk set from March 1992, should have decent VAX stuff.


--
David Froble Tel: 724-529-0450
Dave Froble Enterprises, Inc. E-Mail: da...@tsoft-inc.com
DFE Ultralights, Inc.
170 Grimplin Road
Vanderbilt, PA 15486

[Hans Bachner]

Dave,

Dave Froble schrieb am 27.10.2021 um 18:09:
> On 10/27/2021 8:09 AM, Galen wrote:
>> On Monday, October 25, 2021 at 11:46:53 PM UTC-4, Galen wrote:
>>  Dave Froble, you've mentioned before that you have multiple versions
>> of the CONDIST. Do you have the contents catalogued so that you could
>> easily find which version included DECdfs V2.4A?
>
> I tried.  The DVD drive on the itanic appears to be inoperative.  I have no
> working CD or DVD drive on my other systems.  The disks are a VMS format,
> cannot read on WEENDOZE.
>
> The COnDist is a 6 disk set from March 1992,  should have decent VAX stuff.

you could create an .iso image (e.g. with IsoBuster from
<https://www.isobuster.com/> - the free version is good enough for this
purpose) on Windows and mount that image with LDDRIVER on a VMS system.

Hope this helps,
Hans.

[Galen]

On Wednesday, October 27, 2021 at 8:22:07 AM UTC-4, Volker Halle wrote:
> The most recent version of DECdfs for VAX was DECdfs V2.3-1 on on the NOV-2010 ConDist.
>

Thanks, Volker.

Now, if I can just find someone who has a CONDIST from the period June 2001 to November 2010.

[Dave Froble]

Where are you located? I have a 6 disk set from March 1992,
which is earlier. I'll look some more to see if I have
later sets. If you can use them, I can ship them to you.

I'm thinking that I won't be needing to fix/replace any CD/DVD
drives. Stuff seems to be available for downloading.

Actually, if there is an entity that could copy such things and
make them available online, I'd send all the old stuff I have.

[abrsvc]

The most recent VAX software product library disks I have is dated June 2000, if that helps.

I have the Alpha distribution disks from 1993 thru DEC 2010 (with a few holes) also.

Dan

[Galen]

On Thursday, October 28, 2021 at 9:38:23 AM UTC-4, Dave Froble wrote:

> Where are you located? I have a 6 disk set from March 1992,
> which is earlier. I'll look some more to see if I have
> later sets. If you can use them, I can ship them to you.

I'm in Charlottesville, VA. Drop me an email at glt-d...@maskme.us, and I'll reply (from my real email address) with my mailing address, and if you can think of any reason you might want it, a phone number (mine--not someone else's :-) )

(I have relatives in south central PA, but that's not near you. They're just over the state line from Hagerstown, and my own family lived up there for a couple of years in McConnellsburg (Fulton Co.))

> Actually, if there is an entity that could copy such things and
> make them available online, I'd send all the old stuff I have.

Hear, hear!

[Galen]

On Thursday, October 28, 2021 at 4:15:55 PM UTC-4, abrsvc wrote:
> The most recent VAX software product library disks I have is dated June 2000, if that helps.
>
> I have the Alpha distribution disks from 1993 thru DEC 2010 (with a few holes) also.
>
> Dan

The VAX bits of DECdfs V2.3-1 are almost certainly included in the Alpha DECdfs v2.4[A], just as they are in the VSI release of that version.

Better yet, the earlier-dated kits are very likely not digitally signed like the VSI kit, so I could reassemble and actually use a product kit (I can't sign one myself, I would guess?)

The Alpha/Itanium kits for V2.4 and V2.4A aren't very large and could easily go into a small zip archive. If you can create one using VMS (to keep the file attributes) and email it to me (glt-d...@maskme.us) I will check it out.

[Galen]

On Thursday, October 28, 2021 at 4:15:55 PM UTC-4, abrsvc wrote:

> I have the Alpha distribution disks from 1993 thru DEC 2010 (with a few holes) also.
>
> Dan

This is getting a lot more complicated than I anticipated--

I forgot about DECdfs requiring DECdns (and that, I knew, requiring Decnet IV Plus or DECnet/OSI).

So it turns out that I also need a copy of the DECdns server install kit.

Dan, sorry if you already saw an email from me but just hadn't had a chance to respond.

[John Reagan]

You do not have to use DNS with DFS. I never did. You just have to specify the node at the mount.

[Galen]

On Thursday, November 11, 2021 at 1:03:42 PM UTC-5, xyzz...@gmail.com wrote:
> You do not have to use DNS with DFS. I never did. You just have to specify the node at the mount.

When I installed DFS it asked me something about DECdns, maybe for a namespace?

I’ll have to review the installation instructions again. Maybe there’s a way around that.