Sun-Spots-Request@RICE.EDU (William LeFebvre) (08/29/88)
SUN-SPOTS DIGEST Friday, 26 August 1988 Volume 6 : Issue 197
Today's Topics:
Re: Using a DELNI with a Sun
Re: Exabyte and SCSI
Re: Running Screenblank
mailsplit 2.6
pcnfs and sun networks
s flag on dump in 4.0
ksh and sun386i
ownership problem
Problems formatting unusual disks, sun 4, sunos 4.0
using automount for something useful?
request for file server info
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 88 17:47:00 EDT
From: "Ruth Milner, Systems Manager x2746" <SYSRUTH@UTORPHYS.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Using a DELNI with a Sun
Reference: v6n190
Sean Marrett <SEAN%PETVAX%medcor.mcgill.ca@moe.mcrcim.mcgill.edu> writes:
>I am trying to piggy-back our
>two new Suns (3/180, 3/280) onto a DELNI ethernet conentrator/transceiver
>from DEC...
It will work. We have two DELNI's in our machine room, one of which
connects 6 VAXes and our Sun 4/280 to the Ethernet, and the other of which
connects 1 VAX, 2 DECservers, one Bridge TCP/IP server, and a Sun 3/180
(and used to also have a Sun 3/280 on it). The only one of these we have
ever had trouble with was the Bridge server. That problem was reduced
slightly by using a 3Com IEEE transceiver instead of a DEC one. The Suns
have not complained at all, not even the Sun 4 :-).
There are two other things you might want to watch, though. One is that it
might be safest to use IEEE transceiver cable (differences in grounding
and shielding) and the other is that you will probably get better
behaviour if you use a transceiver without heartbeat (we think this caused
the problem with the TCP/IP server). DEC makes one (the H4000-BA, I
believe). So do 3Com and any number of other vendors. I can't tell you who
to get your cable from (we often make ours) but if you plan to run the
cable a long way you should make sure the correct twisted pairs are
wrapped together to reduce crosstalk. Normally this doesn't matter much. I
think you'll find, though, that not one of them hangs onto the back of the
Sun very well. (There was a lot of discussion, and general agreement, a
while ago on sun-spots, on the total inadequacy of this type of
connector).
Hope this helps.
Ruth Milner
Systems Manager
University of Toronto Physics
sysruth@utorphys.bitnet sysruth@helios.physics.utoronto.ca
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 88 18:07:00 EDT
From: "Ruth Milner, Systems Manager x2746" <SYSRUTH@UTORPHYS.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Exabyte and SCSI
Reference: v6n190
In v6n190, emory!km@gatech.edu (Ken Mandelberg) writes:
>Two vendors tell me that the Sun SCSI driver in 3.5 and 4.0 are just
>fine for the Exabyte ... A third vendor tells me
>that the Sun SCSI driver in 3.5 and 4.0 does not have all the
>functionality needed to properly run the Exabyte, and I need their custom
>software. Which is the case?
It's possible that the third vendor wants to do something that is
supported by the SCSI interface but not implemented by the Sun driver.
I'd suggest asking more questions to find out exactly what this
"functionality" is. Remember that if you rely on third-party software it
sometimes (not always) breaks with new OS releases. This is not
necessarily a Bad Thing, but it can be a nuisance and you should be aware
of the possibility of delays to upgrades.
>Should I break down and buy a SCSI adapter for the Sun 4,
>or will the performance over the ethernet be close enough. If we do get a
>SCSI adapter for the Sun 4, is there any reason to go third party rather
>than use the one Sun sells?
Performance over the Ethernet will likely be very poor. It makes a *very*
noticeable difference to dumps to magtape. However, if you're running the
job overnight, and it will finish by morning anyway, then it doesn't much
matter. The only catch is that you will require both machines to be up to
do it. As far as third party is concerned, price is one reason. But make
very sure (like, get something in writing) that the interface will work on
a Sun 4. There are some subtle differences in the backplane on a Sun 4
which can require changes to hardware and/or software (witness the Ciprico
Rimfire controller, which needs a different jumper setting and a small
change to the driver to prevent bus timeouts). SCSI is pretty simple,
though, so you're probably OK.
>What's a good price for an Exabyte? The lowest of the three dealers I
>talked to wanted $3700 for the Exabyte in a small shoebox including a
>cable...
US$3700~=$4500 Cdn. Pretty good, I'd say, at least compared to the quotes
we've seen here.
Ruth Milner
Systems Manager
University of Toronto Physics
sysruth@utorphys.bitnet sysruth@helios.physics.utoronto.ca
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 88 17:02:00 PDT
From: lurnix!hippo!peter@uunet.uu.net (Peter Shipley)
Subject: Re: Running Screenblank
> Whenever the screenblank program blanks out the screen, we can't get the
> console back.
We had this problem also, it turns out that if the system's time get's
changed (corrected) by more then a few minutes [an hour or so] while
screenblank has the screen blacked out screenblank has a good chance in
geting confused and freezing.
Here I had screenblank and rdate in our /etc/rc.local script [screenblank
started first]. Things began to go amiss when the leapyear kernal bug hit
the current time (on the system) would jump years at boot time [then drift
from there] needless to say but this threw screenblank into a locked state
soon there after.
After I added the patch to the kernel things went back to normal for about
a month then it came back. The solution was to start screenblank after
rdate was run.
Note: you should avoid sudden jumps in time (ie: if rdate is run from
within crontab have it rdate run daily instead of weekly).
Peter Shipley
shipley@widow.berkeley.edu
...!uunet!lurnix!shipley
...!ucbvax!widow!shipley
{pacbell pyramid lurnix}!hippo!{root shipley peter}
etc!etc!etc!...
------------------------------
Date: 19 Aug 88 15:38 +0200
From: wyle@ifi.ethz.ch
Subject: mailsplit 2.6
Here is mailsplit 2.6. It has flags, options, buzzers, whistles, checks,
debug options, a man page, etc. Enjoy it, and please send me bugs,
comments, suggestions. Pass it on. This version fixes some minor bugs
and has been extensively tested on all the machines on this campus. If it
doesn't work on your machine, yell at me. Send ideas for 3.0 as well.
[[ From the manual page: "Mailsplit is a program to package, compress,
document, transmit, and re-assemble multiple files and directories to
other users via electronic mail." The shar file is 49555 bytes long. It
has been placed in the archives under "public" (it is not strictly a Sun
program) as "mailsplit.shar". It can be retrieved via anonymous FTP from
the host "titan.rice.edu" or via the archive server with the request
"send public mailsplit.shar". For more information about the archive
server, send a mail message containing the word "help" to the address
"archive-server@rice.edu". --wnl ]]
-Mitchell F. Wyle wyle@ethz.uucp
Institut fuer Informatik wyle%ifi.ethz.ch@relay.cs.net
ETH Zentrum
8092 Zuerich, Switzerland +41 1 256-5237
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 88 11:39:58 -0500
From: monty%tartarus@gargoyle.uchicago.edu
Subject: pcnfs and sun networks
we've been trying to use pc-nfs to put our pcs onto our network with our
suns, but have encountered numerous problems with pc-nfs. we are now so
dissatisfied with the product that we'll probably replace it (we've had it
for about a month). we were, as are many pc-nfs users, disappointed that
pc-nfs recognized only the primary groups with users (the group in the
/etc/passwd file, but none of the groups in the /etc/group file). we were
also disappointed (and surprized) that pc-nfs offered no method to either
determine which pc users are on the system or to send broadcast messages
to pc users (so that they can be warned of system shutdowns or other such
non- trivial details). but what was most aGGraVatINg about this $#!+ was
its unpredictable and erratic behavior printing files. sometimes garbage
would be sent to the screen instead of files being sent to the printer,
sometimes net print, the most basic printing command in pc nfs, would hang
our machines, or sometimes net print would just issue unidentified error
messages (these messages looked unexpected program crash messages, eg,
error: xxxx unidentified pointer reference). we called sun about these
printer problems and got the answer that, yes, that's a problem...no, we
can't fix it. well, my boss uses a pc and i can't install a program on
his machine that may or may not print garbage on his screen or may or may
not hang his pc.
my feeling about this product is that it is truly a second rate and
inferior product--almost amateur--and that sun should either show some
professionalism about it or get out of the market. as for our other sun
products, we are very pleased with them. its only this one product that we
find so poor.
so, the point of this tirade is: are there other products available that
will allow us to connect our pcs to our sun network so that the pcs can
have access to both the sun server disks and printers ? thanks in
advance.
monty mullig
------------------------------
Date: 19 Aug 88 19:39:09 GMT
From: quirk@hubcap.clemson.edu
Subject: s flag on dump in 4.0
Evidently the s flag for dump has a different meaning in 4.0 than in 3.x.
The man page for dump now says the default is 425 (instead of 3825).
However, it neglects to mention what size to use for a 600 ft. tape. The
600 ft. tape is mentioned in the System Administration manual in the
section on dumping, but it doesn't indicate what number to use. I assume
that since the default is 425 for a 450 ft. tape, I should not use 600 for
a 600 ft. tape. Any help on what number I should use would be
appreciated.
Chris Reynolds uucp: ... !gatech!hubcap!quirk
CS Dept, Clemson University inet: quirk@hubcap.clemson.edu
phone: (803)656-{2639,3444}
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 88 15:30:23 PDT
From: acad!robert@uunet.uu.net (Robert Wenig ext 609)
Subject: ksh and sun386i
Is anyone running korn-shell on the Sun386i? I built mine from the AT&T
ksh-i, available from the Toolchest, however when I quit a window using
the mouse, the shell starts burning up CPU time. If I type exit in the
window, all is well.
Robert Wenig
Autodesk
{sun,decwrl,uunet}!acad!robert
------------------------------
Date: 19 Aug 88 14:52 +0100
From: Rudolf Baumann <@relay.cs.net:ruba@biophys.uucp>
Subject: ownership problem
I have a silly problem on a 3/260 running SunOS3.4. Everytime when I
open a window I get the the message:
/dev/ttyp?: Not owner
Piping a text through a filter in vi gives me the the funny message:
Where are you?
I can't detect any differences in the setup of my account compared
to others! Thank you for help.
-ruedi
Rudolf E. Baumann ruba@biophys.uucp
Institut fuer Molekularbiologie & Biophysik ruba@ethz.uucp
ETH Hoenggerberg MOLEKULA@CZHETH5A.bitnet
CH-8093 Zuerich/Switzerland Tel. 01 377 33 97
------------------------------
Date: 19 Aug 88 21:06:57 GMT
From: emory!arnold@gatech.edu (Arnold D. Robbins {EUCC})
Subject: Problems formatting unusual disks, sun 4, sunos 4.0
We are trying to convert from two vax 780's to a Sun 4/280 running SunOS
4.0. Part of the plan involves moving existing System Industries Fujitsu
2344 8-inch, 550Meg, SMD disk drives to the Sun 4, and installing a CDC
9766 removable pack drive. We have six of SI fuji drives.
Our various vendors had led us to believe that this would be easy to do,
and that they would support such a configuration. Hah! It appears we're
very much on our own. In any case, we purchased the Sun 4 with a Xylogics
451 controller and a single Hitachi 892M drive. These have worked well.
We have purchased two Xylogics 753 controllers from a third party, and are
planning on putting the SI Fuji's on the two XD controllers, as well as
the CDC drive. After fixing the BSR level jumpers on the boards (they came
wrong from the factory!), the system finds the boards at boot.
I am encountering several difficulties:
1) The CDC drive currently has a '1' plug in it. We don't have a '0' plug.
For both data slots 0 and 1 on the controller, the CDC drive is not found
during the config at boot.
2) This is much more major. The format(8) program uses a file /etc/format.dat
to describe various disks. The format of this file is not documented in any
man page, although I've been able to figure out some things from the source.
Here is a sample entry:
disk_type = "Fujitsu-M2361 Eagle" \
: ctlr = XY450 : fmt_time = 4 \
: ncyl = 840 : acyl = 2 : pcyl = 842 : nhead = 20 : nsect = 67 \
: rpm = 3600 : bpt = 40960 : bps = 600 : drive_type = 3
disk_type = "Fujitsu-M2361 Eagle" \
: ctlr = XD7053 \
: ncyl = 840 : acyl = 2 : pcyl = 842 : nhead = 20 : nsect = 67 \
: rpm = 3600 : bpt = 40960 : bps = 600
partition = "Fujitsu-M2361 Eagle" \
: disk = "Fujitsu-M2361 Eagle" : ctlr = XY450 \
: a = 0, 16080 : b = 12, 33500 : c = 0, 1125600 : g = 37, 1076020
partition = "Fujitsu-M2361 Eagle" \
: disk = "Fujitsu-M2361 Eagle" : ctlr = XD7053 \
: a = 0, 16080 : b = 12, 33500 : c = 0, 1125600 : g = 37, 1076020
The partition part is straightforward, being (cylinder,size) pairs. The
disk-type entry is harder, although I've gleaned that ncyl is the number
of data cylinders, acyl is the number of alternate cylinders, and pcyl is
the total number of physical cylinders. Bpt is bytes per track and bps is
bytes per cylinder. I've actually managed to find those numbers for the
FUJI drives (at least I hope I have).
My questions are:
A) How can I get the system to see the CDC drive? Since it is currently
the only drive on the controller, MUST it be drive 0?
B) Does any one have the BPS and BPT numbers for packs in a CDC 9766? Can
I get away with leaving those numbers out?
C) The fmt_time and drive_type fields are only supplied for entries for
the Xylogics 450 controller. Why? Is it a problem leaving them out for
drives I intend to have on a Xylogics 753?
I have lots of experience with 4.2 and 4.3 BSD on vaxen, and have been
using Unix for ~8 years, but have very little hands-on experience with
Suns (at least from the system administration point of view).
Any and all answers will be appreciated. Our classes start September 1, so
the sooner you can get me an answer, the better. Good wishes and prayers
towards my continued employment also gladly accepted. :-)
Much thanks,
Arnold Robbins
ARPA, CSNET: arnold@emory.ARPA BITNET: arnold@emory
UUCP: { decvax, gatech, }!emory!arnold DOMAIN: arnold@emory.edu (soon)
Phone: +1 404 727-7636
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 88 08:46:36 HST
From: Bob Cunningham <bob@kahala.hig.hawaii.edu>
Subject: using automount for something useful?
Despite the illuminating discussions in previous Sun-Spots, I'm still
finding it impossible to do truly useful things with automount in
SunOS4.0. I understand that Sun is working up a Technical Report on
automount that will tell all, but in the interim would someone who truly
understands automount please tell me how to do something like
automatically mounting /usr/man pages from other servers or importing
/usr/local/mumble from various machines?
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 88 17:13:13 EDT
From: Mike Callahan <mikec@multimax.arpa>
Subject: request for file server info
We have ported Sun's NFS server code to our Multimax computer, and have
also ported all the Sun supplied daemons (lockd, statd, walld, etc.). Now
we are interested in what NFS server related programs net readers have
always wished their favorite NFS server provided. This list of programs
could include administration tools, monitoring, etc. The Multimax can
currently support over 100 clients, so different tools may be needed than
on other servers. If enough responses I will post the results.
Mike Callahan
Encore Computer Corporation
Internet: mikec@multimax.arpa
UUCP: {bu-cs,decvax,necntc,talcott}!encore!mikec
------------------------------
End of SUN-Spots Digest
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