[comp.os.vms] Using DECstations as X terminals

olin@saturn.cheme.cornell.edu (Steve Thompson) (05/17/91)

I posted a question on this subject a few weeks ago, but I only got two
replies, and both of them seemed to indicate that they mis-understood my
question, so here goes again...

I have a room with both DECstations and VAXstations. The DECstations are
hardly ever used as workstations. I would like the login dialog box that
they display to come from our VAXcluster, so that the DECstations may be
treated as X terminals. I don't ever want the login dialog box to come from
the DECstation. The DECstations would still of course be accessible via set
host, telnet, etc. I have had a large number of experiments with different
ways to set this up, but with no luck so far. Both DECstations and the
cluster run both DECnet and TCP/IP. Does anyone know how to do this? I
really really need more VMS seats, and using the DECstations as X terminals
will save me from having to buy real X terminals. A solution requiring the
user to log into an account on the Ultrix system as an intermediate step is
NOT acceptable. Thanks!

-steve


---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve Thompson                   Internet: thompson@cheme.tn.cornell.edu
School of Chemical Engineering   Bitnet:   thompson@crnlchme
Olin Hall, Cornell University    Phone:    (607) 255 5573
Ithaca NY 14853
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

chad@oscar.cs.byu.edu (Chad) (05/18/91)

--
In article <1991May17.152824.28173@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>,
olin@saturn.cheme.cornell.edu (Steve Thompson) writes:
||>I posted a question on this subject a few weeks ago, but I only got
two
|>replies, and both of them seemed to indicate that they mis-understood
|>my
|>question, so here goes again...
|>
|>I have a room with both DECstations and VAXstations. The DECstations
|>are
|>hardly ever used as workstations. I would like the login dialog box
|>that
|>they display to come from our VAXcluster, so that the DECstations may
|>be
|>treated as X terminals. I don't ever want the login dialog box to come
|>from
|>the DECstation. The DECstations would still of course be accessible
|>via set
|>host, telnet, etc. I have had a large number of experiments with
|>different
|>ways to set this up, but with no luck so far. Both DECstations and
|>the
|>cluster run both DECnet and TCP/IP. Does anyone know how to do this?
|>I
|>really really need more VMS seats, and using the DECstations as X
|>terminals
|>will save me from having to buy real X terminals. A solution requiring
|>the
|>user to log into an account on the Ultrix system as an intermediate
|>step is
|>NOT acceptable. Thanks!
|>
|>-steve
|>

I did a simple experiment where I put a comment in the /etc/ttys file of
a DECstation 3100
on the line specifying :0.  I then did a kill -1  1  and then I started
the Xmfb Xserver
program.  This meant that the Xserver was running but no login prompt. 
I then went
to a VAX 3400 VMS5.4-1 system and set the display to the DECstation and
started
the window manager and the session manager.  I also had to tell the
DECstation to allow
the VMS machine to display on it using an appropriate xhost + command.

You could do something similar but start the login process on the VMS
machine.  I haven't
tried that.  You could also just modify the ttys file to start the
Xserver only and xhost + your
vms machine for access privileges to the Xserver.  This I haven't tried.
Experiment!

Good luck


*************************************************************
Chad Leigh 
Brigham Young University / on leave from DEC
chad@yvax.byu.edu /  chad@norge.enet.dec.com
*************************************************************

thornton@genrad.com (Ron D. Thornton) (05/23/91)

In article <1991May17.181542.19574@hamblin.math.byu.edu>,
chad@oscar.cs.byu.edu (Chad) writes:

|>In article <1991May17.152824.28173@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>,
|>olin@saturn.cheme.cornell.edu (Steve Thompson) writes:
... text deleted
|>|>I have a room with both DECstations and VAXstations. The DECstations are
|>|>hardly ever used as workstations. I would like the login dialog box that
|>|>they display to come from our VAXcluster, so that the DECstations may be
|>|>treated as X terminals. I don't ever want the login dialog box to come from
|>|>the DECstation. The DECstations would still of course be accessible via set
... text deleted
|>
|>I did a simple experiment where I put a comment in the /etc/ttys file of
|>a DECstation 3100
|>on the line specifying :0.  I then did a kill -1  1  and then I started
|>the Xmfb Xserver
|>program.  This meant that the Xserver was running but no login prompt. 
... text deleted


What you really want is to get DEC to support XDMCP so you have some
control of the
login prompts.  Since that is not likely in the near term, try this.

Chad showed how to start the Xserver on the DS3100 without a login prompt.

On the VMS machine, possibly in systartup_v5.com:
	$ set display/permanent/transport=decnet/node=DS3100_NODE_NAME
	$ run sys$system:decw$startlogin

This will start the login process, which will start the session, which
will start the login process
so you can log in and out of the DS3100 Xterminal.  There appear to be
many problems that
can break this loop, so you may need to restart the login process
again.

Since the display pseudo device still exists you  need to do
	$ show dev ws
to find the display devices and then
	$ show display wsXX
to find the display that points to you DS3100.
	$ define decw$display wsXX
sets up your default display again and
	$ run sys$system:decw$startlogin
restarts the login prompt sequence.

There might be a better way, but this has worked for us.

	-Ron-
thornton@genrad.com