License and using and installing

Having difficulties when installing the system? Your system runs slowly and requires some tweaking? You can get help here.
Post Reply

Topic author
billc1
Newbie
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2022 6:53 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

License and using and installing

Post by billc1 » Mon Feb 21, 2022 6:59 pm

I have the source code for axp and the axp free that is used for windows in regards to the student licenses. Now I have the software made available for the hobbyist program. I am pretty confused. I have windows and linux. I see that you need to use genisoimage for the license.com file. Other than that I am kinda lost. Especially in regards to this emulator, does anyone who has this figured out know where I can find more information about using this? The linux hobbyist license especially.


sms
Master
Posts: 310
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 5:18 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by sms » Tue Feb 22, 2022 12:23 am

Code: Select all

> I have the source code for axp and the axp free that is used for
> windows in regards to the student licenses. [...]

   I've never looked at it, so I know nothing.  But, ...

> [...] Now I have the software made available for the hobbyist program.
> [...]

   Which "the software" is that?  "hobbyist" (HPE) or "Community" (VSI),
or what, exactly?

> [...] I see that you need to use genisoimage for the license.com file.
> [...]

   Where, exactly, do you see what, exactly?

   Knowing nothing, I suspect that you have some "license.com file" (a
DCL script filled with "LICENSE REGISTER" commands?), which must be read
by the VMS system after the OS is installed.  So, that file must be
stored/packaged in some way which can be read by a VMS system (which, as
yet, has no network capability).  One way to do that would be to get
that file into some kind of virtual disc/disk with a file system which
the VMS system can mount and read.  That could be a VMS-style ODS2 or
ODS5 disk image (which would probably be inconvenient), or an ISO-9660
(CD-ROM) disc image, which sounds like what "genisoimage" is supposed to
do.

   Once you have that disc image file constructed, it should be possible
to direct the emulator to use it as a virtual disc (which will have some
VMS device name).  Knowing nothing about that emulator, I can't tell you
how to do that.  But, when that's been done, I'd guess that a typical
MOUNT command in the VMS environment would let you mount that virtual
disc, making the file(s) on it accessible.

> [...] I am pretty confused. [...]

   At least you can see what you're reading, which puts you ahead of me.
Presumably, you have some instructions to follow, which I, with my weak
psychic powers, can't see.  Hence the guesswork, above.  Perhaps that
vague overview will help you make more sense of those instructions.  If
questions or problems remain, then you might want to provide a better
description of what you're doing, why, and what happens when you do it.


marty.stu
Site Admin
Valued Contributor
Posts: 96
Joined: Tue May 21, 2019 6:56 am
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by marty.stu » Tue Feb 22, 2022 2:54 am

Hello Bill,

Please follow the below articles to compile and install OpenVMS on AXPbox:

https://raymii.org/s/blog/Exciting_Open ... xpbox.html
https://raymii.org/s/tutorials/Installi ... rking.html

They explain very thoroughly what files are absolutely needed to build the emulator and how to install the operating system.

Thank you,

Maxim Megalinskiy
VSI Community License Team
Run to the bedroom, In the suitcase on the left You'll find my favorite axe.


Topic author
billc1
Newbie
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2022 6:53 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by billc1 » Tue Feb 22, 2022 4:33 pm

OK yes I see that. For some reason unzip on my linux CLI won't unzip, 7zip on windows works fine. Maybe I've gotten ahead of myself when I used my windows sftp client to download VSI's files. I have something that ends in "...iso.VNC". I have no idea what it is. There are ZIPs and ZIPEXEs. I unzipped all the .ZIP files. There are AXPEXE files, again I have no idea what that is. But the ISO is what I really need and the license.com file which VSI assigned me. I used that master CVS that axpbox master was at. In a .zip and tar.gz file, I downloaded the tarball. Using cmake to generate the configure script and then using make was simple enough. No special options were passed to cmake. So I guess I am going to need putty, for linux? I have a couple of .exe files for linux that the student license suggests. decsetup_665.exe and vsiopenvmsstudentpackage.exe all for windows.

I thank you for those links, they seem to be just what I need. I am a bit confused about the putty, isn't that a windows application?
Last edited by billc1 on Tue Feb 22, 2022 4:34 pm, edited 2 times in total.


sms
Master
Posts: 310
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 5:18 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by sms » Tue Feb 22, 2022 11:19 pm

Code: Select all

> [...] For some reason unzip on my linux CLI won't unzip, [...]

   "won't" is not a useful problem description.  It does not say what
you did.  It does not say what happened when you did it.  As usual,
showing actual actions (commands) with their actual results (error
messages, ...) can be more helpful than vague descriptions or
interpretations.

> [...] I have something that ends in "...iso.VNC". [...]

   Whole names of these files might be more helpful.  An "xxx_VNC" file
is used for integrity checking on file "xxx".  "xxx" and "xxx_VNC" are
normally supplied together.  The PCSI ("PRODUCT INSTALL", and so on)
uses it, I believe.

> [...] There are AXPEXE files, again I have no idea what that is. [...]

   Have you looked at the VMS installation instructions?

   It's typically a self-extracting zip archive.  (Self-extracting on an
Alpha VMS system, that is.)  You can use plain-old UnZip (normally on a
VMS system), if you want, instead of running the self-extracting
archive.  Again, whole names of these files might be more helpful.

> [...] So I guess I am going to need putty, for linux? [...]

   What, exactly, led you to that conclusion?


Topic author
billc1
Newbie
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2022 6:53 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by billc1 » Wed Feb 23, 2022 3:52 pm

[...] So I guess I am going to need putty, for linux? [...]

What, exactly, led you to that conclusion?

That above that you quoted was indeed a conclusion I might have reached prematurely. It was concerning the student license image that is used on windows. I am using the hobbyist license with linux but have also looked at the student image with windows. I am not quite sure which I am going to use yet so I am kind of looking at both. Perhaps I should stick with linux when it comes to actually using these images. I am reading about both. A bit of a hodgepodge it seems now. Your posts are very hard to read. As for the VNC images, we all know what they are, name wise, but I had no idea what they were for. Thanks much.
Last edited by billc1 on Wed Feb 23, 2022 3:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.


sms
Master
Posts: 310
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 5:18 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by sms » Wed Feb 23, 2022 10:59 pm

Code: Select all

> [...] Your posts are very hard to read. [...]

   _WHY_?  Bad font?  Words too big?  Other?

   _Your_ posts seem to provide very little useful information.

> [...] we all know what they are, name wise, [...]

   "we all"?  Please speak for yourself.  You may have no idea what I
might know or not know.  I can see what you write, not what you think. 
See "not a useful problem description [...]", above.  Copy+paste is your
friend.
Last edited by sms on Thu Feb 24, 2022 6:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.


sms
Master
Posts: 310
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 5:18 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by sms » Thu Feb 24, 2022 6:49 pm

Code: Select all

   Regarding "_VNC" files, I haven't found any actual documentation,

ALP $ help *notary*

  Sorry, no documentation on *NOTARY*
[...]

but there were some hints in a VMS Notary patch kit:

      https://vmssoftware.com/products/notary/

   Running the apparent executable (SYS$SYSTEM:VMS_NOTARY.EXE) yields
some information:

ALP $ vms_notary :== $ sys$system:vms_notary.exe
ALP $ vms_notary
Parameter/s required. See help below.

VMS_Notary
  Check the digital signatures of VMS file objects.

  Format:

        VMS_Notary option SignatureFile

  Option to be passed to VMS_Notary. 

  -input input_file
        the path to the VMS Signature manifest file.

  -print_sign_cert
        Prints out the content of the signing certificate in the manifest.

  -version
        Prints the version of the VMS Notary program.

  -help
        Prints this help text


Example: VMS_Notary -i TESTKIT.PCSI$COMPRESSED_VNC


(Note that the example assumes that you've defined the DCL symbol, but a
command like "mcr VMS_Notary [...]" should work as well.)

   So, for example:

ALP $ dire /size cc074

Directory ALP$DKC0:[prod.CC074]

cc074.a;1                 40761
cc074.a_vnc;1                 2
cc074.b;1                 36414
cc074.b_vnc;1                 2
cc074.release_notes;1
                            709

Total of 5 files, 77888 blocks.

ALP $ vms_notary -input cc074.a_vnc
Success

ALP $ write sys$output $status
%X00000001

   To see how a failure looks, create some bad/fake data, and test them:

ALP $ copy cc074.a_vnc cc074.release_notes_vnc ! Create some bad data.
ALP $ vms_notary -input cc074.release_notes_vnc
Verification of signed file failed
error no <67702888>, text: <error:04091068:lib(4):func(145):reason(104)>
Failed

ALP $ write sys$output $status
%X10000002

(Not the most VMS-like failure status, I'd say, but it does have an
error severity.)


Topic author
billc1
Newbie
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2022 6:53 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by billc1 » Sun Feb 27, 2022 9:07 pm

sms wrote:
Wed Feb 23, 2022 10:59 pm

Code: Select all

> [...] Your posts are very hard to read. [...]

   _WHY_?  Bad font?  Words too big?  Other?

   _Your_ posts seem to provide very little useful information.

> [...] we all know what they are, name wise, [...]

   "we all"?  Please speak for yourself.  You may have no idea what I
might know or not know.  I can see what you write, not what you think. 
See "not a useful problem description [...]", above.  Copy+paste is your
friend.
Maybe it's the fonts.. They are the VLC files in the VMS Alpha Hobbyist kit.
Last edited by billc1 on Sun Feb 27, 2022 9:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.


sms
Master
Posts: 310
Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2020 5:18 pm
Reputation: 0
Status: Offline

Re: License and using and installing

Post by sms » Mon Feb 28, 2022 1:46 am

Code: Select all

> Maybe it's the fonts.. [...]

   Do you expect _me_ to tell _you_ what _you_ meant?

> [...] They are the VLC files in the VMS Alpha Hobbyist kit.

   Did those files have _names_?  "Hobbyist" is the description used by
HP[E].  "Community" is the description used by VSI.  Actual file names
would be more helpful than vague and/or inaccurate descriptions.


>    _Your_ posts seem to provide very little useful information.

   Still true.

Post Reply