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PhoneNet over DECnet channels can be used to link systems running PMDF that are also connected via DECnet. The PhoneNet over DECnet channel software uses PhoneNet's phone protocol on top of transparent DECnet links. It is not compatible with MAIL-11 (the protocol used by VMS MAIL to communicate with other VMS MAIL systems on DECnet). PhoneNet over DECnet channel names always begin with dn_ in the PMDF configuration file.
DECnet channels use bidirectional master and slave programs. The master program runs when PMDF has outgoing messages to send. The slave program runs in response to incoming DECnet task requests. As these channel programs are bidirectional, note that both the master and slave programs can deliver messages in both directions; or in other words, when the channel runs initiated in either the master or slave direction, it also "polls" for messages travelling in the other direction.
PhoneNet over DECnet channels are generated by the PMDF configuration utility, if any are needed.
20.2.1 Setting Up the Channel
Both PMDF and DECnet must be installed on both systems before a
PhoneNet over DECnet channel can be set up. Once this is done,
activating a PhoneNet over DECnet channel between them is quite
straightforward as described in the following sections.
The PMDF configuration utility on OpenVMS, PMDF CONFIGURE, can be used to automatically configure your system with the appropriate PhoneNet over DECnet (DN) channels. When a PMDF configuration utility sets up these channels for you, you only need to define the DECnet object as discussed in Section 20.2.1.1; you do not need to do anything else. Process Software recommends that a PMDF configuration utility be used to generate PhoneNet over DECnet channels. The configuration utility is documented in the OpenVMS edition of the PMDF Installation Guide.
20.2.1.1 Installing PMDF as a Known Object
PMDF must be installed as a known DECnet object on each system which is
going to use a PhoneNet over DECnet channel. Run the Network Control
Program (NCP) and enter the following commands:
$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCP
NCP> DEFINE OBJECT PMDF -
NUMBER xxx -
FILE PMDF_COM:dn_slave.com -
USER pmdf_account -
PASSWORD pmdf_password -
ACCOUNT SYSTEM -
PROXY NONE
NCP> SET OBJECT PMDF -
NUMBER xxx -
FILE PMDF_COM:dn_slave.com -
USER pmdf_account -
PASSWORD pmdf_password -
ACCOUNT SYSTEM -
PROXY NONE
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If you are using DECnet/OSI, the equivalent NCL commands are as follows:
$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:NCL
NCL> CREATE SESSION CONTROL APPLICATION PMDF
NCL> SET SESSION CONTROL APPLICATION PMDF -
ADDRESSES = {NAME = PMDF, NUMBER = xxx }, -
OUTGOING PROXY = FALSE, -
INCOMING PROXY = FALSE, -
NODE SYNONYM = TRUE, -
IMAGE NAME = PMDF_COM:dn_slave.com, -
USER NAME = "pmdf_account"
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xxx should be an unused DECnet object number.
Object numbers from 128 to 255 are available for customer use. The
actual number used is irrelevant provided it is not used for any other
purpose and all systems agree on the same number. Use the LIST KNOWN
OBJECTS command in NCP (SHOW SESSION CONTROL APPLICATION * ALL
CHARACTERISTICS in NCL) to get a list of currently defined objects and
their associated numbers.
pmdf_account should be the username associated
with the PMDF account (usually just PMDF) and
pmdf_password should be the password for the PMDF
account. These must match the local PMDF account for proper operation
--- if the username or password for the PMDF account is changed, the
DECnet database will have to be updated as well.
You can have outgoing connections made by DN channels identify themselves with the DECnet cluster alias instead of using the specific DECnet node name they happen to be running on. This is enabled by adding the clause "ALIAS OUTGOING ENABLED" to the NCP commands shown above. The NCL equivalent is "OUTGOING ALIAS = TRUE".
20.2.1.2 Adding the Channel to the Configuration File
The last step in setting up a PhoneNet over DECnet channel is to add
the channels to the appropriate configuration files. You do not need to
do this if your PhoneNet over DECnet channels were created with the
configuration utility; see the recommendation in Section 20.2.1.
PhoneNet over DECnet channel names have a rigid syntax; they are always
of the form dn_remotenode where
remotenode is the name of the system to which the channel
connects. This means that a single channel has different names on each
end; e.g., a channel from DECnet node A to node B is called
dn_b on node A and dn_a on node B.
A separate channel is required for each link to a remote system. Connection requests from systems not in the channel table will be refused.
Finally, the rewrite rules in the configuration files should be edited to refer to the new channels as appropriate. See the example below for additional information.
After the configuration files are set up, the channel should be ready for use.
20.2.2 Example Configuration
Suppose that two systems, ALPHA and BETA, are both running PMDF and are
attached to the same DECnet. ALPHA is registered as ALPHA.DOOF.COM in
the Internet world and is the server for the DOOF subdomain. ALPHA has
a PhoneNet (dial-up) link to CSNET and BETA has a PhoneNet (dial-up)
link to BITNET. The BITNET name for BETA is BETA.BITNET, although the
Internet name BETA.DOOF.COM is also supported.
The configuration should then route all BITNET traffic to BETA and all other network traffic to ALPHA. A PhoneNet over DECnet channel will be used to transfer mail from ALPHA to BETA. Possible configuration files for nodes ALPHA and BETA are shown in Examples 20-3 and 20-4 below.
| Example 20-3 PhoneNet Over DECnet Channel Configuration for Node ALPHA |
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! ALPHA.CNF - Configuration file for hypothetical node ALPHA ! Written by Ned Freed, 20-Jul-1986. ! ! Handle local systems routing first ! ALPHA $U@ALPHA.DOOF.COM ALPHA.DOOF.COM $U@ALPHA.DOOF.COM BETA $U@BETA.BITNET BETA.DOOF.COM $U@BETA.BITNET BETA.BITNET $U@BETA.BITNET ! ! Force match on any other systems in .DOOF.COM, ! since this is the server for the subdomain. This ! prevents message loops on bad addresses. ! .DOOF.COM $U@$H.DOOF.COM ! ! BITNET messages are routed to BETA ! .BITNET $U%$H.BITNET@BETA.BITNET ! ! Other top level domains - only a few to give the flavor ! .AR $U%$H$D@relay.cs.net .ARPA $U%$H$D@relay.cs.net .AT $U%$H$D@relay.cs.net .AU $U%$H$D@relay.cs.net .BE $U%$H$D@relay.cs.net l ALPHA.DOOF.COM ! PhoneNet (dial-up) channel for connecting with CSNET p network RELAY.CS.NET ! PhoneNet over DECnet channel for connecting with BETA dn_beta network BETA.BITNET |
| Example 20-4 PhoneNet Over DECnet Channel Configuration for Node BETA |
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! BETA.CNF - Configuration file for hypothetical node BETA ! Written by Ned Freed, 20-Jul-1986. ! ! Handle local systems routing first ! BETA $U@BETA.BITNET BETA.DOOF.COM $U@BETA.BITNET BETA.BITNET $U@BETA.BITNET ALPHA $U@ALPHA.DOOF.COM ALPHA.DOOF.COM $U@ALPHA.DOOF.COM ! ! BITNET messages are queued to the BITNET channel ! .BITNET $U%$H.BITNET@RELAY.BITNET ! ! Other top level domains go to ALPHA - only a few shown ! .AR $U%$H$D@ALPHA.DOOF.COM .ARPA $U%$H$D@ALPHA.DOOF.COM .AT $U%$H$D@ALPHA.DOOF.COM .AU $U%$H$D@ALPHA.DOOF.COM .BE $U%$H$D@ALPHA.DOOF.COM l 822 BETA.BITNET ! PhoneNet (dial-up) channel for connecting with BITNET p 733 network RELAY.BITNET ! PhoneNet over DECnet channel for connecting with ALPHA dn_alpha network ALPHA.DOOF.COM |
20.2.3 Network Service Logs
In addition to any normal PMDF slave log files that can be created for
a PhoneNet over DECnet channel, since slave operations are initiated by
DECnet directly, DECnet itself creates log files for slave operations.
Such additional log files appear in the default direction of the
account under when the DECnet PMDF object runs; that account is
normally the PMDF account, hence normally the DECnet log files are in
PMDF_ROOT:[LOG] on OpenVMS, and have the name
netserver.log. Note that unlike normal PMDF log files,
e.g., unlike any dn_remotenode_slave.log
log files which can also be created, the DECnet channel slave log files
created directly by DECnet are not named according to the channel that
created them.
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