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Subject: OpenVMS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), Part 7/9
Summary: This posting contains answers to frequently asked questions about
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Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu comp.os.vms:389893 comp.sys.dec:98155 vmsnet.alpha:12772 vmsnet.misc:6471 comp.answers:54093

Finding and using Software

__________________________________________________________
13.12 Where can I get Zip, Unzip, self-extracting zip, etc?

Many packages are provided in ZIP, GZIP, or BZIP2
format, which requires you to acquire the associated
unzip tool to unpack it. You can get ZIP and UNZIP and
related and similar tools from the following areas:

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware50/000tools/

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware50/bzip2/

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware50/info-
zip/

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware40/000tools/

o ftp://ftp.process.com/vms-freeware/unzip.alpha_exe

o ftp://ftp.process.com/vms-freeware/unzip.vax_exe

o http://www.decus.de:8080/www/vms/sw/zip.htmlx

o http://www.djesys.com/zip.html

o http://www.djesys.com/unzip.html

or you can request the FILESERV_TOOLS package from the
e-mail server.

Beware: The [000TOOLS...] pre-built
versions of ZIP on the OpenVMS Freeware V4
(http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware40/)
CD-ROM will erroneously return BILF errors on OpenVMS
V7.2 and later. Use of the source on the Freeware V4
to rebuild the ZIP image(s), or acquiring a pre-built
ZIP image from one of the above areas can avoid this.
The pre-built version of ZIP on the Freeware V4 kit is
older than the included ZIP sources, and it contains a
latent bug.]

Directions for creaating and using the sfx self-
extracting zip file compression mechanism are available
in the unzip kit that is available at:

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware50/unzip542/

Specifically:

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware50/UNZIP542/UNZIPSFX.TXT

13-25

Finding and using Software

If you want to build the zip images for yourself (eg:
for an older OpenVMS version), pull over the entire
contents of:

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware50/unzip542/vms-
binaries/

and invoke LINK.COM.

HP OpenVMS Engineering uses a tool known as FTSV
for creating self-extracting compressed files using
the OpenVMS DCX compression tools, as seen with
various OpenVMS ECO (patch) kits. sfx provides better
compression than does DCX. The FTSV and its related
FTSO package have only limited availability outside HP,
and are not standard products.

__________________________________________________________
13.13 Are VAX Hardware Emulators Available?

Software-based emulators of the VAX architecture and
for specific VAX hardware platforms are available from
various sources:

o SRI CHARON-VAX
http://www.softresint.com/

o Tim Stark's TS10
http://sourceforge.net/projects/ts10/

o Bob Supnik's Trailing Edge
http://simh.trailing-edge.com/

VAX emulators that operate on PC systems and/or on
OpenVMS Alpha systems are available. For information
on an alternative to using a VAX emulator- on the
available DECmigrate VAX executable image translator-
please see Section 13.11.

13-26

_______________________________________________________

14 Hardware Information

__________________________________________________________
14.1 What are the OpenVMS differences among VAX, Alpha, and
IA-64?

In terms of software, very few. As of OpenVMS V6.1,
the VAX and Alpha platforms are very close to "feature
parity". OpenVMS on IA-64 is expected to have "feature
parity" with OpenVMS Alpha, and is based on the same
source pool. Most applications can just be recompiled
and run. Some differences to be aware of:

o The default double-precision floating type on
OpenVMS Alpha is VAX G_float, whereas on VAX it
is usually D_float. D_float is available on Alpha,
but D_float values are converted to G_float for
computations and then converted back to D_float when
stored. Because the G_float type has three fewer
fraction bits than D_float, some applications may
get different results. IEEE float types are also
available on OpenVMS Alpha.

o The preferred floating point format on Alpha and
IA-64 is IEEE.

o Data alignment is extremely important for best
performance on Alpha. This means that data items
should be allocated at addresses which are exact
multiples of their sizes. Quadword alignment will
offer the best performance, especially for character
values and those smaller than 32 bits. Compilers
will naturally align variables where they can and
will issue warnings if they detect unaligned data
items.

o HP C is the only C compiler HP offers on OpenVMS
Alpha, and is a direct descendant of Compaq C and
DEC C on OpenVMS Alpha. HP C is compatible with DEC
C on OpenVMS VAX, but is somewhat different from
the older VAX C compiler most people are familiar

14-1

Hardware Information

with. Read up on the /EXTERN_MODEL and /STANDARD
qualifiers to avoid the most common problems. In
additon to HP C, there are open-source ports such as
Gnu C available for OpenVMS.

o The page size on Alpha and IA-64 systems is
variable, but is at least 8 kilobytes. This can
have some effect on applications which use the
$CRMPSC system service as well as on the display of
available memory pages. The page size is available
from $GETSYI(SYI$_PAGE_SIZE).

There are also a number of manuals which discuss
migration to OpenVMS Alpha available on the
documentation CD-ROM media, both in the main
documentation and in the archived documentation
section.

On more recent OpenVMS Alpha versions, OpenVMS Alpha
has begun to add features and support not available on
OpenVMS VAX. Salient new areas include the following:

o 64-bit addressing in OpenVMS Alpha V7.0 and later

o Multi-host SCSI support (SCSI TCQ) in V6.2 and later

o PCI support (platform-dependent)

o OpenVMS Galaxy support in V7.2 and later

__________________________________________________________
14.2 Seeking performance information for Alpha (and VAX)
systems?

HP makes a wide range of performance documents
available through its FTP and WWW Internet servers
(see Section 3.2).

The following contain information on current Alpha and
VAX products:

o http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/servers.html

o http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/vax/index.html

The following sites contain information on various
retired VAX and Alpha products:

o http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/archive/index.html

14-2

Hardware Information

o http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/performance/perf_
tps.html

Also see CPU2000:

o http://www.spec.org/osg/cpu2000/

o http://www.spec.org/osg/cpu2000/results/cpu2000.html

__________________________________________________________
14.3 Console Commands, Serial Lines, and Controls?

This section contains information on VAX and Alpha
consoles, and details related to console commands,
serial lines, and configuration settings.

_____________________________
14.3.1 What commands are available in the Alpha SRM console?

In addition to the normal BOOT commands and such (see
Section 14.3.5.1 for some details) and the normal
contents of the console HELP text, operations such
as I/O redirection and floppy disk access are possible
at the SRM console prompt:

1 Format a FAT floppy, and insert it into the
AlphaStation floppy drive.

2 Perform the following at AlphaStation SRM Console :

>>> show * > env.dat
>>> show conf > conf.dat
>>> cat env.dat > fat:env.dat/dva0
>>> cat conf.dat > fat:conf.dat/dva0

3 You may use the SRM "ls" command to display the
contents of the floppy.

>>> ls fat:env.dat/dva0
>>> ls fat:conf.dat/dva0

4 You can now transfer the FAT-format floppy to
another system.

14-3

Hardware Information

_____________________________
14.3.2 What does SRM mean? What is PALcode?

The abbreviation SRM is derived from the Alpha System
Reference Manual, the specification of the Alpha
architecture and the associated firmware.

PALcode is a name assigned to a particular set of
functions provided by the SRM firmware. PALcode
is used to provide low-level functions required by
higher-level operating system or application software,
functions which may not be directly available in Alpha
hardware. PALcode is implemented using available
Alpha instructions and using the Alpha processor,
though PALcode operates in a mode which simplifies
programming. PALcode is also permitted access to
processor-specific and otherwise internal features
of a particular Alpha microprocessor implementation;
microprocessor-specific features which are not easily
accessable to operating system or application code.

_____________________________
14.3.3 Alpha COM ports and VAX console serial line information?

This section contains information on the Alpha COM
communication ports, and related settings, as well as
on the VAX console bulkhead and VAX console serial line
connection.

_____________________________
14.3.3.1 Which terminal device name is assigned to the COM
ports?

COM2 is normally TTA0:. COM1 is normally TTB0: if
the Alpha workstation is booted with the SRM console
environment variable set to graphics, and is OPA0: if
the console is set to serial.

_____________________________
14.3.3.2 Which serial port is the console on the MicroVAX 3100?

Just to keep life interesting, the MicroVAX 3100 has
some "interesting" console ports behaviours based
on the setting of the BREAK enable switch. When the
console is not enabled to respond to BREAK, MMJ-1
is the console port. MMJ-3 will (confusingly) output

14-4

Hardware Information

the results of the selftest in parallel with MMJ-1.
When the console is enabled to respond to BREAK, MMJ-3
becomes the console port, and MMJ-1 will (confusingly)
output the results of selftest in parallel with MMJ-3.

_____________________________
14.3.3.3 How can I set up an alternate console on a VAXstation?

Most VAXstation systems have a switch-often labeled
S3-that enables one of the serial lines as the system
console.

Various members of the DEC 3000 series Alpha systems
also have a similarly-labled S3 switch for selection of
the alternate console.

Also see Section 14.3.6, Section 11.11, and
Section 14.19.

_____________________________
14.3.3.4 Please explain the back panel of the MicroVAX II

The MicroVAX-series console bulkhead was used with the
KA630, KA650, KA655 processors.

There are three controls on the console bulkhead of
these systems:

Triangle-in-circle-paddle: halt enable.
dot-in-circle: halt (<break>) is enabled,
and auto-boot is disabled.
dot-not-in-circle: halt (<break>) is disabled,
and auto-boot is enabled.

Three-position-rotary: power-up bootstrap behaviour
arrow: normal operation.
face: language inquiry mode.
t-in-circle: infinite self-test loop.

Eight-position-rotary: console baud rate selection
select the required baud rate; read at power-up.

There are several different bulkheads involved,
including one for the BA23 and BA123 enclosures,
and one for the S-box (BA2xx) series enclosure.
The console bulkheads typically used either the MMJ
serial line connection, or the MicroVAX DB9 (not

14-5

Hardware Information

the PC DB9 pinout), please see the descriptions of
these in section WIRES1. For available adapters, see
Section 14.29.

Also present on the console bulkhead is a self-test
indicator: a single-digit LED display. This matches the
final part of the countdown displayed on the console or
workstation, and can be used by a service organization
to determine the nature of a processor problem. The
particular countdown sequence varies by processor
type, consult the hardware or owner's manual for
the processor, or contact the local hardware service
organization for information the self-test sequence
for a particular processor module. Note that self-tests
2, 1 and 0 are associated with the transfer of control
from the console program to the (booting) operating
system.

_____________________________
14.3.4 What are Alpha console environment variables?

Alpha systems have a variety of variables with values
set up within the SRM system console. These environment
variables control the particular behaviour of the
console program and the system hardware, the particular
console interface presented to the operating system,
various default values for the operating system
bootstrap, and related control mechanisms-in other
words, "the environment variables provide an easily
extensible mechanism for managing complex console
state."

The specific environment variables differ by platform
and by firmware version-the baseline set is established
by the Alpha Architecture:

AUTO_ACTION ("BOOT", "HALT", "RESTART", any other value
assumed to be HALT), BOOT_DEV, BOOTDEF_DEV, BOOTED_DEV,
BOOT_FILE, BOOTED_FILE, BOOT_OSFLAGS, BOOTED_OSFLAGS,
BOOT_RESET ("ON", "OFF"), DUMP_DEV, ENABLE_AUDIT ("ON",
"OFF"), LICENSE, CHAR_SET, LANGUAGE, TTY_DEV.

14-6

Hardware Information

OpenVMS Galaxy firmware can add console environment
variables beginning with such strings as LP_* and HP_*,
and each particular console implementation can (and
often does) have various sorts of platform-specific
extensions beyond these variables...

The contents of a core set of environment variables
are accessible from OpenVMS using the f$getenv lexical
and the sys$getenv system service. (These calls are
first documented in V7.2, but have been around for
quite a while.) Access to arbitary console environment
variables is rather more involved, and not directly
available.

_____________________________
14.3.5 What are the boot control flag values?

Both VAX and Alpha primary bootstraps support flag
values; a mechanism which permits the system manager
to perform specific customizations or site-specific
debugging of the OpenVMS system bootstrap. While very
similar, there are differences between VAX and Alpha
systems in this area.

_____________________________
14.3.5.1 What are the Alpha APB boot flag values?

The following flags are passed (via register R5) to
the OpenVMS Alpha primary bootstrap image APB.EXE.
These flags control the particular behaviour of the
bootstrap:

BOOT -FL root,flags

bit description
--- ----------------------------------------------

14-7

Hardware Information

0 CONV Conversational bootstrap
1 DEBUG Load SYSTEM_DEBUG.EXE (XDELTA)
2 INIBPT Stop at initial system breakpoints if bit 1 set (EXEC_INIT)
3 DIAG Diagnostic bootstrap (loads diagboot.exe)
4 BOOBPT Stop at bootstrap breakpoints (APB and Sysboot)
5 NOHEADER Secondary bootstrap does not have an image header
6 NOTEST Inhibit memory test
7 SOLICIT Prompt for secondary bootstrap file
8 HALT Halt before transfer to secondary bootstrap
9 SHADOW Boot from shadow set
10 ISL LAD/LAST bootstrap
11 PALCHECK Disable PAL rev check halt
12 DEBUG_BOOT Transfer to intermediate primary bootstrap
13 CRDFAIL Mark CRD pages bad
14 ALIGN_FAULTS Report unaligned data traps in bootstrap
15 REM_DEBUG Allow remote high-level language debugger
16 DBG_INIT Enable verbose boot messages in EXEC_INIT
17 USER_MSGS Enable subset of verbose boot messages (user messages)
18 RSM Boot is controlled by RSM
19 FOREIGN Boot involves a "foreign" disk

If you want to set the boot flags "permanently" use the
SET BOOT_FLAGS command, e.g.

>>> SET BOOT_OSFLAGS 0,1

_____________________________
14.3.5.2 What are the VAX VMB boot flag values?

The following flags are passed (via register R5) to
the OpenVMS VAX primary bootstrap image VMB.EXE.
These flags control the particular behaviour of the
bootstrap:

The exact syntax is console-specific, recent VAX
consoles tend to use the following:

>>> BOOT/R5:flags

Bit Meaning
--- -------

14-8

Hardware Information

0 RPB$V_CONV
Conversational boot. At various points in the
system boot procedure, the bootstrap code
solicits parameter and other input from the
console terminal. If the DIAG is also on then
the diagnostic supervisor should enter "MENU"
mode and prompt user for the devices to test.

1 RPB$V_DEBUG
Debug. If this flag is set, VMS maps the code
for the XDELTA debugger into the system page
tables of the running system.

2 RPB$V_INIBPT
Initial breakpoint. If RPB$V_DEBUG is set, VMS
executes a BPT instruction immediately after
enabling mapping.

3 RPB$V_BBLOCK
Secondary boot from the boot block. Secondary
bootstrap is a single 512-byte block, whose LBN
is specified in R4.

4 RPB$V_DIAG
Diagnostic boot. Secondary bootstrap is image
called [SYSMAINT]DIAGBOOT.EXE.

5 RPB$V_BOOBPT
Bootstrap breakpoint. Stops the primary and
secondary bootstraps with a breakpoint
instruction before testing memory.

6 RPB$V_HEADER
Image header. Takes the transfer address of the
secondary bootstrap image from that file's
image header. If RPB$V_HEADER is not set,
transfers control to the first byte of the
secondary boot file.

7 RPB$V_NOTEST
Memory test inhibit. Sets a bit in the PFN bit
map for each page of memory present. Does not
test the memory.

8 RPB$V_SOLICT
File name. VMB prompts for the name of a
secondary bootstrap file.

14-9

Hardware Information

9 RPB$V_HALT
Halt before transfer. Executes a HALT
instruction before transferring control
to the secondary bootstrap.

10 RPB$V_NOPFND
No PFN deletion (not implemented; intended to
tell VMB not to read a file from the boot device
that identifies bad or reserved memory pages,
so that VMB does not mark these pages as valid
in the PFN bitmap).

11 RPB$V_MPM
Specifies that multi-port memory is to be used
for the total EXEC memory requirement. No local
memory is to be used. This is for tightly-coupled
multi-processing. If the DIAG is also on, then
the diagnostic supervisor enters "AUTOTEST" mode.

12 RPB$V_USEMPM
Specifies that multi-port memory should be used in
addition to local memory, as though both were one
single pool of pages.

13 RPB$V_MEMTEST
Specifies that a more extensive algorithm be used
when testing main memory for hardware
uncorrectable (RDS) errors.

14 RPB$V_FINDMEM
Requests use of MA780 memory if MS780 is
insufficient for booting. Used for 11/782
installations.

<31:28> RPB$V_TOPSYS
Specifies the top level directory number for
system disks with multiple systems.

14-10

Hardware Information

_____________________________
14.3.6 How do I boot an AlphaStation without monitor or
keyboard?

The AlphaStation series will boot without a keyboard
attached. To use a serial terminal as the console,
issue the SRM console command SET CONSOLE SERIAL
followed by the console INIT command. Once this SRM
command sequence has been invoked, the Alpha system
will use the serial terminal.

The DEC 3000 series has a jumper on the motherboard
for this purpose. Various older Alpha workstations
generally will not (automatically) bootstrap without a
keyboard connected, due to the self-test failure that
arises when the (missing) keyboard test fails.

The usual settings for the console serial terminal (or
PC terminal emulator acting as a serial console are:

9600 baud, 8 bits, no parity, one stop bit (9600 baud, 8N1).

AlphaServer 4100 and derivative series platforms,
and AlphaServer GS80, GS160, and GS320 series system
consoles are capable of 57600 baud. See the COM2_BAUD
console environment variable, and ensure that you have
current SRM firmware version loaded.

The AlphaStation and AlphaServer series use the PC
DIN serial connector for the "COM1" and "COM2" serial
lines, see Section 14.28 for details and pinout.

_____________________________
14.3.7 Downloading and using SRM console Firmware?

This section discusses downloading and using Alpha
console firmware, sometimes called PALcode.

_____________________________
14.3.7.1 Where can I get updated console firmware for Alpha
systems?

Firmware updates for HP Alpha systems are available
from:

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/Alpha/firmware/index.html

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/Alpha/firmware/

14-11

Hardware Information

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/Alpha/firmware/readme.html

The latest and greatest firmware-if updated firmware
has been released after the most recent firmware CD was
distributed-is located at:

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/Alpha/firmware/interim/

For information on creating bootable floppies
containing the firmware, and for related tools, please
see the following areas:

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/utilities/mkboot.txt

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/utilities/mkbootarc.txt

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/utilities/mkntboot.txt

The SROM firmware loader expects an ODS-2 formatted
floppy, see mkboot. As for which image to use, the ROM
image uses a header and the file extension .ROM, and
the SROM bootable floppy cannot use the .ROM file.

To check the firmware loaded on recent OpenVMS Alpha
systems, use the command:

$ write sys$output f$getsyi("console_version")
$ write sys$output f$getsyi("palcode_version")
SDA> CLUE CONFIG

Also see Section 14.3.7.2.

_____________________________
14.3.7.2 How do I reload SRM firmware on a half-flash Alpha
system?

Some of the AlphaStation series systems are "half-
flash" boxes, meaning only one set of firmware (SRM or
AlphaBIOS) can be loaded in flash at a time. Getting
back to the SRM firmware when AlphaBIOS (or ARC) is
loaded can be a little interesting...

That said, this usually involves shuffling some files,
and then getting into the AlphaBIOS firmware update
sequence, and then entering "update srm" at the apu->
prompt.

14-12

Hardware Information

To shuffle the files, copy the target SRM firmware file
(as200_v7_0.exe is current) to a blank, initialized,
FAT-format floppy under the filename A:\FWUPDATE.EXE

From the AlphaBIOS Setup screen, select the Upgrade
AlphaBIOS option. Once the firmware update utility gets
going, enter:

Apu-> update srm

Answer "y" to the "Are you ready...?"

Apu-> quit

You've reloaded the flash. Now power-cycle the box to
finish the process.

Also see Section 14.3.7.1.

_____________________________
14.3.7.3 How do I switch between AlphaBIOS/ARC and SRM
consoles?

The specific steps required vary by system. You must
first ensure that the particular Alpha system is
supported by OpenVMS (see the SPD), that all core I/O
components (graphics, disk controllers, etc) in the
system are supported by OpenVMS (see the SPD), and that
you have an OpenVMS distribution, that you have the
necessary license keys (PAKs), and that you have the
necessary SRM firmware loaded.

A typical sequence used for switching over from the
AlphaBIOS graphics console to the SRM console follows:

1 Press <F2> to get to the AlphaBIOS setup menu.

2 Pick the "CMOS Setup..." item.

3 Press <F6> to get to the "Advanced CMOS Setup" menu.

4 Change the "Console Selection" to "OpenVMS Console
(SRM)".

5 Press <F10>, <F10>, then <Enter> to save your
changes.

6 Power-cycle the system.

14-13

Hardware Information

Most Alpha systems support loading both the
AlphaBIOS/ARC console and the SRM console at the same
time, but systems such as the AlphaStation 255 are
"half-flash" systems and do not support the presence
of both the AlphaBIOS/ARC and SRM console firmware at
the same time. If you have a "half-flash" system, you
must load the SRM firmware from floppy, from a network
download, or from a firmware CD-ROM. Following the
normal AlphaBIOS or ARC firmware update sequence to
the APU prompt, and then explictly select the target
console. In other words, power up the system to the
AlphaBIOS or ARC console, use the supplementary options
to select the installation of new firmware (typically
from CD-ROM), and then rather than using a sequence
which updates the current firmware:

Apu-> update
-or-
Apu-> update ARC
Apu-> verify
Apu-> quit
Power-cycle the system

Use the following sequence to specifically update (and
load) SRM from AlphaBIOS/ARC on a "half-flash" system:

Apu-> update SRM
Apu-> verify
Apu-> quit
Power-cycle the system

Use the following sequence to specifically update (and
load) the AlphaBIOS/ARC console from SRM on a "half-
flash" system:

>>> b -fl 0,A0 ddcu
BOOTFILE: firmware_boot_file.exe

Apu-> update ARC
Apu-> verify
Apu-> quit
Power-cycle the system

14-14

Hardware Information

Once you have the SRM loaded, you can directly install
OpenVMS or Tru64 UNIX on the system. Do not allow
Windows NT to write a "harmless" signature to any disk
used by OpenVMS, Tru64 UNIX, or Linux, as this will
clobber a key part of the disk. (On OpenVMS, you can
generally recover from this "harmless" action by using
the WRITEBOOT tool.)

If you have a "full-flash" system and want to select
the SRM console from the AlphaBIOS or ARC console
environment, select the "Switch to OpenVMS or Tru64
UNIX console" item from the "set up the system"
submenu. Then power-cycle the system. If you have a
"full-flash" system with the SRM console and want to
select AlphaBIOS/ARC, use the command:

>>> set os_type NT

and power-cycle the system.

For information on acquiring firmware, see
Section 14.3.7.1. For information on OpenVMS license
PAKs (for hobbyist use) see Section 2.7.3. For
information on the Multia, see Section 14.4.1.

Information on enabling and using the failsafe firmware
loader for various systems-this tool is available only
on some of the various Alpha platforms-is available in
the hardware documentation for the system. This tool is
used/needed when the firmware has been corrupted, and
cannot load new firmware.

The full list of AlphaBIOS key sequences-these
sequences are needed when using an LK-series keyboard
with AlphaBIOS, as AlphaBIOS expects a PC-style
keyboard:

14-15

Hardware Information

F1 Ctrl/A
F2 Ctrl/B
F3 Ctrl/C
F4 Ctrl/D
F5 Ctrl/E
F6 Ctrl/F
F7 Ctrl/P
F8 Ctrl/R
F9 Ctrl/T
F10 Ctrl/U
Insert Ctrl/V
Delete Ctrl/W
Backspace Ctrl/H
Escape Ctrl/[
Return Ctrl/M
LineFeed Ctrl/J
(Plus) + upselect (some systems)
(Minus) - downselect (some systems)
TAB down arrow
SHIFT+TAB up arrow

__________________________________________________________
14.4 What platforms will OpenVMS operate on?

For the list of boxes that are officially and formally
supported by OpenVMS Engineering, please see the
OpenVMS Software Product Description (SPD).

o http://www.compaq.com/info/spd/
OpenVMS typically uses SPD 25.01.xx and/or SPD
41.87.xx.

_____________________________
14.4.1 on the Alpha Multia?

Yes, there are a set of unsupported images that permit
specific OpenVMS Alpha versions to bootstrap on the
Multia UDB system. These images and the associated
instructions are available at the OpenVMS Freeware
website:

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/freeware/freeware50/multia/

Instructions are included IN the kits. READ THE
INSTRUCTIONS. PLEASE!

14-16

Hardware Information

Some of the restrictions involved when running OpenVMS
on the Multia system include (but may well not be
limited to) the following:

o The PCMCIA support was completely removed, because
the Intel chip on the Multia was not compatable with
the Cirrus chip on the Alphabook.

This means, of course, that you will not see and
cannot use any PCMCIA cards on a Multia.

The Multia uses shared interrupts, and as a result,
a special ZLXp-E series graphics device driver-one
that does not use interrupts-is needed. This driver
is provided in the kit.

o The serial lines don't work.

o If you have a Multia with a PCI slot, you can't use
any PCI card that requires interrupts.

o The SRM console on this system is very old and
very fragile. (This SRM console was designed
only and strictly for diagnostic use, and was not
particularly tested or used with OpenVMS.)

o If things don't work for you, don't expect to see
any OpenVMS updates, nor SRM console updates, nor
any support.

o Do not expect to see any new versions of OpenVMS
on the Multia nor on any other unsupported systems.
If such new versions do appear and do work, please
consider it as a pleasant surprise.

The Multia images are not included on the OpenVMS
Freeware V4.0 CD-ROM kit, the kit that was distributed
with OpenVMS V7.2. (These images became available after
Freeware V4.0 shipped.)

Other sources of information for OpenVMS on Multia
include:

o http://www.djesys.com/vms/hobbyist/multia.html

o http://www.djesys.com/vms/hobbyist/mltianot.html

o http://www.djesys.com/vms/hobbyist/support.html

o http://www.netbsd.org/Ports/alpha/multiafaq.html

14-17

Hardware Information

o http://www.brouhaha.com/~eric/computers/udb.html

_____________________________
14.4.2 on AlphaPC 164LX? AlphaPC 164SX?

OpenVMS Alpha is not supported on the AlphaPC 164LX and
164SX series, though there are folks that have gotten
certain of the LX series to load SRM and bootstrap
OpenVMS. (The Aspen Durango II variant, specifically.)

One problem has been generally reported: ATA (IDE)
bootstraps will fail; SCSI storage and a SCSI CD-ROM
device is required.

Also see Section 14.4.2.1.

_____________________________
14.4.2.1 on the NoName AXPpci33 system?

Information on bootstrapping OpenVMS (using the Multia
files described in Section 14.4.1) on the (unsupported)
NoName AXPpci33 module is available at:

o http://www.jyu.fi/~kujala/vms-in-axppci33.txt

Tips for using the Multia files with the AXPpci33:

o You have to use the Multia kit and follow the
directions in ALPHA8, but do *not* load the Multia
SRM firmware into the AXPpci33. Rather, download and
use the latest firmware for the AXPpci33 from the HP
Alpha firmware website instead.

o 64 MB memory is generally necessary.

o you cannot use any PCI cards, and if you plan on
networking, you need to find an ISA Ethernet card
supported by OpenVMS.

o When the AXPpci33 board bootstraps, it will dump
some stuff like a crash dump, but it will continue
and-so far-this hasn't caused any particular
hassles.

o The system shutdown and reboot procedures do not
work properly.

14-18

Hardware Information

o The serial console is reported to not work, though
the serial ports apparently do work. The status of
the parallel port is unknown.

o Rumour has it that you have one of the AXPpci33
motherboards with the PS/2 mouse and keyboard
connectors and a VGA card (one that will work
under DECwindows) and you can run DECwindows on
the system.

_____________________________
14.4.3 on the Alpha XL series?

No. OpenVMS does not support the Alpha XL series.

OpenVMS can not, will not, and does not bootstrap on
the Alpha XL series. The Alpha XL series was targeted
for use (only) with the Microsoft Windows NT operating
system.

If you are very lucky, sometimes a particular
unsupported Alpha box or motherboard will resemble
a supported box sufficiently closely and can thus mimic
that system and bootstrap. (No such family resemblances
exist for the XL.) If you are exceedingly lucky,
somebody here in OpenVMS Engineering will have put
together a bootstrap kit-such as that for the Multia.
(No Miata-like OpenVMS bootstrap kit exists for the
XL.)

_____________________________
14.4.4 OpenVMS on the Personal Workstation -a and -au series?

Though OpenVMS is not supported on the Personal
Workstation -a series platforms, OpenVMS might or might
not bootstrap on the platform.

If you wish to attempt this, you must ensure that all
graphics and all I/O controllers in the system are
supported by OpenVMS. You must also ensure that you
have the most current firmware loaded.

14-19

Hardware Information

_____________________________
14.4.4.1 OpenVMS on the Whitebox Windows-Only series Alpha?

Though OpenVMS is not supported on the "Whitebox"
series of Alpha platforms, OpenVMS might or might
not bootstrap on the platform. These systems were
specifically configured, targeted and supported only
for use with the Microsoft Windows NT operating system.

On some of the "Whitebox" systems, the following
sequence of console commands can potentially be used
to convert the system over to unsupported use by and
for OpenVMS Hobbyist users. (But please note that if
you wish to attempt this, you must ensure that all
graphics and all I/O controllers in the system are
supported by OpenVMS, and you must ensure that you have
the most current SRM firmware loaded. (For information
on locating and downloading the most current Alpha SRM
firmware, please see Section 14.3.7.1.) And you must
realize that the resulting Whitebox configuration will
be entirely unsupported and may or may not be stable
and useful.)

set os_type vms
cat nvram ! too see what is in this, if anything
edit nvram
10 set srm_boot on
20 e
init

If your nvram has other contents, you will need to
change the line numbers (10 and 20) to reflect the
contents of your configuration. To obtain documentation
on the commands of the console editor, enter the ?
command within the editor.

The above sequence was reportedly tested on the DIGITAL
Server 3300 series, a relative of the AlphaServer
800 series. The DIGITAL Server 3300 is not supported
by OpenVMS, though the AlphaServer 800 series is a
supported platform. The sequence may or may not work on
other platforms, and may or may not work on the DIGITAL
Server 3300 platform.

Also see Section 5.32.

14-20

Hardware Information

_____________________________
14.4.4.2 OpenVMS and Personal Workstation ATA (IDE) bootstrap?

OpenVMS will boot and is supported on the Personal
Workstation -au series platforms, though OpenVMS will
require a SCSI CD-ROM if the Intel Saturn I/O (SIO) IDE
chip is present in the configuration- only the Cypress
IDE controller chip is supported by OpenVMS for IDE
bootstraps.

If you have an -au series system, you can determine
which IDE chip you have using the SRM console command:

SHOW CONFIGURATION

If you see "Cypress PCI Peripheral Controller", you can
bootstrap OpenVMS from IDE storage. If you see "Intel
SIO 82378", you will need to use and bootstrap from
SCSI. (A procedure to load DQDRIVER on the Intel SIO-
once the system has bootstrapped from a SCSI device-is
expected to be included as part of the contents of the
DQDRIVER directory on Freeware V5.0 and later.)

Many of the -a series systems will include the Intel
SIO, and thus cannot bootstrap from IDE.

_____________________________
14.4.5 On the Intel Itanium IA-64 platform?

OpenVMS is being ported to the Intel IA-64
architecture; to HP systems based on the Intel Itanium
Processor Family.

The first release of OpenVMS I64 is V8.0, with the
first general release of OpenVMS I64 expected to be
V8.2.

Some Intel and HP terminology: Itanium Processor Family
is the name of the current implementation; of the
current Intel microprocessor family implementing the
IA-64 architecture. IA-64 is the name of the Intel
and HP architecture implementing the VLIW (Very Long
Instruction Word) design known as EPIC (Explicitly
Parallel Instruction Computing). I64 is the name of
a family of HP computer systems using Intel Itanium
processors.

14-21

Hardware Information

_____________________________
14.4.5.1 Where can I get Intel Itanium information?

Intel Itanium Processor Family and IA-64 Architecture,
Hardware, Software, and related docoumentation
materials are available at:

o ftp://download.intel.com/design/IA-64/manuals/

o ftp://download.intel.com/design/IA-64/Downloads/

o ftp://download.intel.com/design/IA-
64/Downloads/archSysSoftware.pdf

o ftp://download.intel.com/design/IA-
64/Downloads/24870101.pdf

The Intel Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) console
documentation:

http://www.pentium.de/technology/efi/index.htm

__________________________________________________________
14.5 What is the least expensive system that will run OpenVMS?

The cheapest systems that are or have been recently
offered by HP that will run OpenVMS Alpha are the
AlphaServer DS10 server, the AlphaStation XP900
workstation, the AlphaStation VS10 workstation, and
the AlphaStation XP1000 workstation. Other companies
sell Alpha-powered systems and Alpha motherboards, some
of which will run (and can be purchased with) OpenVMS-
see the OpenVMS Software Product Description (SPD) for
details on the supported systems and configurations.
There are also many used AlphaStation, AlphaServer, and
DEC 3000 models available which are quite suitable.
For more experienced OpenVMS system managers, the
(unsupported) Multia can bootstrap OpenVMS-see
Section 14.4.1 for details.

Depending on the OpenVMS version and configuration, the
OpenVMS Software Product Description (SPD) is available
at:

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com:8000/

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/doc/

14-22

Hardware Information

o http://www.openvms.compaq.com/commercial/

When purchasing a system, ensure that the system
itself is supported, that the system disk drive is
supported or closely compatible, that the CD-ROM drive
is supported or is closely compatable and that (in the
case of SCSI devices) it also specifically supports
512 byte block transfers; no equivalent requirement
exists for IDE devices. Also particularly ensure that
the video controller is supported. Use of supported HP
hardware will generally reduce the level of integration
effort involved.

A CD-ROM, CD-R or DVD drive is required for OpenVMS
Alpha installations.

CD-ROM drive compatibility information is available at:

o http://sites.inka.de/pcde/dec-cdrom-list.txt

__________________________________________________________
14.6 Where can I get more information on Alpha systems?

HP operates an AlphaServer information center at:

o http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/

Alpha Technical information and documentation is available at:

o ftp://ftp.compaq.com/pub/products/alphaCPUdocs/

o http://www.support.compaq.com/alpha-
tools/documentation/current/chip-docs.html

o ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/systems/

o http://ftp.digital.com/pub/Digital/info/semiconductor/literature/dsc-
library.html

o Alpha Systems Update:
http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/fb_acu.html

Software Product Description (SPD) information,
including platform support documentation:

o http://www.compaq.com/info/spd/
OpenVMS typically uses SPD 25.01.xx and/or SPD
41.87.xx.

14-23

Hardware Information

Information on Multia hardware is available at:

o http://www.netbsd.org/Ports/alpha/multiafaq.html

Information on current and future Alpha microprocessor
designs is also available from AlphaPowered at:

o http://www.alphapowered.com/alpha_tomorrow.html

o http://www.alphapowered.com/timeline.html

o http://www.alphapowered.com/ev7-and-ev8.html

The NetBSD folks maintain useful Alpha hardware information at:

o http://www.netbsd.org/Ports/alpha/models.html

__________________________________________________________
14.7 Describe Alpha instruction emulation and instruction
subsets?

The Alpha architecture is upward- and downward-
compatible, and newer instructions are emulated on
older platforms, for those cases where the compiler
is explicitly requested to generate the newer Alpha
instructions.

In particular, OpenVMS Alpha V7.1 and later include the
instruction emulation capabilities necessary for the
execution of newer Alpha instructions on older Alpha
microprocessors. (Instruction emulation capabilities
are available for user-mode application code, and
are not available to device drivers or other similar
kernel-mode code.)

Alpha instructions are available in groups (or
subsets). Obviously, there is the base instruction set
that is available on all Alpha microprocessors. Then,
the following are the current instruction extension
groups (or subsets) that are available on some of
various recent Alpha microprocessors:

o byte/word extension (BWX):
LDBU, LDWU, SEXTB, SEXTW, STB, and STW.

o floating-point and square root extension (FIX):
FTOIS, FTOIT, ITOFF, ITOFS, ITOFT, SQRTF, SQRTG,
SQRTS, and SQRTT.

14-24

Hardware Information

o count extension (CIX):
CTLZ, CTPOP, and CTTZ.

o multi-media extension (MVI):
MAXSB8, MAXSW4, MAXUB8, MAXUW4, MINSB8, MINSW4,
MINUB8, MINUW4, PERR, PKLB, PKWB, UNPKBL, and
UNPKBW.

The typical instruction subset that provides the
biggest win-and of course, your mileage may vary-is
typically the instruction set that is provided by the
EV56 and later; specifically, the byte-word instruction
subset. To select this subset, use the following:

/ARCHITECTURE=EV56/OPTIMIZE=TUNE=GENERIC

The /ARCHITECTURE controls the maximum instruction
subset that the compiler will generally use, while
the /OPTIMIZE=TUNE controls both the instruction-level
scheduling and also the instructions generated inside
loops-any code resulting from /OPTIMIZE=TUNE that is
specific to an instruction subset will be generated
only inside loops and will also be "protected" by
an AMASK-based test that permits the execution of
the proper code for the particular current Alpha
microprocessor.

Typically /OPTIMIZE=TUNE=GENERIC is the appropriate
choice for tuning, and the /ARCHITECTURE selects the
minimum target architecture for general use throughout
the generated code.

generated for later architectures and instruction
subsets will run on older Alpha systems due to the
emulation, but if /ARCHITECTURE is a significant
benefit, then the emulation might be a performance
penalty.

Please see the OpenVMS Ask The Wizard area for the
source code of a (non-privileged) tool that looks at
the instruction subsets available on the particular
Alpha microprocessor that the tool is run on. This tool
demonstrates the use of the Alpha AMASK and IMPLVER
instructions.

14-25

Hardware Information

Please see Section 10.24 and Section 14.10 for
additional details and related considerations.

__________________________________________________________
14.8 What is the Accuracy of the Alpha Time of Year (BB_WATCH)
Clock?

The specification for maximum clock drift in the Alpha
hardware clock is 50 parts per million (ppm), that
is less than �0.000050 seconds of drift per second,
less than �0.000050 days of drift per day, or less
than �0.000050 years of drift per year, etc. (eg: An
error of one second over a day-long interval is roughly
11ppm, or 1000000/(24*60*60).) Put another way, this
is .005%, which is around 130 seconds per month or 26
minutes per year.

The software-maintained system time can drift more than
this, primarily due to other system activity. Typical
causes of drift include extensive high-IPL code (soft
memory errors, heavy activity at device IPLs, etc) that
are causing the processing of the clock interrupts to
be blocked.

Also see Section 14.15, Section 4.3.

__________________________________________________________
14.9 So how do I open up the DEC 3000 chassis?

After removing those two little screws, tilt the back
end of the top shell upwards-then you can remove the
lid.

__________________________________________________________
14.10 What is byte swizzling?

"Swizzling" is the term used to describe the operation
needed to do partial longword (i.e. byte or word)
accesses to I/O space on those systems that don't
support it directly. It involved shifting the offset
into an address space by 5 (or 7 for one older system),
and ORing this into the base address. It then required
the size of the operation to be ORed into the low order
bits.

14-26

Hardware Information

That is, because the EV4 and EV5 CPUs did not bring
bits 0 and 1 off the chip, to do programmed I/O for
bytes/words, the information on the size/offset of the
transfer was encoded into the address data. The data
itself then had to be shifted into the correct "byte
lane" (i.e. its actual position within a longword).

The EV56 CPU supports the byte/word instructions
however only some EV56 systems support byte/word
accesses to I/O space. Even on an EV56 system that
supports byte/word accesses to I/O space, the relevant
OpenVMS routines do not support byte/word access to I/O
space.

EV6 systems (with the exception of the AlphaServer GS60
and AlphaServer GS140 series, for reasons of platform
compatability) support a flat, byte addressable I/O
space.

If a device driver uses CRAM or IOC$WRITE_IO/IOC$READ_
IO, then OpenVMS will do the right thing without
changing the driver - OpenVMS will swizzle and
unswizzle as needed.

To use byte/word operations on MEMORY, you need to
tell the compiler to use the EV56 or EV6 architecture
(/ARCHITECTURE=EV56). Memory operations did not
swizzle, but the compiler would do long/quad
access, and extract/insert bytes as needed. Using
/ARCHITECTURE=EV56 allows smaller, more efficient
byte/word access logic to memory.

If the application is directly doing I/O space access
across a range of Alpha systems (like the graphics
servers), then the driver will need to know how to do
swizzling for old platforms, and byte access for new
platforms.

Please see Section 10.24 and Section 14.7 for
additional details and related considerations.

14-27

Hardware Information

__________________________________________________________
14.11 What is the layout of the VAX floating point format?

The VAX floating point format is derived from one
of the PDP-11 FP formats, which helps explain its
strange layout. There are four formats defined: F 32-
bit single-precision, D and G 64-bit double-precision
and H 128-bit quadruple precision. For all formats,
the lowest addressed 16-bit "word" contains the sign
and exponent (and for other than H, some of the most
significant fraction bits). Each successive higher-
addressed word contains the next 16 lesser-significant
fraction bits. Bit 15 of the first word is the sign, 1
for negative, 0 for positive. Zero is represented by
a biased exponent value of zero and a sign of zero;
the fraction bits are ignored (but on Alpha, non-
zero fraction bits in a zero value cause an error.)
A value with biased exponent zero and sign bit 1 is
a "reserved operand" - touching it causes an error -
fraction bits are ignored. There are no minus zero,
infinity, denormalized or NaN values.

For all formats, the fraction is normalized and the
radix point assumed to be to the left of the MSB, hence
the following range: 0.5 less than or equal to f and
less than 1.0. The MSB, always being 1, is not stored.
The binary exponent is stored with a bias varying with
type in bits 14:n of the lowest-addressed word.

FP Exponent Exponent Mantissa (Fraction) bits,
Type Bits Bias including hidden bit
==========================================================
F 8 128 24
D 8 128 56
G 11 1024 53
H 15 16384 113

The layout for D is identical to that for F except for
32 additional fraction bits.

Example: +1.5 in F float is hex 000040C0 (fraction of
.11[base 2], biased exponent of 129)

14-28

Hardware Information

__________________________________________________________
14.12 Where can I find more info about VAX systems?

o HP runs a VAX "InfoCenter" at:
http://www.compaq.com/alphaserver/vax/

o Jim Agnew maintains a MicroVAX/VAXstation FAQ at:
http://anacin.nsc.vcu.edu/~jim/mvax/mvax_faq.html

o The VAXstation 3100 Owner's Guide:
http://www.whiteice.com/~williamwebb/intro/DOC-
i.html

o A field guide to PDP-11 (and VAX) Q-bus and UNIBUS
modules can be found at:
http://metalab.unc.edu//pub/academic/computer-
science/history/pdp-11/hardware/field-guide.txt

o Various VAX historical information (also see
Section 2.1) can be found at:
http://telnet.hu/hamster/vax/e_index.html

__________________________________________________________
14.13 Where can I find information on NetBSD for VAX systems?

Gunnar Helliesen maintains a NetBSD VAX FAQ at
http://vaxine.bitcon.no/._________________________________

14.14 What system disk size limit on the MicroVAX and
VAXstation 3100?

System disks larger than 1.073 gigabytes (GB)-1fffff
hexidecimal blocks - are not supported on any member of
the VAXstation 3100 series and on certain older members
of the MicroVAX 3100 series, and are not reliable
on these affected systems. (See below to identify
the affected systems-the more recent members of the
MicroVAX 3100 series systems are NOT affected.)

Various of the SCSI commands used by the boot drivers
imbedded in the console PROM on all members of the
VAXstation 3100 series use "Group 0" commands, which
allow a 21 bit block number field, which allows access
to the first 1fffff hexidecimal blocks of a disk. Any
disk references past 1fffff will wrap-this wrapping
behaviour can be of particular interest when writing a
system crashdump file, as this can potentially lead

14-29

Hardware Information

to system disk corruptions should any part of the
crashdump file be located beyond 1.073 GB.

More recent systems and console PROMs use "Group 1"
SCSI commands, which allow a 32 bit block number field.

There was a similar limitation among the oldest of
the MicroVAX 3100 series, but a console boot PROM
was phased into production and was made available for
field retrofits-this PROM upgrade allows the use of the
"Group 1" SCSI commands, and thus larger system disks.
There was no similar PROM upgrade for the VAXstation
3100 series.

Systems that are affected by this limit:

o VAXstation 3100 series, all members. No PROM upgrade
is available.

o MicroVAX 3100 models 10 and 20. No PROM upgrade is
available.

o MicroVAX 3100 models 10e and 20e. Only systems with
console VMB versions prior to V6.4 are affected. A
PROM upgrade for these specific systems is (or was
once) available.

Also see
http://www.whiteice.com/~williamwebb/intro/DOC-i.html

Also see Section 9.5.

__________________________________________________________
14.15 What is the Accuracy of VAX the Time of Year (TOY) Clock?

The VAX Time-Of-Year (TOY) clock (used to save the time
over a reboot or power failure) is specified as having
an accuracy of 0.0025%. This is a drift of roughly 65
seconds per month.

The VAX Interval Time is used to keep the running time,
and this has a specified accuracy of .01%. This is
a drift of approximately 8.64 seconds per day. Any
high-IPL activity can interfere with the IPL 22 or
IPL 24 (this depends on the VAX implementation) clock
interrupts-activities such as extensive device driver
interrupts or memory errors are known to slow the
clock.

14-30

Hardware Information

Also see Section 14.8, Section 4.3.

__________________________________________________________
14.16 What are the VAX processor (CPU) codes?

CPU: Platform:
----- ---------
KA41-A : MicroVAX 3100 Model 10 and 20
KA41-B : VAXserver 3100 Model 10 and 20
KA41-C : InfoServer
KA41-D : MicroVAX 3100 Model 10e and 20e
KA41-E : VAXserver 3100 Model 10e and 20e
KA42-A : VAXstation 3100 Model 30 and 40
KA42-B : VAXstation 3100 Model 38 and 48
KA43-A : VAXstation 3100 Model 76
KA45 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 30 and 40
KA46 : VAXstation 4000 Model 60
KA47 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 80
KA48 : VAXstation 4000 VLC
KA49-A : VAXstation 4000 Model 90/90A
KA49-B : VAXstation 4000 Model 95
KA49-C : VAXstation 4000 Model 96
KA50 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 90
KA51 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 95
KA52 : VAX 4000 Model 100
KA53 : VAX 4000 Model 105
KA54 : VAX 4000 Model 106
KA55 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 85
KA56 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 96
KA57 : VAX 4000 Model 108
KA58 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 88
KA59 : MicroVAX 3100 Model 98
KA85 : VAX 8500
KA86 : VAX 8600
KA88 : VAX 8800
KA600 : VAX 4000-50 (aka VAXbrick)
KA610 : MicroVAX I, VAXstation I (aka KD32)
KA620 : rtVAX (VAXeln)
KA62A : VAX 6000-200
KA62B : VAX 6000-300
KA630 : MicroVAX II, VAXstation II
KA640 : MicroVAX 3300, MicroVAX 3400
KA650 : VAXstation 3200, MicroVAX 3500, MicroVAX 3600, MicroVAX III
KA64A : VAX 6000-400

14-31

Hardware Information

KA655 : MicroVAX 3800, MicroVAX 3900, MicroVAX III+
KA65A : VAX 6000-500
KA660 : VAX 4000-200, VAX 4 upgrade
KA66A : VAX 6000-600
KA670 : VAX 4000-300
KA675 : VAX 4000-400
KA680 : VAX 4000-500
KA681 : VAX 4000-500A
KA690 : VAX 4000-600
KA691 : VAX 4000-605A
KA692 : VAX 4000-700A
KA693 : VAX 4000-605A
KA694 : VAX 4000-705A
KA730 : VAX-11/730
KA750 : VAX-11/750
KA780 : VAX-11/780, VAX-11/782
KA785 : VAX-11/785
KA7AA : VAX 7000-600
KA7AB : VAX 7000-700
KA7AC : VAX 7000-800
KA800 : VAXrta
KA820 : VAX 8200, VAX 8300
KA825 : VAX 8250, VAX 8350
KA865 : VAX 8650

__________________________________________________________
14.17 Where can I get software and hardware support
information?

Please contact the HP Customer Support Center. Services
and information, manuals, guides, downloads, and
various other information is available via the support
link at:

o http://www.hp.com/products/openvms/

Various hardware and system documentation is available
at:

o http://www.compaq.com/support/techpubs/user_
reference_guides/

o http://www.adenzel.demon.nl/vaxes/microvax3100/

o http://www.adenzel.demon.nl/vaxes/infoserver150/

14-32

Hardware Information

TSM (Terminal Server Manager), DEChub, DECserver, etc.
information:

o http://www.compaq.com/support/digital_networks_
archive/

The owner and maintainer of current DECserver and
related hardware is DIGITAL Network Products Group
(DNPG):

o http://www.dnpg.com/

__________________________________________________________
14.18 Where can I get hardware self-maintenance support
assistance?

The HP Assisted Services (CAS) program (a direct
descendent of the program once known as DECmailer)
is available to customers that wish to maintain their
own system(s) (self-maintenance), but that wish some
level of assistance in acquiring hardware diagnostics
and hardware manuals for the system(s), and that wish
to have access to spares and module-level repairs for
customer-performed hardware module swaps:

o http://www.compaq.com/CAS-Catalog/

__________________________________________________________
14.19 Why does my system halt when I power-cycle the console
terminal?

Various VAX and Alpha consoles are designed to process
the BREAK signal, treating it as a HALT request.

A BREAK is a deliberately-generated serial line framing
error.

When a serial line device such as a terminal
powers up (or sometimes when powering down) it can
generate framing errors. These framing errors are
indistingushable from a BREAK signal.

When a BREAK is received on a serial line console
for various VAX systems-including most VAXstation,
MicroVAX, and VAX 4000 series-it is typically
interpreted as a HALT. Alpha systems will also often

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Hardware Information

process a BREAK in a similar fashion, halting the
system.

There is no uniform or generally-available way to
disable this behaviour on every VAX or Alpha system. On
some systems, BREAK processing can be disabled in favor
of [CTRL/P], or [CTRL/P] is the only way to halt the
processor.

The most common way to avoid these halts is to disable
the serial line console or to simply not power-cycle
the console terminal. There is certain important
system state information that is displayed only on
the console, OpenVMS expects to always have access to
the system console.

Also see Section 5.5.

__________________________________________________________
14.20 Can I reuse old keyboards, mice and monitors with a PC?

Older HP keyboards (those with the DIGITAL logo and
the RJ modular jacks), older HP mice (those with the
DIGITAL logo and with the RJ modular jacks, or with
a DIN connector with pins in a configuration other
than the PC-standard DIN connector pin orientation),
and older video monitors (with RGB synch-on-green
video signaling) all use signaling formats and/or
communications protocols that differ from the PC
standards, and are not (easily) interchangable nor
(easily) compatible with typical PC peripheral device
controllers. The LK201 and LK401 keyboards, the VSXXX
series mice, the VR260 and VR290 monitors, etc., are
incompatible with most PC systems and with most KVM
switches.

Newer HP (and Compaq) keyboards (those with with PC-
style DIN plugs, and the HP, Compaq or DIGITAL logo),
newer HP mice (with PC-pin DIN plugs, and the HP,
Compaq or DIGITAL logo), and newer video monitors
(multi-synch) are often interchangeable with "industry
standard" PC systems, and can often be used with
most PC peripheral device controllers. LK461, LK463,
LK46W, LK471, PC7XS-CA, VRC16, VRC21, TFT-series LCD
flat-panel displays, etc., are typically reasonably
compatible with most PC systems, and will usually

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Hardware Information

perform as expected within the limits of the hardware.
(For details of CRT and LCD display compatibility,
please see Section 14.21.)

Rule of thumb: if the peripheral device component
was sold for use with the DEC 2000 (DECpc 150 AXP),
an AlphaServer series, an AlphaStation series, or a
more recent Alpha system, it will probably work with a
PC peripheral controller or with a PC-compatible KVM
switch. If the peripheral device component was sold
for use with an VT420 or older terminal, most VAX, most
VAXstation, and most Alpha systems with names in the
format DEC [four-digit-number], it probably won't work
on a PC system or with a PC-compatible KVM.

Note that the above is a general guideline, and should
not be read to indicate that any particular peripheral
device will or will not work in any particular
configuration, save for those specific configurations
the device is explicitly supported in.

Software Integrators sells a video adapter card
called Gemini P1 which will drive many of the older
HP (DIGITAL-logo) fixed-frequency monitors on a PC
system:

o http://www.si87.com/

The DIGITAL part number 29-32540-01 converts the output
from the RGB cable (3 BNC, synch-on-green) that comes
with the VAXstation 3100 and VAXstation 4000 series to
a female SVGA D connector.

This adapter will allow PC multisync monitors with
the needed frequency specifications to be used with
the VAXstation series synch-on-green video connection.
It may well also work with a VAXstation 2000 series
systems, but specifics and performance of that
combination are not immediately known at this writing.

The protocol definition for the old DIGITAL keyboard
and mouse interfaces is buried at the back of the QDSS
section in the old VAXstation II manual, specifically,
in the back of the VCB02 Video Subsystem Technical
Manual (EK-104AA-TM). The keyboard wiring and protocol

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Hardware Information

is in appendix B, and occupies circa 44 pages. The
mouse is in appendix C, circa 12 pages.

Also see Section 14.21.

__________________________________________________________
14.21 Which video monitor works with which graphics controller?

To determine the answer to the "will this video monitor
or this LCD panel work with this graphics controller?"
question, please first locate the resolution(s) and the
frequencies that are possible/supported at both ends
of the video cable (on the display and on the graphics
controller, in other words), and then determine if
there are any matching settings available. If there are
multiple matches, you will need to determine which one
is most appropriate for your needs.

You will also need to determine if the video monitor or
graphics controller requires the 3 BNC signaling with
the synchronization signals on the green wire, or the 5
BNC signalling common on many PCs, or other connections
such as the DB15 video connector or USB connector used
on various systems.

If there are no matches, you will likely need to change
the hardware at one or both ends of the video cable.

The refresh frequencies for many devices have been
posted to comp.os.vms and/or other newsgroups. Search
the archives for details. Also see:

o http://www.repairfaq.org/

o http://www.mirage-mmc.com/faq/

o http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Foothills/4467/fixedsync.html

o http://saturn.tlug.org/sunstuff/ffmonitor.html

o http://hawks.ha.md.us/hardware/monitor.html

LCD-based and plasma-based flat-panel displays are
generally compatible with all recent OpenVMS Alpha
systems and supported graphics controllers. For
best results, you should generally set the graphics
controller to match the native LCD or plasma display
resolution and (for LCD displays) also set the

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Hardware Information

controller refresh rate to 60Hz. Check your graphics
controller and your display documentation for any
device-specific requirements and/or configuration
recommendations.

Also see Section 14.20.

__________________________________________________________
14.22 Where can I get information on storage hardware?

Information on various HP (Compaq, DIGITAL) OpenVMS
and other disk storage hardware and controllers, and
related technical information on SCSI, device jumpers,
etc., is available at:

o http://theref.aquascape.com/

__________________________________________________________
14.23 Why does my LK401 keyboard unexpectedly autorepeat?

There are several modes of failure:

o Pressing 2 and 3 keys at the same time causes
one key to autorepeat when released. Check the
hardware revision level printed on the bottom of
the keyboard. If the revision level is C01, the
keyboard firmware is broken. Call field service to
replace the keyboard with any revision level other
than C01.

o Pressing certain keys is always broken. Typical
symptoms are: delete always causes a autorepeat,
return needs to be pressed twice, etc. This is
frequently caused by having keys depressed while
the keyboard is being initialized. Pressing ^F2
several times or unplugging and replugging the
keyboard frequently fix this problem. (Ensure you
have current ECO kits applied; there is a patch
available to fix this problem.)

o A key that was working spontaneously stops working
correctly. This may be either of the two previous
cases, or it may be bad console firmware. Ensure
that you have the most recent firmware installed
on your Alpha system. In particular, an old version
of the DEC 3000 SRM firmware is known to have a bug
that can cause this keyboard misbehaviour.

14-37

---------------------------- #include <rtfaq.h> -----------------------------
For additional, please see the OpenVMS FAQ -- www.hp.com/go/openvms/faq
--------------------------- pure personal opinion ---------------------------
Hoff (Stephen) Hoffman OpenVMS Engineering hoff[at]hp.com