On Tue, 14 May 2013, Bob Armstrong wrote:
Guys
Here s the situation I ve got several PDP11s and a couple of PDP8s and I want them all to be able to share a single console terminal. I could just use an old
fashioned RS232 switch box, but I was looking for something better. For one thing, a smart switch that would actually buffer output from the unselected ports
would be nice, and it d be nice to be able to change the selected port from the terminal keyboard. What d be idea is something like the multi session support that
some of the later VTxxx terminals had, but with multiple physical ports and without any special host software. It d also be nice if I wasn t limited to just one
physical console but I could use any terminal anywhere on the network too.
I thought about using a DECserver in reverse LAT for this, but AFAIK the only way to connect to a DECserver in reverse is from a real host system, like VMS or
RSX. That means my console terminal would have to connect to a VAX, log in, and from there connect out again to the DECserver and the PDP-11 or 8 console port.
Kinda complicated and ugly.
With reverse LAT enabled, you can connect to the ports from an attached terminal. I currently forget how, but it wasn't very hard.
It's how I tested having VMS 1.50 on my VT420.
I don t think there s any way to have one terminal server connect directly to another terminal server w/o a host system in between, at least not with LAT. Telnet
would be OK, if anybody can recommend a multi-port telnet terminal server that works in reverse. It d be especially cool if it can telnet to itself then I could
just connect directly from one port on the server to another.
Anyway, I was thinking that I can t be the only collector with a bunch of computers and room for only one console, so I thought I d ask what other people are
using.
Thanks,
Bob
--
Cory Smelosky
http://gewt.net/ Personal stuff
http://gimme-sympathy.org Experiments
The DS200 will do it just fine though.
... got a DECserver-200/MC - no problem there.
Ummm, does anybody have the load software kit for VMS?
I just plugged my DS200/MC in only to discover that I don't have the boot
image for it.
Thanks,
Bob
On Tue, 14 May 2013, Gregg Levine wrote:
On Tue, May 14, 2013 at 9:37 AM, G. <gerry77 at mail.com> wrote:
On Tue, 14 May 2013 08:00:52 -0000, you wrote:
Unfortunately it only /mostly/ works.
MARLEY TOPS-10 03:23:12 CTY system 1
Connected to Node MARLEY(0) Line # 632
[Checking terminal type . . . found VT100]
..LOGIN 1,2
..R OPR
[CCPWFD Waiting for file daemon to start]
%%TTY STOMPER - Starting
And it stalls right there unless I repeatedly hit Ctrl/C...
That happened to me more than once with some older pre-built monitors, then
went away when I did my own install and build of 7.04, so I do not have a
solution, and at the time I hadn't any knowledge about TOPS-10. That does not
mean that now I'm very proficient on it, but...
Upon further investigation, the problem is with OPR.EXE. It WILL NOT
execute on my generated monitor. The one provided with TWONKY works fine
though.
... Make sure that ORION and other Galaxy processes are all there and that
none of them shows a "^C" or "TO" status (IIRC). Also compare processes
between TWONKY and your installation and see if there are any differences.
OPR is just a client that talks to a daemon process so maybe it just stalls
because the daemon is not working, not responding, or not there.
Compare contents of SYS:SYSJOB.INI too.
HTH,
Hello!
We are discussing the concepts of running DECNET via TOPS over the
implied serial connectors that are now available? Correct?
In this case, i'm using klh10. Once this is ironed out I will likely take a crack at it on SIMH's KS10 emulation.
The big problem is the circumstances behind it. You'd need to rebuild
your entire monitor to support it, I believe.
---
These problems are also Dave's fault as supplied by four dozen Yetis,
and an equal amount of Cybernen. And not your fault completely Cory,
outside of tempting the deities of the ceiling. (Now if that implied
science fiction reference misses you please ask off list.)
-----
Gregg C Levine gregg.drwho8 at gmail.com
"This signature fought the Time Wars, time and again."
--
Cory Smelosky
http://gewt.net/ Personal stuff
http://gimme-sympathy.org Experiments
On Tue, 14 May 2013, G. wrote:
On Tue, 14 May 2013 08:00:52 -0000, you wrote:
Unfortunately it only /mostly/ works.
MARLEY TOPS-10 03:23:12 CTY system 1
Connected to Node MARLEY(0) Line # 632
[Checking terminal type . . . found VT100]
..LOGIN 1,2
..R OPR
[CCPWFD Waiting for file daemon to start]
%%TTY STOMPER - Starting
And it stalls right there unless I repeatedly hit Ctrl/C...
That happened to me more than once with some older pre-built monitors, then
went away when I did my own install and build of 7.04, so I do not have a
solution, and at the time I hadn't any knowledge about TOPS-10. That does not
mean that now I'm very proficient on it, but...
I have the reverse issue, surprisingly. The monitor provided with TWONKY works fine, but my generated monitors do not work with it.
Upon further investigation, the problem is with OPR.EXE. It WILL NOT
execute on my generated monitor. The one provided with TWONKY works fine
though.
.... Make sure that ORION and other Galaxy processes are all there and that
none of them shows a "^C" or "TO" status (IIRC). Also compare processes
between TWONKY and your installation and see if there are any differences.
It looks like I'm not linking something in to the monitor or not enabling a certain feature. It'd be helpful if TWONKY provided the output from the MONGEN dialogue...
OPR is just a client that talks to a daemon process so maybe it just stalls
because the daemon is not working, not responding, or not there.
Compare contents of SYS:SYSJOB.INI too.
HTH,
G.
--
Cory Smelosky
http://gewt.net/ Personal stuff
http://gimme-sympathy.org Experiments
On 2013-05-14 17:45, Bob Armstrong wrote:
Johnny Billquist wrote:
But any terminal server can also setup a service.
Fred wrote:
Created services on the DECServer that allow me to connect to the console
of any host from any other host.
I didn't think a DECserver could do this (or at least not an old, stupid
one like a 100 or 200). You guys are saying it can?
I'll go dust off an old DECserver and plug it in, and then I'll give it a
try.
With reservation for the DS100, which I think cannot do reverse LAT. It might also not be able to define services. It's been so long since I used one them, that I'm not totally sure.
The DS200 will do it just fine though.
Johnny
Yes, like that. They are a 3u unit with 30 ports. There's a rarer version called the Portmaster 2 (without the E) that has 10 ports and is only 1u high. Exactly the same circuit board just a smaller case.
Not sure what you mean by connect from one port to another? You can come in with a terminal on one port (I use a vt320) and bring up a login port. You log in to the terminal server. At this point you can attach to any other port. You can also telnet in via Ethernet.
I've never tried it but I'm sure you can connect via a serial port on one of your machines (just as if it was a terminal) and log in to get you the prompt to connect to another port.
Ian
Sent from my iPhone
On 2013-05-14, at 8:23 AM, "Bob Armstrong" <bob at jfcl.com> wrote:
>I use Livingston Portmasters (like the 2e).
Do you mean like this
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Livingston-Portmaster-2E-PM2E-24-port-Communication…
It s a big guy, isn t it ?? Can it connect directly from one port to another?
Bob
---
Filter service subscribers can train this email as spam or not-spam here
Johnny Billquist wrote:
But any terminal server can also setup a service.
Fred wrote:
Created services on the DECServer that allow me to connect to the console
of any host from any other host.
I didn't think a DECserver could do this (or at least not an old, stupid
one like a 100 or 200). You guys are saying it can?
I'll go dust off an old DECserver and plug it in, and then I'll give it a
try.
Bob
On 2013-05-14 17:07, Bob Armstrong wrote:
Guys
Here s the situation I ve got several PDP11s and a couple of PDP8s
and I want them all to be able to share a single console terminal. I
could just use an old fashioned RS232 switch box, but I was looking for
something better. For one thing, a smart switch that would actually
buffer output from the unselected ports would be nice, and it d be nice
to be able to change the selected port from the terminal keyboard.
What d be idea is something like the multi session support that some of
the later VTxxx terminals had, but with multiple physical ports and
without any special host software. It d also be nice if I wasn t
limited to just one physical console but I could use any terminal
anywhere on the network too.
I thought about using a DECserver in reverse LAT for this, but
AFAIK the only way to connect to a DECserver in reverse is from a real
host system, like VMS or RSX. That means my console terminal would have
to connect to a VAX, log in, and from there connect out again to the
DECserver and the PDP-11 or 8 console port. Kinda complicated and ugly.
I don t think there s any way to have one terminal server connect
directly to another terminal server w/o a host system in between, at
least not with LAT. Telnet would be OK, if anybody can recommend a
multi-port telnet terminal server that works in reverse. It d be
especially cool if it can telnet to itself then I could just connect
directly from one port on the server to another.
Anyway, I was thinking that I can t be the only collector with a
bunch of computers and room for only one console, so I thought I d ask
what other people are using.
No. Any DECserver can act both as ingress and egress, without any intermediate system.
What you need to do is to set up a service. Any computer with LAT can set up one or several services. But any terminal server can also setup a service. And with a terminal on a DECserver, you connect to a service. Don't matter who is presenting the service.
Reverse LAT is slightly different, in that you can connect to an outgoing port on a DECserver without using a service, by using reverse LAT. You just tell which DECserver, and which port on that DECserver to connect to.
But you don't need reverse LAT in your case. Connect all console interfaces to ports on a DECserver. Define all ports access as remote, and setup services for all of them, and you're in business.
However, as you note, they will not really buffer anything, so it's not perfect. You'd need something like screen in Unix, with connections to each machine, in order to get buffering and so on working they way you want.
Johnny
I thought about using a DECserver in reverse LAT for this, but AFAIK the only way to connect to a DECserver in reverse is from a real host system, like VMS or RSX. That means my console terminal would have to connect to a VAX, log in, and from there connect out again to the DECserver and the PDP-11 or 8 console port. Kinda complicated and ugly.
My AlphaServer DS10 and PDP-11/83 console ports are connected to DECserver 90M,
and I can connect to these consoles from terminals connected to this DECserver.
> I found the DECserver 90TL does it but thry are rare.
I didn t know a 90TL could do all that. It s a nice compact little box, but like you say they re hard to come by.
Bob