From: thompson@pan.ssec.honeywell.com ((jt) John Thompson)
Subject: re: Favourite DOMAIN/OS features (or mis-features)
Organization: Electrotechnical Laboratory, Tsukuba Science City
Distribution: fj
Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1992 19:45:22 GMT
Return-Path: <apollo-list-errors@srvr1.engin.umich.edu>


> >...
> >compression?/It can't be done" dialogs on comp.unix.wizards, and wanted to 
> >prove it *could* be done before the possibility slipped away?
> 
> How do you use the 'compress' feature on DOMAIN/OS? I come from the
> Unix side of the universe and don't use 'typeing features of the
> filesystem.

Compress a file using the standard /usr/ucb/compress routine.
Change the type on it to be compress, by using '/etc/obty pathname... compress'
Use the object.


> * I think the typed filesystem is a nice feature
>   but you pay for it with desparately slow reading and writing from
>   disk. I have here a 2500 with a 760Mb SCSI drive. It's disk operations
>   are 5x slower than a PC running Interacive SVR3.2. Personally, I'd
>   rather have 5x faster disk and do the work in my own program.
I don't know whether that's the types, the Domain file-system, or a problem
with your setup.  I haven't clocked any disk I/O for comparison.  However,
even granting you the point, I'd take the file system and file types over
the speed.  Otherwise, every programmer has to re-invent the wheel, and
every programmer will do it differently.
 
> * The inability to reserve an amount of disk to be used by the
>   operating system for paging is painful. User cheerfully fill up the
>   disks and then wonder why their systems go to sleep. /dev/swap
>   anytime.
Point granted.  Now, let's look at the other side.  I have a program that
doesn't run on our Sun because 90MB of swap isn't enough.  I can't get more
without going through some painful gyrations, and/or reformatting the disk,
repartitioning, and loading the O/S again.  YUCK.
On the other hand, when I run short of space on Domain/OS, I move a user
directory, or clean up some space.
HINT - before your users get to big, create some number of 10, 20, or
       however-many MB files.  Lock them away somewhere where people don't
       have rights to look, and then when the users fill up the remainder, 
       or you run low on swap, "fix" the problem and look like a hero!

> * Networked filesystem is wonderful. And the lack of YP/NIS.
NFS4.1 (I hear they changed the 3.0 number to match the ONC(?) release) will,
of course, have NIS.  From what I hear, it handles NIS changes to the registry
by passing them up to the Domain registry!  If so, yippee!
There have also been many times, now that I'm trying to set up NFS and allow
all 60+ Domain machines to access the 1/2-dozen Un*x boxes, that I've wished
for the netgroups capability of NIS.  Maybe RealSoonNow....


-- jt --
John Thompson
Design Services Engineer / Sys-Admin
Honeywell, SSEC
Plymouth, MN  55441
thompson@pan.ssec.honeywell.com

What do I know?  I'm just a Token Administrator.
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