From: KELSEY@SLACVM.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU (KELSEY, Michael H.)
Newsgroups: comp.os.vms
Subject: Re: VMS-Sun connectivity
Date: 18 Aug 92 19:14:06 GMT
Organization: Stanford Linear Accelerator Center

In article <1140@racerx.bridge.COM>, ken@Bridge.COM (Ken Hardy) says:
>
>I'm trying to bridge the huge void between our SunOS and VMS users.
>
>We've got (I'm told) Multinet TCP/IP on one of the Vaxen that lets us
>rlogin and ftp between environments, and an NFS server on the Vax that
>lets us mount VMS directories on the Suns ("VMS to Ultrix Connection"
>software).
>
>What I don't know how to do is to get e-mail and news between
>environments; it's not included in the TCP/IP networking package.  The
>vaxes are running VMS mail or whatever it is that comes by default
>(*not* All-in-One).  The Suns, of course, consume and generate
>RFC822-compliant mail, and use SMTP.

Well, e-mail *is* included in Multinet, implicitly rather than explicitly.
More below...
>
>1) Are there any bridging software packages that run on VMS that would
>   use SMTP to talk to the Suns' sendmail and whatever is necessary on
>   the VMS side?  Is it even possible?
>
I guess I don't understand your question.  If your Sun users want to
receive all their mail on VMS, just have them create a .forward file in
their login directory, with the line "user@vaxnode" (assuming your Suns
and VAXen are in the same TCP/IP domain).  If your VAX users want to
receive all their mail on the Suns, just have them go into VMS Mail, and
at the MAIL> prompt, type SET FORWARD SMTP%"""user@sunnode""" (note that
the _three_ double-quotes at each end are *required* for VMS Mail to
parse the line correctly.  This assumes that you installed Multinet
completely, including the SMTP transport protocol for mail transfer.
This is how you send Internet mail from standard VMS Mail, by the way.

>2) Where are there any NNTP packages for VMS?  I've got news coming
>   into a Sun with UUCP, and available from there via NNTP.  I need a
>   VMS Multinet NNTP client and user-interface software.  What about
>   VMS/VNEWS, and where can I find it?

Yes, there are NNTP packages for VAXen, but if you already have an NNTP
server on one of your Suns, all you need is a news-reader like VNEWS
on VMS.  VNEWS is available via anonymous FTP from arizona.edu, in the
directory [SOFTWARE.VMS.VNEWS] (this is a VAX, so you have to use VMS
directory syntax in your FTP commands!).  The latest version is 1.41A.

Stay tuned for another post by me!  I have a local update of VNEWS
which supports nesgroup files (.newsrc) between VAX and Unix systems
running NFS.  This update will be part of the next standard release of
VNEWS, which the author expects to have out in January 1993.
>
>I've been watching applicable groups for quite some time, and have not
>seen these issues discussed.  If it's a FAQ, it's not frequently enough
>for me ;->

Hope I've answered some of your questions.  I was hoping to find someone
else with a heterogenous network, to answer some of mine :-/  Good luck
with your system!
                                           -- Mike Kelsey

[  My opinions are not endorsed by SLAC, Caltech, or the US government  ]
What is your _name_?    "kelsey@slacvm.slac.stanford.edu"
What is your _quest_?   "To get a Ph.D. in high-energy physics"
When will you _finish_? "I don't know.   Waaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh..."