From: greg@gagme.chi.il.us (Gregory Gulik)
Subject: AT&T 3B2 Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
Followup-To: comp.sys.att
Originator: greg@gagme
Organization: GAGME Public Access UNIX, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Date: Mon, 20 Jul 1992 22:21:14 GMT

Archive-name: 3b2-faq

              AT&T 3B2 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

This article contains the answers to many Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ) often posed to the net. It is posted because the same questions
pop up time after time. This will hopefully help out by not having
these questions posted over and over, and help new users know what
questions there are to ask in the first place! 8^)

This article includes answers to the following questions.

First, the questions:

Subject:  0 SPECIAL NOTE
Subject:  1 How do I install a second ST-506 drive on my 3B2?
Subject:  2 How do I create a second swap partition?
Subject:  3 How can I get X11 for the 3B2?
Subject:  4 How do I install a non AT&T SCSI drive on my 3B2?
Subject:  5 I get data overrun errors when using a Telebit
	    on an EPORTS card running at 19.2K baud.
Subject:  6 What does the 'NOTICE: File Table Overflow' error mean?
Subject:  7 How do I set up anonymous ftp?
Subject:  8 Is there a reposity of ftp-able 3B2 programs?
Subject:  9 How do I run Unix from floppy (for example, to repair a damage
            hard drive file system)?
Subject: 10 What is/was the 3B Journal?
Subject: 11 What are the various models of 3B2s and their differences?
Subject: 12 How do I build GCC on the 3B2?

Now, the answers:


------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  0 SPECIAL NOTE
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you are going to be at all serious about the 3B2, and especially if
you are relying on yourself for maintenance, the first thing you want
to do is obtain the AT&T 3B2 Computer Maintenance Manual.

It contains diagrams of all 3B2 computers up to the 3B2/600, parts
lists, breakdown procedures, troubleshooting information, and sources
of additional documentation.

In addition, it contains the "3B2 Computer Maintenance Utilities"
diskette called "idtools" (formerly known as "devtools").  This floppy
is bootable, and once running, the following options are available:

        > format floppy diskettes
        > format hard disk drives
        > verifies hard disk format
        > disk-to-disk high speed copies
        > disk-to-disk copy by sectors
        > disk-to-memory copies
        > defect table builder
        > writes sanity track
        > change default boot information

While some of these options are also available from UNIX, all the
utilities here can be run on a machine with a damaged (or missing) hard
disk, often allowing the drive to be repaired that is otherwise
unbootable.

This manual and disk can be ordered from the AT&T Customer Information
Center in Indianapolis, IN.  It has select code 305-395, and at press
time it sold for about $125.  The AT&T CuIC can be reached at:

	(800) 432-6600	Continental US
	(317) 322-6556	elsewhere

The CuIC takes phone orders with a credit card, and with a purchase
order for qualifying companies.  They have many other UNIX-related
books as well, so be sure to ask for their free "AT&T Documentation
Guide", select code 000-011.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  1 How do I install a second ST-506 drive on my 3B2?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Copyright 1989 by Owens-Laing Publications.

Title:  Disk Expansion on the 3B2
Author: Stephen Friedl (friedl@mtndew.Tustin.CA.US)
Issue:  3B Journal, 4Q 1989
[Edited by Gregory Gulik]

[ conventions are:  *bold* and _italics_ ]

 Introduction
 ------------

The 3B2/400 family (/300, /310 and /400) computers use standard MFM
disk drives, and it is possible to add or replace these drives yourself
-- in this article we show you how to do this.

The 3B2/500 and larger machines all have SCSI (Small Computer Systems
Interface) disk drives, so these instructions do not apply to them.
For the duration of this article, "3B2" means the 3B2/400 and below,
and in the case where there are differences among these included models
we will mention them.

Before doing any drive replacement, you must obtain the _3B2 Computer
Maintenance Reference Manual_ from AT&T.  This document contains quite
a bit of useful information about your 3B2 hardware, and it is helpful
in its own right.  What makes it so special is the "idtools" diskette
that comes with it.  This floppy disk contains numerous utilities that
will help you diagnose and troubleshoot your computer, as well as the
disk formatting tools we need for our expansion project.

 What we don't tell you
 ----------------------

This is a fairly technical topic, and it relies on substantial
knowledge of UNIX system administration.  Those steps directly related
to the formatting operation are covered here, but others such as backup
and restore from tape, disk space allocation, and rebooting the machine
are prerequisite knowledge.  AT&T's sysadm documentation covers a great
deal of it, but if these things are new to you, perhaps you're not
ready to give this a go just yet.

Please keep in mind that if this is not done correctly (especially the
backups), you could lost most or all of your computer's data in a very
short time.  You must have at least one full, verified backup of all
filesystems, with _two_ backups being safer.  In addition, it is a good
idea to try this during an off time when you can afford to be down for
while if things don't go so well.

Finally, we have tried to present this information as accurately and
clearly as we can, but we cannot guarantee that there are no bugs.
Check everything, verify steps with the manual, and ask a local wizard
if you get stuck.  Of course, you undertake this procedure at your own
risk.

 Selecting a drive
 -----------------

There are many drives on the market that are satisfactory, and we
present some guidelines here for selecting one.  We have our favorites,
but most available ST-506 drives can be used in the 3B2.  Note that
these are suggestions only, not endorsements or guarantees of
compatibility.

The first restriction is that the idtools software will not format more
than 1024 cylinders in a single drive, and a drive with more will
simply have the excess cylinders ignored.  This is an unfortunate but
unavoidable waste of disk space, giving us a practical limit of about
135Mbyte.  (15 heads x 1024 cyls x 18 blks/track x 512 bytes/block).

Most of the drives found in the original 3B2 are made by Control Data
(or their subsidiary, Imprimis), and these Wren II drives are of
excellent quality, and they represent a very safe route.  These drives
are available with formatted capacities of 30 and 72 megabytes, and
they have an average access time of about 28 msec.  Other brands known
to work include Maxtor, Miniscribe, Priam, Micropolis and others.  Some
of these drives have more than 1024 cylinders which allows them to be
used, but at less than their advertised capacity.

 Disk types and the Equipped Device Table
 ----------------------------------------

Each drive in the 3B2 is formatted with a _disk type_, which is a small
number that identifies the drive to the machine.  The disk type indexes
into a table of drive information, and this table is part of the
/dgn/edt_data file.  This file is used to fill the Equipped Device
Table, a list of currently-available hardware devices maintained by the
firmware.  Part of this list, the _subdevice table_, describes the
possible hard disk drives.

 Getting started
 ---------------

Now that the formatting tools have arrived and a drive has been
obtained, we are ready to do the installation.  It is at this point
that a full backup of the entire system is in order and to review the
relevent portions of the Maintenance Manual.

After backing up the current drives, shut down the machine, turn off
the power, and remove the power plug.  Open the case, note the current
configuration of the drive cables, and remove them along with the power
connectors.

Select "drive 0" on the drive select jumpers, insert/enable the
terminating resistor, and place the drive back in the cage.  Connect
drive zero's data cable (the thin ribbon cable), the last connector on
the wide control cable, and the power cable to the rear of the drive.
Pay particular attention to pin one orientation, and insure that all
connections are snug.

At this point you are ready to turn on the machine.  Plug in the 3B2
power cable and turn the switch to "ON".  The console should show a
SELF CHECK, followed shortly by

	FW ERROR 1-02: DISK SANITY FAILURE
		       EXECUTION HALTED

	SYSTEM FAILURE: CONSULT YOUR SYSTEM ADMINISTRATION UTILITIES GUIDE

This ominous message is actually expected, and it just means that the
disk drive is not formatted yet.  At this point, type your current
firmware password (usually "mcp") followed by RETURN, and you will be
presented with the normal firmware menu.

At this point you should boot "/idtools" from the floppy drive (load
device 0, FD5).  Once booted, idtools displays an informational message
and asks that RETURN be hit.

Note that this entire process is covered in Appendix B of the
Maintenance Reference Manual, and we strongly recommend that you review
sections

	Hard Disk Formatter (B-8),
	Defect Table Builder (B-33), and
	Writing Sanity Track (B-47)

plus the introduction before continuing.


 Running Idtools
 ---------------

At the first menu, "formhard" should be entered.  It will ask which disk
should be formatted, and the proper response is zero in most cases.  If
you are doing this procedure on a machine with two drives installed, be
_very_ careful when answering this question.

Next, you are asked for drive configuration information.  You must
enter the drive type (from a previous section) plus the drive
dimensions, and the following table summarizes several models we know
about.  If your drive is not shown, consult your vendor documenation
for this information.

Drive type	drv id	cyls trk/cyl sec/trk byte/cyl     abbrev
--------------- ------	---- ------- ------- --------	  ------
Wren II 30MB	   3     697	 5	18	512       HD30
Wren II 72MB	   5	 925	 9	18	512       HD72
Fujitsu M2243AS	   8     754    11      18      512       HD72C
Micropolis 1325    5    1024     8      18      512       HD72
Maxtor 1140	   4*	 918	15	18	512       HD120
Maxtor 1190	  11	1224+   15	18	512       HD135
Miniscribe XXXX    4*
Priam XXXX

* selected by user
+ can only use 1024 cylinders on this drive

Note that "tracks/cylinder" means "heads", and the sectors/track and
bytes/cylinder values the same for all drives.  The drive ID is shown
as 4 for high-capacity drives, and it assumes that this number was
inserted into the Equipped Device Table subdevice listing.

In the following examples, user responses are in *bold*, and the drive
shown is a Maxtor 1140.  Note that the default entries shown may vary
from machine to machine.

	Format which disk [ 0 or 1 ] (0)?  *0*

	Drive id: 3- ? *4*
	Number of cylinders: 687 - ?  *918*
	Numbers tracks/cyl: 5 - ?  *15*
	Number sectors/track: 18 - ? *18*
	Number bytes/sector: 512 - ? *512*

Once these values have been entered, idtools shows where it will place
various housekeeping areas on the disk, almost all stored on the first
two cylinders.  You need not concern yourself with the specific values
printed.

 Defect Mapping
 --------------

The bad block listing (with various alternate names, such as "Flag
Track Log") is usually found on a sticker on top of the drive.  To
simplify data entry, it is a good idea to photocopy this sticker while
it is on the drive, because later the drive might not be in such a
comfortable reading position (especially if it is in a drive cage).

The first prompt in this section asks if the backup defect table should
be modified.  A formatted drive normally has two copies of the defect
table on disk in case one is lost, but a blank drive has no such
table.  Answering "yes" to this question means that the data you enter
here is stored in both places.

To enter the defects, enter "new" when asked, then "bc" for the type of
defect byte count.  Then, for each bad sector, enter the cylinder
number, the head number, and the byte count, all separated by spaces.
This "byte count" field is often shown on the disk label as "BFIND"
(bytes from index) or "BCAI" (byte count after index), and it is
distinct from the sector number.  Most entries have a block length of
one, but if the label shows more than this then it must be the fourth
field on the line.

An entry of "q" terminates the input, and displays the entire list of
blocks entered.  It is vital that this list be checked completely, and
edits made if necessary.  An entry of just a RETURN accepts the current
list and moves onto the next prompt.

		       Format entire disk - type 1
		      Format single track - type 2
	Format from selected track to end - type 3

	Select type of format [1, 2, or 3] (1) ?

Entering "1" followed by RETURN starts the formatting process, and when
it completes it starts a verify pass where all blocks on the disk are
examined for errors.  This operation can take some time on a large
drive, and idtools shows its progress with a message displayed every
five cylinders formatted.

After the format and verify, idtools writes the "sanity track" with the
"fixdisk" program.  The sanity track contains a special data pattern
that validates the drive to the 3B2, and it takes just a moment and
requires no input from you.

With the conclusion of the fixdisk operation the drive is formatted.
You can remove the idtools floppy and power the machine down.

 Closing up the machine
 ----------------------

The machine should now be put back together and the original drives
reinstalled.  It is important that all drive selects and terminating
resistors be installed properly, following the rules mentioned
previously.

The first drive in the machine has the lowest drive select jumper
(usually position zero) and connected to the zero data cable (usually
the bottom drive).  The second drive in the machine has the next drive
select (usually position one) and the other data cable, and the control
cable connects them both.  The drive that is at the physical end of the
control cable must have the terminating resistor.

Disk drives installed into an XM expansion module have special rules on
termination, and these are documented and diagramed on pages 6-23 and
6-24 of the Maintenance Reference Manual.

 Partitioning the drive
 ----------------------

The easiest case is adding a second drive to a machine that previously
had only one.  After installing the new unit, boot /unix from the hard
drive and enter single-user mode (this is much easier if you have
edited /etc/inittab).

With the /usr partition mounted, run the "sysadm" command, and at each
successive menu, enter "diskmgmt", "harddisk", and "partitioning" in
turn.  This enters the partitioning operation and it should prompt you
for the relevant information.  We do not discuss strategies for
allocating filesystem resources, as this is covered in the AT&T system
administrative documentation.

Once the drive is partitioned, the added filesystems (say, /usr2 and
/usr3) may be used immediately.

All other cases involve replacing existing drives, and it most
expedient to use the full restore procedure for this.  A full backup is
absolutely required here for this operation, and it should be verified
once it is made.

Boot the "Essential Utilities - Disk 1" floppy and select the "Full
Restore" operation.  This procedure includes a partitioning step that
allows you to allocate your new disk resources.  Follow the
instructions shown on the screen.

After the core set of floppies -- five or six disks -- you can
interrupt this process, boot /unix from the hard disk, and restore all
of your backups.  You may have to install the Cartridge Tape Utilities
if your backups are stored on that medium.

WARNING: This "full restore" operation destroys all data on all hard
disks during the partitioning, and you _must_ have a full set of
reliable, verified backups before considering this step, and two full
sets of backups would not be a bad idea.  If these backups are not done
properly, all data on the disks will be LOST.  Please be very careful
when doing this, as mistakes can be costly.


 Compatibility note
 ------------------

Some early models of the 3B2/300 do not permit a 72MB hard drive to be
added to the system board.  The recognizing signs for this restriction
are documented in the Maintenance Reference Manual on page 7-21, and
3B2/300 owners should consult this information before starting this
project.

While the documentation does not mention the reason for this
restriction, we speculate that any drive with more than eight heads
cannot be used in these older machines.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  2 How do I create a second swap partition?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

These are the steps I used to add a second swap partition to my
3B2/400.  Why add a second  swap area?   By default, the SVR3.1
system disks (the version I use) make one swap area of 10196 blocks
on the first hard disk (/dev/rdsk/c1d0s1).  While this 5Mb area
seems plenty for most uses, I managed to exhaust it.  It was time to
RTFM.  While the manual gives you the confidence to say that you *can*
increase the number of swap partitions, it doesn't clearly tell you
exactly how to go about doing that.  What follows are the steps you
can follow to add another swap partition to your system.

Are you adding this swap space "just to balance the load"?  If so,
forget it.  The effect is negligible and clearly not worth the effort.
I have been unsuccessful in conclusively proving whether or not SVR3.1
does perform balanced allocation of the swap space.  It seems to knock
a huge chunk off the first partition before it even touches the second
one.  I would not think of doing this unless you have SVR3.1 or
SVR3.2.  Earlier versions do not have the advanced swap handling
functions, and may not even allow you to do this.  Upgrade time.
The only reason to add another swap partition is if you have a valid
reason to do so (i.e. you have exhausted your present swap space).
Remember that swap cannot be used for anything else, you take space
away from your mountable filesystems when you add swap space.

Please keep in mind that this is *your* system, and these steps can
easily wipe out all your data files.  Take adequate care to back
up your data.  Make sure your backups work before you start any of this.

IT IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED THAT YOU HAVE A PAPER COPY OF THESE
DIRECTIONS IN FRONT OF YOU AS YOU PERFORM THIS TASK.

Step 0: BACK UP THE SYSTEM!  I cannot stress this enough.
        If you have a tape drive, use that in preference over the
	floppy drive.  Back up the /, /usr, and /usr2 partitions.
	While it is not mandatory, it's also a good idea to back up
	everything else just in case catastrophe strikes.  Expect the
	worst and hope for the best.

Step 1: Reload the Foundation floppies and select a custom partition
        setup.  Pick the sizes you want for the new swap partitions.
	Since you are adding a second swap partition, it is up to you
	if you wish to add to (or keep) the original 5Mb swap
	partition.  It is mandatory that you keep *some* swap space on
	the first disk.  There is no rule that says the 2 partitions must
	be equal in size.  Finish the full restore.

	For Your Information: the sizes of the partitions are
	dependent on the number of blocks per cylinder group.  That
	means, you can specify size in units of (18 * number of
	heads).  If you specify a number that is not a round figure,
	the machine will round it for you.  RECORD THIS NUMBER!!!
	This new partition will be named /usrX (where X is a positive
	integer) and there will be a filesystem made upon it.  Do not worry.

Step 2: Bring up unix, log in as root, and bring the machine to runlevel 1.
        When the machine is in single-user mode, make sure that all
	disk partitions are unmounted (except for the root partition!)

Step 3: Make a temporary file with the existing partition data:

        # prtvtoc /dev/rdsk/c1d1s6 > /tmp/disk.data

Step 4: Edit the disk.data file.  Make the following changes:
        change the tag field from 0 to 3 (from 'user' to 'swap')
        change the flags from 00 to 01 (unmountable partition)
        delete all the initial comments (lines with initial *'s)
	Double check this file to make sure you got it right

Step 5: Save this data back to the hard disk.  If you choose to chicken
        out, do it BEFORE THIS STEP:

        # fmthard -s /tmp/disk.data /dev/rdsk/c1d1s6

Step 6: Edit /etc/fstab to remove the reference to the now defunct
        filesystem.  You don't have to do anything else to the actual
	partition to remove the filesystem - the system will page over
	the superblock and inode lists by itself.

Step 7: Use /etc/swap to tell the system that the partition is ready
        for paging/swapping.  The best way to do this is to make the
	system add this partition each time it boots.  Create a file
	called /etc/rc2.d/S00SETSWAP.  Link it to the file
	/etc/init.d/S00SETSWAP.  In this file, add the following line:

	/etc/swap -a /dev/dsk/c1d1sYY 0 XXXXX

	In this case, the Y's in the disk name should be set to the
	disk partition that the new swap space is to be located on.
	Usually, this is partition 8 (if you specified the swap space
	as the first partition on the disk before /usr).  The 0 (zero)
	signifies that swap activity is to start at the 0th block of
	the partition - the start.  Replace the XXXXX with the number
	of blocks available in the partition.  This is the number you
	recorded in Step 1 above.

Step 8: Reboot and pray.  If it all went well, the machine will come
        up in multi-user mode.  Once again, log in as root and bring
	the machine down to single-user state.  Make sure that the
	system is actually using the new partition with the 

	# /etc/swap -l

	command.  You should see the original swap partition
	(/dev/dsk/c1d0s1) as well as your new partition listed.

	If your machine did not boot for some bizarre reason, reload
	the system again (go to step 1), making sure that you do
	everything correctly.

Step 9: Restore your data.  If you backed up on floppy, just restore
        them in order and reboot.  If you backed up on a CTC tape drive,
        you must install the Cartridge Tape Utilities disk, reboot,
        recover your data, and reboot one last time.  IF you didn't back
        up your data, then you're SOL.

        A note to those with XDC and SCSI drives - the maneuvers you
        have just completed only messed up the data on the 2 internal
        disk drives.  Any data on your 3rd (and higher) drives should
        remain untouched.  

There is another way to do this whole thing without reloading the
entire OS.  It involves having a boot floppy with prtvtoc, fmthard,
swap, and a few other files on it.  You would have to make this before
hand (explained in a different question).  In this instance, you would
only alter the partitions on the disk you added the new partition to.
This, however, would force you to re-create and restore filesystems on the
partition(s) you borrowed space from.  For my time and money, it was
easier (and less error-prone) to add the swap partition by reloading
the Foundation disks.  True Blue Gurus (TM) can experiment with the
second method.

Comments and criticisms welcome.

Jeffrey L. Bromberger ------- System Manager ------- Tramway Unix Systems
jeffrey@squid.tram.com      Anywhere!{van-bc,limbic,icus}!tram!jeffrey

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  3 How can I get X11 for the 3B2?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: aj4640@dean1.usma.edu  Robertson John MAJ at US Military Academy, West
Point, N

[Read the P.S. at the end of this message before attempting to
 ftp these files.]

The X11 R4 distribution tape contains sources to run clients on a 3b1.
Several of us have hacked those sources to enable clients to run on a
3b2.

I wish I could offer the source patches directly but for various
reasons, I can't.  However, 3b2 users are more than welcome to have the
clients, the libraries, the include files, and the pre-processor.  This
will get X-windows up on your 3b2 without the xdaemon stuff (as long as
you have the Wollongong networking stuff.)  With this stuff, you'll
have a pile of ready-to-run clients as well as the tools needed to
compile your own X11 applications.

In addition to the default X11 R4 clients, bin.tar.Z also has a running
copy of tgif, xdvi, xmahjongg [you'll need to do the fonts for your
server.  UTSL!], and lots of other neat stuff.

The lib.tar.Z contains libX11.a, libXt.a, etc.  In addition, the
app-defaults for all the clients in bin.tar.Z are also here.

include.tar.Z has all the include files.  You'll need these if you want
to compile your own stuff.

cpp.tar.Z is a compiled version of the X11 distribution preprocessor.
In this version, you'll need to define the symbol 3b2 before
invocation.  It will not gag on the big header files that many X
applications use.

The files can be obtained via anonymous ftp from euler.math.usma.edu.
They are in pub/3b2.  Other than unpaccking and installing the clients
and lib stuff in the usual places, no other special work should be
needed.

I cannot offer any support for this stuff.  Take it, hack it, and have
fun.  Even more, give the clients away to other suffering 3b2 users.
It has made our 3b2's substantially easier to use.

Jack

P.S.  The X11R4 clients for the 3B2 have been moved to Bradley University
      on erratic.bradley.edu in pub/3B2_X.  If that system is down, you
      may want to also try ds3.bradley.edu, also in pub/3B2_X.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  4 How do I install a non AT&T SCSI drive on my 3B2?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: geoff@ugc.uucp (Geoff Coleman)

Installation of Third Party SCSI drive on AT&T 3B2

1.  Hardware Addition
The hardware installation is relatively simple. The SCSI address of the
disk must be set via jumpers. If the disk being added is the first
outside disk for the 3B2 then the you must use an "AT&T SCSI Connect
Kit".

2.  Telling the system about the disk
After the disk has been physically attached the machine should be
restarted.  If the disk is one that is unknown to the 3B2 a message
will appear on the console that there is an unknown scsi device "make"
"model". The make and model information is important.

Once the 3b2 is rebooted login as root and cd to /etc/scsi.  At this
point you should run ./edittbl -l to list all of the SCSI devices known
to the system. Then run device table. The first entry is the make and
must be padded with spaces to 8 characters.  The second entry is the
model and must be padded to 16 characters with spaces.  The number of
lu's is one unless it is a bridge controller.

At this point you should reboot the machine and there should be no
unknown device error message on bootup.

3.  Formatting the disk
Once the system has been rebooted login as root and change the run
level to single user mode and remount /usr if need be.

At this point you need to cd to /usr/lib/scsi and edit the file
tc.index.  Add an entry for the new disk in the same manner as the
other entries in this file. Make sure that the model number starts in
column 9 and is padded out to 16 characters, if you receive an unable
to open script file message on formatting the problem is most likely in
this entry.

At this point you can run the format program from either sysadm or the
command line. After the format has finished reboot the system and the
disk should be listed as a formatted disk.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  5 I get data overrun errors when using a Telebit
            on an EPORTS card running at 19.2K baud.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: woods@robohack.UUCP (Greg A. Woods)

Actually, in most cases the EPORTS card *never* loses interrupts.  It
is after all a true smart-card with rather impressive specifications.
A single card can sustain 9600 bps input on 4 ports simultaneously in
cooked mode without any flow control and not drop a bit (on a
3b2/400).  With hardware flow control working, and in raw mode, it'll
suck up 3 * 38.4K baud without loss.  Of course the latter demands that
at least 34% of the CPU be available.  In actual practice I'd say a
3b2/400 with an EPORTS card would do great with 4-5 Telebit T-2500's at
19.2K baud, just as long as all it had to do was run uucico's.  A
second EPORTS card might permit a few more modems, but you'd very soon
run out of CPU on a 3b2/400, even with just uucico's running -- it's
only about 1.25 (VAX)MIPS.

In actual fact, it is the damn disk controller/driver that can suck the
system down.  The worst problem is when the disk driver/disk/controller
loses an interrupt, or a command ACK, or something, and freezes,
hanging the entire system for up to 20 seconds before it recal's the
drives.  This is the risk of using fast ST-506 drives on a 3b2....

Paging, or heaven forbid -- swapping, uses a lot of resources and will
cause uucico's to get behind in ack'ing, even at 2400 baud, esp. with
only a 3-packet window size.

When my 3b2/400 is reasonably quiescent, I get an average of 760 cps
throughput on UUCP input from a Telebit T-1000, and, with UUCP
spoofing, and apparent output rate of at least 980 cps!  (I run the
port at 19.2K baud with PEP connections.)  This is regardless of
activity on the other 2400 baud modem, or even when also sending output
through the layers driver to my 5620 -- all on the same EPORTS.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  6 What does the 'NOTICE: File Table Overflow' error mean?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: v.hoang@att.com

it means more files being opened than the limit you've set for the
system.  Edit /etc/master.d/kernel and bump up the values of NFILE,
NINODE & NS5INODE (or something close to that), then cd /boot,
mkboot -k KERNEL, touch /etc/system then reboot the system.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  7 How do I set up anonymous ftp?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: rdc30@nmrdc1.nmrdc.nnmc.navy.mil (LCDR Michael E. Dobson)
Subject: Anonymous ftp with WIN/TCP 3.0.x YES!!

Contrary to the documentation for WIN/TCP 3.0.{0,1}, it is possible to set
up anonymous ftp.  The Bugs: note in the documentation about if not being
fully implemented in this release seems to be just a documentation
ommision.  I saw the method to use on a US military 3B2 Users Group mailing
list.  The missing parts are the creation of a dev directory in the root of
the ftp account directory with null and tcp devices created with mknod, and
the inclusion of the services file in the etc subdir along with group and
passwd files.  You of course need ls & pwd in bin and a pub tree.  Below is
the output of ls -lR in my ftp root as well as the passwd in ~ftp/etc/passwd.
Try it out and see.


total 4
drwxr-xr-x   2 root     other         64 Jan 23 11:12 bin
drwxr-xr-x   2 root     other         64 Jan 23 11:09 dev
drwxr-xr-x   2 root     other         80 Jan 23 11:13 etc
drwxr-xr-x   2 ftp      sys          240 Jan 23 11:16 pub

/usr3/ftp/bin:
total 111
---x--x--x   1 root     other      35678 Jan 23 11:11 ls
---x--x--x   1 root     other      19551 Jan 23 11:11 pwd

/usr3/ftp/dev:
total 0
crw-rw-rw-   1 root     sys       49,  2 Jan 23 11:09 null
crw-rw-rw-   1 root     sys       63, 38 Jan 23 11:09 tcp

/usr3/ftp/etc:
total 4
-r--r--r--   1 root     other        336 Jan 23 11:12 group
-r--r--r--   1 root     other         56 Jan 23 11:13 passwd
-r--r--r--   1 root     other        884 Jan 23 11:12 services

/usr3/ftp/pub:
total 0


Contents of ~/ftp/etc/passwd:


ftp:x:13:1:Anonymous FTP Account:/usr3/ftp:/usr/bin/ftp


-- 
Mike Dobson, Sys Admin for      | Internet: rdc30@nmrdc1.nmrdc.nnmc.navy.mil
nmrdc1.nmrdc.nnmc.navy.mil      | UUCP:   ...uunet!mimsy!nmrdc1!rdc30
AT&T 3B2/600G Sys V R 3.2.2     | BITNET:   dobson@usuhsb or nrd0mxd@vmnmdsc
WIN/TCP for 3B2                 | MCI-Mail: 377-2719 or 0003772719@mcimail.com


------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  8 Is there a reposity of ftp-able 3B2 programs?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Jeffrey A. Thompson <jeffrey@rigel.econ.uga.edu>

Here is a list of software I have compiled on my 3b2 (roscoe.msit.uga.edu)
available via anonymous ftp. I have all the source too.

287172 Nov 19 13:37 bash*          GNU's Bourne Again Shell
 35137 Apr  5  1990 compress*      
  5959 Aug 22 20:55 culimit*       Program to change the ulimit of a shell to
                                   10 megabytes instead of 1 megabyte. 
 48615 Jan 25 11:10 gab*           My own little talk program for up to 19 
			           people ; uses shared memory and semaphores
174992 Aug 23  1990 kermit*        The standard kermit.
 60393 May 19  1990 rb*            X/Y/Z modem
 60393 May 19  1990 rx*
 60393 May 19  1990 rz*
 59254 May 19  1990 sb*
 32546 Nov  6 08:17 ship*          Zip's ship 
 59254 May 19  1990 sx*
 59254 May 19  1990 sz*
 35137 Apr  5  1990 uncompress*
 61743 Nov  6 08:17 unzip*         Unzip ; I love zip. It works on everything.
				   and better compression than compress 
                                   (average 10 to 30 percent better 
                                   compression)
 38784 Jun 22  1991 uudecode*
 23781 Jun 22  1991 uuencode*
 20844 Sep  7 17:51 uvapc*         A standard pascal compiler
 35137 Apr  5  1990 zcat*          
 75420 Nov  6 08:15 zip*           Can produce pkzip compatible zips (-k opt)
 35188 Nov  6 08:15 zipnote*
 36904 Nov  6 08:15 zipsplit*      Splits up a zip file into smaller zip files
                                   Great for copying stuff onto a floppy disk.

--jat

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject:  9 How do I run Unix from floppy (for example, to repair a damage
	    hard drive file system)?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

               Running a Standalone Shell on a 3B2

                        Stephen J. Friedl
                    [Edited by Gregory Gulik]

                         April 25, 1988


          NB:  the   procedures   described   here
          require  substantial  knowledge  of  UNIX and
          entail a significant risk of causing loss  of
          data.  The obvious disclaimers apply here, so
          use at your own risk.  Please be careful.


Introduction

     This document is an introduction to operating your 3B from a
standalone /unix.  Even with inoperable hard drives, it is possible to
insert the boot floppy (Essential Utilities Disk 1), say some magic
words, and receive a # prompt.  At this point you can do major surgery
on the failing machine, often recovering a drive previously thought to
be lost.

     Our style is informal and we'll use lots of examples to illustrate
the points at hand.  We have been using standalone shells for quite
some time and have learned a great deal; we hope to pass this
information on to you.  Please read this document carefully before
trying the methods described here, and if possible have a wizard around
when giving it a go.  This can be dangerous business: as has been said
before, it is a time where experience and informed courage count for
much.


Conventions

     Throughout this document, sample usage sessions will be shown
indented, with user input in bold.  To make it easier to distinguish
between a multiuser UNIX shell and a standalone one, we will show
multiuser UNIX's root prompt as ## and the standalone prompt as #.


>>> Back up your boot disks b->

     This cannot be emphasized enough.  Your boot floppies are the key
to your machine, and without them the machine is down.

Why do you want a standalone /unix?

     The most compelling reason for a standalone shell is when the
primary drive has gone down and must be recovered.  While working from
a standalone /unix is slow and tedious, it can often save an entire
hard disk with minimal data loss.

     We have also used this standalone shell to repair a corrupt
/etc/inittab, to fix /etc/passwd, to restore a /bin/login that had been
removed, and to install new bootstraps on the hard drive.  With a
standalone boot disk in hand, a host of possibilities presents itself.


What is on your boot disk?

     Before booting this floppy, take some time to explore its
contents, as the disk has a filesystem on it that can be mounted and
perused.  To do this, insert a COPY of the Essential Utilities Floppy 1
(from now on, "the boot floppy") into the drive with a write-protect
tab.  Now,

          ## mount /dev/dsk/c0d0s5 /install -r

     Because boot floppies vary from release to release, it would be
most helpful to simply get a listing of the contents of your particular
boot floppy.

     Once finished, the floppy must be unmounted:

          ## cd /
          ## umount /dev/dsk/c0d0s5


"Open Sesame"

     To give standalone a try, first shut the machine down to firmware
mode.  Assuming the machine is now in firmware mode, put a copy of the
boot disk into the drive.  Note that some versions of the operating
system (Sys V Release 2, at least) require that the boot floppy be
write-enabled (i.e., no write-protect tab); it is this requirement that
mandates multiple backups of the boot floppy.  UNIX will be updating
the disk while it runs -- the superblock, access times, etc. -- and if
the machine crashes at the wrong time it simply will not boot again
without an fsck.  Be careful.

     Type in your firmware password and boot /unix from the floppy
drive (Option 0, named `FD5') instead of the hard drive (Option 1,
named `HD30' or `HD72').  It can take several minutes for UNIX to boot,
but when it does, the familiar menu will be displayed:

               1) Full Restore
               2) Partial Restore
               3) Dual-Disk Upgrade
               4) Release Upgrade
               Selection? [1, 2, 3, 4, quit, help]

     At this point, type the phrase

                           magic mode

     The system recognizes this special option and responds:

          Poof!

          Selection? [1, 2, 3, 4, quit, help, shell, copy]

     Notice the new options?  Now type shell, then RETURN, and you will
be greeted with the familiar # prompt.  You are now running a
standalone shell on the floppy.

     A few reminders here: a floppy filesystem is not able to hold much
data, and many common utilities are unavailable.  When dealing with the
standalone shell, one must learn alternatives to these utilities.  For
example, echo * can replace ls(1), and cat > file can serve as a poor
replacement to ed(1).  One must become remarkably resourceful when
working in an environment as restricted as this.  We will see later how
we can enhance this confined environment with additional tools.


Standalone devices

     The floppy's /dev directory contains a host of entries, some of
them referring to partitions on the hard drive.  While a particular
partition may have several names, we generally use the following
devices to refer to the hard disk:

          Partition        What it is (on the hard disk)
          -----------      -----------------------------
          /dev/idsk00      / filesystem
          /dev/idsk01      swap area
          /dev/idsk02      /usr filesystem
          /dev/idsk06      the entire disk
          /dev/idsk07      boot partition
          /dev/idsk08      optional filesytem (/u or /usr2)


Mounting the hard drive

     To gain access to the primary hard drive, partitions of interest
are mounted onto directories on the floppy.  The device names are
selected from the table in the previous section.

     Before mounting a partition, we recommend running the filesystem
check fsck(1m) first.  The mount command will fail if the the
superblock is not in order -- this is often the case after a crash.  In
addition, it gives a convenient verification of the device status and
the the filesystem's name and volume.

          # /etc/fsck /dev/idsk00

     While some errors are to be expected while checking the root
partition, a total failure is a very serious error.  Our experience
defines "total failure" as an indication by fsck that it cannot find
any possible traces of a filesystem.  In particular, "CAN NOT READ: BLK
1" is one of the more ominous messages we have seen.

     Once fsck grants the filesystem a clean bill of health, it is
ready to be mounted.  Rather than take up space for a handful of common
commands, AT&T has rolled several of them into one:  fsys.  It is
undocumented and appears to only be used on the boot floppy.  Some
versions of the boot disk do contain the mount and umount programs and
those can be used instead of fsys.

     Fsys takes a handful of options, not all of which are interesting
to us in standalone mode.  Used in the install scripts for a handful of
filesystem-related duties, we will use it simply as a replacement for
mount(1m) and umount(1m).  To mount the hard disk's root filesystem
onto the floppy's /install directory, do:

          # fsys -m /install /dev/idsk00

     Fsys will complain on an error, and this brings us to a serious
bug in this program: if either the mount directory or the partition's
device name are invalid for any reason, the error message will always
point to the partition device name.  This can be, to put it lightly,
"misleading".

     With the hard drive's root filesystem mounted on /install, it is
now fully part of the standard directory tree.  While the floppy has no
editor or many of the helpful tools, the root partition does, and these
can be exploited.  When beginning an extended standalone session on the
primary drive, we have found it helpful to extend the shell's search
path:

          # PATH=/install/bin:/install/etc:$PATH ; export PATH

     Now the familiar ls, ed, (but not vi) and many other commands are
available.  Since they will be loaded from the hard drive, execution is
much faster.

     As an example, assume that the root password has been forgotten
and the machine is basically closed.  The solution suggested by AT&T's
documentation (in the System Administration Utilities Guide) is to do a
partial restore.  The difficulty with this approach is that many
important system files -- /etc/passwd, /etc/inittab, /etc/gettydefs,
and others -- are overwritten in the process.  Even with a full backup,
this can be an unpleasant undertaking.

     An alternate approach will use the standalone shell.  The general
strategy is to mount the hard drive, edit the password file, and boot
multiuser UNIX.  The full procedure is:

          (boot standalone /unix)
          # fsck /dev/idsk00
          # fsys -m /install /dev/idsk00
          # /install/bin/ed /install/etc/passwd
          (edit the file in the standard way)
          w
          q
          # fsys -u /dev/idsk00

     At this point, the root drive is now unmounted and the system may
be rebooted.  Normally you can just type exit at the shell prompt and
you will be returned to the monitor and asked what program to boot.  If
that doesn't work on your version, try:

          # sync
          # sync
          # /etc/uadmin 2 2

     Uadmin(1m) is documented in the manual (you must also refer to the
uadmin(2) manual page) -- the above does a normal return to the monitor
(i.e., firmware).  WARNING: uadmin(1m) is available from full UNIX as
well but is very dangerous.  Use it with extreme caution and only if
you really know what uadmin does.


Making a standalone boot disk


          ================== WARNING ==================
          Only do this on backup copies of  the  disks,
          NEVER to the main Essential Utilities Disk.
          ================== WARNING ==================


     The Essential Utilities Disk 1 contains many files needed by the
automatic restore/upgrade procedures, but for standalone work, many are
not needed.  After working with these disk for some time, we were able
to narrow down what is helpful to have on the disk and what is not.
The following procedure (run from multiuser mode, signified by the ##
prompt) will convert an Essential Utilities disk to a standalone boot
disk.

          (from hard disk UNIX)
          ## fsck /dev/dsk/c0d0s5
          ## mount /dev/dsk/c0d0s5 /install
          ## cd /install/inst/bin
          ## mv fsys pdinfo swap ttyset ../../bin
          ## cd /install
          ## /bin/rm -rf inst
          ## cp /bin/ed /install/bin
          ## cp /etc/fsdb /install/etc
          ## cat > /install/inittab
          is:s:initdefault:
          sh:s:respawn:/bin/sh < /dev/console > /dev/console 2>&1
          ^D
          ## cd /
          ## umount /dev/dsk/c0d0s5

     While there may be other files on this floppy that are not needed,
we have operated on the principle of least customization.  It has been
our experience that keeping the procedure simple allows it to be done
on-the-fly (say, at a customer site) and minimizes the exploration
required when a new operating system disk is released.

     In addition, it is not wise to pack the disk too tightly.  The
editor requires adequate space under /tmp, so an almost-full disk
precludes editing all but the smallest files; this applies whether the
file being edited resides on the hard drive or the floppy.

     Once this is done, the new disk will come up in standalone mode
without the need for magic mode.  In addition ed(1) and fsdb(1m) are
available.  The other tools mentioned (pdinfo, swap, ttyset) are
helpful but not required by the basic procedures.

     It has been our experience that any version (SVR2, SVR3) of boot
disk can be used with any version of hard disk UNIX without difficulty
for doing simple operations such a performing filesystem checks or
editing /etc/passwd.  For more complex operations, such as
repartitioning the hard drive or restoring the bootstraps, higher
version compatibility is required.


Security Considerations

     It should be apparent that knowledge of these standalone methods
is tremendously powerful.  In addition to being able to rescue a
foundering machine, an unrestricted path to root has been provided as
well.  While all the standard rules about physical security of the
computer apply here, an additional step may be taken to thwart a
would-be interloper.

     The responsible system administrator of a machine in a hostile
environment will generally change the computer's firmware password.
This magic word is required before the monitor on the 3B2 motherboard
will boot from a floppy, and lack of this password prevents a malicious
user from simply pulling the power plug to enter firmware mode.

     In addition to changing the firmware password, the floppy key
floppy should itself be secured.  When the computer is restarted with
this disk in the drive, it will clear the non-volatile RAM (NVRAM) and
restore the default parameters.  Because the firmware password is
included in these "default parameters", this disk should be kept out of
non-trusted hands.


Conclusion

     We solicit bug reports, comments, and suggestions on this
document.  Please direct them to:

	Stephen J. Friedl
	Software Consultant
	1891 Running Branch Way
	Tustin, CA 92680
	+1 714 544-6561 voice
	+1 714 838-0099 fax

	Internet:	friedl@mtndew.Tustin.CA.US
	Usenet:		{backbones}!uunet!mtndew!friedl

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: 10 What is/was the 3B Journal?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The _3B Journal_ was put out sporadically by Owens-Laing
    Publications for several years in the late 1980s, and I used to be
    the technical editor.  The magazine dealt with the 3B1 and 3B2
    platforms, and the content varied from very markety-oriented to
    quite technical (the latter usually written by me).

    The publisher never seemed to get a handle on the business end of
    running a magazine, and I've heard nothing past the fourth quarter,
    1989 issue.  The current phones are disconnected, and I have NO
    information on subscriptions or anything like that.

         -- Stephen Friedl  friedl@mtndew.Tustin.CA.US   3/12/1992


------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: 11 What are the various models of 3B2s and their differences?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[I'm putting this together mostly from memory and from discussions
 with other people.  Please feel free to make corrections.]

The 3B2 family of consists of the following models:

3B2/300

	Processor:
		WE32000
		almost 1 MIPS

	Memory:		
		Supports a maximum of 4 MB of RAM using two half height
		2 MB memory cards.

	Slots:
		4 standard slots.

	Features:
		MFM disk controller on motherboard
		1 internal full-height drive bay
		1 720 K floppy drive

3B2/310

	Processor:
		WE32100 (supports optional MAU)
		1.5 MIPS

	Memory:
		Supports a maximum of 4 MB of RAM using two half height
		2 MB memory cards.

	Slots:
		4 standard slots.

	Features:
		MFM disk controller on motherboard
		1 internal full-height drive bay
		1 720 K floppy drive

3B2/400

	Processor:
		WE32100 (supports optional MAU)
		1.5 MIPS

	Memory:
		Supports a maximum of 4 MB of RAM using either two half
		height or full height 2 MB memory cards.

	Slots:
		12 standard slots.

	Features:
		MFM disk controller on motherboard
		2 internal full-height drive bays
		1 720 K floppy drive
		1 23 MB cartridge tape drive

3B2/500

	Processor:

	Memory:

	Slots:

	Features:

3B2/600

	Processor:

	Memory:

	Slots:

	Features:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: 12 How do I build GCC on the 3B2?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

John L. Wehle ported GCC to the WE32000 series processor, and it
first appeared in release 2.2 of GCC.

To build the GCC release on the 3B2, download the latest GCC
distribution and allocate at least 35 MB of disk space to do the
build.  Follow the directions in the INSTALL file.  The following
are some notes that will make the install go smoother.

First of all, older versions of /lib/cpp are not capable of
processing one of the source files.  I recommend building the
distribution until the GNU cpp is done.  Then, temporarily replace
your /lib/cpp with the GNU version, and add the following flag to
CFLAGS:

CFLAGS = -U__STDC__

When stage1 is complete, you could remove the -U__STDC__ flag
and restore your original cpp.

Basically, the steps are as follows:

	$ configure --target=we32k-att-sysv3
	$ make LANGUAGES=c
	$ make stage1
	$ make LANGUAGES=c CC=stage1/gcc CFLAGS="-Bstage1/ -g"

[It is imporant to note that due to a bug in the AT&T compiler,
 the optimizer doesn't get compiled correctly at this point.]

	$ make stage2
	$ make CC=stage2/gcc CFLAGS="-Bstage2/ -g -O"

[Some people still have problems with the optimizer at this point.
 If you do, just do not use the -O flag when compiling GCC.  The
 symptom you will experience that tells you the -O flag should be
 removed is the compilation of cccp.c will take a VERY long time.
 Kill the compile and restart without the -O.]

	$ make stage3
	$ make CC=stage3/gcc CFLAGS="-Bstage3/ -g -O"

To verify everything built correctly:

	$ for file in *.o; do
	> tail +10c $file > foo1
	> tail +10c stage3/$file > foo2
	> cmp foo1 foo2 || echo $file
	> done

Then, to install the distribution:

	$ make CC=stage3/gcc CFLAGS="-Bstage3/ -g -O" install

Good luck!

[These notes are a combination of my own experiences with building the
 GCC compiler on a 3B2/400 and discussions with John Wehle, the author
 of the port.]

NOTES:

The GCC binaries available on several anonymou FTP sites will not
work with certain version of the standard C compiler.  It appears
to be some sort of linker problem.

Speaking of linker problems, GCC will not work all that well with
the standard C shared library -lc_s.  The workaround for this is
to compile your program with GCC, but the link will fail.  When it
does, use something like the following to do the link stage:

$ cc -O -L/usr/local/lib/gcc-lib/we32k-att-sysv/2.2.2 program.o \
	-o program -lgcc -lc_s

This way, you will not only get fast binaries, but small ones as
well.

==============================================================================
If you have any other questions, or better answers, please send
mail to 'greg@gagme.chi.il.us'
==============================================================================

-- 
Gregory A. Gulik                                        Call Gagme, a public
       greg@gagme.chi.il.us  ||  gulik@depaul.edu       access UNIX system at
   ||  gulik@rtsg.mot.com                               (312) 714-8568