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Hidden Value details commands and procedures in MPE that can improve your productivity with HP 3000 systems. Send your tips to john@burke-consulting.com.

Edited by John Burke

Does a 918LX have two slots for two F/W SCSI cards?

Gilles Schipper replies:
It would need to be an RX. The LX has only a single full height slot.

How can I find all the IMAGE databases on a system?

Michael Anderson replied, after several not completely precise answers:

IMAGE database root files all have a unique filecode value, -400. Image datasets all have a value of -401. So if you want to find all IMAGE databases on a MPE system I would use the following command:

LISTFILE @.@.@;SELEQ=[CODE=-400];FORMAT=6

This will give you all the IMAGE root files and only the IMAGE root files. If you use something like “listf @01.@.@” you get the first dataset in the database, but also any file where the filename ends with “01”, and that may or may not be a database file. Also, the MPE file system allows filecode representations to be alpha (“PRIV”) and Numeric. When you see “PRIV” as a filecode it simply means that the numeric value of the filecode is negative, and again this can include non-database file types.

I have started testing the Eloquence database but am confused about naming conventions. The documentation says that data item names are limited to 15 characters, one less than TurboIMAGE. This seems odd. Am I missing something?

Chuck Ryan replies:
There is a “-T” option that provides naming consistency.

What is the command to kill a session that refuses to die?

Ernie Newton and Sam Knight reply:
If it is a VT or Telnet session, try NSCONTROL KILLSESS=#Snnnn

What is the maximum sized LUN that MPE 7.5 will recognize? In other words, can I have 144 Gb LUNs on a 997 via a SCSI connect to a EMC Symmetrix?

Guy Paul replies:
Jim Hawkins of vCSY gave a nice presentation on the IO roadmap for MPE. You should be able to have up to a 146Gb LDEV. See jazz.external.hp.com/mpeha/papers/ HP World2003_hawkins_files/frame.htm. Donna Garverick makes a good point regarding performance being the limiting factor, in this case FWSCSI running ~13Mb/sec. Trial and error over the years has taught me to put no more than 70Gb/FWSCSI on a busy system. If you have Hyper-Volume extension on your EMC I would suggest slicing the mechs up a little smaller.

I have a couple of configuration questions about an N4000 that we’re going to be installing soon. Does it make sense that an A6795A (PCI 4x 2Gb/s Single-port Fibre Channel Adapter) would be installed in PCI slots 1 or 2? The systems docs indicate that PCI slots 1 and 2 are 2x PCI slots; so the fibre channel would be limited to 1Gb/s. Does it make sense to have two Fibre Channel cards for a single VA7110?

Craig Lalley and Guy Paul reply:
The VA7110 does have two fiber connections, and both CAN be used. However, in order to be consistent with HP’s maintenance criteria, you should have one connected to a Command View workstation. Everything in Command View can be done through the serial port on the VA7100, except for logging. It is also a lot easier to define LUN’s graphically (Command View) as opposed to the command line (cryptic) language on the serial port. Also on the VA7110, one of the fiber channels is “passive” and is for the command view workstation. I would not install a A6795A HBA into slots 1 or 2. Slots 3-12 are the twin-turbo (4x) slots you should use.

Where can I get help with storing and restoring a Allbase DBE?

Denys Beauchemin replies:
There is a utility called sqlutil.pub.sys, which should be of help to you

Is there a way to successfully restore files from a tape mounted on a remote system? When I try, I get (S/R 2275) LABELED MEDIA IS NOT CURRENTLY SUPPORTED FOR REMOTE DEVICE “11”.

Donna Garverick replies:
Unfortunately, the error message says it all. It only works with unlabeled tapes.

I currently run two 979-400s. Both are at OS 6.5 pp 2, with some additional reactive patches. I am aware that HP plans to drop support on OS 6.5 at the end of 2004. Our company’s immediate goals and plans have not been set which means I will be running these systems well beyond the end of 2004 deadline and perhaps up to the end of 2006 hardware deadline. I am looking for recommendations about which OS I should upgrade to: 7.0 with which power patch, or 7.5 with which power patch.

Donna Garverick replies:
MPE/iX 7.5 PP1 is the better choice. In many respects, it’s nearly identical to 7.0 so there’s no compelling reason to install the older version. Furthermore, most large sites are using MPE/iX 7.5 so it is probably getting a better workout.

I am sick of dealing with failing DDS drives. Can I just replace all my DDS drives with a DLT?

Gilles Schipper replies:
You can boot from a DLT drive, as long as it’s a single-ended (SE) SCSI device. You cannot boot from a FWSCSI DLT drive - unless the HP3000 is an A-class or N-class. You do still need to keep at least one DDS drive, however, since HP and most third party vendors distribute software only on DDS and not on DLT.