VAX-11/RSX-11M Programmer’s Reference Manual

This document, the "VAX-11/RSX-11M Programmer's Reference Manual" (Order No. AA-D020B-TE, March 1980), serves as a guide for RSX-11M programmers responsible for making RSX-11M Version 3.2 task images run under the VAX/VMS operating system (Version V02).

The manual details VAX/VMS's support for RSX-11M Executive directives and addresses the differences in system environments between RSX-11M and VAX/VMS. It covers:

1. VAX-11 Compatibility Mode: Explains how PDP-11 programs, including RSX-11M tasks, execute on the VAX-11 processor in compatibility mode, with VAX/VMS emulating RSX-11M operating system interactions.
2. VAX/VMS System Environment: Describes VAX/VMS concepts and their implications for RSX-11M tasks, including privileges, UIC-based protection, resource usage limits, process names (task names), event flag clusters (local, common, and group global), memory management (swapping and paging), system events, system clock, software priorities, global sections, hibernation, and image termination.
3. VAX/VMS I/O System: Details how RSX-11M I/O requests are handled through VAX/VMS's I/O system components like Record Management Services (RMS), system services, I/O drivers, and Ancillary Control Processes (ACPs), covering device assignment, mailboxes for intertask communication, and spooling.
4. Directive Descriptions: Provides a comprehensive section describing each RSX-11M directive and its specific handling, differences, and return codes under VAX/VMS.

The document highlights several key additions and changes in VAX/VMS support for RSX-11M, including the introduction of STOP and associated directives for hibernation control, new features for group global event flags (e.g., CREATE GROUP GLOBAL EVENT FLAGS, ELIMINATE GROUP GLOBAL EVENT FLAGS, READ EXTENDED EVENT FLAGS), and the SPAWN directive for creating subprocesses. It aims to bridge the documentation gaps between RSX-11M/M-PLUS Executive Reference Manuals and VAX/VMS System Services/I/O User's Guides.