KLINIK User's Guide for KL10-Based Systems

This document serves as a user guide for KLINIK (KL10 Integrated Network for Investigation and Korrection), Digital Equipment Corporation's remote diagnosis facility for KL10-based systems. It provides both conceptual and technical descriptions of how field service personnel utilize KLINIK as an integral part of their maintenance strategy.

KLINIK enables remote control and investigation of KL10-based systems (running standalone diagnostics, TOPS10, or TOPS20) via a standard telephone line. This capability is facilitated by a second DL11 (DL11E) in the PDP-11/40 Front End Processor, connected to a Bell 103A3 modem. This setup creates a remote TTY that operates in parallel with the local console, requiring explicit site operator permission for security.

The remote diagnosis feature is primarily used for four purposes:

1. Performance Monitoring and Preventive Maintenance: Routine analysis of system error files (SYSERR) and periodic execution of user-mode diagnostics.
2. Initial Troubleshooting: Field service engineers can remotely access the system, run diagnostics to identify problems, and then prepare for an on-site visit with the correct parts.
3. Support Assistance: Regional or corporate support engineers can offer specialized expertise remotely, leveraging advanced diagnostic features that reduce the need for on-site oscilloscope tracing.
4. Reconfiguration Assistance: Helping customers reconfigure their systems to operate in a degraded mode after a malfunction, allowing repairs to be scheduled for a more convenient time.

Security is a critical aspect, and the document outlines procedures to ensure that only authorized DIGITAL employees gain full console control. These measures include requiring overt operator action (such as providing a special password or manually answering the data set phone) and emphasizing that customers should only call official DIGITAL office numbers to verify caller identity.

Technically, the guide details the functional organization of KLINIK hardware, software, and user components. It describes the site hardware characteristics (specifically the DL11E to Bell 103A3 interconnection), the simple user equipment (any 300 baud asynchronous terminal interface), and the functions performed at branch KLINIK centers (including auto-diagnosis, call-invoked diagnosis, result analysis, and logistics for repair dispatch). Establishing a KLINIK link in executive mode involves a multi-step process for the operator, including booting the KLDCP diagnostic program and typing "KLINIK" while the modem is ringing, enabling simultaneous input and output on both remote and local terminals.