VSI-I64VMS-SAMBA-V0406-5A-1.PDF

This document announces the release of Samba for OpenVMS Version 4.6-5A, based on Samba 4.6.5 (May 2019), marking a significant update from previous CIFS for OpenVMS versions.

Key Highlights:

• New Features: Includes support for AES encryption, SMB2 and SMB3 protocols, and the use of Heimdal Kerberos.
• WINBIND Enhancement: The WINBIND functionality, critical for user and group identity mapping, has been moved into a separate daemon process, simplifying name resolution and lookups. This is especially important for member servers that reference domain accounts and dynamically create OpenVMS user accounts/identifiers.
• Product Renaming: The product is now uniformly called "Samba" for consistency, moving away from "CIFS for OpenVMS."

Requirements:

• Requires OpenVMS Version 8.4-1H1 or higher.
• Supports VSI, HPE, or MultiNet TCP/IP stacks.
• Must be installed and used exclusively on an ODS-5-enabled file system.

Installation and Migration:

• Installed via the PRODUCT INSTALL SAMBA command.
• The SAMBA$CONFIG.COM utility is used for configuration and also migrates existing CIFS for OpenVMS configurations to their Samba equivalents.
• Prior to installation, users are advised to back up their existing CIFS SAMBA$ROOT directory and increase specific SYSGEN parameters (e.g., PROCSECTCNT, CHANNELCNT).

Cluster Considerations:

• Running older CIFS and new Samba concurrently in the same cluster is not supported.
• While multiple cluster members can share a SAMBA$ROOT directory tree, they must operate in a manual failover mode (only one active at a time) to prevent data corruption. Simultaneous operation on multiple members requires separate SAMBA$ROOT trees for each.

Functionality Not Included in this Release:

• Full OpenVMS cluster support (minimal support is available, full support is planned).
• Classic Primary Domain Controller (PDC) and Backup Domain Controller (BDC) roles.
• Active Directory Domain Controller role.
• Support for OpenVMS Alpha (planned for a later date).
• Source code is not included in the kit but can be provided upon request.

Known Issues:

• Includes minor issues such as SAMBA$CONFIG not retaining NetBIOS name changes on cluster members, file/directory objects with the same name displaying as directories, and specific ownership behaviors that may require setting inherit owner = yes in SMB.CONF.
• Microsoft Windows XP and Windows 7 clients are not supported.

Product Roadmap: VSI intends to provide regular updates to support future OpenVMS versions (including x86), enhance quality, security, and maintain parity with open-source Samba versions.