OVMS V62 SPD.PDF

This document describes the OpenVMS Operating System Version 6.2 for both Digital Alpha and VAX computer families, highlighting its features, enhancements, and expanded hardware support.

OpenVMS is a general-purpose, multiuser operating system designed for both production and development environments. It supports industry standards, symmetric multiprocessing (SMP), and is highly tunable for diverse applications (compute-intensive, I/O-intensive, client/server, and real-time).

Key features include:

• User Environment: An English-like DIGITAL Command Language (DCL), various text editors (EVE, EDT), a Mail utility, and capabilities for command-level programming and environment tailoring.
• Program Development: A comprehensive suite of tools including compilers (with 64-bit data types for Alpha), run-time libraries, a linker, librarian, symbolic debugger, DECthreads for multithreading, and System Dump Analyzer for failure analysis.
• System Management: The OpenVMS Management Station (a Windows-based PC client for cluster management), InfoServer Tape Backup, Batch and Print Queuing, Accounting, Audit Analysis, Autoconfigure/AUTOGEN utilities, a Backup Utility, Monitor for performance data, License Management Facility (LMF), and SYSMAN for centralized system management.
• Security: Achieves C2 and B1 security ratings (NCSC), employs a Reference Monitor concept for access control, provides robust audit logging, and includes advanced password policies (dictionary filter, history, break-in detection).
• Operating System Environment: Manages processes and scheduling with tunable priorities (including real-time), offers extended physical addressing and vector processing for VAX systems, provides DECdtm services for distributed transactions with two-phase commit, supports various interprocess communication mechanisms, and includes advanced Record Management Services (RMS) for file/record management, virtual I/O caching, and journaling.
• Networking: Features well-integrated networking capabilities supporting DECnet/OSI and TCP/IP protocols, and offers terminal server products.
• Reliability: Incorporates hardware error handling, logging, and power failure recovery (for VAX systems).

OpenVMS 6.2 is highly compliant with industry standards, including POSIX (1003.1, .1b, .2), XPG4 BASE Profile, Distributed Computing Environment (DCE), OSF/Motif, X Window System, and various ANSI, IEEE, ISO, and FIPS standards.

The software is distributed primarily via CD-ROM (with tape options for VAX), using POLYCENTER for installation. It provides extensive documentation (online via Bookreader, hardcopy, and PostScript files) and offers various licensing models managed by LMF. It supports a wide range of AlphaServer/AlphaStation and VAX systems.