IAS System Management Guide

This manual serves as a comprehensive guide for system managers and operators of the IAS operating system on PDP-11 computers. It details the fundamental concepts and practical procedures required to establish, operate, and dynamically control the system.

The document is structured into several key areas:

1. System Concepts and Architecture: It introduces the different types of IAS systems (timesharing, multiuser, real-time) and their user/system interfaces. It explains core system components such as the IAS Scheduler (managing task execution, swapping, and checkpointing), Command Language Interpreters (CLIs), Timesharing Control Primitives (TCP), and Ancillary Control Processors (ACPs).
2. Resource Management: The guide outlines the management of devices, volumes, and files, covering device characteristics, handlers, and availability, as well as volume initialization, labeling, protection, and access control. It also describes the system's use of pseudo-devices and spooling for efficient resource utilization.
3. System Operation and Control: It provides procedures for system startup and initialization, along with dynamic runtime control using System Control Interface (SCI) and Monitor Console Routine (MCR) commands. This includes setting various system parameters like scheduling, quantum, batch processing, swapping, memory allocation, and peripheral device handling.
4. User Authorization and Accounting: The manual delves into user authorization and privilege management, explaining the User Profile File (UPF), user names, passwords, User Identification Codes (UIC), and PDS accounting features.
5. Error Handling and Recovery: A significant portion is dedicated to error management, including the Core Dump Analyzer (CDA) for crash analysis, error logging mechanisms (Executive Error Logger and T/MSCP Error Log Server), memory parity support, and shadow recording for data reliability and system recovery procedures.
6. Command Reference: A detailed alphabetical reference of SCI commands is provided, including their functions, formats, and examples, enabling system managers to perform privileged operations and tune system performance. Additionally, it covers the I/O Exerciser (IOX) tool for diagnosing hardware and software I/O issues.