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Document:	VAXmate Operating Environment Release Notes V1.1 Jan1987
Order Number:	AA-HD99B-TK
Revision:
Pages:	31
Original Filename:	http://bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/vaxmate/AA-HD99B-TK_VAXmate_Operating_Environment_Release_Notes_V1.1_Jan1987.pdf

OCR Text

AA-HD99B-TK

Operating Environment
Release Notes

~softwore

mate

Operating Environment
Release Notes
Version 1.1

First Printing, January 1987

© Digital Equipment Corporation 1986. All Rights Reserved.
The information in this document is subject to change without notice and
should not be construed as a commitment by Digital Equipment Corporation.
Digital Equipment Corporation assumes no responsibility for any errors that
may appear in this document.
The software described in this document is furnished under a license and
may only be used or copied in accordance with the terms of such license.
No responsibility is assumed for the use or reliability of software on equipment that is not supplied by DIGITAL or its affiliated companies.
MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
The following are trademarks of Digital Equipment Corporation:
~DmDDmD'M

MASSBUS

VAX

DEC

PDP

VAXmate

DECmate

PIOS

VMS

DECsystem-IO

Professional

DECSYSTEM-20

Rainbow

VT220

DECUS

RSTS

VT240

DECwriter

RSX

Work Processor

mBOL

UNIBUS

Printed in U.S.A.

VAXmate Application Installation Guide
Request Form

The VAXmate Application Installation Guide describes the installation
of selected industry-standard applications in the VAXmate server
environment.
Please send a complimentary copy of the VAX mate Application
Installation Guide to:
Name
Company
Address
City

Zip

State

If DIGITAL employee, indicate Badge #

--------

Application types I use most are:
_ Word Processing
Spreadsheet
_ Languages
_ Programming Utilities
Games
_ Project Management
Electronic Mail
_ Artificial Intelligence

_ Data Base Management
Graphics
_ Integrated Software
Screen Editors
Communications
CAD/CAM
_ Desk-top Publishing
Other- - - - - - -

~DmDDmD'OO T.~

--- -

- ------ ----- -

---TII-IIr---- .'f::;;~::;7h' -i
United States

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BUSINESS REPLY MAIL

FIRST CLASS PERMIT NO. 33 MAYNARD MASS.

POSTAGE WILL BE PAID BY ADDRESSEE

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P & C S Inquiry Department
Digital Equipment Corporation
444 Whitney Street MS: NRO 2-lIH3
Northboro, MA 01532 - 2599

- -

Do Not Tear - Fold Here and Tape

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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Contents

Preface . ....

Release Notes.

1- 1
1- 1
1- 1

Notes for All Users.
MS-Windows ..
VT220 Terminal Emulator.
VT240 Terminal Emulator .
Printing . . . . . . . . . . . .
Notes for the System Administrator.
Installation . . . . . . . . . . .
VAXNMS Server . . . . . . . . .
PCFS Administration Utility .. .
VAXNMS ServerNAXmate Server Differences.
VAXmate Server.
Printing . . . . . .
MS-NET/DECnet

NCP . . . . . . . .
Asynchronous Communications Port .
VT220 Terminal Emulator.
MS-Windows . . . . . .
IBM Workstations . . . . . .
Notes for the Programmer . . .
VAXNMS ServerNAXmate Server Differences
VAXmate and VMS Servers .
MS-Windows .
MS-NET.
COM2: . . . . .

1- 3
1- 4
1- 4
1- 6
1- 6
1- 6
1- 7
1- 7
1- 8
1- 9
1- 10
1- 10
1- 11
1- 11
1- 12
1- 17
1- 18
1- 18
1- 18
1- 18
1- 18
1- 19

Contents iii

Notes for the Standalone System User.
Printer Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Release Note . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
MS-DOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2- 1
2- 1
2- 2
2- 2

Tables
Table 1 LA 75 Esc/Ctrl Sequences
Table 2 Unsupported PIFs . . . .

Contents iv

1-5
1-13

Preface

The VAXmate Operating Environment Version 1.1 Release Notes provide
information that supplements the VAXmate documentation set. This document contains the following sections:
•

Release Notes, divided into the following subsections:
Notes for All Users
Notes for the System Administrator
Notes for the Programmer

•

Notes for the Standalone System User

VAXmate system administrators should read all release notes and ensure
that users and programmers receive copies of the notes that pertain to
them or put the notes into the "Notes from Your System Administrator"
section of the on-line Information System.
System administrators should also read the release notes stored in
SYS$HELP after installation of the VMS server is complete.

Preface

Release Notes

Notes for All Users
MS-Windows
Notepad
•

Notepad loses the first character of a line if the preceding line ends
with a carriage return, line feed, carriage return (CR,LF,CR).

•

Notepad cannot always correctly edit files created under other text
editors. For example, if the file contains a carriage return (CR) that
is not followed by a linefeed (LF), Notepad ignores the first character after the CR, assuming that it is an LF. The character is in the
edit buffer, but is not displayed. If you edit and save the file, the
character is lost.

•

When you use Notepad to open a nontext file, a message displays
stating that the file does not contain text. However, the non-text
information may be displayed if Notepad receives a message from
Paint before another file is opened.

Control Panel - A currency symbol cannot exceed five characters, even
though you can enter more than five characters in the Currency Symbol
field.
Calendar - When using the Calendar program, keep the size of the .CAL
file smaller than 32K bytes. Use the Remove option to remove past
months. You may have to restart your workstation if you try to save a
Calendar file of greater than 32K bytes.

1- 1

Notes for All Users
Formatting a Low-Density Disk - The Format Data Disk command in
the MS-DOS Executive Special menu always formats to the highest capacity of the drive. To format diskettes of other densities, use the FORMAT
command with the MS-DOS Executive File menu's Run option and
respond with appropriate parameters when prompted.
Saving a Screen Image - When running a standard application, you may
see the following message:
Not enough disk space for screen exchange

MS-Windows cannot save the screen image to a file because an error occurred while it was writing the file or because the drive being used was
read only.
The Alt Key - When you hold down the Alt key for an extended period
of time, the MS-Windows keyboard buffer overflows and the keyboard
"bell" sounds. To clear the buffer, release the Alt key, then press and
release the Alt key again.
Alt Tab - If you use COMMAND.COM instead of the MS-DOS
Executive to run a standard application that does not run in a window but
allows use of Alt/Tab to change the input focus, Alt/Tab does not change
the input focus.
Pop-Up Windows - If you display a pop-up window on the screen so that
it becomes unreachable with the mouse, use the keyboard to reference it
and move it. Press the Alt/Tab keys to give the pop-up window the input
focus. then use Alt/Spacebar to open the system menu. Select the Move
command to move the window.
Directories - In applications that have an Open command in the File
menu, there is usually a "[ .. ]" within the list box in the Open dialog box.
The "[ .. ]" represents the directory above the current directory and indicates that the current directory is a subdirectory. If the drive is on a VMS
server, the "[ .. ]" is not displayed. To move up to the higher-level directory,
type" .. " in the "File name" text entry field.
Unavailable Network Drive •

1- 2

When you are displaying more than one window and in the active
window get an error message that requires a response {for example,
"Abort, Ignore, Retry?"), you must respond to the message before
changing the focus to another window. If you change the focus to
another window before responding to the prompt or before the

Notes for All Users
prompt appears, you must restart your workstation.
•

MS-Windows can lose access to its executable files on a network
drive if the network becomes unavailable. To prevent loss of data
in this event, add commands to your AUTOEXEC.BAT file on
your key diskette that:
1.

Copy the WIN100.0VL file to your hard disk or a virtual drive
configured in memory.
Using a virtual drive in memory can increase MS-Windows
performance.

•

Add the name of the drive and directory containing the
WIN100.0VL file as the first item of the PATH environment
variable. e.g., PATH=D\; ...

Some MS-Windows applications (for example, the Information
System or Control Panel) are unable to continue if the network becomes unavailable while you are using them. You can receive one
of the following error messages:
Net 805: Network device no longer exists
System Error reading Drive x
Cannot read from Drive x
Not enough memory

To continue, you must restart your workstation.

VT220 Terminal Emulator
Data Overrun Errors - When using an editor on the host computer, certain operations (such as pasting or sending characters from a file to the
host) can cause loss of characters. You can minimize character loss by
using the SET TERMINAL/HOSTSYNC command on the VMS system
and by not rapidly repeating cut and paste operations.
Autorepeat - Autorepeat works incorrectly when you are using EDT on
the host system in VT100 mode. You can avoid this problem by using the
following VMS commands:
$ SET TERM/DEV=vt200
$ SET TERM/INQUIRE

Setup - You cannot enter control characters into the answerback string
in the Setup Answerback dialog box (Keyboard Menu).

1- 3

Notes for All Users

VT240 Terminal Emulator
MS-Windows - The VT240 terminal emulator is not an MS-Windows application. You can run the VT240 terminal emulator from MS-Windows or
directly from MS-DOS. To use the COM1: serial communications port
when running the VT240 terminal emulator from MS-Windows, you must
run VT240CM1.PIF, not VT240.PIF or VT240.EXE. The VT240 terminal
emulator uses only network communications.
Drive B -

Do not use drive B with the VT240 terminal emulator.

Some Monochrome Shades Not Discernible - For some colors that are
adjacent on the color scale, a variation of only four levels exists between
each shade of a color. Sometimes the shades appear to be the same. You
can correct this by using Set-Up to modify the grey-scale values in your
color map.
Auto Print Mode Ignores <CtrIlF2> - In Set-Up, once you start Auto
Print by pressing the Ctrl/F2 keys, pressing the Ctrl/F2 keys again does
not always turn Auto Printing off. To turn off Auto Print, disable the
Auto Print Mode selection in the Printer menu.
Insufficient Memory to Run MS-DOS - Before exiting to MS-DOS, the
emulator verifies if enough memory is available to run COMMAND.COM
and displays an error message if there is not. However, when enough
memory is available to run COMMAND.COM, but not enough to run anything else, control returns to the emulator with no explanation.

Printing
LA75 Esc/Ctrl Sequences - The following IBM escape sequences place
the printer into special modes where control characters are processed as
selection parameters or printable characters. Some of these sequences conflict with valid DIGITAL sequences that you can send to the printer. For
example, if you send a DIGITAL print mode file to the printer when it is
in IBM print mode, the characters printed would be incorrect and the
printer could lock up. The lock-up is unavoidable, as the escape sequences
that the DIGITAL and IBM modes recognize overlap. If the printer locks
up, turn the printer power off and then on again.

1- 4

Notes for All Users
Table 1 LA75 EsclCtrl Sequences
IBM

DIGITAL

ESC B Pnl Pn2 ... NUL

Set Vertical Tabs

no ESC B

ESC D Pnl Pn2 ... NUL

Set Horizontal Tabs

IND

ESC \ nl n2 vI v2 ...

Select All Characters
Set

String Terminator

ESC K nl n2 vI v2 ...

480-bit graphics mode

PLD

ESC L n1 n2 vI v2 ...

960-bit graphics mode

PLU

ESC Y nl n2 vI v2 ...

960-bit graphics mode

no ESC Y

ESC Z nl n2 vI v2 ...

1920-bit graphics mode

no ESC Z

ESC = nl n2 ...

Character download

no ESC =

1- 5

Notes for the System Administrator

Notes for the System Administrator
Installation
Maximum Links - In order to run the VAXIVMS server operator interface, use NCP (Network Control Program) to set the maximum number of
links to 1 plus the VAXIVMS server session limit. This limit defaults to
32. If all 32 sessions are in use by workstations, no session is available to
support the operator interface. You can increase the session limit by using
the following command:
$ MCR NCP SET EXECUTOR MAXIMUM LINKS 33

VMS Operating System Upgrade - If you upgrade your VMS operating
system to a new version, be sure to copy the network database files before
you begin the VMS upgrade. Restore the files after the upgrade. If you do
not perform this operation, the PCFS STARTUP command procedure
returns error messages such as "%PFCS-E-BAD PROT, protocol refused." To recover from this problem, use the following commands in this
sequence:
NCP DEFINE OBJECT PCFS NUMBER 64 PROXY NONE
NCP SET OBJECT PCFS NUMBER 64 PROXY NONE
~SYS$MANAGER:PCFS_STARTUP

VAX/VMS Server
CLOSE FILE Command - If you use the lID qualifier with the CLOSE
FILE command, and the file id is greater than six digits, the following
message displays:
%PCFS-E-BAD-INT, invalid numeric value -- supply a positive integer

The file is still open. Use the CLOSE FILE <filename> option to close
the file.
CLOSE SESSION and CLOSE FILE Commands - The CLOSE
SESSION < session name> and CLOSE FILE < file name> commands
close only the first session or file with that name that the server finds if
the file is opened multiple times. You may have to repeat the command to
close each session or file.

1- 6

Notes for the System Administrator
Disk Space Shortage - If less than 64 blocks of free area are available
on the volume that contains the alias to which a workstation is connected,
the workstation cannot create any more files or extend the size of existing
files.
Clusters - When running the server on a cluster, ensure that all
workstations connecting to a writeable, common directory connect from
the same node on the cluster. All byte-range lock checks and file-write
buffering are done on a per-node basis. All files that are opened for writing by two different workstations must be opened by the same server
process.
System User Authorization File (SYSUAF) - If you create an entry in
SYSUAF using angle brackets to delimit the directory portion of the root
path, the VMS server displays that path in the SHOW CONNECTIONS
and SHOW FILES commands with square brackets. However, the entry
remains in SYSUAF with the angle brackets.

PCFS Administration Utility
Print Queues - If you create printer queues using the PCFS _ADMIN
utility, add the following line to your VMS system start-up file
(SYSTARTUP.COM):
~SYS$MANAGER:PCFS_PRINT.COM

Add Printer Option - The ADD printer option does not let you add the
same printer type more than once. Attempts to do so generate error
messages and corrupt the PCFS PRINT. COM file. To recover, use the
Delete Printer option and keep deleting the printer type until the "No
Such Printer" message is displayed. At this point, you can use the Add
Printer option to add the printer back again. The VMS Server Guide
discusses how the PCFS ADMIN utility uses queues, accounts, directories, and device control libraries to control printers at sites that use
configurations other than the default printer configurations set up by the
PCFS _ADMIN utility.

VAX/VMS Server/VAXmate Server Differences
Empty Printer Queue - An 5MB SPLRETQ request sent to a VMS
server with an empty print queue returns an error response to the
workstation. The VAXmate server responds to the same request with a
message indicating that no entries were found and no error occurred.
File Truncation -

For file space allocation, when the VAXmate server

1- 7

Notes for the System Administrator
truncates a file beyond its current end-of-file pointer, it extends the end-offile pointer to the offset specified in the truncation request. The VMS
server leaves the end-of-file pointer at its current location.
Illegal Packets - The VMS server usually terminates a session when it
encounters an illegal packet. The VAXmate server responds with an error
message.
Deny All Mode File Opening - If a workstation opens a file in Deny All
mode and a second workstation attempts to delete or rename that file, the
VAXmate server returns an error. The VMS server performs the delete or
rename operation.
Session Closing - The VAXmate server allows multiple sessions created
by the same workstation to be closed with the CLOSE SESSION command. The VAXIVMS server only allows one session to be closed at a
time. A CLOSE SESSION command is required to close each session
opened by that workstation.
Applications Installation - Some applications (for example, Microsoft
CHART) install differently depending on whether they are installed on the
VAXmate server or the VMS server. Specifically, subdirectories created to
hold the various pieces of the application may be placed either off the root
directory for the alias or as a subdirectory to the application subdirectory.
The application works correctly regardless of the placement of subdirectories. However, the PATH and APPEND variables of the MS-DOS
environment will be different for the different servers. Refer to the application installation instructions for more information on how to designate
the PATH and APPEND variables for the specific application.

VAXmate Server
Access Control Facility (/Permissions) - A hierarchy within the access
control facility requires that if you allow write access to an alias, you must
also allow read access. If you allow create access, you must allow both
read and write access. Failure to use these conventions with the access
control facility (/permissions) may produce unpredictable results.
Deleting Directories - A synchronization problem occurs when a
workstation removes a directory that another workstation is using. The
server allows the directory to be deleted because it has no mechanism for
determining each workstation's "current" directory.

1- 8

Notes for the System Administrator
SHARE Program - Do not use the IF switch on the NET START
SERVER command line. If you want a value for the number of files different from the default (which is three times the number of sessions), then
manually edit your MSNET.INI file. A switch conflict exists between the
SHARE program and the VAXmate SERVER program when the NET
START SERVER command is used. The SERVER program IF qualifier
indicates the number of simultaneous open files that the server supports.
In the SHARE program, IF indicates the buffer size for file sharing. (The
SHARE program IF qualifier may change in future releases of the
VAXmate software.)

Printing
Using LPT2: for Printing - If you have two printers, LPT1: and LPT2:,
connected to the VAXmate server, the LPT1: printer must be turned on
and be on-line in order to print on LPT2:.
Redirecting an LPTn: Line - If you redirect an LPTn: line to a COM:
device and the printer on the COM: device is not ready (out of paper, for
example), the VAXmate server responds very slowly to workstation
requests and console commands. This problem is related to the long wait
associated with a retry on the COM: line.
Print Spool Files - If you issue a print command and the file does not
print, check the disk space available. When you print a file, it is spooled
to an area on disk. Sufficient disk space must exist for the spooling of the
print file. Neither the VAXmate server nor the VAXIVMS server display a
message if the space is insufficient.
Extra Form Feed in Printed Documents - To disable the extra form
feed that results when printing long documents using MS-Windows from
the VAXIVMS server, do the following:
1.

Edit the PCFS PRINT. COM file in the VMS SYS$MANAGER
directory.
-

Locate the line containing "INIT/QUEUEI .... Txxx," where Txxx
is the physical device.

Insert the string "IDEFAULT=(NOFEED)" as part of this
command.

At the VMS prompt, type @PCFS PRINT. When the command
procedure completes, restart the workstation.

1- 9

Notes for the System Administrator

MS·NET/DECnet
NET USE - If the connection to drive H fails, no attempt is made to
try to connect to an alternate server. If more than one server is available,
make the following changes to the AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
1.

Substitute the names of the primary and alternate servers for
"server1" and "server2," respectively.

Locate the following line of code that connects drive H:
ECHO Cannot connect H: to \\serverl\vxsys

Replace it with the following lines:
ECHO Cannot connect H: to \\serverl\vxsys
ECHO Connecting H: to \\server2\vxsys
use H: \\server2\vxsys
if not errorlevel 1 goto :Hcondone
ECHO Can not connect H: to \\server2\vxsys

NET PRINT Restriction - NET PRINT always sends a file to the network printer in ASCII mode. Therefore, you cannot reliably use NET
PRINT to print a file that contains graphics. Use COpy IB instead.

NCP
The MAXIMUM BUFFER value displayed by the command NCP SHOW
EXECUTOR CHARACTERISTICS is the number of large data buffers
that DECnet uses. These buffers are controlled by the datalink and not by
DECnet.
The largest possible value for REBOOT MAXIMUM BUFFER, which is
the number of buffers to be configured at the next reboot, is 84. The datalink uses the REBOOT MAXIMUM BUFFER value to configure its
buffers, unless the value is zero. In this case, the datalink uses the
MAXIMUM BUFFER value found in the DECnet database during
startup. If the REBOOT MAXIMUM BUFFER is greater than 84, the
datalink does not initialize and the network cannot be started.

1- 10

Notes for the System Administrator
The MAXIMUM BUFFER value displayed by NCP is the number of
MAXIMUM LINKS times six. If the REBOOT MAXIMUM BUFFER
value is not zero, the MAXIMUM BUFFER value displayed will not be
the actual number of MAXIMUM BUFFERS. For example, if the
REBOOT MAXIMUM LINKS value is 32 and REBOOT MAXIMUM
BUFFER is 32, NCP displays the MAXIMUM BUFFERS value as 192,
but the actual number of buffers that the datalink configures is 32.

Asynchronous Communications Port
IBM PC and PC/XT Only - Under heavy network traffic conditions, an
interaction can occur between the Thin Wire Ethernet port and the
asynchronous communications port. This interaction may result in the occasional loss of incoming (received) characters on asynchronous ports that
are operating at speeds above 4800 BPS. If you require asynchronous line
speeds of 9600 BPS and are losing too many incoming characters, turn off
the network software by temporarily removing the NET START RDR
command from your AUTOEXEC.BAT file and restarting your system.

Also. whenever the network software is running, you must terminate the
Thin Wire Ethernet port. Failure to do so will result in heavy loss of incoming characters on the asynchronous port. You can terminate the port
either by connecting it to a properly installed network or with a loopback
connector.

VT220 Terminal Emulator
The VT220 terminal emulator may not function correctly with certain external modems due to inconsistencies of timing under MS-Windows. To
avoid problems using external modems, use the VT240 terminal emulator.
Full Modem Control is incomplete: The VT220 emulator does not support
full modem control. The MS-Windows operating environment does not
support preemptive scheduling, which means that the timings required for
full modem control may not be precise.
Known problems with the VT220 emulator full modem control are:

1- 11

Notes for the System Administrator
•

If DSR comes on and CD doesn't come on within 30 seconds, the
terminal should initiate a disconnect.

•

If CD is on and then it is dropped, the terminal should wait either
2 seconds or 60 milliseconds (based on the setup parameter) for CD
to come back on. If it doesn't come back on, then the terminal
should initiate a disconnect.

•

A disconnect should turn DTR off for 220 milliseconds if DSR is
off, and for 5 seconds if DSR is on, and then turn DTR back on.

As an alternative, use the VT240 emulator, which supports full modem
control.

MS-Windows
Printing - When using the Generic/Text Only printer driver
(LINE.DRV), lines greater than 80 columns do not wrap; they are truncated.
TEMP Variable - Ensure that the TEMP variable name in your environment points to a valid Read/Write directory if you see one of the following
error messages:

PAINT: NOT ENOUGH DISK SPACE TO RUN PAINT.
CARDFILE: CANNOT CREATE TEMP FILE. YOU CANNOT MAKE CHANGES.

See the MS-DOS SET command to fix the key diskette.

1- 12

Notes for the System Administrator
Unsupported PIFs - The MS-Windows software installed on the server
includes a directory, \WIN\PIF, that contains PIFs for a number of
industry-standard applications. You can copy these PIFs into appropriate
directories and use them at your discretion. These PIFs are unsupported
and their presence is not to be construed as an endorsement by DIGITAL
of any of the applications.
Table 2 contains the current list of unsupported PIFs.
Table 2 Unsupported PIFs
File Name

Product Name

123.PIF
123-2.PIF
2020.PIF
35MM.PIF
ACCESS.PIF
AUTOCAD.PIF
AUTOPOP.PIF
BRIEF.PIF
CHART.PIF
CLOUT.PIF
CM1.PIF
CONFIGURPIF
CONVERT.PIF
CONVERTD.PIF
DBASE.PIF
DBASE2.PIF
DBASE3.PIF
DEASE.PIF
DESQ.PIF
DIFF.PIF
DOODLE.PIF
DW2PG.PIF
DW3PG.PIF
ED.PIF
EDIT.PIF

Lotus 1-2-3
Lotus 1-2-3 V 2.
Access 2020 1.1 Batch File
35MM Express
dBase III + Access
Autocad
Setup for Bellesoft Pop-Ups
Brief Text Editor
MS Chart
Clout
Chart Master
Volkswriter Configure Program
Convert Wordstar to WORD
Convert Data File
Ashton-Tate dBase
Ashton-Tate dBase II
Ashton-Tate dBase III
SoftEase DataEase
DESQ
Difference
MS Doodle
IBM DisplayWriter 2
IBM DisplayWriter 3
PC Write
IBM Professional Editor

To Run from EXE or
COM, Rename To:
123.PIF

DBASE.PIF
DBASE.PIF

1- 13

Notes for the System Administrator
Table 2 Unsupported PIFs (cont.)
File Name

Product Name

EDITPAT.PIF
EDITSAT.PIF
FILE.PIF
FILECONV.PIF
FW.PIF
FWC.PIF
FWT.PIF
GEM.PIF
GRAPH.PIF
GSX.PIF
HPM.PIF
HTPM.PIF
INSTALL.PIF
KFLOAT.PIF
KMAN.PIF
LAYOUT.PIF
LIFE.PIF
LINKMC.PIF
LOGO.PIF
LOTUS.PIF
LOTUS2.PIF
LPR.PIF
MENU.PIF
MM.PIF
MOUSE.PIF
MP.PIF
MP40.PIF
MP80.PIF
MSACCESS.PIF
MSCOM.PIF
NCSNIPES.PIF
NU.PIF
02020.PIF
OE.PIF

Multimate 3.2 Printer Action Utility
Multimate 3.2 Sheet Feeder Utility
IBM Filing Assistant
Multimate 3.2 File Convert Program
Framework
Framework
Framework
Digital Research GEM
IBM Graphing Assistant
Access 2020 1.1 Driver Program
Harvard Project Manager
Harvard Project Manager
Lotus 1-2-3 Installation Program
KnowledgeMan I Math Functions
KnowledgeMan
Pro Key Keyboard Layout
MS Life
Chart Linker (Pre 2.0)
IBM Logo for Assistant Series
Lotus Accessing System
LOTUS.PIF
Lotus Accessing System
Line Printing Program
MS Mouse Menu
Multimate Advantage
Microsoft Mouse Driver
MS Multiplan
MS Multiplan
MS Multiplan
ACCESS.PIF
MS Access
File Transfer Facility
SNIPES
Norton Utilities
Access 2020 1.1
Overhead Express

1- 14

To Run from EXE or
COM, Rename To:

Notes for the System Administrator
Table 2 Unsupported PIFs (cont.)
File Name

Product Name

To Run from EXE or
COM, Rename TO:

ONFILE.PIF
Multimate Onfile
Micrografx PC-Draw
PC-DRAW.PIF
PC-TALK3.PIF
PC-TALK Comm Program
PE.PIF
IBM Personal Editor
PFSACCES.PIF PFS Access
PFSFILE.PIF
PFS File VB
PFSGRAPH.PIF PFS Graph V B
PFSREPRT.PIF PFS Report V B
PFSSETUP.PIF PFS Setup
PFSWRITE.PIF PFS:Write VB
PGRAPH.PIF
Printgraph for Symphony 1.1
PIANO.PIF
MS Piano
PKLOAD.PIF
ProKey
PLAN.PIF
PFS Plan
POPALARM.PIF Pop Up Alarm
POPCLIP.PIF
Pop Up Clipboard
POPDOS2.PIF
Pop Up DOS
POPMODEM.PIF Pop Up Modem
POPNOTE.PIF
Pop Up Notepad
POPVOICE.PIF Pop Up Dialer
PROEDIT.PIF
IBM Professional Editor
PROJ.PIF
MS Project
PROJM.PIF
MS Project
PROKEY.PIF
Pro Key
PROMGEN.PIF R:Base Prompt Editor
PROOF.PIF
PFS Proof
RB5000.PIF
R:Base 5000
RBASE.PIF
MicroRim R:Base
RBEDIT.PIF
R:Base Screen Editor
RECOVERY.PIF Multimate 3.2 Recovery
REFLEX.PIF
REFLEX, The Analyst
REFLEX2.PIF
REFLEX Report and Utilities
REPORT.PIF
IBM Reporting Assistant
RG.PIF
Initiator for Graph
SAMNA.PIF
SAMNA WORD III

ACCESS.PIF
FILE.PIF
GRAPH.PIF
REPRT.PIF
SETUP.PIF
WRITE.PIF

1- 15

Notes for the System Administrator
Table 2 Unsupported PIFs (cont.)
File Name

Product Name

To Run from EXE or
COM, Rename To:

SC.PIF
SuperCalc
SC3.PIF
SuperCalc
SC3SIDE.PIF
Sideways PRG for SuperCalc 3
SCOM.PIF
Hayes Smartcom
SCOMII.PIF
Hayes Smartcom II
SETUP.PIF
Windows Setup
SIDEINS.PIF
Install program for Sideways
SIDEWAYS.PIF Sideways
Sign-On for Windows
SIGN.PIF
SKPIF
Sidekick
SL.PIF
Spotlight
SLL.PIF
Spotlight
SPELL.PIF
MS Spell
SW123.PIF
Sideways for Lotus 1-2-3
, SWSETUP.PIF Sideways Setup Program
SYMPHACC.PIF Lotus Symphony
SYMPHONY.PIF Lotus Symphony
ThinkTank
TANKPIF
TINSTALL.PIF ThinkTank 2.0 Install Program
TKPIF
TK!Solver
TST286.PIF
286 Testing Program
TURBO.PIF
Turbo Pascal
TURBO 87.PIF Turbo Pascal 8087
TURBOBCD.PIF Turbo Pascal BCD
TUTOR.PIF
Lotus Tutorial
VX.PIF
Volkswriter
MS Windows
WIN .PIF
WINSTALL.PIF Wordstar 3.3 Install Program
WORD.PIF
MS Word
WORDEGA.PIF MS Word

1- 16

SCOM.PIF

ACCESS.PIF
INSTALL.PIF

INSTALL.PIF
WORD.PIF

Notes for the System Administrator
Table 2 Unsupported PIFs (cont.)
File Name

Product Name

WP.PIF
WRDPERF.PIF
WRITE.PIF
WS.PIF
WS2000.PIF
XLISP.PIF
XTALK.PIF
XTC.PIF
XYWRITE.PIF
Z.PIF

Multimate
Word Perfect
IBM Writing Assistant
WordS tar
WordStar 2000
XLISP Interpreter
Crosstalk
XTC Text Editor
XY Write
Z Editor

To Run from EXE or
COM, Rename To:

EDITOR.PIF

IBM Workstations
BASIC Compiler - An interaction exists between IBM PC-based systems
that use DEPCA networking hardware and the Microsoft BASIC compiler
(versions prior to 2.0). The early BASIC compilers assume that Interrupt
Request (IRQ) levels 3 and 4 are for use with serial asynchronous devices
only. BASIC masks IRQ3 and IRQ4 off before exiting.
If the system is configured with the DEPCA networking hardware at

IRQ3 or IRQ4, BASIC turns off the network and drops all links.
To avoid this problem, configure the DEPCA at an IRQ other than 3 or 4,
or upgrade to BASIC Version 2.0 or later.
Configuration Aide/Formatting Floppy Diskettes Using MS-Windows The Format Data Disk command in the MS-DOS Executive Special menu
requires that a bootable hard disk be present in order to format floppy
diskettes.
If you do not have a bootable hard disk, use the FORMAT command with
the IS parameter with the MS-DOS Executive File menu's Run option as
follows:

FORMAT a: Is
When the "Cannot find FORMAT.PIF" message appears, select the "Ok"
option.

1- 17

Notes for the Programmer

Notes for the Programmer
VAX/VMS Server/VAXmate Server Differences
Opening Files in MS-DOS Compatibility Mode - The VAXNMS server
lets more than one user open a file for read access in MS-DOS
Compatibility mode if the file has the read-only attribute. The VAXmate
server lets one user open the file with read-write access and denies access
to subsequent users.
Read-Only Subdirectories - The VAXmate server allows a subdirectory
to be marked as read only, though it does not treat the subdirectory differently despite its new attribute. The VAXNMS server returns an error
to a request to mark a directory as read only. If a VMS process has
marked the subdirectory as read only (by removing either the Write or
Delete protection code), then that directory will no longer be writeable,
unlike a directory marked similarly by the VAXmate server.
Ending a Session - The VAXmate server does not end a session between itself and a workstation when it receives an illegal 5MB request
from the workstation. Under most circumstances, however, the VAXNMS
server does.

VAXmate and VMS Servers
If you specify an invalid file id in the 5MB functions "Write Spool File"

or "Close Spool File," the 5MB returns error class 1, code 6. This indicates a DOS error 6, which means "Invalid file handle." The IBM
Personal Computer Network Program returns an error class 1, code 52 for
"Write Spool File" and error class 2, code 52 for "Close Spool File," in
the case of a bad file id.

MS-Windows
IN lOH - INT 10H, function 13H, subfunctions 0-3 are not supported in
the Old Applications driver. Control returns to the application with registers unchanged.

MS-NET
RECEIVE ANY Command Issued Through INT 2AH - If the buffer
used for the RECEIVE ANY command is not as large as the buffer used
for the SEND command, some data will be lost.

1- 18

Notes for the Programmer

COM2:
Effect of Serial Port Option Configured as COM2: - Any serial port
option that appears to be an 8250 or equivalent UART configured as
COM2: is interpreted as "DEC modem option present." Ignore this false
indication.

1- 19

Notes for the Standalone
System User
If you have purchased VAXmate software for standalone use, you should

read the supplied documentation in the following sequence:
These release notes. Disregard all release notes entitled VAXNMS
Server, VAXmate Server, and MS-NET/DECnet.
2. VAXmate System Handbook. This manual guides you through installing your VAXmate system and then directs you to the
VAXmate Expansion Box Installation Guide and Owner's Manual.
3. VAXmate Expansion Box Installation Guide and Owner's Manual.
This manual provides instructions for installing the expansion box,
formatting the hard disk, and installing the standalone software
kit.
4. VAXmate System Handbook. Once installation of all hardware and
software is complete, you should return to this manual to learn
how to use MS-Windows and get acquainted with the on-line User
Information System. Disregard network information presented in
the Information System.
5. The VAXmate Users Guide. This manual provides complete reference information for the software components of the full VAXmate
product. The standalone user needs only a subset of this manual,
namely: MS-Windows, terminal emulators, desktop applications,
Paint, and MS-DOS. Disregard all references to using networks
and server capabilities.
1.

Printer Installation
After you have installed the printer according to the printer hardware installation instructions, you must configure MS-Windows to recognize the

2- 1

Notes for the Standalone System User
printer attached to your system. Use the Control Panel as described in
Chapter 8 of the VAXmate User's Guide. When using those instructions,
note the following differences for a standalone system:
1.

Use drive C instead of drive H when using the Add New Printer
command from the Installation menu.

Upon completing the instructions for adding a printer from the
Installation menu, do the following:

Select Printer from the Setup menu. Select the printer on
LPTl:. Select Ok.

Select Printer from the Setup menu. Select the printer on
LPTl: as the default printer. Select Ok.

Select Ok for Output mode.

Close the Control Panel.

Release Note
MS·DOS
SELECT - SELECT assumes that the international support files are in
the root directory. On the MS-DOS distribution diskette, they are in the
\COUNTRY subdirectory. This is only a problem for the standalone
MS-DOS user. To solve this problem, do either of the following:
•

Copy the required support files from the \COUNTRY subdirectory
to the root directory and then run SELECT.

•

Insert the following line in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file after the line
that sets thEf path:

APPEND \COUNTRY

2- 2