Document revision date: 30 March 2001
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OpenVMS System Manager's Manual


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Two other qualifiers that are important for mounting tape volumes are /INITIALIZE and /AUTOMATIC, which are explained in Section 9.8.2.2 and Section 9.8.2.3, respectively.

Example


$ MOUNT MU: TEST_FILES
%MOUNT-I-OPRQST, Please mount volume TEST_FILES in device _MUA2:
%MOUNT-I-MOUNTED, TEST_FILES mounted on _MUA2:

In this example, the MOUNT command requests an available RA90 device for the volume labeled TEST_FILES. After you physically mount the volume in the device named in the response from MOUNT, the system completes the operation. Note that the device is automatically allocated by MOUNT.

Upon successful completion of the operation, MOUNT notifies you with a message sent to SYS$OUTPUT. If the operation fails for any reason, MOUNT notifies you with an error message.

9.5.3 Assisting Users in Mounting Volumes

Large sites often have operators assigned to assist users with mounting volumes. Section 2.4.6 explains how users can send requests to operators. Section 2.4.7 briefly explains how operators reply to those requests.

When a user requests you to mount a specific disk or tape on a device, the following type of message appears on the operator terminal:


%%%%%%%%%%%  OPCOM,  <dd-mmm-yyyy hh:mm:ss:cc>  %%%%%%%%%%% 
request <request-id>, from user <user-name> 

The following steps indicate the sequence of events:

  1. A user requests that you mount the volume TEST_FILES on the device DUA2: by entering the following command:


    $ MOUNT DUA2: TEST_FILES/COMMENT="Shelf slot 6B"
    

  2. OPCOM notifies you of the request by displaying a message similar to the following one at the operator terminal:


    %%%%%%%%%%%  OPCOM, 28-MAY-2000 15:47:50.26  %%%%%%%%%%%
    request 5, from user MALCOLM
    Please mount volume TEST_FILES in device _DUA2:
    Shelf slot 6B
    

  3. Once you receive the request, OPCOM delivers a confirmation to the user, in a format similar to the following:


    %MOUNT-I-OPRQST, Please mount volume TEST_FILES in device _DUA2:
    Shelf slot 6B
    

  4. After you locate the volume and place it on the device, OPCOM notifies the user that the volume is on the device and that the task is complete:


    %MOUNT-I-MOUNTED,TEST_FILES mounted on _DUA2:
    %MOUNT-I-RQSTDON, operator request canceled 
    -- mount completed successfully.
    

Instead of requesting a specific hardware device, such as DUA2:, for mounting a volume, users can make a generic MOUNT request. A generic MOUNT request specifies a type of device and lets you find an available device in that class. For example, to mount the volume CITIES on any tape drive whose name begins with MU, the user enters the following command:


$ MOUNT MU: CITIES/COMMENT="Slot 12c"

If the user has already allocated a drive whose name begins with MU, the Mount utility requests that you mount CITIES on that particular drive. If no device has been allocated, the Mount utility allocates the first available MU tape drive it finds and requests you to mount CITIES on that drive.

Sending Messages Back to Users

After you mount a disk or tape, follow these steps:

  1. Use the operator communication manager (OPCOM) to communicate with system users. OPCOM is a system process that receives input from a process that wants to inform an operator of a particular status or condition; OPCOM passes the message to the operator, and tracks the message.
    To use OPCOM, you must use a terminal that has been designated as an operator terminal. See Section 2.4.5 for instructions.
  2. Enter the REPLY command in one of the following forms:
    REPLY Command Qualifiers Description
    /ABORT= identification-number "message-text" Indicates that the user request is canceled. (The user's MOUNT command exits with an error status.)
    /PENDING= identification-number "message-text" Indicates that the request has been put in a wait state until it can be completed. This command implies that the originating request was either a REQUEST/REPLY or a MOUNT command. The user cannot enter other commands until the operator fulfills or aborts the request.
    /TO= identification-number "message-text" Indicates that the request is fulfilled. (Processing continues.)

    If a user enters a MOUNT/ASSIST command and the desired device is unavailable, you can substitute another device. Whenever you must substitute a device, load the requested volume on the alternate device and prepare the device for connection before you enter the REPLY command. Use the following format:

    REPLY/TO=identification-number "SUBSTITUTE device-name"


    You can abbreviate the word SUBSTITUTE to "S" and use uppercase or lowercase letters. After a space, use the remainder of the message-text space to name the substituted device.

Examples


  1. $ REPLY/TO=24 "SUBSTITUTE DUA1:"
     
    

    This example shows how an operator redirects the mount operation to the DUA1: device.


  2. $ MOUNT/ASSIST  MKB500:  MYDATA
    %MOUNT-I-OPRQST, Please mount volume MYDATA in device _MKB500:
    %MOUNT-I-OPREPLY, Substitute MKA100:
    11:44:28.71, request 1 was completed by operator _FTA8:
    

    This is an example of a user's request and the substitution information the user receives. In this example, the MKA100: device has been substituted for the MKB500: device.

Refer to the OpenVMS DCL Dictionary for a complete list of REPLY qualifiers and their functions. See Section 9.8.2.4 for instructions for entering REPLY commands after you mount a volume set with automatic switching disabled.

9.5.4 Mounting a Volume with Protected Subsystems

Security is usually based on control rights that are granted or denied to the user. In a protected subsystem, however, security is based on access controls assigned to the subsystem. The subsystem acts as a gatekeeper that grants or denies users access to objects belonging to the subsystem.

Unprivileged users can build and manage protected subsystems. You must be involved at two points in the process:

Caution

Anyone who mounts a subsystem is responsible for knowing what is on the volume being mounted. Compaq strongly recommends that you find out what is on a volume before you mount a subsystem. Without this knowledge, you might inadvertently subvert system security and jeopardize the privacy of users' data.

For example, a user with malicious intent who has privileges on one OpenVMS Cluster node might place an application with a subsystem identifier on a volume and then request an unsuspecting operator or system manager to mount the volume on another node. Because the application has a subsystem identifier, the application appears to belong to a subsystem for which it is unauthorized.

How to Enable Protected Subsystems on a Trusted Volume

The system enables protected subsystems by default only on the system disk. For other disks, you must enable subsystems every time you mount a volume. A person with the SECURITY privilege can enable subsystems on a volume by using the /SUBSYSTEM qualifier on the MOUNT command.

You can dynamically turn on and off the processing of Subsystem ACEs with the DCL command SET VOLUME/SUBSYSTEM. This command is especially useful for the system disk, which is not mounted using the MOUNT command.

Example

The command in the following example mounts the volume labeled DOC on the DUA0: device. Subsystems on the volume are accessible. The MOUNT command also assigns the logical name WORK8.


$ MOUNT/SUBSYSTEM/SYSTEM DUA0: DOC WORK8 

9.5.5 Converting an Existing Volume from One ODS Format to Another

The following sections contain instructions for converting an existing volume from one ODS file format to another.

9.5.5.1 Converting from ODS-2 to ODS-5

To convert an ODS-2 volume to an ODS-5 volume:

  1. Dismount the volume throughout the cluster; for example:


    $ DISMOUNT /CLUSTER DKA300: 
    

  2. Mount the volume as a private volume, for example:


    $ MOUNT DKA300: DISK1 
    %MOUNT-I-MOUNTED, DISK1 mounted on _STAR$DKA300: 
    

    Omitting the /SYSTEM qualifier causes the system to mount the volume as a private, not a public, volume.
    You can check that the volume is ODS-2 by entering a SHOW DEVICE/FULL command and seeing a display like the following:


    $ SHOW DEVICE DKA200:/FULL 
     
      Disk $10$DKA200:, device type RZ47, is online, allocated, deallocate 
      on dismount, mounted, file-oriented device, shareable. 
     
        Error count                    0    Operations completed 232 
        .
        .
        .
     
      Volume Status:  ODS-2, subject to mount verification, file high-water 
      marking, write-back caching enabled. 
    

    An alternative method for displaying the volume type is to issue a command and receive a response similar to the following:


    $ WRITE SYS$OUTPUT F$GETDVI ("DKA200:","ACPTYPE") 
    F11V2 
    

    F11V2 indicates that the volume is ODS-2.

  3. Compaq strongly recommends that you back up the volume. You cannot go back to ODS-2 format once you change to ODS-5 except by restoring a backup, as described in Section 9.5.5.3. For example:


    $ BACKUP /IMAGE DKA300: SAV.BCK /SAVE_SET 
    

  4. Set the characteristics of the disk by using a command in the following format:

    SET VOLUME /STRUCTURE_LEVEL=5 device-name


    For example:


    $ SET VOLUME /STRUCTURE_LEVEL=5 DKA300: 
    

    Note

    You cannot use the SET VOLUME command to change a volume from ODS-5 to ODS-2. To reset a volume to ODS-2, you must use BACKUP as described in Section 9.5.5.3.
    If a failure occurs after you enter the SET VOLUME/STRUCTURE_LEVEL command, refer to the instructions at the end of this section.

    When you enter the SET VOLUME command, the system verifies that the volume can be converted by testing for the following items:

    Warning

    After using the SET VOLUME /STRUCTURE_LEVEL=5 command, do not access the disk further until the disk is dismounted and remounted.
  5. Dismount the private volume and remount the volume publicly by entering commands similar to the following:


    $ DISMOUNT DKA300: 
    $ MOUNT /CLUSTER DKA300: DISK1 
    %MOUNT-I-MOUNTED, DISK1 mounted on _STAR$DKA300: 
    

To verify that the volume has been converted to ODS-5, you can enter a SHOW DEVICE/FULL command and see a display similar to the following:


$ SHOW DEVICE DKA300:/FULL 
 
  Disk $10$DKA300:, device type RX74, is online, allocated, deallocate 
  on dismount, mounted, file-oriented device, shareable. 
 
    Error count                    0    Operations completed 155 
    .
    .
    .
 
  Volume Status:  ODS-5, subject to mount verification, file high-water 
  marking, write-back caching enabled. 

An alternative method for displaying the volume type is to issue a command and receive a response similar to the following:


$ WRITE SYS$OUTPUT F$GETDVI ("DKA500:","ACPTYPE") 
F11V5 

F11V5 indicates that the volume is ODS-5.

What to Do if a Failure Occurs

If a failure such as an I/O error or a system crash occurs while the SET VOLUME/STRUCTURE_LEVEL command is executing but before the command finishes, the volume might be only partially updated. If so, when you enter the MOUNT command, the Mount utility will display one of the following error messages:


     Inconsistent file structure level on device ... 
 
     Structure level on device ... is inconsistent with volume set 

If either condition is true, you can enter the MOUNT command only with the /NOSHARE qualifier (or with no qualifier, because /NOSHARE is the default). When you do, the system displays the same error message but only as a warning.

To recover from the error condition, reenter the SET VOLUME/STRUCTURE_LEVEL=5 command, and then dismount and remount the disk. As a last resort, you can restore the backup you made.

9.5.5.2 Converting from ODS-1 to ODS-2

To convert from ODS-1 format to ODS-2 format:

  1. Back up the entire disk or disks.
  2. Initialize the disk or disks as ODS-2 file structure.
  3. Restore the disk or disks.

9.5.5.3 Converting from ODS-5 Files to ODS-2

Two types of BACKUP operations, file and image, support converting ODS-5 file names to ODS-2 file names. (File and image operations are described more completely in Chapter 11.)

In the examples in the following descriptions, notice that when you perform a conversion to or from a save set, the created as or copied as message is displayed for the converted files.

If BACKUP cannot convert a file name within its existing directory, it converts the file name and leaves it unconnected so that ANALYZE /DISK /REPAIR can connect it to the [SYSLOST] directory, where the file has an ODS-2-compliant name. BACKUP also displays messages similar to the following:


%BACKUP-I-RECOVCNT, 5 files could not be converted into a directory on DKA100: 
-BACKUP-I-RECOVCMD, use the Analyze/Disk_Structure/Repair command to recover files 

In this case, you need to move the file from [SYSLOST] to the appropriate directory. Refer to the created as log messages to see where the file would logically be placed and place it there manually.


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