Updated: 11 December 1998

OpenVMS VAX
Version 7.2 Upgrade and
Installation Manual

You can execute LIBDECOMP.COM interactively to decompress up to eight libraries at a time by listing the names of the libraries you want to decompress as parameters on the command line. (You can decompress all the libraries by omitting the /PARAMETERS qualifier.)

Be sure you do not include the file extensions. For example, to decompress the VAXCRTL.OLB, DISKQUOTA.HLB, and LIB.MLB libraries interactively, enter the following command:

$ @SYS$UPDATE:LIBDECOMP VAXCRTL DISKQUOTA LIB

4.7.5 Using LIBDECOMP.COM in Batch

You can also execute LIBDECOMP.COM in batch mode to decompress up to eight libraries at a time by listing the names of the libraries you want to decompress as parameters on a command line that includes the SUBMIT command.

Be sure to separate the library names with commas and do not include the file extensions. For example, to decompress VAXCRTL.OLB, DISKQUOTA.HLB, and LIB.MLB as a batch job, enter the following command:

$ SUBMIT/NOTIFY/PARAMETERS=(VAXCRTL, DISKQUOTA, LIB)- _$ SYS$UPDATE:LIBDECOMP

To remove OpenVMS VAX operating system files from the system disk, use VMSTAILOR or DECW$TAILOR. For example, if you are not running DECnet software, use VMSTAILOR to remove the files associated with DECnet.

For complete information about using VMSTAILOR and DECW$TAILOR to remove optional OpenVMS VAX software, see Chapter 10.

4.9 Installing Layered Products

Back up your system disk and then use either the VMSINSTAL command procedure or the POLYCENTER Software Installation utility to install layered products on your system.

For additional information about installing layered products, refer to the OpenVMS System Manager's Manual.

4.10 Backing Up the Customized System Disk

After you have customized the OpenVMS VAX operating system to your satisfaction and installed your layered products, protect your work by making a standalone backup copy of the system disk.

For complete information about backup operations, refer to the upgrade and installation supplement for your VAX computer.

4.11 Running AUTOGEN

When you installed the OpenVMS VAX operating system, the system executed the AUTOGEN.COM procedure to set the values of system parameters and the sizes of the page and swap files according to the system's workload.

In many cases, AUTOGEN can improve system performance by using dynamic feedback information from the running system. As a postinstallation task, you should run the AUTOGEN.COM procedure again to properly tune the system.

Run AUTOGEN as follows:

1. After 24 hours of operation, run AUTOGEN in feedback mode and reboot the system.
2. Run AUTOGEN again in feedback mode two workdays later, and reboot the system.

   Note For large memory systems such as the VAX 9000 computer, AUTOGEN's initial parameter calculations are conservative. To obtain parameter values that match your system workload, you can run AUTOGEN in feedback mode a number of times. For more information, refer to the upgrade and installation supplement for your computer.

3. Compaq recommends that you run AUTOGEN from SAVPARAMS through TESTFILES on a weekly basis thereafter, and examine AGEN$PARAMS.REPORT to determine the need for additional changes.

After you run AUTOGEN following the first 24 hours of system operation (step 1), review the checklist in Section 4.12 to confirm that you have completed all the tasks described in this chapter.

4.11.1 Modifying Parameters

When AUTOGEN runs, it uses the parameter values in SYS$SYSTEM:MODPARAMS.DAT. Based on your examination of AGEN$PARAMS.REPORT, you might need to modify parameter values in MODPARAMS.DAT. If so, note that hardcoded values in MODPARAMS.DAT affect AUTOGEN's ability to calculate feedback parameters. For AUTOGEN to properly calculate minimum default values, you should replace the hardcoded values in MODPARAMS.DAT with MIN_ values. If you need to modify the parameter values calculated by AUTOGEN, you can use AUTOGEN to change the hardcoded values in MODPARAMS.DAT.

For more information about the MODPARAMS.DAT file and about using AUTOGEN in general, refer to the OpenVMS System Manager's Manual.

4.12 Postinstallation Checklist

• Verify the system time. (Described in Section 4.1)
• Register your licenses if you did not do so during the installation procedure. (Described in Appendix B of this manual and in the OpenVMS License Management Utility Manual)
• Build a standalone BACKUP kit on the system disk and on removable media. (Described in the upgrade and installation supplement for your computer)
• Back up the system disk as a safeguard before customizing the system. (Described in the upgrade and installation supplement for your computer)
• Customize the system. (Described in Section 4.4)
• Configure and start your networking software. (Described in Section 4.5)
• Run the User Environment Test Package (UETP) to test the system. (Described in OpenVMS System Manager's Manual: Tuning, Monitoring, and Complex Systems)
• Decompress the system libraries using LIBDECOMP.COM. (Described in Section 4.7)
• Remove unwanted files from the system disk using the OpenVMS tailoring utility. (Described in Chapter 10)
• Install layered products.
• Back up the system disk after you have customized it. (Described in the upgrade and installation supplement for your computer)
• Run AUTOGEN after the system has been running for at least 24 hours to collect feedback information. (Described in Section 4.11.)

This chapter describes which tasks you should perform prior to beginning an upgrade. Tasks described in this chapter include:

• Reviewing cautions and restrictions
• Making sure your hardware is ready and your software distribution kit is complete
• Examining AUTOGEN feedback data
• Backing up your system disk
• Preparing your system disk
• Preparing your system
• Gathering the information for the upgrade procedure
• Completing the preupgrade checklist

If you are an experienced system manager, you can use the checklist at the end of this chapter to complete the necessary preupgrade tasks.

If you are system manager with limited OpenVMS VAX experience, you should read the entire chapter and then use the checklist to make sure you have completed all the preupgrade tasks.

5.1 Cautions and Restrictions

This section provides important information that can affect the success of your upgrade. If you attempt to upgrade your system without following these cautions and restrictions, the upgrade could fail or your upgraded system might not perform as expected.

5.1.1 License Requirements

To upgrade to OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2, you must have an appropriate license. Compaq's software licenses grant the right to use the current version of a product or any previous version of the product at the time of purchase. If you have an OpenVMS license prior to Version 7.2 and are not covered by a Software Product Services agreement, which includes the right to use new versions (RTNV), you must purchase an Update License before upgrading to OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2.

If you do not have an Update License, contact your Compaq account representative to assist you in obtaining the correct Product Authorization Key (PAK) needed to access the OpenVMS operating system.

5.1.2 DECset Version 11 Debugger

If you have the DECset Version 11 layered product installed on your system, you must remove the @DEBUG$STARTUP.COM command from the system startup procedure. The debugger shipped with OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2 is a superset of the debugger that was shipped with the DECset Version 11 software. Removing the @DEBUG$STARTUP.COM command will cause the debugger shipped with OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2 to be the default system debugger.

To remove the @DEBUG$STARTUP.COM command before you upgrade the operating system software, perform the following steps:

1. Log in to an account with system privileges.
2. Using the editor of your choice, open the SYS$STARTUP:SYSTARTUP_VMS.COM file and search for the following command:

   $ @DEBUG$STARTUP

   
   Delete the command and any parameters. (The command might have an optional parameter of either VMS or DECSET.)

3. Exit from the file, saving the change.

If you do not remove this command before you upgrade the operating system software, you must remove it after the upgrade, and you must deassign the logicals that were defined by DEBUG$STARTUP.COM by performing the following steps:

1. Log in to the account that you used to perform the upgrade.
2. Enter the following commands:

   $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM DEBUG $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM DEBUGSHR $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM DEBUGUISHR $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM DBGTBKMSG $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM DBG$HELP $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM DBG$UIHELP $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM DEBUGAPPCLASS $ DEASSIGN/SYSTEM VMSDEBUGUIL

3. Using the editor of your choice, open the SYSTARTUP_VMS.COM file and search for the following command:

   $ @DEBUG$STARTUP

   
   Delete the command and any parameters. (The command might have an optional parameter of either VMS or DECSET.)

4. Exit from the file, saving the change.

The OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2 upgrade procedure provides new files and directories in the directory [VMS$COMMON...]. If you had any special protections and access control lists (ACLs) before the upgrade, you need to reapply them to reestablish the security environment you had previously. For more information about creating and maintaining a secure environment, refer to the OpenVMS Guide to System Security.

5.1.4 Operator and Accounting Logs

The upgrade procedure deletes all the operator and accounting logs. To save these files, move them to a user directory before you start the upgrade.

5.1.5 Special Testing and Debugging Files

Before you perform an upgrade, remove or rename any special testing or debugging files that you might have in any of the SYS$SPECIFIC: or SYS$SYSROOT: directories. Files in these directories are used in place of the files in SYS$COMMON: directories.

As a minimum, you should check the following directories:

SYS$SYSROOT:[SYSEXE] SYS$SYSROOT:[SYS$LDR]

Because the upgrade procedure affects the SYS$COMMON: directories and does not check or alter the contents of the SYS$SPECIFIC: or SYS$SYSROOT: directories, any testing or debugging files that you have in these directories remain there unchanged until you remove or rename them. If you do not remove or rename these files, your system might behave in an unpredictable manner.

5.1.6 Cluster Considerations

The following cautions apply when you are upgrading a cluster system:

• The upgrade procedure does not work across the network. The network is not available during the upgrade, so you must have the save sets available locally or on the InfoServer.
• If the node you are upgrading is a cluster member, the upgrade procedure checks the previously set values of several system parameters at the beginning of the upgrade (see Section 7.2.) If any of the values are less than that required to upgrade to OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2, you are given the choice of continuing or canceling the upgrade. If you choose to continue the upgrade, the entire upgrade might not be completed and the cluster might be left in a hung state.
• Before you start the upgrade procedure in a VAXcluster environment, you must shut down all the nodes that boot from the system disk you are upgrading, including the node you perform the upgrade on.

If you move the OpenVMS VAX save sets from the distribution media to the system disk or some other disk before beginning the upgrade, the save sets must be in the [000000] directory of the disk, or the upgrade will fail.

Do not attempt to use VMSINSTAL with OPTION G to transfer OpenVMS VAX save sets to another media type; doing so produces an unusable system. Instead, you can use the DCL command COPY to transfer save sets to another media type.

5.1.8 System Disk Cautions

The following cautions apply to the system disk:

• If you changed the names of system directories on your system disk, the upgrade procedure will not work correctly. Restore your system disk to a standard directory structure before you attempt an upgrade.
• You must not move the system disk or the distribution kit from one drive to another during the upgrade.
• You cannot upgrade a shadowed system disk. If your system disk is part of a shadow set, you must create a nonshadowed system disk before beginning the upgrade.
  Also, if you copy the distribution media to another disk, that disk must be a nonshadowed disk.
  For more information, refer to the manual Volume Shadowing for OpenVMS.
• If you elect not to install optional components, the upgrade procedure removes existing files for those components from the system disk. You can install optional files during the upgrade or later using VMSTAILOR.
  Note that, while some optional files can be placed on an alternate device, you cannot tailor files on or off an alternate device.

If you use your AUTOGEN feedback data, you should save this information before rebooting the system with minimum startup to begin the upgrade. For more information, see Section 5.3.

5.1.10 OpenVMS VAX Version Requirements

Before you can upgrade to OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2, your system must be running at least Version 6.1 of the OpenVMS VAX operating system. For example, you can upgrade a system disk to Version 7.2 of the OpenVMS VAX operating system from any of the following versions (or related hardware releases):

• OpenVMS VAX Version 6.1
• OpenVMS VAX Version 6.2
• OpenVMS VAX Version 7.0
• OpenVMS VAX Version 7.1

If you want to use DECwindows software with OpenVMS VAX Version 7.2, you must be running Version 1.2--3 or higher of the DECwindows Motif for OpenVMS layered product.

For more information, see Section 1.1.2.

5.1.12 Shared System Dump Files

If you have a shared system dump file in SYS$COMMON:[SYSEXE], the shared dump file cannot have the name SYSDUMP.DMP. If you have a shared system dump file with this name, Compaq recommends that you rename it to SYS$COMMON:[SYSEXE]SYSDUMP_COMMON.DMP.

5.1.13 Layered Products

The upgrade procedure is designed so that you should not have to reinstall most layered products after the upgrade. However, you might need to reinstall certain layered products because of product-specific installation procedures.

If a layered product is available yet exhibits unexpected behavior once Version 7.2 of the OpenVMS VAX operating system is running, check the OpenVMS Version 7.2 Release Notes for possible layered-product restrictions.

5.2 Preparing to Upgrade

Before you begin to upgrade the OpenVMS VAX operating system, be sure you have all the required hardware and software components.

5.2.1 Hardware Components

Examine your hardware for the following:

• Make sure your hardware has been checked for proper operation. To perform a successful upgrade, you must understand the basic operations of the VAX computer that you are upgrading. Refer to the upgrade and installation supplement for your VAX computer. If you have a VAXcluster environment, refer to OpenVMS Cluster Systems.
• Set up your system to record the upgrade procedure on either a hardcopy terminal or a printer attached to the console terminal. If you do not do this, the screen messages will be lost. You need a transcript in case there is a problem during the upgrade. For more information, refer to the upgrade and installation supplement for your VAX computer.
• Have scratch console media (media that does not contain files you want to save) available for the following VAX computers:
  • VAX 8600, 8650
  • VAX 8200, 8250, 8300, 8350
  • VAX--11/730
  • VAX--11/750
  • VAX--11/780, 785
  
  For example, if you have a VAX--11/780 or VAX--11/785 computer, you need a scratch RX01 diskette.

Examine your software for the following:

• Make sure you have all the items listed on the bill of materials (BOM) in the OpenVMS distribution kit. If your kit is incomplete, notify Compaq Software Supply, and request priority shipment of any missing items.
• Before upgrading the OpenVMS VAX operating system, read Appendix B of this manual, the OpenVMS Version 7.2 New Features Manual, the OpenVMS Version 7.2 Release Notes, and any cover letters included with your kit.

After the upgrade is finished, AUTOGEN runs. If it finds valid feedback data on your system, it tries to use AUTOGEN feedback.

5.3.1 Valid Feedback Data

Feedback data is produced by the SAVPARAMS phase of AUTOGEN and is stored in SYS$SYSTEM:AGEN$FEEDBACK.DAT. Valid feedback data is defined as follows:

• The system was up for at least 24 hours when the feedback data was gathered.
• The feedback data is not over 30 days old.

If your feedback data is not valid, AUTOGEN will run without feedback (all previous feedback-generated parameters will be replaced by the AUTOGEN NOFEEDBACK calculations).

5.3.2 How to Test Feedback Data

To ensure that AUTOGEN feedback will run after the upgrade, do the following:

1. Check the validity of your current feedback data by entering the following command:

   $ @SYS$UPDATE:AUTOGEN GETDATA TESTFILES

   
   This command is for test purposes and does not result in the modification of system parameters or changes to the page and swap files. If your current feedback is valid, AUTOGEN uses it during the upgrade, and you can proceed to the next section.
   If your current feedback data is invalid, AUTOGEN issues several warnings. If you get these warnings, go to step 2.

2. If your current feedback is invalid, you can generate new feedback data (assuming your system was up for at least 24 hours). Enter the following command:

   $ @SYS$UPDATE:AUTOGEN SAVPARAMS TESTFILES

   
   This command is for test purposes and does not result in the modification of system parameters or changes to the page and swap files. Again, AUTOGEN warns you if the feedback data just produced is invalid.

3. If you follow steps 1 or 2 and your current feedback data is valid, AUTOGEN uses your current feedback-generated parameters during the upgrade. Your current feedback-generated parameters will not be lost during the upgrade.

Compaq recommends that you make a standalone BACKUP copy of the system disk and, if your configuration allows it, upgrade the backup copy. If there are problems, you will still have a working system disk.

5.4.1 How to Back Up the System Disk

To make a backup copy of the system disk, follow the instructions in the upgrade and installation supplement for your VAX computer. If you do not have a removable system disk, back up your system disk to tape and restore the image backup to the system disk. This eliminates disk fragmentation on the system disk and creates contiguous free disk blocks required for the upgrade. (The upgrade can fail if there are not sufficient contiguous free blocks.) Store the backup tapes in a safe place.

5.4.2 How to Back Up Console Media

If you have one of the following VAX computers, you must also make a backup copy of the console media:

• VAX--11/730
• VAX--11/750
• VAX--11/780, 785
• VAX 8200, 8250, 8300, 8350, 8600, 8650

To make a backup copy of the console media, use the SYS$UPDATE:CONSCOPY.COM procedure, as described in the upgrade and installation supplement for your VAX computer. Use the backup copy of the console media during the upgrade procedure. The upgrade procedure automatically updates the console media for you.

If your VAX computer uses one of the following console media, you did not receive a new standalone BACKUP kit with your OpenVMS VAX distribution kit:

• TU58 tape cartridge
• RX33 diskette
• RX50 diskette
• RX01 diskette
• RL02 disk cartridge

Before beginning the upgrade, make sure you have a standalone BACKUP kit on one of these media. If you do not have one, create a standalone BACKUP kit using the STABACKIT.COM procedure as described in the upgrade and installation supplement for your VAX computer.

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