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Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

 
Clark Powell
Frequent Advisor

Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

For the last 20 years our programmers have been putting REQUEST command messages into their programs without directing the output using the /TO= qualifier. I'm not too excited about asking them to re-write their programs to direct these messages to one OPC class. But, it's a real nuisance when I'm trying to look at NETWORK messages and I get a blast of these messages from a batch job. So I would like to find out if there is a way to define a default class for these undirected messages so I don't have to ask them to modify their REQUEST commands. It would have to NOT affect normal OpenVMS system messages.

thanks
Clark Powell
6 REPLIES 6
Jim_McKinney
Honored Contributor

Re: Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

You may already be aware of this, but, in case you're not... their messages are all directed to the CENTRAL operator classification of terminals. Rather than change their behavior you might consider changing yours - just REPLY/ENABLE=NETWORK and you will only see broadcasts targeting the NETWORK class.

Or you might have them define a global symbol in their LGICMD (or you selectively define it for them in SYLOGIN) so that REQUEST :== REQUEST/TO=OPER1 or whatever.
Clark Powell
Frequent Advisor

Re: Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

I do use REPLY/ENABLE=NETWORK but it does not filter out the messages from the REQUEST commands.
Jim_McKinney
Honored Contributor

Re: Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

You're exactly right, a generic request is seen be network-only enabled operators - my bad.

The strategy of using a symbol that I previously described should work...

$ repl/stat
%%%%%%%%%%% OPCOM 2-JUL-2010 12:18:36.49 %%%%%%%%%%%
Operator status for operator _DEV$NTY158:
NETWORK

$ request test
%%%%%%%%%%% OPCOM 2-JUL-2010 12:18:45.34 %%%%%%%%%%%
Message from user MCKINNEYJ on DEV
_DEV$NTY158:, TEST

$ request :== request/to=oper1
$ request test
$ requestxx test
%%%%%%%%%%% OPCOM 2-JUL-2010 12:19:24.43 %%%%%%%%%%%
Message from user MCKINNEYJ on DEV
_DEV$NTY158:, TEST
Clark Powell
Frequent Advisor

Re: Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

It could work but what I was hoping for was a system logical which would tell OPC to send these messages to a specific class. Wouldn't surprise me if someone in engineering had added such a bell and whistle.

Clark
Hoff
Honored Contributor

Re: Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

AFAIK, no such knob exists.

The only knob I'm aware of that's even remotely related to this request is a somewhat problematic scheme within OPCOM that lets you change the names of the specific operator classes. That's never been documented AFAIK, and it's rather awkward to implement.

OPCOM in conjunction with distributed job scheduling and logging and monitoring tools are largely unmodified from their inception and often wholly inadequate technologies.

The VMS OPCOM tools were arguably less capable than those of TOPS nacl at the inception of OPCOM, and things haven't significantly improved within OPCOM in the ensuing thirty or so years.

If you do open this DCL and the programs calling $sndopr for modifications and remediation, then the better fix is arguably to toss this whole REQUEST scheme overboard and replace it with modern tools and techniques.

Comparatively old tools such as syslog() and Nagios are generally superior to OPCOM, IMNSHO.

Here are links to a few of the tools that can be used for distributed management of Linux and Unix platforms, for purposes of comparison, and a link to some syslog-related code for VMS:

http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/1044
http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/1257
Hoff
Honored Contributor

Re: Is there a logical (or other) that will re-direct REQUEST command?

:%s/nacl/back/g