Windows is unable to start VMS EXEcutable

[Arch_Muthiah]

Hi,
I have posted similar question couple of months back, I still have the problem, but this time with other customer.

Env: Alpha Server/VMS 8.2 single node cluster, TCPIP V5.4 latest ECO, & Wind 2K. Both VMS & Windows side programs uses TCPIP socket routines. A Windows side program should start the VMS side application, and VMS returns the status back to windows.

No problem communicating from VMS to windows &
c:\ Telnet vms_ip 5601
c:\ Telnet vms_fqdn 5601
c:\ Telnet vms_node_name 5601
All the above commands work fine.

This application works fine with individual VMS node or two node cluster. The problem is only with this setup of single node cluster (plan of adding nodes in the future).

Error: when we start the windows program, it ends with the error "Unable to start the VMS' xxxx.EXE program"

In VMS side, a SERVICE is ENABLED to handle windows request and LISTENing at the preassigned port 5601.

As I found no proble in the communication side, now I concentrate on any problem with cluster VOTES, or QUORUM values.

I have attached VMS' TCPTRACE output taken during the windows program trying to start the VMS application.

Expecting your valuable suggestions

Thanks
Archunan

[Volker Halle · Accepted solution]

Archunan,

the full TCPTRACE shows the communication between node 10.91.2.52 Port 2888 (the Windows System ?) and node 10.91.1.61 Port 5601 (the VMS system ?).

Some user data is being exchanged, but it's not ASCII readable, so it would be up to you to decode the user data (after the second '|' in each packet captured).

The trace does not cover the connection establishment phase (SYN and SYN ACK), but it does capture the termination of the connection (FIN ACK sent from 10.91.1.61 in packet 4142) and acknowledged by 10.91.2.52 in packet 4147 (FIN ACK).

Ethereal seems to be unable to decode the FULL TCPTRACE format, so maybe next time you could run TCPTRACE without /FULL.

You've run TCPTRACE on the VMS system to capture the TCP data exchange, so what problem could there be with VOTES or QUORUM ?

Maybe you could run TCPTRACE in a working environment, so you have something to compare against and you might be able to spot the differences and find out where it goes wrong.

Is there any logfile of the VMS side TCP server program ? Is this server supposed to start a detached process ? Maybe check in accounting, if a process get's started but exits immediately ?

Volker.

[Robert Gezelter]

Archunan,

In the situation that you describe in your posting, I would be surprised if ANY of the cluster parameters are relevant.

The message "Unable to start the VMS'xxx.EXE program" appears, if I am reading your posting correctly, to be coming from the Windows program. I would start by looking at the source of that program to identify what can lead to that message.

- Bob Gezelter, http://www.rlgsc.com

[Robert Gezelter]

Archunan,

In re-reading my post, a clarification.

If the cluster parameters were incorrect, the cluster member would be non-responsive in an overall way. Your post seems to indicate that the cluster member is otherwise functional.

- Bob Gezelter, http://www.rlgsc.com

[Arch_Muthiah]

Volker, First my thanks for reading my lenthiest question and brief answer.

"The trace does not cover the connection establishment phase (SYN and SYN ACK),..."

ANS: do you mean that Windows connection request did not reach and acknowledged by VMS?, do you feel any netwpork issues involved in Windows side?

"but it does capture the termination of the connection..."
ANS: Yes it will be correct as there are no communication problem from VMS to Windows.

"You've run TCPTRACE on the VMS system to capture the TCP data exchange, so what problem could there be with VOTES or QUORUM ?"

ANS: If the Cluster's number of VOTES is less than QUORUM value, then Cluster member suspend all process activity and all I/O operations to cluster-accessible disks. Isn't it?
In that case, can I increase the EXPECTED VOTES or node VOTES ?

TCPTRACE command was taken from the working env, I will ask the customer for TCPTRACE without /FULL.

We have log file created by the intial startup COM procedure which actually start the EXE to be run, it contains only ....
$ ty DSA0:[xxxx.TMP]daemon_service.log
$ Set NoVerify
$ DEFINE/PROCESS UCX_MODE "1" !Define TCP/IP as UCX version
VMS_job_starter terminated at 26-APR-2006 14:40:56.12
Accounting information:
Buffered I/O count: 109 Peak working set size: 5616
Direct I/O count: 61 Peak virtual size: 177856
Page faults: 349 Mounted volumes: 0
Charged CPU time: 0 00:00:00.32 Elapsed time: 0 00:00:01.92

one more doubt: can windows able to start any VMS executable from single node node cluster?, any VOTE issues involved in this?

Archunan

[Arch_Muthiah]

Bob,
When I reponded to Volker, I saw your ans:

Thanks for reading my lenthiest question. I thought you people may not have time to read my lenghtiest question.

Volker said, "The trace does not cover the connection establishment phase", Is it anyway related with VOTES, because when cluster VOTES falls below the QUORUM value, the executable in the common disk can not be accessible. Is it true, Bob?


Archunan

[Art Wiens]

If your unsure, set VOTES and EXPECTED_VOTES to 1.

I believe Volker was pointing out that you haven't included the whole "conversation" between the two systems, he didn't see the initiation of the conversation in your trace.

Possibly an extra clue will be obtained with a REPLY/ENABLE on an existing VMS session when you try and start your Windows program. Maybe a login failure or permission problem or such.

Art

[Jan van den Ende]

Archunan,

I fully expect Bob to agree with Volker - as I do.
If anything is wrong with your VOTES and/or EXPECTED_VOTES, one way => your system will not do ANYTHING - except waiting for something to reset the wrong setting, or, the error(s) to the other wrong end => any semi-disturbance in connectivity and your disks go corrupt. But IF anything is funtioning (and it does - you DO get trace info) than the VOTES mechanism has _NO_influence!
Alas, -- I can operate TCPIP somewhat, but I am not a guru, and I know next to nothing in the M$ area. I consider myself unfit to debug mixed-platform TCP problems.
But I will monitor this thread to learn!

Proost.

Have one on me.

jpe

[Arch_Muthiah]

Thanks Jan and Art.

Every one knew Jan maintains his cluster environment UP for more than 9 years. I was expecting your answer for my previous similar thread also. Though you said you zero experience in mixed platform area, your posting gave some confirmed information.

Art: the VOTES and EXPECTED_VOTES values are 1 1 only (by default). I have given as much possible information as I can.

As Bob suggested, now I am looking into the code C++, it looks like one of the thread started by parent process (handles arrays of threads) takes time and failed in some type of testing (not sure, it may be time delay by a thread in releasing out the shared memory or some other).

I am wondering that the same application is running fine in my environment with same AS/VMS 8.2, mine is individual node.

I still expect more of your valuable suggestions and idea to where can I look into.

Thanks

[Steven Schweda]

Clearly, if the VMS system does _anything_,
then it does not have a cluster votes/quorum
problem.

> it ends with the error "Unable to start
> the VMS' xxxx.EXE program"

I'd spend more time looking at the program
which puts out this (pretty useless) error
message, to try to detrermine _why_ it
believes that it was unable to "start the
VMS" program. For example, what, exactly,
does it do, and what, exactly, fails?