modem issues

[Fred Martin_1]

I have a modem connected to an RP5450, running HP-UX 11.11.

The modem is set up in SAM on a PCI Mux, as /dev/ttyd2a1, HW: 0/4/0/0

The modem has been behaving flaky lately. It's used for faxing and faxes fail 30% of the time.

I've replaced the modem, cables, even the phone number/dial tone, etc. etc. and now just want to try re-starting any processes related to it on the unix box.

Can someone tell me what I'd need to do, short of booting the server. Can it be done in SAM?

Thanks,

Fred

[Bill Hassell · Accepted solution]

Fax success requires two parts -- the local system and modem, and the remote fax. Your fax software should have a detailed log of the fax transmission process. The following failures cannot be fixed in HP-UX (or cables or a new modem, etc):

- wrong phone number
- wrong area code
- did not dial 8 or 9 for outside line
- dialed 8 or 9 but it's not required
- dial 1 but not needed
- did not dial 1 but it is needed
- receiving fax is busy (but fax software should hanlde this)
- receiving fax jams during reception/printing
- receiving fax is a computer which ran out of space or rebooted or other problems

If your fax software doesn't provide this information in a detailed log, find another fax software vendor.

[Fred Martin_1]

Thanks Bill, I'm sure it's none of those. A department here uses this fax daily to send faxes to 10-15 vendors. Fails equally (about 30%) to all of the vendors fax machines.

Fred

[Fred Martin_1]

The fax software just issues a general 'transmission error' message. I ran tests with a machine local to me, and the machine takes the call and answers, goes through the handshake, then fails.
Fred

[Bill Hassell]

This may as simple as a bad fax modem. I used to run a 4 modem fax pool with MultiTech modems and got similar errors with the fax software I had but only on one modem. Try another one.

[TwoProc]

Over the years, I've found that faxes, modems, and printers are all there mainly to make sys admins maintain their humility...

And I hate them all for it.

:-)

Remember, true humility only comes from professional humiliation.

[Fred Martin_1]

Yeah, swapping the modem was one of the first things I tried. Cables too. Well, I've more or less decided that the fax software itself is screwed up. While troubleshooting this morning I stopped the fax services and now they won't start up again. Says the fax server is already up when I issue the command to bring it up. When I query the status of server though it says it's down. A catch 22.

I have a window tonight where I can reboot the whole dang unix box, I may just do that. A sledge hammer, I know. But then I'll know.

Fred

[Patrick Wallek]

Have you checked for rogue fax software processes with 'ps -ef'? What fax software are you using?

[Fred Martin_1]

Yeah I scoured 'ps -ef' pretty carefully. I'm using VSI-Fax, and a very old version of it at that, ver.3 - I think another company owns them now and they're on ver.6, I've not paid for support in a long time.

[TwoProc]

Fred, there's probably a lock file somewhere that's making the software think it's up. It may be even named something as obvious as SYSTEMUP, OR LOCKID, or LOCKPID... etc. Usually they are zero bytes and you can just delete them, move them, rename them, etc. what ever you feel comfortable about.