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Re: Advanced Server 7.3a-eco2 appending control char to end of text document?

 
Bob Talbot
Occasional Advisor

Advanced Server 7.3a-eco2 appending control char to end of text document?

Hello... I have been researching an issue where we think a control character in a large ascii file is being appended via Advanced Server 7.3a. Here is the scenerio. A third party vendor/application receives a large .DAT file from us. This process has been fine for years. The sizer of the file is approx. 12k to 15k VMS blocks. I recently upgraded PAthworks from 6.0D to 7.3a eco 2 2 weeks ago. Version of VMS is currently at 7.3 running on an Alpha ES40. Last week when the job ran for the first time, a control character was appended to the end of the data file received by the vendor. I checked the file on VMS (chose option to display Control Chars via reflections terminal emulator) and there was no control character in the file. I viewed the same file (via notepad, worpad, and MS word) via a network share and there was a control char appended to the end. The vendor sees the character as a lowercase h.
I checked the release notes, forums, dsn, etc. and have not seen anything like this. The file is sequential, variable length record format. Any ideas?

Thanks.

Bob
5 REPLIES 5
Brad McCusker
Respected Contributor

Re: Advanced Server 7.3a-eco2 appending control char to end of text document?

This might have something to do with estimate filesize.

You see, Advanced Server doesn't always know the size of non-stream and non-fixed length 512-byte record files. It can estimate the filesize or it can, when these non-native (to AS) files are opened by a client, read to the end of file, counting the number of bytes, to arrive at the exact size (a performance hit).

I think there are cases when estimating file size when a control character might be added, but, I don't recall when/why/how.

I suggest trying to disable estimate_filesize by modifying pwrk.ini and setting ods2_estimate_filesize=no. I think that is the right name. After restarting your server, check the PWRK$MSRV log file, I'm pretty sure the value of the parameter is printed out in that log file.

Brad McCusker
Brad McCusker
Software Concepts International
Bob Talbot
Occasional Advisor

Re: Advanced Server 7.3a-eco2 appending control char to end of text document?

The PWRK.INI file currently looks like this.

[SERVERS]
LICENSE_S = NO

[CONFIG]
CLUSTER = YES

I believe the syntax to make the proposed change would make it look like this.

[SERVERS]
LICENSE_S = NO

[CONFIG]
CLUSTER = YES

[ODS2]
ESTIMATE_FILESIZE=NO

Also, currently, the PWRK$MSRV log files show ODS2_ESTIMATE_FILESIZE: 0.

So am I correct in the syntax to update the PWRK.INI file?

Thanks.
Brad McCusker
Respected Contributor

Re: Advanced Server 7.3a-eco2 appending control char to end of text document?

Ohhh.. you are really testing my memory here. Its amazing how you forget this stuff.

I'm 99% sure the parameter is ODS2_Estimate_filesize.

I don't recall what section it goes in. And, I don't have easy access to the code right now to try to figure it out.

If it is easy enough to bounce your server and test, I'd put it in [config] and see if the value in the server log changes. Then you'll know you've got it.

Brad
Brad McCusker
Software Concepts International
Brad McCusker
Respected Contributor

Re: Advanced Server 7.3a-eco2 appending control char to end of text document?

Yikes!!! what was I thinking? It's starting to come back to me know, and boy do I feel foolish.

Yes, you were correct. It should be:

[ODS2]
ESTIMATE_FILESIZE=NO

I better stop responding to Advanced Server questions. Clearly, I remember just enough to be dangerous ;^).

By the way, I'm only about 50% confident this will help _your_ problem.

Brad
Brad McCusker
Software Concepts International
Bob Talbot
Occasional Advisor

Re: Advanced Server 7.3a-eco2 appending control char to end of text document?


Hi Brad,

I changed the pwrk.ini file and included the ods2 parameter as requested. I shutdown and restarted pathworks. No change. Still a control char at the bottom of the file. The PWRK$LMSRV_node.LOG files have not changed. It still has ODS2_ESTIMATE_FILESIZE:0.
i.e.
WAWAD1> sea PWRK$LMLOGS:pwrk$lmsrv*.log;0 ods2_est

******************************
PWRK$LMROOT:[LANMAN.LOGS]PWRK$LMSRV_WAWAD1.LOG;124

24-MAY-2005 11:43:22.45 2042C838:007AB1C8 ODS2_ESTIMATE_FILESIZE:
0

******************************
PWRK$LMROOT:[LANMAN.LOGS]PWRK$LMSRV_WAWAD2.LOG;128

24-MAY-2005 11:43:56.38 20209561:007AB1C8 ODS2_ESTIMATE_FILESIZE:
0
WAWAD1> sea PWRK$LMLOGS:pwrk$lmsrv*.log;-1 ods2_est

******************************
PWRK$LMROOT:[LANMAN.LOGS]PWRK$LMSRV_WAWAD1.LOG;123

14-MAY-2005 21:23:14.05 2040015A:007B3DC8 ODS2_ESTIMATE_FILESIZE:
0

******************************
PWRK$LMROOT:[LANMAN.LOGS]PWRK$LMSRV_WAWAD2.LOG;127

14-MAY-2005 21:20:02.23 20200453:007B3DC8 ODS2_ESTIMATE_FILESIZE:
0
WAWAD1>

-----------------------------------

So it's back to the drawing board...