Change to Patch services effective September 18, 2010

[Steven Schweda]

> I wonder if something creative could be
> done with wget to fetch the kits.

Perhaps. Probably not, if the Web interface
relies on JavaScript. I haven't seen a spec
explaining how this scheme would (does?)
work, and, not having "an active HP support
agreement that includes Software Updates
linked to [my] ITRC profile", I can't easily
run an experiment which might reveal what
would be required.

I have done simple Web form submission using
wget, and I gather that it can handle some
more complex stuff like certificates and
cookies, but I haven't tried to use any of
those fancy features.

[twhjr]

It seems to me that many years ago there was a character cell browser for VMS? Does anyone remember this or is my memory and old age playing tricks?

[Rick Dyson]

Lynx. Available for lots of platforms. But I bet it would not work in this case as the new HTML protocols, javascript, etc would all get in the way.

rick

[labadie_1]

Install Python for your user with the LD devices
http://www.vmspython.org/DownloadAndInstallationPython

and you have mechanize listed in the modules available,
"
mechanize dev 1-MAY-2009
http://wwwsearch.sourceforge.net/mechanize/

Stateful programmatic web browsing in Python, after Andy Lester's Perl module WWW::Mechanize
"

and use mechanize, which lets you go to a site, fill a form with a user and password, click on the second link, on the link name abc...

You have many examples on the website.

You will need either an
import re
in your Python program, to use the regular expressions, or use BeautifulSoup, which is included too, and works on "bad" html, xml...
version 3.07a of BeautifulSoup is available, see the website
http://www.crummy.com/software/BeautifulSoup/

[Graham Burley]

> Perhaps. Probably not, if the Web interface relies on JavaScript.

I was unable to browse the Patch database with JavaScript disabled as the version selection field was not functional.

[Jeremy Begg]

I don't think this is any part of a sinister plot for the demise of OpenVMS. I do however think it's very annoying and the removal of FTP access unfairly penalises those of us who ARE paying for OpenVMS support.

September 18 falls during the OpenVMS Bootcamp. I will be raising this with HP OpenVMS Engineering -- and I hope everyone else at the Bootcamp will do the same.

Regards,
Jeremy Begg

[Ian Miller.]

Note the following news article with quotes from here

http://3000newswire.blogs.com/3000_newswire/2010/08/hps-customers-push-back-on-paid-patches.html

[Chris Scheers]

Does anyone know if this change will also lock up firmware updates?

[Dennis Handly]

>Chris: Does anyone know if this change will also lock up firmware updates?

That would be my reading for patches from the ITRC. Unless you need hardware enablement (HWE) patch bundles or patches and products for the new HP Integrity Superdome 2.

[Richard Jordan]

Has anyone received any useful reply from HP on any queries or complaints sent to them about this?

Outside of automatic acknowledgments, and a marked increase in irrelevant emails from them (for the last few days I'm getting a lot of consumer product emails from HP, which I was not receiving before) I've heard nothing back.

[Ian Miller.]

VMS, HPUX and other customer feedback ( including a pointer to this thread) is being collected and passed on upwards in HP.

Do keep sending your feedback to your HP Account Manager, VMS Ambassador etc.

[cnb]

:(

I've yet to receive any response (other than the auto-reply) to my email inquiry about this change and I have a support contract!

Not too happy about the lack of response.

I did get Greg Ivans (HP-UX HWE Prg. Mgr.) to respond over in the HP-UX forum, when questioning firmware access.

Waiting for the other shoe to drop...


Rgds,

-cnb

[Ian Miller.]

re firmware.

"The current phase of this Patch entitlement change does not cover PSP, BiOS, and Firmware. These will evaluated in future phases of the program. "

re ISV, AllianceOne access and hobbyist access - no news so far.

[Richard W Hunt]

This hits me in a different and entirely unpredictable way. I have had this ITRC account literally for a couple of DECADES after a support countract that existed back when I first came on board to the Dept. of Defense site. Our site contract lapsed during the ordeal after Hurricane Katrina forced us to an alternate site 600+ miles away. Then we moved back and I stopped dealing with the s/w service folks directly for a long time after that.

I have no clue on Earth as to what support contracts are tied to this account. I know we have a contract, but don't know how to tie it to my ITRC account - because I'm so far down on the totem pole that I don't even know who is my official support POC. Someone deep in the bowels of government might know that, but I don't. (And if you think that's a cr@ppy situation, remember ... I really DID say "bowels of government.")

I've already been forced by my own site's security to use a Microsoft browser to download patches anyway because of the presence of "For Official Use Only" data on my system. The firewalls won't let me directly hit the FTP site via OpenVMS. So I can't say anything about the "Browser to get patches" stuff. I therefore can't lay blame for that on HP.

[Rob Leadbeater]

Hi,

According to the other thread regarding this, over in the HP-UX forum, this change has been delayed by a week...

http://forums.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/questionanswer.do?threadId=1444471

Cheers,

Rob

[Ian Miller.]

The latest official news

"All HP customers & partners can currently continue to access the required patches either way, through the usual and current FTP process or through new ITRC-SAID process, and this will be available until Oct 5th. HP has not triggered a hard stop on the 18th as communicated but have both solutions active for a couple extra weeks to ease the transition of our millions of users worldwide."

So 5th October is the date to remember.

[Richard Jordan]

Thanks for the update. They still haven't responded at all to my multiple contacts (though I'm still getting the junk HP consumer emails that started after my 'contact the CEO' attempt).

The Microsoft fanboys in the office are beside themselves with joy... another nail hammered home. This patch debacle is being presented to our remaining VMS customers as another reason to consider transition/porting to a "better supported platform".

[abrsvc]

Without getting too off topic here, I usually counter the "more supported" argument with the fact that VMS rarely requires support to begin with. I still have a VAX runnig VMS V5.5 that hasn't missed a beat in over 10 years. Been booted twice during that time due to power loss.

Lets see a Microsoft system do that!!
Dan

[Brad McCusker]

Hi Ian - is there a web pointer to the verbiage that mentions October 5? Customer is asking.

Thanks

Brad

[Ian Miller.]

Brad,
I saw the message re Oct 5th internally to HP. I think it has been sent out to some customers.

I did comment that this latest news should be announced more visibly.

[Hoff]

The lockdown has arrived.

[tsgdavid]

Is there any sign that HP is willing to reconsider this ridiculous policy?

[Richard Jordan]

>> Is there any sign that HP is willing to reconsider this ridiculous policy?

Not so far. I haven't even received any response (not even boilerplate) to five separate messages sent in to VMS and corporate folks; just the autoresponder acknowledging receipt.

If they can't even be bothered to put together a boilerplate blow-off message, I doubt that any consideration of customer feedback is happening.

[Steven Schweda]

> [...] five separate messages sent in to VMS
> and corporate folks [...]

Sent how? In my experience, the "Feedback"
Web forms scattered around hp.com are
information black holes. Plain-old e-mail to
"OpenVMS.Programs" (at the plausible domain)
does better. (That's how I learned that I
could expect the Hobbyist situation to be
sorted out weeks ago. I'm still waiting, of
course, but I did get that one encouraging
reply before the long silence set in.)

[Ian Miller.]

people can keep replying but I'm closing this so I don't have to keep submitting points.