PHP FIle Names on OpenVMS

[Steve Calnek]

Hi,

I'm new to the world of running PHP applications on my VMS server and am hoping someone can help.

A good many PHP files in the app I'm trying to install follow a naming convention,

"filename.inc.php"

VMS does not like the second period of course.

My question is..... Is there away to set the system to allow these files without messing up the rest of my system?

Not sure what info about my system will help so here's the basics,

AlphaServer DS10
OpenVMS v8.3 with update 7.0
TCPIP v5.6-9 ECO3
CSWS v2.1-1 with CSWS 211 update v2.0
CSWS_PHP v1.3 with update v2.0

Thanks for any help you can offer.

Steve Calnek/

[Steven Schweda]

Of PHP I know nothing, but on an ODS5 disk,
extended file names (multiple dots, funny
characters, and so on) are possible.

The C run-time library behavior is controlled
by flags which may be set internally by the
program, or externally using CRTL Feature
Logical Names:

HELP CRTL Feature_Logical_Names

Which ones will do what you want without
breaking things depends on how the software
was ported to VMS. Knowing nothing, I can't
advise much here, but popular ones include:

DECC$ARGV_PARSE_STYLE (Depends on SET
PROCESS /PARSE_STYLE = EXTENDED)
DECC$EFS_CHARSET
DECC$EFS_CASE_PRESERVE

I'd expect the documentation to cover this
sort of thing, but what do I know?

[Steve Calnek]

Thanks Steve,

I had missed pointing out that my disk structure is infact ODS-5. I'll take a look at these libraries you've pointed out.

FYI, the tool I'm trying to install is called NET2FTP, its a slick web based ftp client I'm hoping to use with some of my more.... less technically inclined users. I could just drop it on a Windoze box but I'd rather keep it self contained on VMS.

I am prepared to rename the files that are a problem and just modify the code but that traps me to its current release unless I want to repeat the effort. Seems a bit much for FTP.

So I'm still looking for the silver bullit to solve this easily :-) VMS usually has one.

Steve/

[Richard Jordan]

This is from the VAMP board at

http://vamp.issinoho.com/

which unfortunately seems to be down right now. It was the fix to get Joomla and other PHP packages installed properly on my Alpha VMS V8.3 system.

Obviously the disk being initialized as ODS-5 is mandatory.

You will also need Java installed on the system, though it is only used to unpack (using the JAR utility). Apparently even the most recent ZIP/UNZIP utilities are not completely up to the task of dealing with the unfortunate file naming used in many unix-based kits. Your login will need to define the Java symbols, per the instructions in the Java kit from HP.

Here's my 'unpack setup' command procedure:

$ define decc$argv_parse_style enable
$ define decc$efs_case_preserve enable
$ define decc$efs_charset enable
$ define decc$efs_case_special enable
$ define decc$enable_getenv_cache enable
$ define decc$posix_seek_stream_file enable
$ define/job JAVA$FILENAME_CONTROLS 8
$ set process/parse_style=extended

You can then use the JAR command to unpack into the current directory as follows:

$ jar -xvf zipfile

You may also need to edit the LOGIN.COM file for the Apache webserver and add or uncomment the following lines:

$ define decc$efs_case_preserve enable
$ define decc$efs_charset enable
$ define decc$efs_case_special enable
$ define decc$file_sharing enable
$ set process/parse=extended


Then you need to deal with the fact that the PHP kit HP provides is pretty far behind current. Joomla worked with only minor problems (it barely made the minimum supported PHP version) but newer packages that require PHP newer than V4.3.10 (I think thats it) may be problematic until HP releases a newer package.

[Willem Grooters]

It depends on the application.
I use Wordpress and PHPMyAdmin, and worked with PHPBB2 as well. All installed on an ODS-5 disk. I would recommend you do the same.
Your PHP process must have /PARSE=EXTENDED. I don't use CSWS, you may have to adjust the startup to have this setting by default.
You won't need more.

Check www.grootersnet.nl on this subjec, I've written some pages about tis, and there is my Wiki. The VAMP site carrioes a lot of data but might be off line

[Steven Schweda]

> Apparently even the most recent ZIP/UNZIP
> utilities are not completely up to the task
> of dealing with the unfortunate file naming
> used in many unix-based kits.

How apparent that is may depend on what you
call "most recent". Zip 3.0 is out, and
mostly ODS5-capable. UnZip 6.0 is still in
the oven, but the pre-release ("BETA") 6.0d
source kit is in reasonable shape for ODS5.
(UnZip 6.0e is getting ever closer, and that
should be the release candidate for the real
6.0).

Specific complaints are always welcome, but
descriptions like "most recent" and "not up
to the task" are too vague to be of much use.

http://info-zip.org/
ftp://ftp.info-zip.org/pub/infozip/beta

[Willem Grooters]

Additional, to MOD_PHP.

It's behind, indeed, and not complete; you'll miss facilities available in Unix/Windows based versions.
If you plan to use MySQL as a database, be aware that the PHP_MYSQL extension delivered is built against MySQL 3.1. The latest available verion of MySQL is 5.1.23. I would sugest to use that version, not 4.1 which may me bvailable as well - it tends to be quite unstable under load.
I've done a rebuild of this extension for this latest MySQL version that woks very well. You can read all about it on, and via the same locations; Links are available.

[Richard Jordan]

Steven Schweda wrote:

> Specific complaints are always welcome,
> but descriptions like "most recent" and
> "not up to the task" are too vague to be
> of much use.

An entirely fair point. My apologies. At the time I was working on Joomla and some other kits, the UNZIP version available (that I knew about) was UNZIP V5.52 of 28-Feb-2005. It did not handle the multidot names properly but I no longer have the details at hand (since JAR worked). I believed it was a known issue so I didn't report it.

The OP may wish to try a beta Unzip release (I will when I can); if you don't need Java installed for any other reason than the JAR utility, its a pretty big package to have sitting on the system doing nothing. I'd rather have just ZIP and UNZIP myself.