Using DECset CMS to store ZIP files

[Robert Atkinson]

I'm considering using CMS to store non-VMS files, as we already use CMS on our Alpha systems.

I know it's happy with flat text files, but I've seen a couple of issues when storing binary files.

Does anyone have any experience with storing ZIP files in CMS?

Rob.

[Hoff]

Most (all?) recent and most (all?) current CMS versions and current ECOs work for all the binary types I've tried. And zips were among the files that were successfully stored in and retrieved from the library.

The biggest problem with storing binary files inside CMS is that the files are delta'd. This was one of the reasons why VDE (Freeware) was created, as this allows modules to be stored alongside the CMS library.

Yes, there were a couple of problematic releases a while back, and some binary formats were more ugly than one could imagine. (One vendor was storing data after the EOF!) AFAIK, all current CMS stuff works, and works just fine.

OpenVMS Engineering uses (used?) CMS as part of storing and managing the source code of OpenVMS, and stores (stored?) zip files in CMS. I know I stuffed my share of zips into the master pack libraries, both during production and during source system (VDE and CMS) testing.

Stephen Hoffman
HoffmanLabs

[Hoff]

ps: try it.

The last problematic CMS releases I can recall were un-ECOd mid-V3.* range releases. These from many years back. Haven't seen oddities on the later V3.* releases and the V4.* releases I've tried.

[Heinz W Genhart]

Hi Hoff and Robert

short time ago I tried to store MS Word documents belongig to a project together with the project's source files within a CMS Library (CMS V4.2, OVMS 7.3-2).
After fetching those documents, MS Word was unable to read them. I never had a problem with storing *.exe files in cms libraries, but it seems not to be a good idea to store MS Word documents within CMS.

Regards

Heinz

[Robert Atkinson]

That's what my worry is, although to be fair, I don't think the problems lie with corrupt data, but in the change of file format.

When I tried it, the file went from StreamLF to variable, or something similar.

Rob.

[Heinz W Genhart]

Hi Rob

I tried also to create a fdl File of a good Word document. After fetching the Word document I used the fdl File to convert the document. The file atributtes of the good and the bad version of the document was same, after some work. ....I tried a lot of things, because this document within the cms library was the only version I had. The final solution was, to rewrite the document !

Regards

Heinz

[Hoff]

Microsoft Office was the vendor package that was storing data after EOF.

I think there was a fix for this one.

If this is the case, if you DIFFERENCES the files before and after the CMS library storage, they should be identical.

If you DUMP the files before and after, you'll see differences after the EOF -- IIRC, CMS then implemented a work-around for this mis-set EOF and stored the last chunk after the EOF regardless.

There's a Windows CMS client around that might (also) help here.

[Stuart Johnson_3]

How does one get access to the windows client for CMS if you are a hobbyist?

[Hoff]

AFAIK, the CMS client for Windows not in the OpenVMS hobbyist program. At least, I don't remember seeing it listed.

Order up HP DECset clients, QB-3WUAA-SA, or whatever HP part number has replaced that DEC 2-5-2 part. It was a disk with the kit.

Here's the EMEA page with the SPD: http://h18000.www1.hp.com/emea/software/uk/decsetcl.html