Ultrix-11 Networking

[Bill Gunshannon]

On 8/28/21 4:13 PM, Douglas Taylor via cctalk wrote:
> On 8/28/2021 1:15 PM, Bill Gunshannon via cctalk wrote:
>> On 8/28/21 1:03 PM, Douglas Taylor via cctalk wrote:
>>> Yes, I did create a new kernel and copy it to the correct place and 
>>> chmod 644 the new unix file.
>>
>> Did yo have fun playing with the overlays?  :-)
> 
> I don't know what this means.  The kernel creation was automatic, it 
> seemed to check for enough room.

I guess you did the bare minimum to get the network up.  When I buld
a new kernel I tend to add all the devices (like multiple network cards
and serial cards) that I may want in the future.  I have often had to
manually shift things around and usually create one or two additional
overlays to get it all to fit.  I actually enjoy doing it.  :-)

> 
>>
>>> On my Debian system I can install ftpd and telnetd (they are still in 
>>> the Debian package list) which are the unsecure ones, but I don't 
>>> know how to configure them or start them.  As in, # systemctl restart 
>>> ftpd
>>
>> Probably easier to turn them on on Ultrix-11.  Just modify inetd.conf.
>> Actually, I just looked and ftp is on by default. Telnet is not.
> I edited inetd.conf to uncomment telnet.  It helped.
>>
>>>
>>> It turns out to not be a hot topic: "How do I make my Liinux system 
>>> less secure?",  but for us that noodle around with old computers with 
>>> obsolete operating systems it is exactly what we need.  In the past I 
>>> remember using Filezilla to go from a Windows7 machine into a Vax 
>>> without any problem.
>>
>> I suspect you will be somewhat disappointed with networking in
>> Ultrix-11.  Not that there is something wrong with it, just that
>> the hardware is nothing like you are used to.  In the early days
>> of networking it was not unusual for systems like the PDP-11 to
>> crash just because of the traffic passing by on their network
>> connection.  The advent of switches helped alleviate that but it
>> is still common to crash a system by pushing data at it from a
>> modern ftp.  I expect FileZila will do it.  To be honest, I always
>> preferred Kermit for moving files.  It is possible to keep packet
>> sizes down and even slow down the transfer rate to give the PDP
>> time to handle it.
>>
>> bill
>>
>>
>>
> I brought up a Vax Alpha 3000-300 and tried interacting with the 
> Ultrix-11 simulation:
> 
> Starting in Ultrix-11 I could log into the vax via telnet. Ultrix-11 ftp 
> was able to transfer a short ascii file from the Vax to the Ultrix-11 sim.

Just another note. remember that ulimit is only 1024 on Ultrix-11 by
default.  That means no file larger than 10M.  Unless you raise ulimit.


> 
> Going the other way, Ultrix-11 would reject an ftp request from the vax, 
> here is the error message -
> 
> $ ftp 192.169.0.52
> %TCPIP-E-FTP_NETERR, I/O error on network device
> -SYSTEM-F-UNREACHABLE, remote node is not currently reachable
> $

Been a long time.  Could have to do with PTYs.  Remember, FTP takes two
open connection and the number of possible connection on Ultrix-11 is
very limited.

> 
> Ultrix-11 would allow a telnet connection (after the change to 
> inetd.conf) and I could do an ls, but when I asked for a man page it 
> hung up.  Nothing after that, had to kill it.

I told you it was very unstable.  :-)

> 
> I got the same result whether I was telneting in from the Vax or Linux 
> computer.  Probably not news to you.  I wonder if real hardware works 
> just like this....

Sometimes, but I always found SIMH less reliable with my limited use
of it.  I always preferred real hardware.

> 
> It was good to find out that you can get things in/out of the Ultrix-11 
> simulation.

Like I said, I usually find Kermit over emulated serial lines to be more
efficient at moving stuff on and off.  The network may be faster but
failures after 4 hours of a transfer can be very frustrating.  Better
to let kkermit have it over night and then get a fresh start in the morning.

bill