FXRNA_IS2_AIX_4.1_Release_Notes_Jul97 FXRNA IS2 AIX 4.1 Release Notes Jul97

FXRNA_IS2_AIX_4.1_Release_Notes_Jul97 FXRNA_IS2_AIX_4.1_Release_Notes_Jul97

User Manual: FXRNA_IS2_AIX_4.1_Release_Notes_Jul97

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AIX Version 4.1

Release Notes
FXRNA/IS2

Second Edition (July 1997)
This edition of Release Notes applies to AIX 4.1 and to all subsequent releases of this
product until otherwise indicated in new releases or technical newsletters.
THIS MANUAL IS PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A
PARTICULAR PURPOSE. The laws of some states and countries do not allow the
disclaimer of express or implied warranties in certain transactions; therefore, this
statement may not apply to you. As such, the above warranty disclaimer shall only
apply to the extent permitted by law.
While reasonable efforts have been made to assure the accuracy of this document,
Motorola, Inc. assumes no liability resulting from any omissions in this document, or
from the use of the information obtained therein. It is not warranted that the contents of
this publication or the accompanying source code examples, whether individually or as
one or more groups, will meet your requirements or that the publication or the
accompanying source code examples are error-free. This publication could include
technical inaccuracies or typographical errors.
Motorola reserves the right to revise this document and to make changes from time to
time in the content hereof without obligation of Motorola to notify any person of such
revision or changes
It is possible that this publication may contain references to, or information about
Motorola products (machines and programs), programming or services that are not
announced or released in your country or region. Such references or information may
not be construed for any purpose to mean that Motorola intends to announce or release
such products, programming or services in your country or region.
Any reference to a licensed program in this publication is not intended to state or imply
that you can use only that licensed program. You can use any functionally equivalent
program instead.
No part of this material may be reproduced or copied in any tangible medium, or stored
in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, radio, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or facsimile, or otherwise, without the prior
written permission of Motorola, Inc.
If the documentation contained herein is supplied, directly or indirectly, to the U.S.
Government, the documentation is provided only as “restricted computer software” as
defined in FAR 52.227-19 Commercial Computer Software--Restricted Rights.
© COPYRIGHT MOTOROLA, INC. 1997. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Printed in the
United States of America.
© Copyright International Business Machines Corporation 1994. All rights reserved.

Contents
CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Purpose ........................................................................................................................ 1-1
Scope ............................................................................................................................ 1-2
Prerequisites................................................................................................................ 1-3
Overview of Contents................................................................................................ 1-4
Related Information................................................................................................... 1-5
Optional Software Information......................................................................... 1-5
README Files..................................................................................................... 1-5
Softcopy Documentation ................................................................................... 1-5
Hardcopy Documentation ................................................................................. 1-5
Getting Help for System Problems .......................................................................... 1-8
CHAPTER 2

All AIX 4.1 Systems

Overview ..................................................................................................................... 2-1
What’s New in this Release ...................................................................................... 2-2
Value-Added Features ............................................................................................... 2-2
xdiff Utility Available ......................................................................................... 2-3
Environmental Monitor Commands................................................................ 2-3
Environmental Monitor Special Files (Devices) ............................................. 2-3
AIX 4.1 Release Naming Conventions .................................................................... 2-5
Installation................................................................................................................... 2-6
Installation Resources......................................................................................... 2-6
AIX 4.1.5 Shipped on Multiple CD-ROMS...................................................... 2-6
Installing AIX 4.1.5 on an Existing AIX System ............................................. 2-6
Updating from an Earlier Version of AIX 4.1.................................................. 2-6
Installing AIX 4.1 on an AIX 4.2 System:......................................................... 2-7
Updating to AIX 4.1.5. in a NIM Environment............................................... 2-8
Do Not Install devices.xrft with Network
Installation Management ................................................................................... 2-8
Migration of Diskless/Dataless Clients and NIM SPOTs ............................. 2-8
bos.content_list Fileset ....................................................................................... 2-9
Trusted Computing Base (TCB) ........................................................................ 2-9
Installing NetWare .............................................................................................. 2-9
Node-locked Licenses Unavailable for Some Products............................... 2-10
Base Operating System............................................................................................ 2-11

iii

New splitlvcopy Command.............................................................................2-11
New pppstat Command ...................................................................................2-12
getattr() Routine Does Not Release Memory.................................................2-12
National Language Support (NLS) ........................................................................2-13
Korean, Chinese (Traditional), and Latin American
Spanish Keyboards............................................................................................2-13
Chinese (Simplified) Keyboard Translate Table ............................................2-13
Chinese (Simplified) Input Method Support.................................................2-14
Error Logging with errpt Command ..............................................................2-14
Known Problems on All Systems ...........................................................................2-15
lscfg and lsdev Commands Do Not Return Memory Size ..........................2-15
SMIT Options Incorrect for SNA Protocol .....................................................2-16
InfoExplorer May Hang with more than 64 Databases................................2-17
Known AIX 4.1 Problems Filed with the Vendor.................................................2-18
CHAPTER 3

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

Overview......................................................................................................................3-1
Installation ...................................................................................................................3-2
Updating from a System Running the AIXwindows Desktop .....................3-2
Updating from a Customized AIXwindows Desktop....................................3-2
Running the AIX Common Desktop Environment ........................................3-4
Existing Applications and CDE 1.0...................................................................3-4
Common Desktop Environment (CDE) Manual Pages
Directory Not in MANPATH .............................................................................3-5
Ensuring Sufficient Disk Space in /var/dt......................................................3-5
Series EX Support Requires PPCOF1.1.............................................................3-5
Series EX and PowerStack II Pro 2000/3000 Systems Require
Software Relicensing after Upgrade .................................................................3-6
PowerStack II Legacy ISA Slave DMA Limitations........................................3-6
Upgraded Driver Firmware Necessary for Conner Tape Drive ...................3-7
Installing a PCI Expansion Chassis on a PowerStack II Series
EX System .............................................................................................................3-7
Multiple Beep Volume Settings Not Supported..............................................3-7
Remote Dump Over ISA Ethernet ....................................................................3-8
IRQs 14 and 15 Available for Plug-In ISA Cards ............................................3-9
System Dump.....................................................................................................3-10
Graphics .....................................................................................................................3-12
Starting the X Server on Machines with Planar Graphics
Capabilities .........................................................................................................3-12
Communications......................................................................................................3-13

Support Added for 3270 Key Mappings for dtterm Terminals.................. 3-13
Resolved Problems in This Release ....................................................................... 3-15
Known Problems on Commercial System Desktops and Servers..................... 3-16
Highest Resolution Not Available on Systems with 1MB
Display Memory for Cirrus Adapters............................................................ 3-16
Operating System Won’t Boot with Attached SCSI
Terminal Server ................................................................................................. 3-17
Audio Device Driver Incompatible with beep ............................................. 3-17
Ultimedia System Audio Driver Does Not Support
PowerStack II Pro4000 Systems ...................................................................... 3-18
System Boot Appears to Halt with stop timed out error on
PowerStack II Pro4000 Systems ...................................................................... 3-18
Floppy Drives Do Not Detect Disk Density.................................................. 3-19
Memory Leak Exists in Motif Version 1.2.3................................................... 3-20
CHAPTER 4

VME Systems and Board-Level Products

Overview ..................................................................................................................... 4-1
Value-Added Features on VME Systems................................................................ 4-2
MVME332XT Driver Command....................................................................... 4-2
VMEbus Device Driver Kernel Service Calls.................................................. 4-2
VMEbus Device Configuration Library Routines .......................................... 4-2
VMEbus Special Files (Devices)........................................................................ 4-3
Alarm Transition Module .................................................................................. 4-3
Installation................................................................................................................... 4-4
Required Firmware Upgrade for VME Systems............................................. 4-4
MVME1603 and MVME1604 Enabled ............................................................. 4-4
MVME332XT Does Not Support All ioctls...................................................... 4-4
MVME332XT Hardware Flow Control Configuration .................................. 4-5
ODM Entries for CLARiiON Telco RAID........................................................ 4-5
Known Problems on VME Systems and Board-Level Products.......................... 4-6
Problem: ............................................................................................................... 4-6
Solution:................................................................................................................ 4-6
CHAPTER 5

FX Series Systems

Overview ..................................................................................................................... 5-1
FX Series Operating System ..................................................................................... 5-2
Paging Space Values ........................................................................................... 5-2
Default Dump Devices....................................................................................... 5-2
System Reboots after a System Dump Taken.................................................. 5-2

Network Installation Management Not Supported .......................................5-3
Tape Devices Diagnostic Not Supported .........................................................5-3
Data Integrity Checker........................................................................................5-3
On-Demand Diagnostics ....................................................................................5-3
New rpthours utility available for FX Series Systems ...................................5-6
AIX commands added for FX Functionality....................................................5-7
General Hardware Notes...........................................................................................5-8
Setting up Telco Alarms......................................................................................5-8
Use ESD Mitigating Procedures ........................................................................5-8
Offlining Personality Modules Not Recommended.......................................5-8
Hot Pull Support..................................................................................................5-8
CPU Module Subsystem............................................................................................5-9
Set Time on New CPU Modules........................................................................5-9
CPU Module Status after a Reboot .................................................................5-10
Do Not Use ftctl Program to Online and Offline CPU Modules ................5-11
OS Watchdog......................................................................................................5-11
ECC Parity Handling .......................................................................................5-11
MFIO Module............................................................................................................5-12
Upgrading Disks from 2Gb to 4Gb .................................................................5-12
Interconnect Module (ICM).....................................................................................5-18
Any Interconnect Module Failure in a Domain Takes
Down the Entire Domain..................................................................................5-18
CPU Modules May Go Offline When an Interconnect
Module Fails.......................................................................................................5-18
Do Not Remove the Interconnect Module without
Disconnecting the Power Cord........................................................................5-19
Power Module and Fantrays...................................................................................5-20
Power Cycle the System Using Power Module Latches .............................5-20
The Power Daemon Takes Time to Complete Its Shutdown.......................5-20
Do Not Boot System with the Fantrays Removed ........................................5-20
Boot System Carefully after Failure of All Power Modules ........................5-21
Boot System Carefully after Failure of All Fantrays.....................................5-22
Known Problems on FX Systems............................................................................5-23
Overview ............................................................................................................5-23
Unbalanced Fault Tolerant Volume Group Is Not Supported ....................5-23
CPU Module’s Battery Backed Real Time Clock Not
Copied During PRI............................................................................................5-24
CPU Reintegration Has Temporary Critical
Fault Under Heavy Load..................................................................................5-25
Hours in Service in Module EEPROMs may be Counted Twice ................5-26

CHAPTER 6

Documentation Changes

Overview ..................................................................................................................... 6-1
InfoExplorer libraries................................................................................................. 6-2
Location of schedtune Command Incorrect in InfoExplorer Libraries .............. 6-3
xmemout() Man Page Incorrect................................................................................ 6-4
AIX Version 4 Installing and Configuring NCDware ........................................... 6-5
AIX Version 4 System Management Guide: Communications
and Network .............................................................................................................. 6-6
Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP) Documentation Error ........................... 6-6
Configuring NIS Documentation Error ........................................................... 6-7
AIX Version 4 Commands Reference ...................................................................... 6-8
AIX Version 4 AIXwindows Programming Guide................................................ 6-9
FX Series Administering Your Fault Tolerant System ........................................ 6-10

vii

viii

List of Tables
TABLES
Table 2-1.
Table 2-2.
Table 2-3.
Table 3-1.
Table 3-2.
Table 5-1.

AIX 4.1 Release Naming Conventions.............................................. 2-5
Keyboard Configuration Information............................................. 2-13
TARs Filed with IBM ......................................................................... 2-18
PCI Interrupt Routing on Systems with ISA Slots .......................... 3-9
Corrected Problems ........................................................................... 3-15
AIX Commands added for FX Series Systems................................. 5-7

1Introduction

Purpose
The AIX 4.1.5 Software Release Notes contains information on new,
changed, or removed functionality of the AIX operating system that
was not available at the time of publication of the AIX
documentation, and contains additional information not
documented in other publications. The Release Notes also contain
information on the functionality of FX Series systems and of VME
boards and systems.

1-1

Scope
AIX 4.1 Release Notes contains information for all supported platforms
on:
• general notes about AIX 4.1, including new or changed
features
• known problems in this release of the AIX 4.1 operating
system
• notes concerning VME systems and products
• notes concerning FX Series systems
• changes and corrections to documents in the AIX 4.1 product
library

1-2

Scope

Prerequisites
Some instructions in this guide assume that you are familiar with:
• AIX system administration commands
• System Management Interface Tool (SMIT)
• software installation operations, such as apply and commit
For general information about these concepts, refer to the AIX
Version 4.1 System Management Guide: Operating System and Devices. Use
this guide in conjunction with AIX 4.1 Installation Guide, AIX 4.1 Quick
Installation Guide and The AIX Version 4 Network Installation Management
Guide and Reference.
For FX-specific information, refer to Administering Your Fault
Tolerant System and Managing System Storage, in conjunction with
the FX Series Hardware Installation and FX Series Operating System
Installation guides.

Introduction

1-3

Overview of Contents
The Installation Guide is organized as follows in the table below.
This Chapter...
Chapter 2, “All AIX 4.1
Systems”
Chapter 3, “Commercial
System Desktops and
Servers”
Chapter 4, ”VME Systems
and Board-level Products”
Chapter 5, “FX Series
Systems”
Chapter 6, “Documentation
Changes”

1-4

Discusses...
features, notes, and known problems
that apply to all Motorola Systems.
features, notes, and known problems
that apply to Motorola commercial
systems only.
features, notes, and known problems
that apply to VME systems and boards
only
information and guidelines concerning
FX Series systems
changes to the documentation library

Overview of Contents

Related Information
Optional Software Information
Licensed programs include AIX 4.1 and optionally purchased
products. Each program can have one or more separately installable
filesets. The Package Installation Database for Current Media is an
InfoExplorer database that contains information about the contents
of these separately installable filesets.

README Files
For information on how to view the README files for the base
operating system (BOS) and optional software products, refer to the
AIX 4.1 Installation Guide.
Some README files are shipped in separate directories that are not
accessible if you follow the procedure described in the AIX 4.1
Installation Guide. To find the README files installed on your
machine, use this command:
find /usr -name “*README” -print

Softcopy Documentation
The majority of the IBM AIX documentation library is shipped
electronically with the BOS CDs with the InfoExplorer help system.
Refer to the Installation Guide for directions on installing
InfoExplorer. Once installed, InfoExplorer can be invoked by
typing info at the command line.

Hardcopy Documentation
Custom hardcopy documentation for general AIX and for FX Series
systems can be ordered by calling the Motorola Computer Group
Literature Center at 888-432-1877 or at 602-804-7378.

Introduction

1-5

1
AIX Version 4.1 Documentation for all Systems
The following hardcopy AIX documentation ships with your
system (non FX):
• AIX 4.1 Release Notes
• AIX 4.1 Installation Guide
• AIX System Diagnostics (ASD) Quick Reference
• Installing and Configuring NCDware
The following documents may be especially useful to novice AIX
users:
• Guide to System Information
• Getting Started
• Quick Reference
• iFOR/LS System Management Guide
• iFOR/LS Tips and Techniques
• Problem Solving Guide
• Messages Guide and Reference
• Performance Tuning Guide
Other MCG titles for generic AIX include:
• Installation Checklist
• Quick Installation Guide
• Network Installation Management Guide and Reference
• Network Installation Management Tips and Techniques
• VMEbus Device Driver Reference
• SVR4 Porting Guide

1-6

Related Information

1
• Managing System Storage
• Configuring and Maintaining the System
FX Series Documentation
Additional hardcopy FX documentation includes:
• Administering your Fault Tolerant System
• Managing System Storage
• Motorola FX Series Fault Tolerant Architecture Overview
• Configuring and Maintaining the System
• Operating System Installation Guide
• Operating System Installation Troubleshooting
• FX Series Diagnostics and Troubleshooting
• FX Series LED and Alarm Quick Reference
• Making and Using Backups
• FX Series System Hardware Installation Guide
Note

Introduction

Managing System Storage and Configuring and
Maintaining the System have been listed under both AIX
documentation and FX Series documentation, because
while they treat generic AIX, they also have sections
which are specific to the FX Series.

1-7

Getting Help for System Problems
If you encounter difficulties with AIX 4.1 on your system or on a
supported board, contact your Value Added Reseller (VAR) or
distributor first. If further assistance is needed, you can contact the
Motorola Computer Group Sales office or Motorola Computer
Group’s customer support group at:
• U.S.A. 1-800-551-1016
• Canada 1-800-387-2416
• Maidenhead, U.K. 44-1628-39121
• Paris, France 33-1-467-43560
• Duesseldorf, Germany 49-211-65899-55
When you call, please be prepared to provide the following
information:
• the type of system (Series E, Series EX, RISC PC, or
RISC PC Plus, or FX Series) or motherboard (MVME, Ultra,
Atlas, or XR Series) you are using with AIX 4.1
• your system or board ID or serial number
• the name of your company, your name, and a telephone
number
• a brief description of the problem, including the severity of its
impact on your ongoing efforts
This information is forwarded to the appropriate technical
engineering contact, who will return your call promptly.

1-8

Getting Help for System Problems

2All AIX 4.1 Systems

Overview
This chapter describes AIX 4.1 information common to all platforms
supported by AIX 4.1 systems. For information specifically relating
to your specific platform, see the appropriate chapter:
• Chapter 3, “Commercial System Desktops and Servers”
• Chapter 4, “VME Systems and Board-Level Products”
• Chapter 5, “FX Series Systems”
This chapter includes information on:
• what’s new in this release
• value-added features specific to Motorola’s AIX 4.1 product
• general guidelines about AIX 4.1
• known problems along with workarounds where possible

2-1

What’s New in this Release
The following features have been implemented in AIX 4.1.5:
• support for IBM’s version of AIX 4.1.5
• ability to upgrade operating system from AIX 4.1.4 (AOS 1.3)
and later versions
• installation and booting of multiprocessor systems
• support for MVME2600, MVME3600, and MVME4600 boards
• bridge crash dump capability
• support for 100BaseT Ethernet PMC card
• support for single-ended and differential SCSI PMC cards
• support for 512MB and 1GB expansion memory
• support for FDDI PMC card
• support for VME transition cards
• Netscape Navigator value pack
• Year 2000 support

Value-Added Features
The AIX 4.1 product is based on IBM’s AIX 4.1 operating system.
Motorola has made changes to this product to support Motorolaspecific hardware platforms, while retaining the functionality and
command structure of IBM’s AIX 4.1 operating system. This section
describes value-added features that are specific to all systems
running Motorola’s version of the AIX 4.1 operating system.

2-2

What’s New in this Release

xdiff Utility Available

The xdiff program is available in AIX 4.1 Service Level AOS1.2
and later releases. xdiff is a graphical interface to the diff
command that allows side-by-side viewing of differences between
files and automated merging of selected differences to create a new
version of a file.
xdiff is automatically installed with the Personal Productivity
bundle. Alternatively, you can install it directly from the
X11.apps.motorola fileset.

Environmental Monitor Commands
These new commands are used with the environmental monitor
and are supported on all systems except RISC PC (and RISC PC
Plus) and FX systems:
• envctl
• envdiag
• rc.motpowerfail
These commands are documented in the manual pages in section
1M. You must use the man command to access these manual pages;
they are not available through InfoExplorer.

Environmental Monitor Special Files (Devices)
These pages describe aspects of environmental monitor special files
(devices) and are supported on all systems except RISC PC, RISC
PC Plus, PowerStack II, and FX systems:
• envmon
• envmon_msg
• envmon_odm

All AIX 4.1 Systems

2-3

You can find these manual pages in section 7. You must use the man
command to access these manual pages; they are not available
through InfoExplorer.

2-4

Value-Added Features

AIX 4.1 Release Naming Conventions

The naming convention for Motorola AIX 4.1 releases has changed
as of release AIX 4.1.4r4.
Releases of AIX 4.1 are named as follows:
Table 2-1. AIX 4.1 Release Naming Conventions
Description
First release of AIX 4.1
Second release of AIX4.1
Third release of AIX 4.1
Fourth release of AIX 4.1
Fifth release of AIX 4.1
Sixth release of AIX 4.1
Seventh release of AIX 4.1
Eight release of AIX 4.1
Ninth release of AIX 4.1
Tenth release of AIX 4.1
Current release of AIX4.1

All AIX 4.1 Systems

Product ID for
Naming
TAR
Convention
Reporting
AOS1.0
AOS1.0
AOS1.1
AOS1.1
AOS1.2
AOS1.2
AOS1.3
AOS1.3
AOS1.3.1
AOS1.3.1
AOS1.3.11
AOS1.311
AIX 4.1.4r4 AOS1.4
AIX 4.1.4r5 AIX414R5
AIX 4.1.4r6 AIX414R6
AIX 4.1.5r1 AIX415R1
AIX 4.1.5r2 AIX 4.1.5R2

Based on
IBM
Release...
AIX 4.1.1
AIX 4.1.2
AIX 4.1.3
AIX 4.1.4
AIX 4.1.4
AIX 4.1.4
AIX 4.1.4
AIX 4.1.4
AIX 4.1.4
AIX 4.1.5
AIX 4.1.5

2-5

Installation
Installation Resources
For more detailed descriptions of general AIX installation
procedures and troubleshooting help, see the Installation Guide and
the Quick Installation Guide. For FX Series Systems, see the FX Series
Operating System Installation Guide, the FX Series Operating System
Installation Troubleshooting Guide, and the FX Series System Hardware
Installation Guide.

AIX 4.1.5 Shipped on Multiple CD-ROMS
AIX 4.1.5 is shipped on multiple media. The BOS and some
additional software is installed on Volume 1. The DCE and
additional software are installed on Volume 2. There are also two
value added CDs.

Installing AIX 4.1.5 on an Existing AIX System
To avoid problems during installation, place the entire system in a
dormant state by:
• making sure that all users are logged off
• stopping all applications
If applications are left running, unpredictable results may occur
and some updates may not be applied.

Updating from an Earlier Version of AIX 4.1
Updates to AIX 4.1.5 are available for systems which are currently
running Version AOS 1.3 and later. For information on how to
update your system from an earlier version of the AIX 4.1 operating
system, refer to the Installation Guide.

2-6

Installation

After updating your system, be sure to reboot the system to
resynchronize the libraries and the login program. If you do not
reboot, you are not able to log in. Existing sessions are not affected.

Installing AIX 4.1 on an AIX 4.2 System:
If you are installing AIX 4.1.5 or any other level of AIX 4.1 on a
system previously installed with AIX 4.2, you should do a complete
overwrite install.
If a preservation install is attempted, the log for the journaled file
system in the rootvg (/dev/hd8) must be reinitialized to be
compatible with AIX 4.1. The logform command which does this
destroys all log records on existing log devices, which may result in
data loss.
Preservation installs of AIX 4.1 on existing 4.2 systems will fail with
the following message:
BOS Install: After saving all the data from the
previous system into /tmp, it was discovered
that there will not be enough free space in /tmp
to make the boot image. Please reboot in normal
mode and increase the size of /tmp or reduce the
number of files to save as listed in the
/etc/preserve.list file.

ID# OPTION
1

Continue

Perform System Maintenance and Then Continue

Enter ID number:

Follow this procedure:
1: Enter ID# 2.
2: At the ‘#’ prompt type:

All AIX 4.1 Systems

2-7

logform /dev/hd8

and press Enter. You will be prompted as follows:
logform: destroy /dev/hd8 (Y)?
3: Type ‘y’ and press Enter.
4: At the next ‘#’ prompt, type:
exit
The preservation install should continue successfully.

Updating to AIX 4.1.5. in a NIM Environment
If you are updating a NIM environment from a version of AIX 4.1
earlier than Service Level AOS1.2, you should first update the NIM
software on the master, clients, and SPOTs. As a result, you will
have access to a function that permits an easier update using NIM.
The enhanced update facilities are described in the Network
Installation Guide and Reference.

Do Not Install devices.xrft with Network Installation
Management
If you are using Network Installation Management (NIM) on your
systems, do not install the fileset(s) devices.xrft into a NIM “spot”
or an lpp_source resource. This fileset is incompatible with the NIM
environment and is not used on most systems.

Migration of Diskless/Dataless Clients and NIM SPOTs
Migration to a new level of AIX currently is not supported for
diskless and dataless clients. Also, migration of a SPOT that is not a
converted /usr file system is not supported.

2-8

Installation

bos.content_list Fileset

AIX 4.1.5 includes a new, optionally installable fileset,
bos.contents_list that lists all installable files and the
filesets/packages that contain them. The fileset includes one file,
/usr/lpp/bos/AIX_file_list.

Trusted Computing Base (TCB)
AIX 4.1.5 contains some changes to permissions of files for security
reasons. For example, the /etc/passwd file has changed permissions
from 664 to 644. Because of a problem with reject and Trusted
Computing Base (TCB), we recommend that you commit the 4.1.5
updates if you have the TCB enabled on your system.
To determine whether TCB is enabled or not, run the tcbck
command as root. If TCB is enabled, tcbck displays a syntax
message. If TCB is not enabled, an error message displays.

Installing NetWare
When installing NetWare for AIX on your system using a language
other than English, do the following:
1. At the system prompt, type
locale

2. Note the value of the LC_ALL variable.
3. Set the LC_ALL variable to en_US using the command:
export LC_ALL=en_US

4. Install NetWare.
5. After installing NetWare, reset the LC_ALL variable to the
original value noted in step 2.

All AIX 4.1 Systems

2-9

Node-locked Licenses Unavailable for Some Products
The iFOR/LS System Management Guide and iFOR/LS Tips and Techniques
include information about and references to node-locked licenses.
However, node-locked licenses are not available for some products
that are NetLS license-enabled. Only concurrent access licenses are
generated for these products.
Motorola products that this affects are:
• C for AIX
• C Set ++
• XL FORTRAN
• XL Pascal
• IBM COBOL Set for AIX
• Configuration Management Version Control (CMVC)
You must use a concurrent access license with the above products.

2-10

Installation

Base Operating System

New splitlvcopy Command
The splitlvcopy command has been added for AIX 4.1.5. This
command splits copies from one logical volume and creates a new
logical volume for them.
To use this command, you must either have root user authority or
be a member of the system group.

!
Caution

Although the splitlvcopy command can split logical
volumes that are open, including logical volumes
containing mounted file systems, this is not
recommended. You may lose consistency between
LogicalVolume and NewLogicalVolume if the
logical volume is accessed by multiple processes
simultaneously. When splitting an open logical volume,
you implicitly accept the risk of potential data loss and
data corruption associated with this action. To avoid the
potential corruption, close logical volumes and
unmount file systems before splitting.

You cannot use SMIT to run this command. Message catalogs are
not supported for this command and therefore the error messages
are provided in English only with no message catalog numbers.
Documentation for splitlvcopy consists of the man page. No
additional information for splitlvcopy exists in InfoExplorer.

All AIX 4.1 Systems

2-11

New pppstat Command
The pppstat command has been added for AIX 4.1.5. This command
extracts and displays the RAS (Reliability, Availability, and
Serviceability) information of the PPP (Point to Point Protocol)
subsystem. This command only applies to AIX 4.1.5.

getattr() Routine Does Not Release Memory
The getattr() routine allocates memory for the CuAt structures
that are returned. This memory is automatically freed when your
application exits. However, you need to free this memory in your
application if it invokes getattr() routine several times and runs
for a long time.

2-12

Base Operating System

National Language Support (NLS)

Korean, Chinese (Traditional), and Latin American Spanish
Keyboards
The mappings and input methods for Korean, traditional Chinese,
and Latin American Spanish locales have been enhanced to support
the new PS/2 keyboards. However, because these keyboard
options do not appear under the Manage Language Environments
menus in SMIT, you need the following information to configure
the system with these keyboards:
Table 2-2. Keyboard Configuration Information
Language
Korean
Traditional Chinese
LA Spanish

Command
chkbd /usr/lib/nls/loc/KW@alt.lftkeymap < /dev/lft0
chkbd /usr/lib/nls/loc/zh_TW@alt.lftkeymap < /dev/lft0
chkbd /usr/lib/nls/loc/es_LA.lftketmap < /dev/lft0

Chinese (Simplified) Keyboard Translate Table
In AOS1.3 and later releases of AIX 4.1, you can view the keyboard
information for the Simplified Chinese Keyboard (Code Set
IBM-eucUCS) in the file:
/usr/lpp/X11/defaults/xmodmap/zh_CN/keyboard

If you are running with the ZH_CN locale (UTF-8 codeset), this
keyboard information is located in the file:
/usr/lpp/X11/defaults/xmodmap/ZH_CN/keyboard

All AIX 4.1 Systems

2-13

Chinese (Simplified) Input Method Support
As of the AOS 1.3 release of AIX 4.1, support for the 5-stroke input
method has been removed. Pressing Shift-F5 and Shift-F6 no longer
invokes the 5-stroke input method under the simplified Chinese
(zh_CN) locale.

Error Logging with errpt Command
When you run the errpt command under a non-English language
environment, in some cases the system may return a 4-digit
hexadecimal value instead of the error message text. This indicates
that the system cannot find a message number for that message in
your language’s codepoint catalog.
Change the language environment setting to English with the
following command:
LANG=C

and then run the errpt command. The English text for the error
message is displayed.

2-14

National Language Support (NLS)

Known Problems on All Systems

This section contains information on known problems in this
release of AIX 4.1. Workarounds have been provided whenever
they are available.
For additional troubleshooting information, refer to Installation
Troubleshooting and Problem Solving Guide and Reference.

lscfg and lsdev Commands Do Not Return Memory Size
Tracking Number
TAR 1–39744 and TAR 1–39647
Problem
As of AIX 4.1 Service Level AOS1.2, the lscfg and lsdev
commands no longer return the system memory size.
Workaround
To obtain the total size of memory available on your system, use
any of the following commands:
• lsattr -E -l sys0 -a realmem
• lsattr -E -l mem0
• bootinfo -r
Note

All AIX 4.1 Systems

You must have root access to use the bootinfo -r
command.

2-15

SMIT Options Incorrect for SNA Protocol
Tracking Number
TAR 1–46856
Problem
The SMIT interface for selecting the protocol to be run on the
integrated SCC ports has changed, causing a minor change to the
SMIT procedure for configuring these ports for Express SNA
communications only. The SMIT default value “hdle, sna” is not
valid.
Workaround
Manually type in the protocol you want, i.e. “sna” or “hdlc.”

2-16

Known Problems on All Systems

InfoExplorer May Hang with more than 64 Databases

Problem
If you try to read a CD with more than 64 InfoExplorer databases,
InfoExplorer may core dump.
Workaround
To prevent the core dump, you should run the following command
before invoking InfoExplorer:
export MALLOCTYPE=3.1

All AIX 4.1 Systems

2-17

Known AIX 4.1 Problems Filed with the Vendor
Motorola’s AIX 4.1 operating system release is based on IBM’s
AIX 4.1 release.
The following problems have been filed with IBM. Resolutions of
these problems are pending fixes from IBM

Table 2-3. TARs Filed with IBM
TAR Number
1-43408
1-37149
1-39425
1-39587
1-39647
1-39768, 1-38533
1-42956

2-18

Description
makestack has hard-coded list of tape devices.
Insufficient physically contiguous memory is
available.
You cannot print more than 999 files correctly.
The network boot hard codes device
uniquetypes.
Refer to “lscfg and lsdev Commands Do Not
Return Memory Size” on page 2-15 for details.
Refer to “InfoExplorer May Hang with more than
64 Databases” on page 2-17 for details.
The stress tests crash the system.

Known AIX 4.1 Problems Filed with the Vendor

3Commercial System Desktops
and Servers

Overview
This chapter describes AIX 4.1 information specific to Commercial
System Desktops and Servers, including:
• what’s new for Commercial System Desktops and Servers in
AIX 4.1.5.
• general guidelines about AIX 4.1 for Commercial System
Desktops and Servers
• resolved problems on Commercial System Desktops and
Servers
• known problems on Commercial System Desktops and
Servers, along with a workaround where possible
Commercial System Desktops and Servers refers to these Motorola Family
of Commercial System Desktops and Servers:
• RISC PC systems
• RISC PC Plus systems
• Series E systems
• Series EX systems
• PowerStack II systems
For more information about standard features in AIX 4.1, refer to
the AIX 4.1 Product Description.

3-1

Installation
This section contains information about and guidelines for the
AIX 4.1 operating system running on Commercial System Desktops
and Servers.

Updating from a System Running the AIXwindows Desktop
AIX Common Desktop Environment (CDE) is the default desktop
shipped with AIX 4.1 Service Level AOS1.2 and later releases.
AIXwindows Desktop was the default desktop shipped with earlier
versions of the AIX 4.1 operating system.
An on-line help document is provided to assist you in migrating
from the AIXwindows Desktop to AIX CDE 1.0. If you have
previously logged on to the AIXwindows desktop on an AOS1.0 or
AOS1.1 Service Level release, this help document is displayed
automatically the first time you log on to AIX CDE 1.0. You can also
view this help by selecting Welcome to AIX CDE 1.0 from the
Help Manager subpanel.
Refer to “Updating from a Customized AIXwindows Desktop” on
page 3-2 for more information on updating an AIXwindows
Desktop environment to AIX CDE 1.0.

Updating from a Customized AIXwindows Desktop
If you are migrating to the Common Desktop Environment 1.0
(CDE) from an AIXwindows Desktop environment and you have
made any customizations to your desktop, you may encounter
some compatibility problems in the desktop’s front panel.
For example, icons on the front panel may not execute properly,
icons may be missing, or desktop actions may not be found.
In order to update a customize AIXwindows desktop, follow these
steps:
1. Install the X11.Dt.compat fileset to assist in the transition
from AIXwindows Desktop to the AIX CDE 1.0 desktop.

3-2

Installation

The X11.Dt.compat fileset contains executables, icons,
action and data type definitions, and symbolic links to
maintain compatibility with previous versions of the CDE
desktop. This fileset also contains the Migrate Actions icon
and its associated action definition.
The “Welcome to AIX Common Desktop Environment 1.0”
help volume contains additional information about the
contents of X11.Dt.compat. This fileset can be deinstalled
later when you no longer need it.
2. If you have done any of the following:
• customized desktop action definition files
• customized data type definition files (*.dt)
• customized front panel definition files
• installed icons on the front panel
then you need to migrate the customizations to the new
desktop by entering the following commands at the system
prompt:
/usr/dt/migrate/bin/dtmigrate $HOME/.dt/types
/usr/dt/migrate/bin/dtmigrate $HOME/.dt/types/fp_dynamic

3. If you need to share:
• customized desktop actions
• customized data types
• a customized front panel
• a Calendar resource file (.desksetdefaults)
between AIXwindows Desktop and AIX CDE 1.0 environments,
refer to the “Welcome to AIX Common Desktop Environment 1.0”
help volume for details on special actions you must take.

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-3

Running the AIX Common Desktop Environment
If after migrating to AIX CDE 1.0 from AIXwindows desktop on
AIX Service Level 1.0 or 1.1, you have problems with the desktop
(for example, icons on the front panel that do not execute properly,
icons are missing, or actions cannot be found), check that the
following has been done:

1. The X11.Dt.compat fileset has been installed.
2. Action, data type and front panel definitions in personal
directories have been migrated to a valid format for AIX CDE
1.0
The “Welcome toe CDE 1.0” help volume contains information
about these steps and other useful information to aid in the
transition to AIX CDE 1.0.

Existing Applications and CDE 1.0
AIX Common Desktop Environment (CDE) 1.0 is the default
desktop environment for AIX 4.1.5. People using AIX applications
that are tightly integrated with CDE may need to upgrade to the
most current version of those applications in order to run under
CDE 1.0, and to fully capitalize on CDE’s capabilities.
AIX applications requiring updates include IBM UIM/X, IBM
Ultimedia Services for AIX 4.1, and the Software Development
Environment (SDE, the graphical toolkit packaged with AIX
compilers).
Updates for SDE are included on the AIX 4.1.5 product media and
will be automatically installed when customers upgrade to AIX
4.1.5 with the default CDE 1.0 desktop, or when customers upgrade
their AIX 4.1 desktops to CDE 1.0
All new orders for UIM/X, Ultimedia Services, CSet++, and Fortran
compilers for AIX 4.1 come ready to run with CDE 1.0.

3-4

Installation

Common Desktop Environment (CDE) Manual Pages
Directory Not in MANPATH
The Common Desktop Environment (CDE) manual pages are in the
directory /usr/dt/man. This directory is not normally part of the
defined path for manual pages (MANPATH). The man command is
unable to find these CDE manual pages until you add this directory
to your MANPATH.
Add these lines to your $HOME/.profile file to add the
/usr/dt/man directory to the MANPATH variable:
MANPATH=$MANPATH:/usr/dt/man
export MANPATH

Ensuring Sufficient Disk Space in /var/dt
The Common Desktop Environment (CDE) writes log and error
files to the /var/dt directory. If this directory is full, the desktop
commands do not work correctly.
Verify that the /var/dt desktop is not full before starting the
desktop. If this directory is full or close to full, you must delete
some files from this directory before you start the desktop.

Series EX Support Requires PPCOF1.1
To run AIX 4.1.4r4 or AIX 4.1.4r5 on a Series EX system, your
system must be running on Power PC Open Firmware PPCOF1.1 or
later.

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-5

Series EX and PowerStack II Pro 2000/3000 Systems Require
Software Relicensing after Upgrade
If your current system is a Series EX or PowerStack II Pro 2000/3000
and you are running AIX 4.1.4r4 or an earlier release, you must
obtain new software licenses after upgrading to AIX 4.1.4r5 or to
AIX 4.1.5, unless PTF #M000047 has been installed over the original
operating system.

AIX 4.1.4 r4 generated the system serial number incorrectly on these
systems. This problem was corrected in AIX 4.1.4r5. Because the
correction causes the system serial numbers to change, your
licensed software will no longer work after AIX414r5 or AIX4.1.5 is
installed. Thus, you must obtain new license keys from the licensed
software vendors after AIX414r5 or AIX 4.1.5 is installed.

PowerStack II Legacy ISA Slave DMA Limitations
PowerStack II systems can only perform legacy ISA slave DMA
using compatibility timing. A device driver that requests a faster
timing mode is forced to use compatibility timing as well. This can
affect the performance and throughput of an ISA device that uses
legacy ISA slave DMA. Scatter/gather ISA DMA is not affected by
this limitation.

3-6

Installation

Upgraded Driver Firmware Necessary for Conner Tape Drive
In order to run existing Conner 2GB QIC Wide Data Cassette Tape
drives (model CMT3200x-S) under AIX 4.1.5, you must upgrade the
drive firmware to version 7.15.

Installing a PCI Expansion Chassis on a PowerStack II
Series EX System
When installing a PCI expansion chassis on a PowerStack II Series
EX system with the AIX 4.1 operating system already running, you
must follow this procedure or your system will hang during boot:
1. Remove any cards from the PCI Expansion Chassis before the
system is rebooted or the first time.
2. Start smit.
3. Select Devices.
4. Select Install/Configure Devices Added after IPL.
5. Put the installation CD-ROM in the CD-ROM device.
6. In the INPUT device/directory field, enter the CD-ROM
as the input device (usually /dev/cd0).
7. Finally, shutdown system, install chosen cards in the PCI
Expansion Chassis and reboot.

Multiple Beep Volume Settings Not Supported
The hardware that generates the system’s “beep” does not support
multiple volume settings for the beep. Thus, the user’s volume
setting is ignored, except to check whether the setting is Off.

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-7

Remote Dump Over ISA Ethernet
Remote dump is not supported over ISA Ethernet. Therefore, an
error will occur under either of these conditions:

• booting a diskless NIM client over ISA ethernet with a dump
resource allocated
• issuing the sysdumpdev command with a remote dump
location specified as the argument
This is the error message you will receive:
Cannot set primary dump device host:/location
Operation not supported on socket

where host:/location is the remote location at which you are
attempting to set the dump device.

3-8

Installation

IRQs 14 and 15 Available for Plug-In ISA Cards
New PCI Interrupt Line Routing
Commercial System Desktops and Servers have four PCI interrupt
lines. Each line can be independently routed to an interrupt line on
the system interrupt controller. Before AOS1.2, some PCI interrupt
lines were routed to IRQs 14 and 15.
In AOS1.2 and later releases, PCI interrupt lines on systems with
ISA slots are routed as shown in Table 3-1. This change makes IRQs
14 and 15 available for use by plug-in ISA cards (as well as IRQ 5
and IRQ 7, which were always available).
Table 3-1. PCI Interrupt Routing on Systems with ISA Slots
Interrupt Line
PIRQ0
PIRQ1
PIRQ2
PIRQ3

Routed to IRQ
9
9
11
11

The above settings are the default settings, programmed by the
firmware.
Note

This information applies only to systems with ISA slots.

Modifying Mapping with PPCBug Firmware
To modify this mapping on a system running PPCBug firmware,
use the env command at the PPC1-Diag firmware prompt to
change the PCI Interrupts Route Control Registers
environment variable. For more information, refer to the PPCBug
Firmware Package User’s Manual, Part 1 of 2.

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-9

Modifying Mapping with PowerPC Open Firmware
To modify this mapping on a system running PowerPC Open
Firmware, you can use the setenv command at the ok firmware
prompt to change the pirq-route environment variable. For
information on how to access the ok prompt, refer to the Open
Firmware User’s Manual.

Changing the pirq-route Variable
To change the pirq-route variable, enter the following command
at the ok prompt:
setenv pirq-route 0xddccbbaa

where dd, cc, bb, and aa correspond to the two-digit hexadecimal
equivalents of the IRQs for PIRQ3, PIRQ2, PIRQ1, and PIRQ0,
respectively. (Note the inverse order of the IRQs specified.)
For example, to route PIRQ0, PIRQ1, PIRQ2, and PIRQ3 to IRQs 5,
9, 14, and 11, respectively, you would enter the following command
at the PPCOF ok prompt:
setenv pirq-route 0x0B0E0905

Reverting to the Default Mapping
To revert to the default mapping after the pirq-route variable
has been added, enter the following command at the ok prompt to
remove the pirq-route variable:
unset pirq-route

System Dump
A new item, called Always Allow System Dump, has been added
to the System Dump SMIT menu. The default value is false. If set to
true, the CTL-ALT-numpad1 and CTL-ALT-numpad2 key
sequences will work to start a system dump to the primary and
secondary dump devices.

3-10

Installation

This value can also be set with sysdumpdev -K. You must be root
to set this attribute from either SMIT or the command line.
We strongly suggest that users of AIX systems which do not have a
front display panel or LEDs set the Automatically REBOOT the
system after a crash attribute to true.
This attribute is found by selecting the following SMIT options:
1: System Environments
2: Change/Show Characteristics of Operating System.
Without LEDs flashing 888 after the system dump has taken place,
the system appears to be hung and there is no way to know that it
has crashed.
This attribute can also be set using the command
chdev -a ‘autorestart=true’ -l sys0. You must have root access to
change this value from either SMIT or the command line.

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-11

Graphics
3

Starting the X Server on Machines with Planar Graphics
Capabilities
When you start an X server, all graphics adapters in the system,
including the planar graphics subsystem, are used. If you do not
have a display attached to your planar graphics subsystem and you
wish to tell the system to ignore the planar graphics subsystem, use
the standard AIX X Server start-up flag -P. For more information
about using the -P flag, refer to the X and xinit man pages.
In the following example, the cvga0 adapter is the planar graphics
subsystem. This screen shows a typical example of the use of the -P
flag:
# lsdisp
DEV_NAME SLOT BUS ADPT_NAME DESCRIPTION
======== ==== === ========= ===========
gga0
06
pci S15
IBM Personal Computer Power Series
S15 Graphics Adapter
cvga0
07
pci Cirrus
Standard Graphics Adapter
Default display = gga0
# xinit -- -P11 gga0

3-12

Graphics

Communications
Support Added for 3270 Key Mappings for dtterm Terminals
The tn and telnet commands allow connections to Host systems
that require 3270 Terminal support. To add mappings for dtterm,
and modification of the /etc/3270.keys file is needed and a new file
called /etc/3270keys.dtterm is needed. These 3270 mappings for
dtterm allow dtterm terminals to be used when using the command
tn or telnet to connect to Host systems that require 3270 Terminal
support.
Note: To clear the Host screen with these mappings, you must type
CTL-z.
Modify the /etc/3270.keys file by inserting the following
information:
if hft or hft-m or ibm5151 or ibm6153 of ibm5154
or ibm6153-90
or ibm6153-40 or ibm6154 or ibm6154-90 or
ibm6154-40 or ibm6155 or ibm6155-113 or
ibm6155-56 or ibm5081 or ibm 5081-113 or
ibm5081-56 or hft.U or ibm5151.U or ibm6153.U
or ibm5154.U or ibm6153-90.U or ibm6154-40.U
or ibm6155.U or ibm6155.113.U of
ibm6155.56.U or ibm5081.U or aixterm or
aixterm-m or jaixterm or jaixterm-m or
ibm5081-113.U or ibm5081-56.U or hft-m-old
or aixterm-m-old or lft or aixterm-old or
hft-nam-old or hft-c-old or hft-old
load/etc/3270keys.hft
else if dtterm load /etc/3270keys.dtterm /*new
line to insert*/
else pring NOBINDINGS
The following is the new file called /etc/3270keys.dtterm
#
#COMPONENT_NAME: TCPIP 3270keys.dtterm

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-13

#
#FUNCTIONS: Enter
#
#ORIGINS: 27 38
#(C) COPYRIGHT International Business Machines Corp. 1985, 1989
#All Rights Reserved
#Licensed Materials - Property of IBM
#

3-14

Communications

Resolved Problems in This Release
This section provides you with a list of previously known problems
that have been corrected for commercial systems in this release of
AIX 4.1.
Table 3-2. Corrected Problems
TAR Number
1-43304
bus resolve conflict

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

Description

3-15

Known Problems on Commercial System
Desktops and Servers
3

This section contains information on known problems in this
release of AIX 4.1 specific to Commercial System Desktops and
Servers. Workarounds have been provided whenever they are
available.
For additional troubleshooting information, refer to AIX 4.1
Installation Troubleshooting and AIX 4.1 Problem Solving Guide and Reference.

Highest Resolution Not Available on Systems with 1MB
Display Memory for Cirrus Adapters
Tracking Number
TAR 1–39833
Problem
If your system contains only 1MB of display memory for Cirrus
adapters (either on the motherboard or on a PCI card), the highest
resolution you are able to use is 1024x768 mode. SMIT allows you
to select a higher mode (1280x1024), but your system does not
support it and defaults to 1024x768 resolution mode.
Workaround
If you must use a higher resolution than 1024x768 mode, you need
to add display memory or add a card with more than 1MB of
display memory to your system.

3-16

Known Problems on Commercial System Desktops and Servers

Operating System Won’t Boot with Attached SCSI Terminal
Server
3

Tracking Number
TAR 1-44080
Problem
When AIX 4.1.4r4, AIX 4.1.4r5, or AIX 4.1.5 is installed on a system
with the Central Data SCSI Terminal Server (STS) hardware, and
the STS support software is subsequently installed, a driver bug
causes the system to hang when the system is rebooted or the STS
configuration method is activated.
Workaround
Obtain SCML #6803 and upgrade driver software (EGB1.2 version
of SCSITerminal driver).
For additional information contact your local Value Added Reseller
(VAR) or distributor.

Audio Device Driver Incompatible with beep
Tracking Number
TAR 1-46827
Problem
When the audio driver is present on a commercial system, the
system beep does not work. For this reason, the device driver is not
present on the base system CD for AIX 4.1.5.

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-17

Workaround
The audio device driver is available on the value-pack CD. If you
want to use the driver, you can install it separately. Once you do so,
however, the audio driver, the system beep will not work any more

Ultimedia System Audio Driver Does Not Support
PowerStack II Pro4000 Systems
Tracking Number
TAR 1-46827
Problem
The audio driver available on the second AIX 4.1.5 CD as part of the
Ultimedia System does not support the audio chip used on
PowerStack II Pro4000 systems.
Workaround
Obtain SCML 21443, which contains an alternate audio driver, in
the devices.isa_sio.baud.rte 4.2.1.1 fileset. You will need the
M441221 devices.sys.pci.rte 4.1.4.1 fileset in order to install the
audio driver.
For additional information, contact your local Value Added
Reseller (VAR) or distributor.

System Boot Appears to Halt with stop timed out error on
PowerStack II Pro4000 Systems
Tracking Number
TAR 1-48971

3-18

Known Problems on Commercial System Desktops and Servers

Problem
System boots slowly. If you have pinned the debugger, you will see
an error message similar to:
Stop timed out: devp=06CB5000 unit=1
This problem most likely reflects a networking error. It is generally
caused by the network attempting to configure an AUI style port
when the board doesn’t have an interface for AUI. This occurs when
the interface type is set to auto and the system is unable to recognize
the network device (when a cable has been dropped, for
example).The driver looks in the SROM, tries the specified
combinations, and if it doesn’t find any activity, it tries to guess at
the configuration. Frequently, the system assumes an AUI interface,
because they are notoriously hard to identify. Once the system
configures itself for an AUI interface, the DEC chip no longer has a
clock, and is thus prevented from entering the stopped state which
the driver requires during initialization. Thereafter, the system
periodically attempts to autosense the attached medium. This
process, which can take several seconds, occurs with interrupts off,
and thus gives the appearance of a dead system.
Workaround
Reattach the cable to a live hub.
Or
Change the network configuration from auto to tx by using the CDROM maintenance mode or by doing a non-networked service
boot.

Floppy Drives Do Not Detect Disk Density
Tracking Number
TAR 1-44804

Commercial System Desktops and Servers

3-19

Problem
Floppy disk drives included in Motorola AIX systems support only
1.44Mb floppy media. The drives are not able to distinguish
between low density (720Kb) and high density (1.44Mb) disks. If
the fdformat command is run without the -h option, the system will
try to format the high density disk as a low density floppy. This will
put the floppy drive in a state where it cannot be accessed until the
system is rebooted.

Workaround:
Always use the fdformat command in the following fashion.
fdformat /dev/fd0 -h

Memory Leak Exists in Motif Version 1.2.3
Tracking Number
TAR 1-48103
Problem
Version 1.2.3 and earlier versions of the Motif graphical user
interface contain a bug which causes a leak in system memory.
Workaround
Upgrade to version 1.2.4 or later of Motif.
or
Apply PTF U445774, which is available in Motorola’s SCML library
as #21051.

3-20

Known Problems on Commercial System Desktops and Servers

4VME Systems and Board-Level
Products

Overview
This chapter describes AIX 4.1 information specific to VME systems
and board-level products, including:
• value-added features specific to Motorola’s AIX 4.1 product
for VME systems and board-level products
• general guidelines about AIX 4.1 for VME systems and
board-level products
• Known problems on VME systems
VME systems and board-level products refer to these Motorola systems:
• MVME boards
• Ultra boards
• Atlas boards
• XR Series boards

4-1

Value-Added Features on VME Systems
This section describes value-added features that are specific to VME
systems running Motorola’s version of the AIX 4.1 operating
system.

MVME332XT Driver Command
The m332xctl command is used with the MVME332XT driver. It
is documented in the manual pages in section 1M. You must use the
man command to access this manual page; it is not available
through InfoExplorer.

VMEbus Device Driver Kernel Service Calls
These kernel service calls are used by VMEbus device drivers:
• get_fixed_map_vme()
• i_init_vme(), i_clear_vme(), i_mask_vme(),
i_unmask_vme()
• iomem_att_vme(), iomem_det_vme()
• vdma_start(), vdma_immed(), vdma_wait(), vdma_halt()
• vme_src2pri()
• vmeget(), vmeput()
These kernel service calls are documented in the manual pages in
section 2.You must use the man command to access these manual
pages; they are not available through InfoExplorer.

VMEbus Device Configuration Library Routines
These library routines are used in configuring VMEbus devices:
• busresolve_vme()
• define_device()
4-2

Value-Added Features on VME Systems

• set_attr_by_name(), set_attr_by_type()
These library routines are documented in the manual pages in
section 3. You must use the man command to access these manual
pages; they are not available through InfoExplorer.

VMEbus Special Files (Devices)
These manual pages describe special files (devices):
• vme
• mvme332xt
The vme manual page describes a device special file that can be
used to access a VMEbus device driver. The mvme332xt manual
page describes the MVME332XT driver.
These manual pages are found in section 7 of the manual pages.
You must use the man command to access these manual pages; they
are not available through InfoExplorer.

Alarm Transition Module
The XR712-129 Alarm Transition Module provides an interface to
the alarm subsystem on XR Series systems. The module provides
user notification of system or application failures and the ability to
prevent hardware damage or the loss of data in cases where system
failure or shutdown is imminent.
To accomplish these goals, the module provides software access to
system readiness and condition parameters--such as chassis
temperature and hardware availability.
The module provides the capability to report problems via software
interface, an audible buzzer, LEDs, and closed contact relays.
Outputs are similar to the Bellcore Alarm Requirements for
compatibility with most remote alarm systems.

VME Systems and Board-Level Products

4-3

Installation
Required Firmware Upgrade for VME Systems
If you are upgrading a VME system from an earlier version of AIX
4.1 to AIX 4.1.5, you must upgrade your firmware to PPC1BUG
version. 3.3.

MVME1603 and MVME1604 Enabled
As of the AIX 4.1 AOS1.2 release, VMEbus access is enabled as
provided by the VME2PCI and VMEchip2 ASICs on Motorola’s
MVME1603 and MVME1604 single-board computers.
Booting over the VMEbus is not supported.

MVME332XT Does Not Support All ioctls
The following ioctls are not supported on the MVME332XT in
AIX 4.1.4r4, AIX 4.1.4r5, or AIX 4.1.5.
• TIOCOUTQ

• TCLOOP

• TIOCSDTR

• TCGETX

• TIOCCDTR

• TCSETX

• TIOCMBIS

• TCSETXW

• TIOCMBIC

• TCSETXF

• TIOCMSET
The TCSAK ioctl is accepted and does not return an error, but it
does not have any effect. Also, a “secure attention” key sequence
(Ctrl-X, Ctrl-R) received on an mvme332XT port does not invoke
this ioctl, but is ignored.

4-4

Installation

MVME332XT Hardware Flow Control Configuration
You cannot use ioctls to configure hardware flow control on an
MVME332XT in AIX 4.1.4r4, AIX 4.1.4r5, or AIX 4.1.5.
You must use the m332xctl control program to configure
hardware flow control.

ODM Entries for CLARiiON Telco RAID
ODM entries have been added to AIX 4.1.5 in order to support
CLARiiON’s Telco RAID. These entries allow you to use the RAID
device without installing the CLARiiON software. If you want to
use the CLARiiON software, you must delete the default entries
and reconfigure the RAID, using the following steps:
1. Unconfigure the RAID.
• Use ’lsdev -C -s scsi’ to get a listing of the devices.
• Use ’rmdev -d -l hdiskN’
where N is the disk number for the RAID.
2. Remove the ODM entries.
• odmdelete -q “uniqueytpe=disk/scsi/dgcraid” -o PdDv
• odmdelete -q “uniqueytpe=disk/scsi/dgcraid” -o PdAt
3. Do a bosboot.
• bosboot -a -D -d /dev/ipldevice
4. Reconfigure the RAID.
• Either reboot or use ’cfgmgr’

VME Systems and Board-Level Products

4-5

Known Problems on VME Systems and BoardLevel Products
Tracking Number:
4

TAR 1-12525

Problem:
Sending Large Data Packets to the TTY Driver may cause the
System to Hang.

Solution:
Contact your service provider to obtain the appropriate Program
Temporary Fix (PTF).

4-6

Known Problems on VME Systems and Board-Level Products

5FX Series Systems

Overview
AIX 4.1.5r2 contains special functionality for FX Series System
Release 1.1. Motorola has made changes to IBM’s AIX 4.1.5 OS in
order to support Motorola-specific hardware platforms and to add
fault tolerance, while retaining the functionality and command
structure of IBM’s AIX 4.1 operating system.
This chapter describes information about and guidelines for the
FX Series systems.

5-1

FX Series Operating System
The following issues are related to FX Series operating system.

Paging Space Values
When AIX reaches or exceeds the paging space warning level, it
may kill processes, including all the system daemons. Make sure
that paging space is set to the recommended value in SMIT. The
SMIT screen shows you the current value and the recommended
value.

FX Series daemons do not handle the SIGDANGER signal and will be
killed like any other AIX process.
Note

The behavior of paging space on an FX Series system is
no different than on any other AIX 4.1 system.

Refer to the Managing System Storage guide for additional information
on paging space.

Default Dump Devices
The default primary dump device for FX Series systems is in the
/dev/sysdump0 logical volume. This default is different from the
default of the other Motorola AIX 4.1 systems.
To recover the dump, use the standard dump recovery procedures
from a logical volume.

System Reboots after a System Dump Taken
The default value of the sys0 attribute, autorestart is true. This
causes the FX Series system to reboot once a system dump is taken.
Note

5-2

This behavior is different from that of our other AIX 4.1
systems.

FX Series Operating System

Network Installation Management Not Supported
Support for Network Installation Management is not available on
FX Series systems.

Tape Devices Diagnostic Not Supported
AIX System Diagnostics are supported. However, the diagnostic for
tape devices is not supported.

Data Integrity Checker
Future releases of the AIX operating system may include support
for the Data Integrity Checker (DIC). The DIC will compute
checksums on all fixed disk transfers and generate errors on
checksum errors. Approximately one percent of the disk space on
every fixed disk attached to the system is appropriated for this
anticipated functionality.

On-Demand Diagnostics
On-Demand Diagnostics have been added to AIX 4.1.5 as a new
functionality on FX Series systems. This feature allows system
administrators to do bug-level diagnostics on individual modules
from the AIX command line using either the offtest or the vterm
utilities. On-Demand Diagnostics are currently available for CPU
modules, Asynchronous I/O Modules, MFIO modules, and
Ethernet controller modules.
Administrators may want to use offtest to diagnose modules which
have been off-lined by the Configuration Management System
(CMS) and to decide whether to try reintegrating the modules or to
replace them. The offtest utility can also be used to periodically test
modules in order to detect any potential problems before the
modules fail. Modules must be taken off line prior to running the
On-Demand Diagnostics.

FX Series Systems

5-3

Once invoked, either from the command line or from an automated
script such as a cron job, offtest accesses a script of bug-level
diagnostic commands and runs them sequentially. If the module
passes all tests, offtest returns a value of 0; a non-zero return value
indicates that the module failed one or more of the diagnostics.
The default test scripts, which are located in the /etc/ft
directory, include a combination of bug diagnostic commands and
higher level test commands, which are preceded by ‘!’. In general,
the scripts:

• turn the module’s power off,
• turn the power back on after a brief delay,
• set the bug’s MPCR register offset,
• set the bug’s FIFO register offset,
• establish a virtual terminal connection to the module,
• mimic the appropriate bug prompts on the console,
• run maintenance bus commands,
• run bug diagnostic commands, and
• log messages.
Meanwhile, the offtest utility analyzes the response from the bug
testing, terminates the testing, and reports the overall result to the
log file or to standard output.
The scripts, which contain information about the purpose and the
duration of each test, may be easily modified using any standard
text editor, or you can instruct the offtest utility to use a separate
script altogether. An example of where this may be useful is if you
would like to run abbreviated scripts on a regular basis, but also
want recourse to the entire suite of tests available in the default
scripts.

5-4

FX Series Operating System

When run in verbose mode, offtest provides a list of the bug-level
tests that have been run and the results of each test. Operators are
able to use a -L option to redirect output to a log file. Log file data
will be similar to what appears on the console. The following
example is a section of the log file from a CPU test:
Fri Jun 27 10:15:00 1997: Testing 01-W1566B03D,
serial number FP999, in Slot c1-f10
Fri Jun 27 10:15:00 1997: Using: test script
/etc/ft/CPU.offtest
Fri Jun 27 10:15:00 1997: TEST STARTED
Fri Jun 27 10:15:00 1997: Ensure power is off
Fri Jun 27 10:15:14 1997: Turning power on
Fri Jun 27 10:15:48 1997: Opening virtual
terminal connection
Fri Jun 27 10:15:51 1997: Virtual Terminal
Opened for 0xCF100000
Fri Jun 27 10:15:58 1997: --Break Detected-Fri Jun 27 10:15:58 1997: FX-Bug>sd
Fri Jun 27 10:16:00 1997: sd
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: ver
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: Debugger/Diagnostics
Type/Revision..........=FX Series/1.2
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: Debugger/Diagnostics
Revision Date..........=05/05/97 (RM01)
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: MicroProcessor
Version/Revision..........=0004/0305
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: CPU Module Baseboard
Artwork Revision...............=6
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: CPU Module Baseboard
PLD Major/Minor Revision.......=02/08
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: Checking the BUG Version
by looking for “RM01”
Fri Jun 27 10:16:02 1997: Checking the Memory Size
Fri Jun 27 10:16:04 1997: md 0x8e230000:1;b
Fri Jun 27 10:16:04 1997: 8E230000 3A
:
Fri Jun 27 10:16:04 1997: Memory Size from CPU:
0x8000000 (134217728) bank 0 0x8000000 bank 1 0
Fri Jun 27 10:16:04 1997: ** Switching to the
FX-Bug Diagnostics **
Fri Jun 27 10:16:06 1997: sd

FX Series Systems

5-5

Fri
Fri
Fri
Fri
Fri
Fri
Fri
Fri
Fri
Fri

10:16:08 1997: cf
10:16:08 1997: RAM Configuration Data:
10:16:10 1997: N ?
10:16:10 1997: y
10:16:12 1997: 00000000 ?
10:16:12 1997: 00004000
10:16:14 1997: 01000000 ?
10:16:14 1997: .
10:16:16 1997: onb dirty
10:16:16 1997: ONB DIRTY:
Dirty RAM......... Running ---> PASSED
Fri Jun 27 10:16:18 1997: onb edc_cb
Fri Jun 27 10:16:18 1997: ONB EDC_CB: EDC Check
Bit Test........... Running ---> PASSED

Jun
Jun
Jun
Jun
Jun
Jun
Jun
Jun
Jun
Jun

27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27

The vterm utility provides direct access to the bug, so that
individual diagnostics can be run directly from the command line.
This may be useful, for example, when the error log shows that the
module has failed a single test, and you would like to run the single
test again. Some bug-level tests, including “onb dirty,” may return
false results under the vterm utility because of conflicts over system
resources.
For more information on On-Demand Diagnostics, see the offtest
and the vterm manpages.

New rpthours utility available for FX Series Systems
A rpthours utility has been added to AIX 4.1.5r2 to provide
information on the availability of FX system modules. The script is
intended to be run by the system administrator on a monthly basis.

5-6

FX Series Operating System

AIX commands added for FX Functionality
The following commands, and their manpages, have been added to
standard AIX in order to support FX Series functions.
Table 5-1. AIX Commands added for FX Series Systems
autopair_gen
cmsnotify
eeprom
lightsd
lsmod
mkftvg
modconvert
phonehome
rotlog

FX Series Systems

changed
defcms
errtrans
lsdomain
lsmodparent
modcfgmgr
modundefine
pmftstat
rpthours

chftvg
eeprogram
ftctl
lsmatch
lsstate
modchange
offtest
powerd
vterm

5-7

General Hardware Notes
The following issues are related to FX Series system hardware.

Setting up Telco Alarms
You can classify the severity of a fault by noting the Telco status
LED that is lit. These LEDs are found on the front of the Fan Trays.
In addition you can hook up the corresponding alarm relay found
on the back of the InterConnect Module to the Central Office Alarm
bus. If you have a Model 626, do NOT connect the alarm relays on
the back of InterConnect Module in the Expansion Chassis. Use the
alarm relays on the back of the InterConnect Module in the Main
Chassis only.

Use ESD Mitigating Procedures
ESD mitigating procedures should be used at all times when
working around the FX series. It is especially important to use this
protection when inserting tapes into the tape drive.

Offlining Personality Modules Not Recommended
Do not offline a personality module directly. Instead offline the
personality module’s associated module. This offlines both the
controller and the personality module in a safe and consistent
manner.

Hot Pull Support
You can hot pull, hot insert, and hot integrate most modules on FX
Series systems. To hot pull, hot insert, and hot integrate means that
you can remove, insert, and integrate any of these modules without
power cycling, rebooting, or otherwise stopping the system. We do
however, recommend that you offline the module before you
remove the module. Refer to Hardware Installation for more
information.

5-8

General Hardware Notes

CPU Module Subsystem
The following issues are related to the CPU module subsystem.

Set Time on New CPU Modules
If you bring the system down to replace any of the CPU modules
with a new CPU module, make sure that the time on the clocks in
the new CPU modules is set to the current time. If the system boots
with the time set to a time earlier than the shutdown time, the
change daemon replays all changes recorded since the new time
from the error log. This can result in modules powering off and
other problems with the system.
If a new CPU module is added to a running system, then we highly
recommend that the Real Time Clock be initialized previously
using some other chassis. There is a minor but potential risk that
this problem can cause future problems even if the CPU module is
replaced when AIX is running. Refer to“CPU Module’s Battery
Backed Real Time Clock Not Copied During PRI” on page 5-24 for
more information.
To check and set the clock on a CPU module, follow these steps:
1. Stop the reboot in the bug if it is set to autoboot on power on.
2. At the bug prompt check that the time on the master CPU is
correct:
FX-Bug>time

3. If the time is not correct, set it using the set command:
FX-Bug>set mmddyyhhmm

where the format for the time is “month month day day year
year hour hour minute minute.” So that the time comes up
correctly once the system boots, you must set the time in
Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), not local time. For example,
Mountain Standard Time (MST) is 7 hours earlier than GMT.

FX Series Systems

5-9

Once the system boots, make sure all the CPU modules are in sync
so they all have their clocks set to the same time.
If you replace a single CPU module while the system is down, make
sure it is not the master during boot by leaving it unlatched.
Reintegrate the module after boot and its clock will be set to the
current time.
If the system is booted with an earlier time, then booted with the
correct time later, entries in the error log are out of time order. The
mixture of times, later-earlier-later, can make it impossible for the
change daemon to retrieve error reports correctly. If this happens,
follow these procedures:

1. Stop the change daemon.
2. Save a copy of the error log.
3. Clean the error log to empty it out.
4. Restart the change daemon.
Don’t remove the error log as this can prevent error logging from
operating correctly.

CPU Module Status after a Reboot
The AIX4.1.5r2 installation process is designed to automatically
bring online and integrate all CPU modules found in the system.
CPU modules retain their state across reboots of the system. CPU
modules that are online and integrated before a reboot are
automatically brought back online and integrated after the reboot
and CPU modules which are offline before a reboot remain offline
after the reboot, except in the case where booting manually was
forced off of a previously off-lined CPU module.
The process of onlining and integrating all CPU modules will not
complete until several minutes after the login prompt is displayed.

5-10

CPU Module Subsystem

Do Not Use ftctl Program to Online and Offline CPU Modules
Use the SMIT interfaces or if desired the modchange command to
online, offline, and acknowledge faults in the CPU modules. Do not
use the ftctl program included in the FX Series to online and
offline CPU modules. ftctl may leave your machine in an
undesirable state that is difficult to recover from without rebooting.
The ftctl command can still be used to view CPU module
information (that is, ftctl -status).

5
OS Watchdog
The OS watchdog timer is currently set to 1 second The operating
system; however, refreshes the timer every .5 second.

ECC Parity Handling
An ECC hard error encountered on a simplex system results in a
panic. A CPU module reporting an ECC hard error in a DMR or
TMR system is taken offline and powered down.

FX Series Systems

5-11

MFIO Module
The following issues are related to the MFIO module.

Upgrading Disks from 2Gb to 4Gb
Overview
MFIO modules are now available which contain 4Gb hard drives.
It is possible to upgrade existing MFIOs, which contain 2Gb hard
drives, to the newer module without interrupting service.

The following procedures show two options for upgrading an
existing MFIO to a new MFIO with a 4Gb hard drive without
rebooting the system.
The key step is to replace the old MFIO definition in the ODM
database with the new one for the MFIO containing the larger
drive. In the first procedure below, this includes converting a fault
tolerant volume group to a non-fault tolerant volume group, and
later converting it back into a fault tolerant volume group. In the
second procedure, the ODM attributes are changed directly from
the command line. Because the first procedure may involve taking
multiple MFIO modules off-line, it may take longer than the
second. However, it may be a better procedure for those who are
unfamiliar with ODM.
The general steps for both procedures are to:
• make sure all the functionality provided by the module is
mirrored before you start
• take the module (or modules) offline
• remove the devices on the module from their logical devices
• remove the module from the database
• replace the module, and add it as a new module
• add the newly created devices to the logical devices

5-12

MFIO Module

Procedure 1--Upgrading Disks Using a Volume Group Type Conversion
Note

For this procedure to work, the mirrored volume group
must be made simplex. This means that all mirrored
drives in the same I/O domain and same volume
group as the MFIO module you are upgrading must be
offlined.

1. Make sure that /tmp has at least 10 MB of free space by running

df /tmp
This space is needed during step 11.
2. Gather disk information for the volume group by running
lsscsi -v NAMEvg
where NAME is a variable for the name you have given the volume
group. Make sure that the volume group is properly mirrored as a
fault tolerant volume group by verifying that the CMS state is
“ft_full.”
3. Take the MFIO module offline
• Check to see what modules are included in the volume group
by running
lsvg -p NAMEvg
• Take the appropriate modules offline using SMIT.
smit cms => Modules => Manage Modules => Take Module
Offline
Select appropriate MFIO module.
• Confirm that the module has been taken offline and that the
volume group is “ft-partial” by running
lsscsi -v NAMEvg
It is essential that you do not proceed until autolvfix has
completed and the lsvg command shows that all appropriate
disks have been offlined.

FX Series Systems

5-13

4. Determine whether the module contains an ethernet device by
running
lsent
5. If the module does contain an ethernet controller which is
configured as part of a logical ethernet device, remove the
physical device from the logical ethernet device using SMIT.
smit enet => Logical Ethernet Device => Change/Show a Logical
Ethernet Device

Select the appropriate logical device and then delete the
appropriate physical device.
6. Convert rootvg to non FTVG type using SMIT.
smit lvm => Volume Groups => Set Characteristics of a Volume
Group => Change a Volume Group
Enter “NAMEvg” for “VOLUME GROUP name,” and change
“Fault Tolerant Volume Group (FTVG)?” to no. (Use F4 to select
options.)
7. Remove the MFIO from the ODM database using SMIT.
smit cms => Modules => Manage Modules => Remove Module
from Database
Select appropriate MFIO module.
Then, run lsmod -Dl Moduleid to verify that the module has been
removed from ODM.
8. Physically replace the existing MFIO module with the new
module containing the 4Gb hard drive.
9. Configure the new MFIO device using SMIT.
smit cms => Modules => Manage Modules => Add Module
Select MFIO1 as the template and specify the module location or
Slotid, for example c1-f13.

5-14

MFIO Module

Then, verify that the module has been integrated by running
lsdev -C | grep Slotid
where Slotid is the number of the slot containing the newly
integrated module.
10. Add the hard drive to the root volume group using SMIT and
the hard drive identifier (such as “hdisk1”) from step 9.
smit lvm => Volume Groups => Set Characteristics of a Volume
Group => Add a Physical Volume to a Volume Group
11. Convert the volume group back to type FTVG using SMIT.
smit lvm => Volume Groups => Set Characteristics of a Volume
Group => Change a Volume Group
Enter “NAMEvg” for “VOLUME GROUP name” and change “Fault
Tolerant Volume Group (FTVG)?” to yes. (Use F4 to select options.)
Note

It may take more than 30 minutes per disk to mirror
data. If the console terminal is needed, do this step from
a shell script running in the background.

12. If applicable, add the physical ethernet device to the logical
ethernet device.
13. Verify the result by running
lsscsi -v NAMEvg
14. Repeat the process in order to upgrade the hard drive in the
other I/O domain.

FX Series Systems

5-15

Procedure 2--Upgrade Disks by Changing ODM Attributes Directly
In this second procedure, it is not necessary to take all the disks in
one side of the volume group out of the FTVG. Therefore, this
procedure may be faster, because it is not necessary to reestablish
mirroring on multiple disks.
1-5. The first five steps are identical to those in procedure 1.
6. Fix the logical volume dependency on the disk or disks you are
upgrading (hdiskx, where x stands for the appropriate number) in
ODM.

> odmget -q “dependency=hdiskx” CuDep
CuDep:
name = “l_NAMEvg”
dependency = “hdiskx
> odmdelete -q “dependency=hdisk1” -o CuDep
Note

Step number 6 needs to be performed on all hard disks
on the MFIO module which you are removing. For
example, if I/O-1 contains hdisk1 and hdisk2, then you
need to perform the procedure on both hdisk1 and
hdisk2.

7-9. Steps 7, 8, and 9 are identical to those in procedure 1.
10. Add the new disk(s) to the Volume Group.
smit lvm => Set Characteristics of a Volume Group => Add a
Physical Volume to a Volume Group
Add the appropriate hard disk to NAMEvg.
11. Resync the Volume Group by taking it offline and then
bringing it back online.
smit cms => Modules => Manage Modules => Take Module Offline
Select appropriate module.

5-16

MFIO Module

smit cms => Modules => Manage Modules => Bring Module Online
Select appropriate module.
Note

This final step may take more than 30 minutes. If the
console terminal is needed, do this step from a shell
script running in the background.

12-14. Steps 12, 13, and 14 are identical to those in procedure 1.

FX Series Systems

5-17

Interconnect Module (ICM)
The following issues are related to the Interconnect module.

Any Interconnect Module Failure in a Domain Takes Down
the Entire Domain
In systems with expansion chassis, the failure of an ICM module in
either the main or expansion chassis takes down that entire IO
domain. Because the IObus does not function properly if any of the
ICM modules providing power to terminate the bus fails, the
system powers off all the modules in that domain.

The main chassis ICM module is listed as the module at fault even
if the expansion chassis ICM module was the one that failed. Look
at the failure reports in the system status log,
/var/ft/changed_log, to determine which module actually
failed.

CPU Modules May Go Offline When an Interconnect Module
Fails
If an ICM module fails due to power loss, the loss of power usually
sends all significant CPU modules into E-state. The hardware must
do this to prevent a possible IObus lockup when the power loss
occurs. If the system is running with:
• two CPU modules one of them reports itself offline
• three CPU modules then either:
– one module is out-of-sync (to be automatically onlined)
and one module is offline OR
– two modules are offline
If CPU modules fail when an ICM module fails, they may be
reintegrated immediately, without waiting for the ICM module to
be replaced or reconnected to the power. We recommend first
bringing the CPU modules back online before reintegrating the

5-18

Interconnect Module (ICM)

ICM module. CPU modules take less time to integrate than the disk
mirroring operations that start when the ICM module and its
dependent modules in that domain are reintegrated.

Do Not Remove the Interconnect Module without
Disconnecting the Power Cord
ICMs can be pulled out with the system still running (that is hot
pulled), but you must remove the power cord first. The ICM
modules are the only hardware modules whose latches do not
disconnect the modules from the power.

!
Caution

Pulling the module (or putting it back in) with the
power connected causes arcing on the voltage pins.
Repetition of this would eventually cause pitting of the
contacts, leading to unreliable operation.

FX Series Systems

5-19

Power Module and Fantrays
The following issues are related to the Power module and Fantrays.

Power Cycle the System Using Power Module Latches
The FX Series system has no on/off switch. If the system is powered
using Power modules, their latches serve as the means to power
cycle the system. After the system has shut itself down and
powered itself off, restart it by opening and closing ALL power
module latches.

The Power Daemon Takes Time to Complete Its Shutdown
When the power daemon (powerd) is stopped using
stopsrc -g ft or stopsrc -s powerd, the SRC command
returns immediately after telling the daemon to stop. The daemon
process takes 10-15 seconds to shut down completely.
If you try to start the daemon immediately using
startsrc -g ft or startsrc -s powerd, you see an error
message:
Can’t start multiple instances of powerd

Wait 10-15 seconds, or use lssrc -s powerd to verify that
powerd has terminated before trying to restart the daemon.

Do Not Boot System with the Fantrays Removed
The FX Series system shuts itself down if both fantrays in a main or
expansion chassis are removed. Do not reboot the system without
replacing the fans. The system will shut itself down again after
booting without the fantrays, however the system can be damaged
by operating at too high of a temperature during the boot.

5-20

Power Module and Fantrays

Boot System Carefully after Failure of All Power Modules
The FX Series system shuts itself down if all the power modules in
a power chassis fail. Because it is unlikely for all modules to fail at
the same time, you may wish to reboot the system to check out the
state of the modules before replacing them.
Normally the power module batteries stay charged during and
after system shutdown. If there is any chance they may not be fully
charged, allow the power modules to recharge for 40 minutes
before booting the system. The system brings all the power
modules online and checks to see if they are working properly. If
they are not working properly, the system should shut itself down
again.
You must have at least one fully functional power module for the
system to operate safely. The system may be able to boot with
partially functioning power, but it is not safe to operate the system
that way. Check the power modules by running pmftstat. The
output looks like the following example:
>>>> Power Module (POWER-0 p1-f1 Available) [ 5.3 ] <<<<

Module LED: Inservice ’ON’ Outofservice ’OFF’
Alarms: Rack Alarm ’OFF’
Analog Switches: CurrA ’CLOSED’ CurrB ’CLOSED’
Battery Load ’OFF’ Battery Charger ’ON’ Convertor ’ON’
Digital Inputs: AC ’OK’ Temp ’OK’ CurrA ’OK’ CurrB ’OK’
Temp ’48’ C CurrA ’4758’ mA CurrB ’4524’ mA
Volts ’55’ V Batt ’52’ V

Make sure the following is true in your output:
• The two Analog Switches must be CLOSED.
• The Digital Inputs must all show OK.
• The Temp must be below 80C.
• The Volts must be greater than 52 V.

FX Series Systems

5-21

Boot System Carefully after Failure of All Fantrays
The FX Series system shuts itself down if both fantrays in a main or
expansion chassis fail due to low fan speed or inability to maintain
a low enough system temperature. Because it is unlikely for both
fantrays to have a mechanical failure at the same time, you may
wish to reboot the system to check out the state of the modules
before replacing them. Make sure any overheating in areas in which
the system operates is corrected first.

You must have one fantray working without fault for the system to
run safely. The system should shut itself down after boot if both
fantrays still have faults. If it does not, and the fans are not
operating properly, shut the system down immediately and replace
the fantrays.
Check the fan speeds and temperatures by running pmftstat. The
output looks like the following:
>>>> Fan Tray Module (FANS-0 c1-t0 Available) [ 5.4 ] <<<<
Module LED: InService ’ON’ OutofService ’OFF’
System LED: InService ’ON’ OutofService ’OFF’
Telco LED: Critical ’OFF’ Major ’OFF’ Minor ’OFF’
Fan Speed: Fan#1 ’2119’ RPM Fan#2 ’2119’ RPM Fan#3 ’2200’ RPM
Fan Temp: ’33’ C

Normal fan speeds are in the range 1000-3300 RPM. The
temperature must be below 60 C.

5-22

Power Module and Fantrays

Known Problems on FX Systems
Overview
This section contains information on known problems with FX
systems in this release of AIX 4.1. Workarounds have been
provided whenever they are available.

Unbalanced Fault Tolerant Volume Group Is Not Supported
Tracking Number
TAR 1-48109
Problem
If either domain has a greater number of physical volumes than the
other domain and the domain with the greater number of physical
volumes fails (for example, domain power failure), the physical
volumes will fail to reintegrate into the volume group.
Workaround
When creating a fault tolerant volume group, ensure that the
number of physical volumes in domain 0 equals the number of
physical volumes in domain 1.

FX Series Systems

5-23

CPU Module’s Battery Backed Real Time Clock Not Copied
During PRI
Tracking Number
TAR 1-48807
Problem

The CPU module’s battery backed Real Time Clock is not copied
during CPU module integration (PRI).
The minor risk associated with this problem is that:
• if the Real Time Clock on a CPU module does not match the
“real time”
AND
• if the system panics or reboots due to an OS Watchdog
then, the CPU module that becomes the new Master module has the
erroneous Real Time Clock setting. This can cause the change
daemon problems discussed in “Set Time on New CPU Modules”
on page 5-9.
Workaround
Use the date(1) command to set the date after the system has
booted and all CPU Module integrations are complete or after
replacing a CPU Module on a running system. The date(1)
command causes the Real Time Clock to be written on all in-sync
CPU Modules.

5-24

Known Problems on FX Systems

CPU Reintegration Has Temporary Critical Fault Under
Heavy Load
Tracking Number
TAR 1-48836
Problem
During CPU module integration the critical Telco alarm may come
on. This occurs during the final CPU integration phase or the
“critical integration” time. If the system is running an application
mixture that results in modifications to large numbers of DRAM
pages faster than the system can copy them to the target CPU
module then the critical alarm may fire. This is a temporary alarm
that the system automatically clears after the CPU module
integration completes.
CPU module integration happens at boot time or as the net result of
fault condition(s) that occur during system operations that
eventually result in operator actions to re-integrate the CPU
module(s).
Workaround
Perform CPU module integration when the system is less busy.
There is no workaround if the CPU module must be integrated
during a period when the application mixture is such that a large
number of memory pages are modified more quickly than the
system can copy them to the target CPU Module.

FX Series Systems

5-25

Hours in Service in Module EEPROMs may be Counted
Twice
Tracking Number
TAR 1-12765
Problem

History logs are kept in module EEPROMs for FX Series modules.
The hours-in-service field for each online module is updated every
25 hours by an at job. Occasionally, when the system is rebooted,
two or more at jobs are started. This results in the modules being
credited with double (or more) the correct in-service time.
Workaround
After the system is rebooted, check that only a singe at job is
pending to run the “/usr/sbin/updhours -h 25” command.
You can check the list of pending jobs using the atq command. It
provides a list of names of files in the /var/spool/cron/atjobs
directory. If more than one of files contains the updhours
command, you can stop the redundant jobs using the following
syntax:
$at -r

5-26

Known Problems on FX Systems

6Documentation Changes

Overview
This chapter documents changes and corrections to various books
and InfoExplorer documents in the AIX 4.1 documentation set.

6-1

InfoExplorer libraries
The AIX 4.1 library is available both in hardcopy and on-line in
InfoExplorer. For most of the books, the information and
instructions are the same in InfoExplorer as they are in hardcopy.
The following books, however may have slight discrepancies
between the two versions. The instructions in hardcopy should
supercede those in InfoExplorer.
• Installation Guide
• Network Installation and Management Guide and Reference

• Problem Solving Guide
• Performance Tuning Guide
• iFOR/LS Tips and Techniques
• iFOR/LS System Management Guide
• Messages Guide and Reference

6-2

InfoExplorer libraries

Location of schedtune Command Incorrect in
InfoExplorer Libraries
The following correction applies to the InfoExplorer version of
Tuning VMM Memory Load Control.
InfoExplorer says that the schedtune command is located in the
/usr/lpp/bos/samples directory. However, the command is located
in the /usr/samples/kernel directory.

Documentation Changes

6-3

xmemout() Man Page Incorrect
The man page and InfoExplorer entries incorrectly state that the
xmemout() kernel service can be called from the process
environment only. The purpose of xmemout(), however, is to
allow interrupt routines and other kernel processes to access a
user’s buffers.
The man page and InfoExplorer entries in upcoming releases will
read: “The xmemout() kernel service can be called from the
process environment or the interrupt environment.”

6-4

xmemout() Man Page Incorrect

AIX Version 4 Installing and Configuring
NCDware
The following corrections apply to the AIX Version 4 Installing and
Configuring NCDware guide:
• In step 5 on page 8-4 and step 8 on page 8-6 the file path is
listed incorrectly. The correct file path should be:
/etc/inetd.conf

• In step 2 on page 8-6 the directory is listed incorrectly. The
correct command should be:
cd /usr/ncd/terminals/usr/lib/X11/ncd/configs

Documentation Changes

6-5

AIX Version 4 System Management Guide:
Communications and Network
Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP) Documentation Error
The procedure for configuring Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP)
over a null modem cable is incorrectly documented in the on-line
(InfoExplorer) version of the AIX Version 4 System Management Guide:
Communications and Network, available in InfoExplorer. The procedure
is correctly documented in the hard copy version of this guide.

In addition the procedure for deactivating a Serial Line Internet
Protocol (SLIP) connection is incorrectly documented. The
paragraph beginning, “If slattach is accidentally killed with a 9 flag...” should read:
“If slattach is accidentally killed with a -9 flag, a slip lock may
remain in /etc/locks. Delete this lock file to clean up after
slattach.”
The sample program on this page is also incorrect. Disregard this
example.
You can also deactivate the SLIP connection, using SMIT instead of
the kill command. Follow this procedure:
1. Enter:
smit chinet

2. Select the SLIP interface (for example, sl0).
3. Select the Current STATE field and view your choices.
4. Select either down or detach.
5. Confirm your selection to deactivate the SLIP connection.

6-6

AIX Version 4 System Management Guide: Communications and Network

Configuring NIS Documentation Error
The System Management Guide: Communications and Networks incorrectly
documents how to configuring NIS. The guide tells you to add the
pattern ’+:0:0:::’ as the last line of the local /etc/passwd file.
This is incorrect. Instead, you must add this pattern:
+::0:0:::
to the local /etc/passwd file in order for the NIS
/var/yp/passwd to be checked for user entries.
If you do not do this no one is able to log in if they are not in the local
/etc/passwd file.

Documentation Changes

6-7

AIX Version 4 Commands Reference
The following corrections apply to the AIX Version 4 Commands
Reference:
• A feature of the bellmail command has been changed. The
bellmail command no longer allows the -d option to
specify an alternate mail directory.
• The use of the mbuf subcommand with crash is incorrectly
documented. The new syntax for the mbuf subcommand is:
mbuf Address

This subcommand displays the system mbuf structures at the
specified Address.
• The mkfs -o and crfs -a commands are incorrectly
documented. The specifier for the file system fragment size is
listed as fragment. The correct specifier is frag.

6-8

AIX Version 4 Commands Reference

AIX Version 4 AIXwindows Programming
Guide
The hardcopy version of the AIX Version 4 AIXwindows Programming
Guide is not current as of Service Level AOS1.3. InfoExplorer does
contain a current version of this guide, however. The current
version on InfoExplorer contains a new Appendix E, “Display
Power Management.”

Documentation Changes

6-9

FX Series Administering Your Fault Tolerant
System
The discussion in “How CMS Uses the AIX Error Logging Facility
with the Change Daemon” on page 2-15 of this guide does not
apply to AIX 4.1.5r2 and later releases supporting FX Series
systems. The AIX error logging facility is no longer used as the
communication path between the device drivers and the change
daemon. Instead, messages are now logged to and retrieved from a
circular buffer in the kernel.

6-10

FX Series Administering Your Fault Tolerant System

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