Workstations

Student Sun Blades.

Memory and Disk.

The Sun Blades are configured with different amounts of memory, from 128MB to 1.13GB and with 9GB or more of data space per host. If you need disk space for data, please send me email.

List of Sun Blades in Student Offices & in 1008:

Room	Hostname	Features
1004	iolanthe	1GB
1004	penzance	1.6GB
1007/05	morrigan	128MB
1007/05	rigoletto	896MB
1007/05	aleko	256MB
1007/05	duke	640MB
1008A	igor	1GB
1008	pirates	256MB
1322	aida	256MB
1333	werther	640GB
1334	castor	256MB
1407	galatea	640MB
1410	gondolier	640MB
1414	gatsby	1.6GB
1414	hoffman	640MB	pci-scsi card,DDS-4 tape
1414	jewels	256MB

Printers

See ​notes: to access them from Windows, Mac and Linux hosts.

Location queue name(s) Note Rm 1008 hp_1008 HP LaserJet 2300 with duplex option

dp_1008 & dl_1008 (portrait & landscape duplex queues)

Rm 1008 hpcolor HP 4500 color laser - plain paper (tray 2)

hpfilm HP 4500 color laser - transparency film (tray 1)

Rm 1206 hp_1206 Brother duplex laser printer Rm 1418 hp_1414 HP LaserJet 4m+ with duplex option

dp_1414 & dl_1414 (portrait & landscape duplex queues)

Rm 1328 hp_1328 HP LaserJet 4100 with duplex option

dp_1328 & dl_1328 (portrait & landscape duplex queues)

How to print on both sides of the paper on HP printers. The HP printers with 'duplex' mode are:

hp_1414, hp_1328 and hp_1008

To print from Solaris hosts in regular (portrait) duplex:

lp -d dp_1414 <filename> (or lpr -Pdp_1414 <filename> )

To print from Solaris hosts in landscape duplex:

lp -d dl_1414 <filename> (or lpr -Pdl_1414 <filename> )

Note: Regular(portrait) duplex implies a '3 hole punch'

or binding on the 11" edge. Landscape duplex implies a '3 hole punch' or binding on the 8.5" edge.

Tape Drives

We have two Exabyte 8mm tape drives and three 4mm DAT drives. Both types of drive write, by default, in native(uncompressed) mode. Tape media for both types of drive come in different lengths. The drives will read media written by older model drives at lower densities.

We also have a special purpose SDLT drive. This drive writes by default in compressed mode. It writes only to SDLT tape media. It can read media written by other model SDLT and DLT drives.

The 4mm DAT drives(on attila & pirates) can write up to ~24GB per tape using compressed mode and a DDS-3 125m tape. The newer 4mm DAT drive(on hoffman) can write up to ~40GB per tape using compressed mode and a DDS-4 150m tape. All the 8mm drives write 5GB per 112m tape uncompressed(10GB compressed) and a maximum of 14GB using compressed mode and a 160m tape.

Location host & device name device type

(max storage)

Rm 1008 pirates /dev/rmt/0 24GB 4mm (DDS-3) Rm 1008 pirates /dev/rmt/1 320GB SDLT Rm 1328 isolde /dev/rmt/0 14GB 8mm Rm 1328 isolde /dev/rmt/1 24GB 4mm (DDS-3)

Rm 1004 hoffman* /dev/rmt/0 40GB 4mm (DDS-4)

Solaris tape drive device names(ist tape device is usually 0):

/dev/rmt/0 (default density,

usually uncompressed)

/dev/rmt/0l (low, same as uncompressed) /dev/rmt/0n (norewind) /dev/rmt/0c (compressed) /dev/rmt/0h (high, same as compressed) /dev/rmt/0cn (compressed, norewind)

(/dev/rmt/0nc is NOGOOD)

Density note

Drive senses density of a tape it is reading. When writing a tape, you select the density when you specify the device name.

On the (10-14GB) exabyte drives, when the drive is active: the flashing middle LED light is amber if drive is in high density mode but is green if drive is in low density mode.

Tape I/O errors on read

A likely cause if all seems okay otherwise: a large block size used when tape was written.

Way around error: TAR: tar tfb /dev/rmt/0 100 (asks for buffer(b) size of 100.

default max buffer size is 20)

UFSRESTORE: ufsrestore -ibf 252 /dev/rmt/0

(asks for buffer(b) size of 252.

can try larger numbers as well)

Color Scanner

Dell Dimension 2200 and Epson 1650 Photo Scanner 7/2002 (in Room 1008)

A PC with an Epson scanner is setup in room 1008. The PC has a CD-RW drive and is running Windows XP. The scanner is known as a TWAIN device. It scans 35mm film strips or slides as well as paper documents.

'Adobe Photoshop Elements' can import directly from the scanner and write out a file in any of a large number of formats(listed below) including PDF and postscript.

The full 'Adobe Acrobat' is installed - you can scan one or more pages directly into a single PDF document instead of ending up with a file for each page scanned. Use

'File' --> 'Import' --> 'Scan' --> 'EPSON Twain 5'

to read from the scanner.

The scanner also has Optical Character Recognition software via the 'Epson Smart Panel' software, see below.

Scanned documents can be copied to a printer in 1008, sftp'd to another host or written to CD.

Basic info to scan paper document

1. line up with page size markers at top left and lower right page size (LTR, A4 )
2. log on as 'scan'
3. check that scanner is plugged in. plug in USB cable if not plugged in.
4. select the scan software, see descriptions below. (Note: If the scan software doesn't see the scanner, select: 'Turn off computer' from the START button and then select 'Restart'. )

Printers available

To print, select 'File' from the software's menu bar and use 'Page Setup' to select the printer and to tailor the printer settings, either HP 4050 (duplex possible) or HP 4500 (color) in Room 1008.

To move scanner output to other workstation

After document is scanned and copied to a file, use icon 'SSH Secure File Transfer Client' to transfer to your workstation. Or, copy the file to a writeable CD.

Copy file over network using SSH Secure File Desktop Icon:

1. File --> quick connect
2. select the output file to transfer, select destination 'folder' on remote workstation, select operation (Upload).

Save file to a writeable CD (CD-R or CD-RW media). The CD-RW drive is 40x10x40 (write X rewrite X read). To write to the CD:

1. If a new CD, format it using icon 'Shortcut to DirectCD'. The format will be UDF(Universal Disk Format).
2. Copy the files to the CD as you would to any other disk device.
3. The CD can be read on a Sun Blade running Solaris 8.

Online documetation

Click 'Start' --> All Programs --> Epson --> PF1250/1650 Guide

Online documetation for the built-in Film Adapter

1. Click 'Start' --> All Programs --> Epson --> PF1250/1650 Guide -->
2. Click Basic Scanning --> Using the Film Adapter --> For Perfection 1650 Users (1st entry for 1650 Users)

Scanner Software Overview

The scanning device is called 'EPSON TWAIN 5'.

A document can be scanned in one of two modes. You can change the mode via 'buttons' on one of the Epson Twain 5 Screens as the scanning begins.

a) 'Full Auto Mode' using default scanning parameters

(software will decide if scanner is looking at a

color photo,B&W document, etc.)

b) 'Manual Mode' using your tailored scanning parameters.

To restore the Manual Mode Twain settings to their default values:

a) from the Manual Mode Epson Twain 5 window, select:

'Configuration...' button --> 'Other' tab -->

b) select: 'Reset All' button

This will reset the parameters and exit the scan. When you restart the scan, the restored settings will be there and can be editted.

Windows Scanner Software

• Adobe Photoshop Elements

Useful for scanning to a file as Photoshop can write out the scan in many file formats including postscript and PDF. For some formats, it will let you reduce the size of the output file (adjusting the resolution to make the file smaller).

1. To run and to make the scan, click on the desktop icon Photoshop Elements. Then
   • select: File --> Import --> EPSON TWAIN 5 or
   • select, from the other smaller window: Aquire --> EPSON TWAIN 5
2. to save to file,
   • select 'File' --> 'SAVE AS' --> and select the file output type: photoshop (PDD,PSD)

BMP (BMP,RLE) Compuserve GIF (GIF) PhotoshopEPS (EPS) JPEG (JPG,JPE) PCX (PCX) Photoshop PDF (PDF) PICT File (PCT,PIC) Pixar (PXR) PNG (PNG) Raw (RAW) SciteX CT (SCT) Targa (TGA VDA ICB VST) TIFF (TIF)

• Windows Scanner Software:

Epson Smart Panel

How to do some Functions: --> Scan to OCR --> FINISH button --> Presto OCR --> RECOGNISE button --> select OpenOffice & LAUNCH button

...select 'No'...--> OpenOffice (free version of StarOffice)

--> Photoprint --> Copy (may crop off right side of image a bit)

Smart Panel lets you collect a bunch of scans for one 'Scan to' function(via the SCAN MORE button). It will pass the scans with a check mark to the function later on(after you click on the FINISH button). Once the FINISH button is hit, all the scans are deleted from the the Smart Panel catalog.

Smart Panel stays around while different programs start up

• there is usually a delay before the new program starts.

Astro Mail Servers

Note: If you send and receive astro email while logged into a Sun

host, you do not always need to select an SMTP, POP/IMAP

server.

SMTP Server(outgoing mail)

sierra.phys.columbia.edu (or any Sun running Solaris 8)

POP and IMAP Server(incoming mail)

jewels.phys.columbia.edu huitzil.phys.columbia.edu (alternate)

attila.phys.columbia.edu (old, no SSL supoort)

Both jewels and huitzil offer secure POP and IMAP, via SSL, in addition to the usual POP and IMAP services.

Note: You will need one of these servers if you pick up your astro(user@…) email from a non-Sun host or wish to use 'IMAP' or 'POP' on a Sun host.

Advanatges of SSL

POP and IMAP with SSL are more secure as your password, needed each time you pick up mail via POP or IMAP, is encrypted instead of being sent as clear text across the network.

Many email programs support SSL including:

Pine, Netscape, Mac OS X Mail, Eudora 5.1.1(Sponsored or paid

mode only)

To use SSL, you'll need to select that option in your email program.

Refer to ​SSL-notes for Netscape 6.2 setup details.

Pool & Backup

Permanent Sun host Data Directory Space

If you need disk space on the Sun hosts, send mail to crussell@astro . Note that ONLY /home directories are backedup on the Sun hosts.

Backup Info

4mm tape media is available in 1008 or in 1328 so that students can backup data directories.

Backing up Directories

Notes for backing up directories can be found ​here.

Rebooting Sun Hosts

EMERGENCY SUN HOST REBOOT/POWER OFF

If no one with root password access (crussell, caleb, jules or arlin) is available and you have determined (see below) that a reboot is necessary, you can reboot as follows:

1. If host has a front panel 'button' (ie. all SunBlades and all Ultras

except for Ultra-1's)

then to reboot safely:

Push and let go quickly the lit button on the front panel. The screen will go black. About a minute or two later, the screen will light up, a message about syncing the disks will be displayed and then the cpu box will be powered off.

After a moment, check that the light in or near the front panel button is off. Then push and let go quickly the button. The host will boot back up.

NOTE: Host lakme in Room 1325 has a hardware problem and this

does not work on that host.

NOTE: If the 'safe' reboot doesn't work, the last resort is

to hold in the 'button' about 4 seconds or more until the cpu box powers off (light is out). If that fails, then unplug the cpu box.

*See below for errors that occur when the 'safe' reboot isn't possible.*

2. If host has no front panel 'button' (ie. Ultra-1 attila, isolde, lucia

SPARCtation-10 odyssey SPARCstation-5 doncarlo )

then to reboot safely:

Hold down 'Stop' key and the 'a' key. This will display the okay prompt:

OK>

In order to sync the disks (this does NOT work on other hosts),

type:

OK> sync

After many messages (ie: syncing disks, dumping, ...) the screen will go black. When the screen turns white, the host has started to reboot.

If you need to power off the host, then instead, as soon as the screen turns white for the reboot, do a 2nd 'Stop-A'. Then at the prompt, type

OK> power-off

to power off the cpu box.

NOTE: If the 'safe' reboot doesn't work, the last resort is

use the switch by the plug to power off the cpu box.

*See below for errors that occur when the 'safe' reboot isn't possible.*

............................

IS A REBOOT NECESSARY?

Most Sun hosts act as data disk servers, some also as home directory servers and others as mail, print, web, and software servers.

As the Sun systems are interdependent, they are ideally always up and running with all disks mounted. Rebooting should be a last resort.

Below are guidelines on how to avoid a reboot/poweroff of a Sun host. See guidelines for doing a 'safe' reboot/poweroff above.

How to avoid a reboot:

1. Keep a 'console' window open. All system error messages are displayed in the console window. (In CDE's menu, select HOSTS --> Terminal Console )

2. Check the messages in the console window. If they include:

... server SOME_HOST not responding ...

then your host is likely just waiting on another host that is temporarily unavailable. Wait for the remote host to be back up. You should only reboot as a last resort and only if you can work without that remote host.

If the console messages include:

... server SOME_HOST_X not responding ... ... server SOME_HOST_Y not responding ... ... server SOME_HOST_Z not responding ...

then there is likely a network problem and rebooting will not help. Get in touch with the system manager.

3. If your console session is hung or frozen and there are no

... server SOME_HOST not responding ...

messages, then try to kill the session from another host:

ssh -l your_username your_hostname psallw | grep ksh

USER PID %CPU PRI NI S %MEM VSZ SZ ELAPSED TIME TT COMMAND YOU 9561 0.0 59 20 S 0.1 1952 244 1-02:32:54 0:00 ? /bin/ksh \

/usr/dt/bin/Xsession

kill 9561 (PID# for your Xsession 'ksh' process)

.................................

LIKELY ERRORS AFTER 'UNSAFE' REBOOT/POWEROFF

These occur when the 'safe' reboot/poweroff described above was not possible.

Disk .../dev/dsk/c0t0d0s0... not OKAY

...Run fsck...

Before the indicated disk(s) can be mounted, the root account must run 'fsck' on that disk. If no one is available to use the root account, the disk and, possibly the host, will remain off line.