[Info-vax] HP OpenVMS TCPIP SMTP gives error after change of node name

[RobertsonEricW]

On Tuesday, October 30, 2012 3:03:40 PM UTC-4, Stephen Hoffman wrote:
> On 2012-10-30 16:46:31 +0000, RobertsonEricW said:
> 
> 
> 
> > Yes, I too went through the entire TCP/IP configuration using 
> 
> > SYS$MANAGER:TCPIP$CONFIG.COM and still had this problem. The 
> 
> > interesting thing is that I have renamed nodes before but don't 
> 
> > remember having this problem. However, there may have been a subtle 
> 
> > difference in how I went about renaming the node this time around as 
> 
> > compared to the last time I did it.
> 
> > 
> 
> > Your suspicion regarding the UNIX-like configuration file may be 
> 
> > correct. I found the file 
> 
> > SYS$SYSDEVICE:[SYS0.TCPIP$SMTP]TCPIP$SMTP.CONF had an entry:
> 
> > 
> 
> > Queue-Name                    : TCPIP$SMTP_IQDEV1_00
> 
> > 
> 
> > within it. After changing this entry to read:
> 
> > 
> 
> > Queue-Name                    : TCPIP$SMTP_DEMO1_00
> 
> > 
> 
> > and saving it, I was able to restart the SMTP service without incident 
> 
> > and the expected queues once again appeared in the system's list of 
> 
> > queues.
> 
> > ...
> 
> 
> 
> That seems a {limitation?  misfeature?  bug? undocumented feature?} of 
> 
> TCP/IP Services.   Whether that queue name string should (optionally?) 
> 
> see a %s substitution with the host name string, or is something that 
> 
> reconfiguring TCP/IP Services should fix, should get documented as an 
> 
> extra step when changing the host name; whatever the chosen resolution. 
> 
>  But it seems, well, broken.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> 
> Pure Personal Opinion | HoffmanLabs LLC

Yes, I agree that it is rather obtuse behavior on the part of the HP TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS SMTP service. But, this is what it does currently. The funny thing is that the obsoleted TCPIP Services Database for SMTP correctly reflects the change in the queue name but this change is not propagated to the "new" SYS$SYSDEVICE:[SYS0.TCPIP$SMTP]TCPIP$SMTP.CONF file which is now actually used to control the execution of the SMTP service. As you suggested, it would have been smarter to base the queue name configuration entry on some string substitution syntax which would automatically adjust the queue name based on the node name active at the time the service is started.

I would consider this a bug (NOT a "feature"). But, my recent past experience with the HP OpenVMS Engineering people makes me think they will not agree with that conclusion. Even if they did miraculously agree that this behavior is a bug, I would not expect a fix any time soon.

I have since verified that using my original procedure for renaming the node does not produce a different result. So, I think what happened in my particular case was that I both updated to the newer version of HP TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS and enabled the SMTP service therein between the last time that I performed a node rename procedure and my most recent attempt. So, I guess for now (if you are so inclined) you should update your article to reflect this stupidity for V5.7 and later of HP TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS.

By the way, this all seems even more half baked when you find out that the SYS$SYSDEVICE:[SYS0.TCPIP$SMTP]TCPIP$SMTP_CONF.TEMPLATE file uses the queue name TCPIP$SMTP which has no node name within it at all!

Anyway, thanks for the help everyone.

Eric