[Info-vax] BACKUP to nfs-share, some files are modified

[Stephen Hoffman]

On 2015-01-30 08:24:16 +0000, wolfgangburgerunread at gmail.com said:

> Thank you all for your answers and sorry for the confusion.
> 
> Some more details and answers.
> 
> - The VMS cluster will be shut down permanently and dismantled to free 
> up rack space.
> I might not be able to boot it up again. That´s why I want the files 
> copied to some other system.

OpenVMS via emulation would be a typical path here, and I'd 
specifically target that as one potential path for future recovery of 
the data.  That's where the disk images come into play.  There are 
formal ways to transfer VMS software licenses over to emulation, as 
well; HP has a license transfer fee, which gives you rights to anything 
you had on the hardware, but under emulation.  
<http://h71000.www7.hp.com/ovmslicensing/openvms_licensing_information.html> 
<http://licensing.hp.com/slt/americas/index.html>

> - It´s all types of files. (TXT, pictures, office-files, PDF, 
> Pascal-source codes (only kept for reference and nostalgia))

Convert to Stream LF.  See <http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/1737>

> - I don´t want to hide them in some BACKUP container (bck-file), as 
> these are hard to decipher on another OS

While zip would be more portable, vmsbackup 
<http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/817> is available.  The problem is 
less the container than the files within the container, though.  RMS 
sequential VFC format is common on VMS, but not readily accessible on 
other platforms.

> - BUT I would like to keep the directory trees, so I can´t really use FTP.

Except in desperation, FTP is best avoided.  OK, some unspecified and 
quite possibly old OpenVMS format is in use here, and that might not 
have SFTP.

>  That´s why I tried to use BACKUP.
> But without creating a container file. The command (example):
> BACKUP disks:[data...] diskx:[transfer...]
> where diskx is the mounted nfs-share.

BACKUP doesn't do format conversions.  NFS, however, can.  And the 
ADF-based file format conversions might not be what you want.

Now you have VMS formats including VFC files on non-VMS systems.

> - ZIP would be a good idea, but as far as I can tell, it´s not 
> installed.I could try to install it, but I would need a "beginners 
> guide" to do so.

<http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/575>   Or get some help.

> - Stephen, can it really be an EOF problem with modified bytes all over 
> the file? (see below)

If you have modified bytes all over the file, then there's something 
else going on; network or NFS or file-level errors, or some sort of 
file format conversion; 0x0A is linefeed, and file format conversions — 
as I've mentioned — are definitely in play here.  But BACKUP to NFS is 
a Unix-ish solution, and it'd work if VMS had the bag-of-bytes file 
format semantics typical of Unix.  But VMS doesn't.

Get the XLS files off with however they were gotten on.   Or zip one of 
them individually, and see if they'll read after the transfer and he 
restoration.   The Microsoft files are a separate problem from the 
sequential file format issues, and those Microsoft files are usually 
present secondary to Advanced Server or Samba/CIFS transfers.

But FWIW, BACKUP via NFS is about the last way I'd even approach this 
archival processing, though.  In general 
<http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/1737>

> The options:
> COPY - no way to keep directory tree, or is there?

You're not doing a COPY.  You are going to need to convert the file 
formats.  Many of the OpenVMS RMS sequential file formats are not 
binary-transportable.

> FTP - no way to keep directory tree, or is there?

FTP is an ancient protocol and older than the IP internet, wildly 
insecure, and generally incompatible with modern networks.

> BACKUP to individual files - corrupting my files for yet unknown reasons

The files may well have been corrupted to start with, as Microsoft 
files have been a longstanding problem.  But I'd wager that NFS is 
trying to get helpful, and BACKUP doesn't know you're looking to do 
here — like COPY, BACKUP doesn't do format conversions.  NFS can get 
involved here and does try to do format conversions; there's 
documentation available on that, but it's usually easier to convert the 
most important (sequential) files to portable formats on VMS, then zip 
them with "-V", then use SFTP or (if you're really stuck) FTP to 
transfer binary-mode them.

> BACKUP to container file - basically unreadable on other OS

As with COPY, you're looking for a file format conversion.  I'd suspect 
that NFS might be getting helpful here, too; the VMS NFS client has ADF 
support 
<http://h71000.www7.hp.com/doc/83final/6526/6526pro_052.html#nfs_client_chap> 
but it's usually safer to convert the files to stream LF locally, then 
transfer them.

> ZIP - not installed, any hints for beginners guide and executables?

<http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/575> <http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/1737>

> Stephen, unfortunately Christoph Gartmann is no longer available.
> I´m REALLY curious, how did you know where I´m working?
> My name is ungoogleable as I share it with an OpenVMS-Blogger and a 
> semi-famous german author.
> I´ve used a throw-away email-address.
> What am I missing here?I´ve created the post over google-groups, do 
> real news-readers show the source ip?

OPSEC is hard.    Might want to have your network folks update your DNS 
whois records, FWIW.





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