[Info-vax] %SYSTEM-F-ACCVIO again

[Simon Clubley]

On 2024-04-08, Robert A. Brooks <FIRST.LAST at vmssoftware.com> wrote:
> On 4/8/2024 8:34 AM, Simon Clubley wrote:
>   
>> If there's something VMS needs or a configuration it doesn't support,
>> then that should be probed at boot time and VMS should refuse to continue
>> booting with the reason why been made clear. The bug in this case is that
>> this check is missing from VMS.
>
> That's one way to look at it.
>
> Another way is that we have been quite clear what the requirements are to run VMS.
>
> Any variation from that is unsupported.  We recognize that there are likely configurations
> that are technically unsupported, but will still likely work.  Preventing those
> configurations from working is someething we could do, but chose not to.
>

Given that the VMS mindset is supposed to be one of robustness and
reliability, perhaps the proper approach is to enforce a default refuse
to boot on unsupposed configuration, but allow an override with a boot
flag or SYSGEN parameter.

That way, people don't accidentally use an unsupported configuration in
production use, but you also don't stop people from using an unsupported
configuration if they choose to do so.

However, if you implement this, an impossible to miss message should be
output on every boot so that the flag is not set and then forgotten about.

Simon.

-- 
Simon Clubley, clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP
Walking destinations on a map are further away than they appear.