This chapter helps you start exploring your network environment.
Most MultiNet applications allow you to specify a remote host by either name or Internet address. To access a host by name, the remote host must either be listed in the local system's host database or registered with a DNS (Domain Name System) server accessible from the local system. If you have difficulty accessing a remote host by its host name, contact your system manager or network administrator.
You can display a list of users on your system or on a remote system with the RUSERS command. For example:
$ MULTINET
RUSERS
SURETE RICK PATRICK
MIFIVE MATT
KGB KEN GIGI JOEL
SCIENCE RICK
WHO PATRICK ROB
DESIGN BRUCE
CHAZ GEORGE RICK
The RUSERS utility uses the RUSERS Remote Procedure Call (RPC) service to display information about users logged into the local system or a remote system. It can display information about a particular system, or, if supported by the network hardware, use broadcasts to display information about all remote systems on directly connected networks. RUSERS uses UDP/IP (User Datagram Protocol/Internet Protocol) as the transport mechanism for the RPC services it calls. When using RUSERS, the command can appear to hang, but is in fact waiting for a timeout period to ensure that the last packet is received.
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Note: If the system you are querying does not support the RUSERS RPC service, you will not receive any response (the RPC call times out silently).
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Use the WHOIS command to display information about a user, host, or domain accessed from the Internet's repository of information. The WHOIS command sends your request across the Internet to the NIC (at the RS.INTERNIC.NET host) and displays the information returned.
For example:
$ WHOIS
ULANOV
Ulanov, V.I. ulanov@example.COM
ABC, Incorporated
100 Nevsky Street
Anytown, CA 95060
(408) 555-1212
Record last updated on 31-March-03.
The InterNIC Registration
Services Host contains only Internet information (Networks, ASN's, Domains, and
POC's).
$
Because RS.INTERNIC.NET is heavily used, you may receive a message stating that "the network is busy, try later." As an alternative, you can ask your system manager about possibly selecting another WHOIS server.
You can display information about a domain, host, IP address, or single user. The FINGER utility accesses information on your local system or on a remote system.
You can display information about your host, as shown in the following example:
$ MULTINET
FINGER/NOCLUSTER
Monday, March 15, 2020 7:59PM-EST Up 1 10:33:01
nn+0 Jobs on CHUCKO Load ave 0.02 0.01 0.02
User Personal Name Job Subsys Terminal Console Location
BROWN John Brown 40A0022C MM 6.FTA13
40A0022D EMACS 1:20.FTA14
40A0022E *DCL* 22.FTA15
40A0025F *DCL* 3:46.FTA23
40A00260 *DCL* 3:33.FTA24
40A00261 FINGER .FTA25
SYSTEM System Manager 23000120 *DCL* BIRD$RTA1 KARLA::PIPER
23000121 *DCL* BIRD$RTA2 KARLA::PIPER
If you want to display FINGER information about every node in a VMScluster, omit the /NOCLUSTER qualifier. To display information about another host, add its name to the end of the command:
$ MULTINET
FINGER
Monday, March 15, 2020 7:59PM-EST Up 1 10:33:01
nn+0 Jobs on CHUCKO Load ave 0.02 0.01 0.02
User Personal Name Job Subsys Terminal Console Location
BROWN John Brown 40A0022C MM 6.FTA13
40A0022D EMACS 1:20.FTA14
40A0022E *DCL* 22.FTA15
40A0025F *DCL* 3:46.FTA23
40A00260 *DCL* 3:33.FTA24
40A00261 FINGER .FTA25
SYSTEM System Manager 23000120 *DCL* BIRD$RTA1 KARLA::PIPER
23000121 *DCL* BIRD$RTA2 KARLA::PIPER
RICH I. M. Rich 23200227 *DCL* CODEZ$NTY1 Rich.EXAMPLE.COM
POOR U. R. Poor 2280027B *DCL* 4$FTA4
JONES Mary Jones 21C00C04 EMACS SYS1$NTY5 BigBird.EXAMPLE.COM
You can only display information about another system if a FINGER server is running there and if the system permits it (some do not). The information you receive can vary depending on the FINGER server in use.
To display information about users at a specific IP address, use this command format:
$ MULTINET FINGER @192.168.11.1
Monday, March 15, 2020 7:59PM-EST
Up 1 10:33:01
nn+0 Jobs on CHUCKO Load ave 0.02 0.01 0.02
User Personal Name Job Subsys Terminal Console Location
BROWN John Brown 40A0022C MM 6.FTA13
40A0022D EMACS 1:20.FTA14
40A0022E *DCL* 22.FTA15
40A0025F *DCL* 3:46.FTA23
40A00260 *DCL* 3:33.FTA24
40A00261 FINGER .FTA25
SYSTEM System Manager 23000120 *DCL* BIRD$RTA1 KARLA::PIPER
23000121 *DCL* BIRD$RTA2 KARLA::PIPER
The load average information displayed at the beginning of the FINGER output is the average number of processes waiting for the CPU for the last one, two, and five minutes. For more information, ask your system manager.
To display information about a single user, use this command format:
$ MULTINET
FINGER BROWN
BROWN John 40A0022C MM 11.FTA13
40A0022D EMACS .FTA14
40A0022E *DCL* 27.FTA15
40A0025F FINGER .FTA23
40A00260 *DCL* 3:39.FTA24
40A00261 *DCL* 2.FTA25
Mail from firefly@example.edu (Rufus T. Firefly) at Mon 15-Mar-2019 7:53
PM-EST Last read on Mon 15-Mar-2004 7:59 PM-EST
Plan: At the beach today. The higher, the fewer!
-- Alexander in the colony of free spirits (ST-TNG)
If you want specific information to be available when someone seeks information about you with FINGER, create a PLAN.TXT text file in your login directory. If you want to have a plan file on a UNIX system, create a .plan file in your login directory.
The information in this file is available even when you are not logged in. When you create this file, ensure the file has world read access (W:R) and your login directory has world execute permissions (W:E). You can insert any text (except control characters which are filtered out), and the file can be any length you want.
· If you FINGER a single user on a VMS system running MultiNet, the utility looks for a file named PLAN.TXT in that user's login directory. If that file does not exist, it looks for a file named .PLAN.
· If you FINGER a single user on a UNIX system, FINGER looks for a file named .plan.
You can communicate with another user over the network using the TALK utility. TALK is similar to the OpenVMS PHONE utility except TALK can work with some non-OpenVMS operating systems.
TALK divides the screen into two sections; it displays text you enter in one section, and text entered by the other user in the other. You can then converse with each other until one of you presses Ctrl/C to end the session.
Use the following keystrokes during a TALK session:
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Press… |
To... |
Press... |
To... |
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Delete |
Delete the last character typed |
Ctrl+L |
Redraw the screen |
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Ctrl+C |
Exit and return to DCL command mode |
Ctrl+W |
Delete the last word typed |
Some restrictions apply when using TALK:
· You and the person with whom you wish to TALK need to be on systems with the same byte-ordering scheme (either "Big Endian" or "Little Endian").
For example, if the other person is using a Sun workstation or a terminal connected to one, they cannot use the TALK command. Sun users need to use the NTALK command. NTALK is provided on the MultiNet software distribution CD-ROM in the [CONTRIBUTED- SOFTWARE.APPLICATIONS.NTALK] directory, or elsewhere as public domain software. Your system manager can provide more information.
· Both of your terminals must be able to accept broadcasts. Use these commands to enable broadcasts but suppress mail broadcasts:
$ SET TERMINAL /BROADCAST
$ SET BROADCAST=NOMAIL
· Your terminal type must be listed in the OpenVMS TERMTABLE.TXT database. As shipped with OpenVMS, this database includes all DEC/HP VT-series terminals. If you have a non-DEC/non-HP terminal, check with your system manager.
· The other person's system must be known to your system. TALK must be able to translate the remote system's IP address into its name. Your system must be using the Domain Name System (DNS) or have the remote system recorded in its host tables.
When a user uses TALK to call you, a message of the following form appears on your terminal:
Message from TALK-DAEMON@EXAMPLE.COM
at 1:53PM-EDT
Connection request by username
[Respond with: TALK username@hostname]
Type a TALK command to start the conversation:
$ TALK username@hostname
Once communication is established, you and the other user can type simultaneously, with your output appearing in separate windows.
If you try to TALK with a user who has disabled reception of broadcast messages, this message appears:
[Your party is refusing messages]
The TALK Server uses the PHONE operator class.
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Note: To prevent users from attempting to TALK with you, use the SET BROADCAST=NOPHONE command.
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You can send reminders with the REMIND utility, as shown in the following example:
$ REMIND
REMIND Version V5.6(nn), 15-MAR-2020
There are no reminders in your remind file.
REMIND>CREATE
Time of first reminder? 22:45
Expiration count? 1
How should I send it? SEND
Addresses? ME
Subject? Testing
Text (end with ^Z)
This is a test.
^Z
REMIND>exit
[Entering your changes...]
When REMIND starts, it checks to see if any reminders are pending. It then displays the REMIND> prompt. Use the CREATE command to start a new reminder. The time of the reminder can be in 12-hour or 24-hour time and can also be a special name. The expiration count is the number of times you want the message sent. You can specify that the message be sent by mail, broadcast to the terminal (SEND), or both. You can enter details in much the same way as a mail message with the address of the recipient, the subject, and the text. When you press Ctrl+Z, the message is queued.
If you request reminders by mail, the information you specify is used to construct an electronic mail message. If you request reminders by broadcast to the terminal, REMIND sends a message like the following:
[REMIND(10:50PM): subject Message text]
For help, enter a question mark (?) at any prompt. For example, at the Time of first reminder? prompt, the following help appears:
Time of first reminder? ?
date and time or one of the
following:
FRIDAY MONDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY THURSDAY TODAY TOMORROW TUESDAY WEDNESDAY
or one of the following:
APRIL-FOOLS BASTILLE-DAY BEETHOVENS-BIRTHDAY
BLBOS-BIRTHDAY CHRISTMAS COLUMBUS-DAY
FLAG-DAY FRODO'S-BIRTHDAY GONDORIAN-NEW-YEAR
GROUND-HOG-DAY GUY-FAWKES-DAY HALLOWEEN
INDEPENDENCE-DAY LEAP-DAY LINCOLNS-BIRTHDAY