Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals
====================================================
Revision 1.2, 2/16/95
Section Description Page
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lawyers....Copyright Notice .......................................... 2
A..........Which Modem Should You Use? ------------------------------- 3
Types of Modem Usage .................................... 3
Modem Programming ....................................... 4
Modem Speed ............................................. 4
Flow Control and Parity ................................. 5
B..........Celeste's Strategy for Configuring Modems and Terminals --- 6
Ok, So What Do I Do? .................................... 6
To use a port for dial-out only ....................... 6
To use a port for dial-in only ........................ 6
To use a port for bidirectional use ................... 7
To configure a dumb terminal .......................... 7
C..........Tip and /etc/remote -------------------------------------- 8
/etc/remote example .................................... 10
D..........Basic Modem Programming ---------------------------------- 11
E..........Enabling Solaris For a Bidirectional Modem --------------- 12
add_modem shell script ................................. 14
F..........Enabling Solaris For A Dial-out-only Modem --------------- 15
G..........Setting Up A Terminal on Solaris 2.x --------------------- 16
add_terminal shell script .............................. 18
H..........Setting Serial Port Modes -------------------------------- 19
/etc/ttydefs examples .................................. 20
I..........Configuring Serial Ports for UUCP ------------------------ 21
Parity in UUCP ......................................... 21
Flow control with UUCP ................................. 22
This document is a tutorial that will teach you everything you should need
to know about connecting asynchronous modems and terminals to a Sun
workstation under Sun's Solaris 2.x. It does not cover the specifics of
setting up PPP. An abridged version of this information has been published
in _Unix Review_.
You must execute the commands as root and you will probably have to reboot the
machine. So, plan the system's downtime accordingly.
You may distribute this information to anyone who wants it, as long as you
never attempt to copyright it in any way. If you find errors in it, or have
suggestions for changes in future revisions, please let me know via email.
Go for it--you can do it!
..Celeste Stokely, Unix System Administration Consultant, Stokely Consulting
EMAIL: celeste@xs.com
Voice Line: 415-967-6898 / FAX: 415-967-0160
USMAIL Address: Stokely Consulting/211 Thompson Square/Mountain View CA 94043
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 2
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lawyer Section:
Copyright (c) 1995 Stokely Consulting
Permission to use, copy, and distribute this documentation for any purpose and
without fee is hereby granted, provided that the above copyright notice appear
in all copies, that both that copyright notice and this permission notice
appear in supporting documentation, that this document is not modified, and
that the name of Stokely Consulting not be used in advertising or publicity
pertaining to distribution of the software without specific, written prior
permission. Stokely Consulting makes no representations about the
suitability of this documentation for any purpose. It is provided "as is"
without express or implied warranty.
All other product names are copyrighted by their various owners.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Setting up modems and terminals under Unix is often painful. If you had
modem and terminal connection down to a science in SunOS 4.x, you're
probably having trouble understanding it in Solaris 2.x. Solaris 2.x uses
the SYSV-ish approach instead of the SunOS 4.x BSD approach. BSD uses getty
and friends to spawn login, while SYSV uses port monitors and new friends.
If this is your first attempt at hooking up a modem or terminal to a Unix
machine, I'll give you a sound strategy to use and walk you through it. It's
not really hard once you learn a few basics.
The Sun manuals and Answerbook have a few incorrect back quotes in vital
places. Following their instructions probably won't give you error messages,
but they won't work, either. However, Answerbook will explain all the ins
and outs of port monitors, if you want to understand them in detail.
Sun's admintool Serial Port Manager works for many simple modem and terminal
setups, but when it doesn't work, you need to know how to run the various
setup commands by hand.
WARNING: I have very strong feelings about modems, their uses, their
manufacturers, and their support. My clients ask me to make their modems
work and stay working, so I tend to use only modems that are robust, highly
configurable, fast, and well-supported. They're not cheap, but neither is a
System Administrator's time. I use cheap modems for doorstops and bookends.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 3
A. Which Modem Should You Use?
==============================
There are hundreds of Hayes-compatible, asynchronous modems on the market
today. Most of them can be made to work on a Sun for dial-out. Many can work
for dial-in. Several will work gracefully for bidirectional (dial-in and dial-
out) use. Fewer still will bring a smile to a sysadm's heart.
If you're trying to connect a non Hayes-compatible modem to your Sun, this
article won't work for you.
This article covers the basic setup for many common serial port usages, such
as:
- dial-in only access for human login accounts
- dial-out only access for humans and programs using "tip".
- dial-in and dial-out setups for UUCP (email, Usenet NetNews, file
transfer)
- Bidirectional modem use: dialing in and out on the same port
- Basic dumb terminal connection, ("dumb terminal" == vt100, Wyse-50, and
other plain, character-based terminals.)
This article specifically does not cover:
- Setting up PPP or SLIP
- Using your modem to send FAXes
- X Terminal setup
In general, you get what you pay for. A $49 modem will cost you a fortune in
the time it takes to get it running. A $499 modem can be configured and
running in under 20 minutes and give you little grief in day-to-day use.
Types of Modem Usage
-----------------------
Match your modem to your intended use for it. Don't buy a cheap 2400bps
modem to transfer all your company's mail and netnews. If your Internet
service provider offers your UUCP connection only over Telebit WorldBlazers,
you should strongly consider buying a Telebit WorldBlazer and dedicate it to
that use. If they're not a Telebit site and plan on staying that way, there
are faster, more widely-compatible modems available for a LOT less money.
My current favorite is the USRobotics Courier V.34--a sweet modem that gets
better with every release of the flash-upgrade for the ROM. Next month, who
knows what will be the darling? I have so many "former favorite" modems in
my office that it's starting to look like a modem museum.
If you have to support a lot of dial-in users with a wide collection of random
modems, then you need something which can happily work with all the possible
user modems. That means you need one that will run at least 14400bps. The
new real V.34 28800bps modems will be even better, in the long run. Plan on
spending $300-$600 for this modem.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 4
Modem Programming
--------------------
In deciding which modem to buy, a key consideration is how you can program the
modem. Some modems use DIP switches, some are programmed by connecting to
the modem and setting software registers, some use both methods. You get
more programming flexibility with software registers, and this is important
when you'll be connecting to a lot of different modem types.
If a modem has only DIP switches available, it probably will be hard to make
it do everything you need for lots of different connections. It's probably
also an old, slow modem. I call these "cheap PC modems" and avoid them like
spamming Internet lawyers.
Modem Speed
--------------
One of the most important features to look for is the modem's ability to run
at split speeds. You really want to run the Sun-to-modem connection at a fixed
speed (the "DTE rate" or "serial rate") all the time, and let the modem
negotiate the modem-to-modem speed ("DCE rate" or "line speed") independently.
Beware, because many inexpensive modems can't do this. If your modem doesn't
do this, you and your users will have to hit until the speeds sync up.
This drives users (and you) crazy!
You should try to run the Sun-to-modem (DTE) connection at 9600bps,
19200bps, or 38400bps. A Sun can NOT run the CPU serial port at 14400bps. But,
that's ok because all the 14400 modems I've ever seen can run at 19200bps
DTE speed. You can also run at slower speeds, but why bother? Buy a faster
modem than you think you need and you'll get more use out of it in the long
run.
There are a few kernel hacks available to run the Sun CPU serial ports at
higher speed. Use them at your own risk. I do NOT recommend them--they're
too unstable for most purposes. The Sun CPU serial ports and their drivers are
bad enough without hacking on them yourself.
If you crave more speed than 38400bps, you need to look into SBUS serial-
port expander cards with DMA (I like Magma's line of DMA serial cards), or
even network-connected terminal servers, and modems which are even MORE
expensive. If you need a lot of high-speed serial connections, network
terminal servers are probably the way you should go.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 5
Flow Control and Parity
--------------------------
When you run at higher speeds (9600bps and above), you MUST worry about flow
control. Ideally, you want hardware flow control where the Sun and modem
play the right games with the RTS/CTS lines to say "shut up" and "give me
more".
Historically, the Sun CPU ports have not been able to use incoming hardware
flow control, only outgoing. Sun has released a patch to enable incoming
flow control. This is Patch # 100999 for Solaris 2.2, also lovingly known as
the "Kernel Jumbo Patch". Refer to Sunsolve or Sun Technical Support to see if
there is a patch for your version of Solaris. I've had moderate success with
Patch 100999. Sometimes, it just doesn't work. Sometimes it does. It's worth a
try at least. If it doesn't work and you must have hardware flow control, look
into the higher-end SBUS-based serial port expander cards.
If the patch doesn't work for you, you can consider using software (XON/
XOFF) flow control. But, NEVER use software flow control with UUCP or UUCP
will go nuts from the unexpected XON and XOFF characters. If you can't use
hardware flow control with UUCP, it's better to use no flow control at all and
let UUCP do its own packet throttling.
I run my own communications server without port-level flow control on my 13
UUCP connections at 38400bps and all the mail and NetNews gets delivered
just fine.
Try to always run your ports and modems at 8 bits, no parity. Parity on serial
port transmissions is an outdated concept when you're using modern, error-
correcting modem protocols. By default, the Sun CPU ports run at 7 bits,
even parity (7E1). I'll explain how to run them at 8 bits, no parity (8N1). If
you've got a legitimate use for odd, mark, or space parity, I want to hear
from you!
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 6
B. Celeste's Strategy for Configuring Modems and Terminals
==========================================================
This strategy gives you flexibility and maintainability in your serial port
configurations. It will work for nearly all configurations.
Important Rule: Add and configure only 1 modem or terminal at a time. Get it
working, then move on to the next one. Any other approach will result in
madness. I been there, done that. Trust me.
There are actually very few steps.
To configure the port for a terminal, set up the port monitor, then
configure the terminal.
To configure the port for a modem, get tip working, program the modem, make
sure your logical port devices have the proper permissions, then enable a
bidirectional port monitor.
Then, if you only want to use the modem port for incoming connections,
disable tip for everyone but root.
Or, if you only want to use the modem port for outgoing connections,
remove the port monitor and turn off auto-answer on the modem.
Purists may argue that this modem-port configuration has extra, unneeded steps
or leaves the port monitor in bidirectional mode for incoming-only
connections. I find that if a sysadm sets up a port for only dial-in or dial-
out, someday he or she will want the port to be bidirectional. Setting
things up for this in the beginning means you'll have easier success in the
future. And, it doesn't hurt anything.
Ok, So What Do I Do?
--------------------
To use a port for dial-out only:
- Configure /etc/remote for tip (See the section "Tip and /etc/remote" on
page 8.)
- Set up the word length and parity for the port (See the section "Setting
Serial Port Modes" on page 19.)
- Program the modem (See the section "Basic Modem Programming" on page 11.)
- Remove any port monitor which may be on the serial port (See the
section, "Enabling Solaris For A Dial-out-only Modem" on page 15.)
To use a port for dial-in only:
- Configure /etc/remote for tip (See the section "Tip and /etc/remote" on
page 8.)
- Set up the word length and parity for the port (See the section "Setting
Serial Port Modes" on page 19.)
- Program the modem (See the section "Basic Modem Programming" on page 11.)
- Configure the port monitor to spawn a login correctly (See the section
"Enabling Solaris For a Bidirectional Modem" on page 12.)
- Make /bin/tip owner-executable only. Don't delete it, you'll need it
someday. And, remember to leave it setuid-uucp!
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 7
To use a port for bidirectional (dial-in and dial-out) use:
- Configure /etc/remote for tip (See the section "Tip and /etc/remote" on
page 8.)
- Set up the word length and parity for the port (See the section "Setting
Serial Port Modes" on page 19.)
- Program the modem (See the section "Basic Modem Programming" on page 11.)
- Configure the port monitor to spawn a login correctly (See the section
"Enabling Solaris For a Bidirectional Modem" on page 12.)
To configure a dumb terminal on a port instead of a modem:
- Ignore tip (That should be easy!)
- Set up the word length and parity for the port (See the section "Setting
Serial Port Modes" on page 19.)
- Configure the port monitor to spawn a login correctly. (See the section
"Setting Up A Terminal on Solaris 2.x" on page 16.)
- Configure the terminal itself, setting up the baud rate, word length
and parity, and flow control.
If you want to use UUCP, you must configure it as well. This article will tell
you about setting up parity and flow control in UUCP, but doesn't cover all
the other UUCP file changes. For that, get the O'Reilly and Associates book
_Managing UUCP and Usenet_.
Simple, huh? Find the parts of this article that do the pieces you want,
modify the scripts as needed, and go for it!
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 8
C. Tip and /etc/remote
======================
You may hate tip and love kermit or pcomm. I understand. But, do this via
tip to keep it simple, ok?
Decide which serial port you want to use. (One with no cable already plugged
in is often a good bet.) The port will be labeled "A", "B", "A/B" or could
even be "C" or higher.
If you use one labeled "A/B" and have no Y-type splitter cable plugged into
it, you'll have access only to port A. With the splitter, you'll get ports A
and B on separate sockets of the splitter cable.
The Sun serial port device driver splits each physical port into two logical
devices, /dev/term/a or /dev/term/b for incoming transmission, and /dev/cua/
a or /dev/cua/b for outgoing transmission.
The "speed" referred to in this section is the DTE or Sun-to-modem speed. It
is NOT the modem-to-modem speed. A 14400bps modem may have a 19200bps DTE
speed.
Make sure you have your serial port permissions right. uucp should own the
outgoing side, and root should own the incoming side.
Execute these commands as root, substituting your port name (a, b, c, or d)
where needed:
prompt# chown uucp /dev/cua/a; chgrp tty /dev/cua/a
prompt# chown root /dev/term/a; chgrp tty /dev/term/a
1. Edit tip's configuration file, /etc/remote, and find the entry beginning
with "hardwire:". This is the entry you use to program the modem, and is
not usually used for dialing out directly, unless you enjoy AT commands.
(If this is the second modem you're adding, clone the entire hardwire
entry and label the new entry "hardwire2".)
Change it from an entry like:
hardwire:\
:dv=/dev/????/?:br#????:el=^C^S^Q^U^D:ie=%$:oe=^D:
to one set to your port (like /dev/cua/a) and baud rate (like 9600):
hardwire:\
:dv=/dev/cua/a:br#9600:el=^C^S^Q^U^D:ie=%$:oe=^D:
>> Go to step 2
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 9
2. NOTE: Never run tip from a cmdtool. Use a shelltool, xterm, or some other
window without scrollbars. The scrollbars may confuse tip's
processing.
There are exceptions to this, but if you never run tip in a scrollbar-type
window, you won't have to remember all the ways it does and does not work.
Now use your edited "hardwire" entry from /etc/remote and type:
prompt# tip hardwire (or "tip hardwire2")
you should see "connected"
type:
ATE1V1
(This will work for all Hayes-compatible modems, even the cheapies.)
You should see "OK".
Congratulations! You're talking with the modem!
Now, issue the appropriate AT commands to program the modem.
(See the section called "Basic Modem Programming" on page 11.
Don't forget to write the new settings out to the modem's
NonVolatile RAM.
If you don't see "OK", you are not communicating with the modem.
See if the modem is plugged in, verify the baud rate of the modem
and the hardwire entry in /etc/remote, verify the modem cable.
- The cuaa entry (below) allows you to type "tip cuaa" and talk directly to
a modem on port A at 19200bps, using 7 bits, even parity.
- The cuab entry (below) allows you to type "tip cuab" and talk directly to
a modem on port A at 9600bps, using 8 bits, no parity.
- "tip some_phone_number" will look for the tip0 entry and use that definition
to dial "some_phone_number". (In the example below, it will use tip0,
which points to UNIX-19200, which sets up a dialup 19200bps 7 bits even
parity Hayes compatible modem. UNIX-19200 points to diala, which
references /dev/cua/a. Convoluted, eh?)
- "tip mysystem" (below) looks up the "mysystem" entry, and dials the
number 14155551234 via a 19200bps 7 bits, no parity connection on
/dev/cua/a.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 10
/etc/remote example
-------------------
The following sample /etc/remote file is set up for:
port a, 19200bps Hayes-compatible modem, 7 bits even parity
(It's 7E1 because there is no "p8" entry)
port b, 9600bps Hayes-compatible modem, 8 bits no parity
(It's 8N1 because there is a "p8" entry)
See the remote(4) man page for all the possible options.
cuaa:dv=/dev/cua/a:br#19200:
cuab:dv=/dev/cua/b:p8:br#9600
mysystem:pn=14155551234:tc=UNIX-9600:
hardwire:\
:dv=/dev/cua/b:br#9600:el=^C^S^Q^U^D:ie=%$:oe=^D:
tip0|tip19200:tc=UNIX-19200:
tip9600:tc=UNIX-9600:
UNIX-9600:\
:el=^D^U^C^S^Q^O@:du:at=hayes:ie=#$%:oe=^D:br#9600:tc=dialb:
UNIX-19200:\
:el=^D^U^C^S^Q^O@:du:at=hayes:ie=#$%:oe=^D:br#19200:tc=diala:
diala:\
:dv=/dev/cua/a:
dialb:\
:p8:dv=/dev/cua/b:
--------------------------------------------------------------------
The attributes are:
dv device to use for the tty
du make a call flag (dial up)
pn phone numbers (@ =>'s search phones file; possibly taken from
PHONES environment variable)
at ACU type
ie input EOF marks (default is NULL)
oe output EOF string (default is NULL)
cu call unit (default is dv)
br baud rate (defaults to 300)
tc to continue a capability
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 11
D. Basic Modem Programming
==========================
Dust off your modem manual and have it handy. Use tip to connect to the
modem and program the modem registers. Be sure to write out the modem's
registers to NonVolatile RAM when you're done. Program the modem with:
- Hardware DTR, Normal DTR, or Reset When DTR Toggles. When the Sun
drops DTR the modem should hang up the phone line and reset the modem
to NonVolatile RAM settings.
- Hardware Carrier Detect or Normal Carrier Detect. The modem should
only raise Carrier Detect (known as CD or DCD) when there is an active
carrier signal on the phone connection. You'll setup the port monitor
so that when CD goes active, the Sun will spawn a login.
When carrier drops, either when the other end of the connection
terminated or if the phone connection is broken, the Sun will be
notified and act appropriately. The CD signal is also used for
coordinating dial-in and dial-out use on a single serial port and modem.
- Respond with numeric result codes if this is for tip's use. (Usually
this is ATV0) If you're setting the modem for UUCP dialout, then
program the modem to use English result codes (like CONNECT). (Usually,
this is ATV1.)
If you're using the modem for both tip and UUCP, set it up with
numeric result codes, and have UUCP's chat script set it to English
result codes for the duration of the UUCP connection. See the O'Reilly
and Associates book _Managing UUCP and Usenet_ for the nitty-gritties
on this.
- Send BASIC result codes ONLY. Tip only wants to see result codes 0
through 4. If it sees other result codes, it calls them an error.
(Sometimes this is ATX0 or ATQ0)
- Do not echo commands. (Usually this is ATE0)
- Modem is locked at a single speed setting between Sun and modem.
The speed may vary as needed between local and remote modem, but
should remain constant between the Sun and modem.(If your modem can't do
this, use it for a paperweight and buy one that allows split speeds.
If your boss won't let you do this, ok, but you should whine real loud.)
- If this modem is used for dial-in, turn on Auto-Answer. (Sometimes
this is ATS0=1.) If the modem is not used for dial-in, turn off
Auto-Answer. (Sometimes this is ATS0=0.)
- Set the modem to your parity and word length requirements.
Use 8 bits, no parity if you can.
- Set the modem to your flow control scheme. Use hardware flow control
(CTS/RTS) if you can, software flow control (XON/XOFF) if you must,
or no flow control if you just have to.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 12
E. Enabling Solaris For a Bidirectional Modem
=============================================
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- All single quotes in these directions are BACK QUOTES,
not FORWARD QUOTES, except where specifically noted.
- Be sure and execute these commands as root, from a BOURNE shell (sh),
not ksh, tcsh, or csh. (If you use a Bourne shell script, that's great.)
- If, after following these instructions, you get modem failures, or if
the add_modem script gives an error message about
"ttyadm: -V: invalid parameter", then make sure that root's default
shell is /sbin/sh and not csh.
- You want to have a maximum of 1 port monitor running on a given port.
If you accidentally have 2 or more running on the port, your machine
will probably panic.
1. Login as root and type:
prompt# eeprom ttya-ignore-cd=true
prompt# eeprom ttya-rts-dtr-off=true
>> go to step 2
2. Reboot the system by typing:
prompt# init 6
(Is it critical to reboot now? No. But, you'll need to reboot at some
time.)
>> Go to step 3
3. Make sure the modem is properly connected to your port and already
programmed.
Make sure the cable is ok. Your cable needs at least lines
1,2,3,4,5,6,8, and 20, all straight through, with none crossed.
A 25-pin cable, wired "straight through" is fine. A Null Modem cable will
NOT work.
>> Go to step 4
4. Is the Solaris 2.x port monitor, ttymon, configured and running?
Login as root and type:
prompt# sacadm -l -t ttymon
If you get a message like:
"Invalid request, ttymon does not exist"
then the ttymon port monitor is not configured.
>> Go to step 5
If you get a result like:
PMTAG PMTYPE FLGS RCNT STATUS COMMAND
zsmon ttymon - 0 ENABLED /usr/lib/saf/ttymon
>> Go to step 6
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 13
5. Configure an instance of ttymon called zsmon:
prompt# sacadm -a -p zsmon -t ttymon -c /usr/lib/saf/ttymon -v `ttyadm -V`
(Note: The string "zsmon" is known as a PMTAG.)
>> Go to step 6
6. Is there a service running on the zsmon port monitor?
Type:
prompt# pmadm -l
a) If you got a result like:
PMTAG PMTYPE SVCTAG FLGS ID
zsmon ttymon ttya u root /dev/term/a I - .........
Then you need to remove the existing service. Issue this command and
insert the PMTAG and SVCTAG found in the previous command by typing:
prompt# pmadm -r -p zsmon -s ttya
^ ^
(PMTAG) (SVCTAG)
>> Go to step 7.
b) If you don't see your port (like /dev/term/a) listed, then you're ok.
>> Go to step 7.
7. Make a script which will remove any existing port monitor and create a new
bidirectional port service.
Putting this in a script is a Very Good Idea because if you make a mistake,
you can easily fix the problem and rerun the script. Don't try to do this
without a script--there are too many typing errors waiting to be made in
this command.
Type in the following script as a file (for instance, /sbin/add_modem),
make it executable, then run it.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 14
#!/bin/sh
##########################################################################
# add_modem shell script. Must be run as root from bourne shell
# This script invokes pmadm with the following parameters.
# Change these parameters as needed for your particular needs.
# PARAMETER MEANING
# --------- -------
# PORT Port you want to set up. "a" or "b"
# TTYSPEED Speed setting, from /etc/ttydefs
# -p zsmon PMTAG, name of this port monitor
# -s ttya SVCTAG, modem is on ttya. you may want ttyb
# -d /dev/term/$PORT Actual port device.
# -l contty5H Ttylabel, defined in /etc/ttydefs file. (speed
# setting. contty5H=19200 baud)
# -b Flag for bidirectional port use
# -S n Turn software carrier off (modem supplies hardware
# carrier detect signal)
# "dial in/out on serial port" This is a comment you'll see on pmadm -l
# set PORT = either a or b
PORT="a"
#----------------------------------------
# choose your speed setting. See /etc/ttydefs for more, or build your
# own from the examples in the rest of this article.
# contty5H = 19200bps, 7 bits even parity, as supplied by Sun
# conttyH = 9600bps, 7 bits even parity, as supplied by Sun
#----------------------------------------
TTYSPEED="contty5H"
#----------------------------------------
# change ownership of outgoing side of port to user uucp, group tty.
# change ownership of incoming side of port to user root, group tty.
#----------------------------------------
chown uucp /dev/cua/$PORT; chgrp tty /dev/cua/$PORT
chown root /dev/term/$PORT; chgrp tty /dev/term/$PORT
#----------------------------------------
# Remove any existing port monitor on this port.
# You can ignore any error messages from this next command.
# If you see the message "Invalid request, ttya does not exist under zsmon",
# You may be trying to remove a port monitor which does not exist.
#----------------------------------------
pmadm -r -p zsmon -s tty$PORT
#----------------------------------------
# Create the new port monitor
#----------------------------------------
pmadm -a -p zsmon -s tty$PORT -i root -v `ttyadm -V` -fu -m \
"`ttyadm -d /dev/term/$PORT -s /usr/bin/login -l $TTYSPEED -b \
-S n -m ldterm,ttcompat`" -y "dial in/out on serial port"
#end of add_modem script
#####################################################################
Make the script executable by typing
prompt# chmod 700 /sbin/add_modem
then run it with:
prompt# /sbin/add_modem
For more information, see the section, "Tip and /etc/remote" on page 8.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 15
F. Enabling Solaris For A Dial-out-only Modem
=============================================
If there is no port monitor running on the port, then the Sun will not
try to spawn a login. So, you have to remove any port monitor on the port.
1. Login as root and type:
prompt# eeprom ttya-ignore-cd=true
prompt# eeprom ttya-rts-dtr-off=true
>> go to step 2
2. Reboot the system by typing:
prompt# init 6
(Is it critical to reboot now? No. But, you'll need to reboot at some
time.)
>> Go to step 3
3. Make sure the modem is properly connected and already programmed.
Make sure the cable is ok. Your cable needs at least lines
1,2,3,4,5,6,8, and 20, all straight through, with none crossed.
A 25-pin cable, wired "straight through" is fine. A Null Modem cable
will NOT work.
>> Go to step 4
4. Is there a service running on the zsmon port monitor?
Type:
prompt# pmadm -l
If you got a result like:
PMTAG PMTYPE SVCTAG FLGS ID
zsmon ttymon ttya u root /dev/term/a I - /.....
Then you need to remove the existing service. Insert the PMTAG and
SVCTAG tokens with the output of the command above.
prompt# pmadm -r -p zsmon -s ttya
^ ^
(PMTAG) (SVCTAG)
>> If you haven't already programmed the modem, go to the
section, "Tip and /etc/remote" on page 8.
If you see nothing listed for the port you're dealing with, then the
Sun will not spawn a login on that port.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 16
G. Setting Up A Terminal on Solaris 2.x
=======================================
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- All single quotes in these directions are BACK QUOTES,
not FORWARD QUOTES, except where specifically noted.
- Be sure and execute these commands as root, from a BOURNE shell (sh),
not ksh, tcsh, or csh. (If you use a Bourne shell script, that's great.)
- If, after following these instructions, you get modem failures, or if
the add_modem script gives an error message about
"ttyadm: -V: invalid parameter", then make sure that root's default
shell is /sbin/sh and not csh.
- You want to have a maximum of 1 port monitor running on a given port.
If you accidentally have 2 or more running on the port, your machine
will probably panic.
***************************************************************************
1. Is the Solaris 2.x port monitor, ttymon, configured and running?
Login as root and type:
prompt# sacadm -l -t ttymon
If you get a message like:
"Invalid request, ttymon does not exist"
then the ttymon port monitor is not configured.
>> Go to step 2
If you get a result like:
PMTAG PMTYPE FLGS RCNT STATUS COMMAND
zsmon ttymon - 0 ENABLED /usr/lib/saf/ttymon
>> Go to step 3
2. Configure an instance of ttymon called zsmon:
prompt# sacadm -a -p zsmon -t ttymon -c /usr/lib/saf/ttymon -v `ttyadm -V`
(Note: The string "zsmon" is known as a PMTAG.)
>> Go to step 3
3. Is there a service running on the zsmon port monitor?
Type:
prompt# pmadm -l
a) If you got a result like:
PMTAG PMTYPE SVCTAG FLGS ID
zsmon ttymon ttya u root /dev/term/a I - .........
Then you need to remove the existing service. Issue this command and
insert the PMTAG and SVCTAG found in the previous command by typing:
prompt# pmadm -r -p zsmon -s ttya
^ ^
(PMTAG) (SVCTAG)
>> Go to step 4.
b) If you don't see your port (like /dev/term/a) listed, then you're ok.
>> Go to step 4.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 17
4. Setup the terminal
- Set the terminal for the speed you wish (The example below assumes you
are using 9600 baud.)
- The only lines you really need in the terminal-to-Sun cable are 2, 3,
and 7. Be sure to cross lines 2 and 3 in your cable. A Null Modem cable
will work well for this.
- Set the terminal for XON/XOFF flow control
- Set the terminal for 7 bits, Even Parity. (1 stop bit, if you have that
setting.) If you want a different parity or word length, see the section
"Setting Serial Port Modes" on page 19.
>> Go to step 5.
5. Enable Solaris for the terminal
- Edit and save the following script as add_terminal
- Make the script executable with "chmod 700 add_terminal"
- Edit add_terminal to meet your particular needs
- Execute add_terminal as root
- If the terminal doesn't give you a login when you hit , try
rebooting the machine once.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 18
#!/bin/sh
##########################################################################
# add_terminal shell script. Must be run as root.
# This script invokes pmadm with the following parameters.
# Change these parameters as needed for your particular needs.
#
# PARAMETER MEANING
# --------- -------
# PORT Port you want to set up. "a" or "b"
# TTYSPEED Speed setting, from /etc/ttydefs
# -s tty$PORT Terminal is on tty$PORT
# -d /dev/term/$PORT Actual port device. you may want
# -l $TTYSPEED Speed/stty setting from /etc/ttydefs. choose a
# $TTYSPEED entry that meets your needs
# -T vt100 Your default terminal type for this port. This
# is a terminfo terminal type
# -i 'terminal disabled' Message sent to the tty port if the port is
# ever disabled
# QUOTE-ALERT: The single quotes delimiting the "terminal-disabled"
# message are FORWARD QUOTES
# set PORT = either a or b
PORT="a"
#----------------------------------------
# choose your speed setting. See /etc/ttydefs for more settings,
# or build your own from the examples in the rest of this article.
# contty5H = 19200bps, 7 bits even parity, as supplied by Sun
# contty3H = 2400bps, 7 bits even parity, as supplied by Sun
# conttyH = 9600bps, 7 bits even parity, as supplied by Sun
#----------------------------------------
TTYSPEED="conttyH"
#----------------------------------------
# change ownership of outgoing side of port to user uucp, group tty.
# change ownership of incoming side of port to user root, group tty.
#(Yes, I know you're not using the outgoing side of the port, but if
#you do this now, it will be ready when you someday put a modem on this port.)
#----------------------------------------
chown uucp /dev/cua/$PORT; chgrp tty /dev/cua/$PORT
chown root /dev/term/$PORT; chgrp tty /dev/term/$PORT
#----------------------------------------
# Remove any existing port monitor on the port
# You can ignore any error messages from this next command.
# You may be trying to remove a port monitor which does not exist.
#----------------------------------------
pmadm -r -p zsmon -s tty$PORT
#----------------------------------------
# Create the new port monitor.
# QUOTE-ALERT: The single quotes delimiting the port-disabled message
# [terminal disabled] are FORWARD QUOTES
#----------------------------------------
pmadm -a -p zsmon -s tty$PORT -i root -fu -v `ttyadm -V` \
-m "`ttyadm -l $TTYSPEED -d /dev/term/$PORT -T vt100 \
-i 'terminal disabled' -s /usr/bin/login -S y`"
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 19
H. Setting Serial Port Modes
============================
Sun doesn't supply all the serial ports modes you're likely to want as stock
entries in /etc/ttydefs. (Sun seems to think that the whole world wants to run
as 7 bits, even parity.) I'll show you how to set up the entries in
/etc/ttydefs to match your own needs.
Serial port modes (the terminal I/O options found in stty(1)) are set in the
file /etc/ttydefs. The name of the serial port mode (like contty5H) is used as
the argument to the "-l" option in the "ttyadm" portion of the "pmadm -a"
command. (This is the "speed" setting you use when you add a new port
monitor.) See the stty man page for all the available terminal I/O options.
The format of the entries in ttydefs is defined as:
ttylabel:initial-flags:final-flags:autobaud:nextlabel
ttylabel The string ttymon tries to match against the TTY port's
ttylabel field in the port monitor administrative file.
It often describes the speed at which the terminal is
supposed to run, for example, 1200.
initial-flags Contains the initial termio(7) settings to which the
terminal is to be set. For example, the system administrator
can specify what the default erase and kill characters will
be. initial-flags must be specified in the syntax recognized
by the stty command.
final-flags Final-flags must be specified in the same format as
initial-flags. ttymon sets these final settings after a
connection request has been made and immediately prior to
invoking a port's service.
autobaud If the autobaud field contains the character "A", autobaud
will be enabled. Otherwise, autobaud will be disabled.
ttymon determines what line speed to set the TTY port to by
analyzing the carriage returns entered. If autobaud has been
disabled, the hunt sequence is used for baud rate
determination.(This works intermittently for me, so use this
at your own risk.)
nextlabel If the user indicates that the current terminal setting is
not appropriate by sending a , ttymon searches for a
ttydefs entry whose ttylabel field matches the nextlabel
field.
If a match is found, ttymon uses that field as its ttylabel
field. A series of speeds is often linked together in this
way into a closed set called a hunt sequence. For example,
4800 may be linked to 1200, which in turn is linked to 2400,
which is finally linked to 4800.
If you have been clever enough to buy a modem which can handle split baud
rates, then you and your users will never have to hit again in order
to match up the baud rate between modems.
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 20
WARNING: These stty modes are processed from left to right within each set
of "initial-flags" or "final-flags". So, the order of the modes in each
entry is significant.
IMPORTANT NOTE: When setting the mode to 8bits, do NOT enter it as
".... -parity ... sane", but as "... sane... -parity" because "sane" resets
the port to 7 bits.
/etc/ttydefs examples
----------------------
These examples should make you comfortable with the basics. I've been
advocating the use of 8 bits, no parity. Example 4 (below) shows you how to
set that up. (Each entry should be on 1 line. Some are split here just so this
document will print correctly.)
1. contty5H, as supplied by Sun, is 19200bps, 7 bits even parity
contty5H:19200 opost onlcr:19200 hupcl sane::conttyH
This is equivalent to:
contty5H:19200 evenp opost onlcr:19200 sane evenp hupcl::conttyH
or
contty5H:19200 parenb -parodd opost onlcr:19200 sane parenb
-parodd hupcl::conttyH
2. To change contty5H to "7 bits, no parity" (-parenb):
contty5H:19200 -parenb opost onlcr:19200 sane -parenb hupcl::conttyH
3. To change contty5H to "7bits, odd parity" (parenb parodd, or oddp):
contty5H:19200 parenb parodd opost onlcr:19200 sane parenb parodd
hupcl::conttyH
or
contty5H:19200 oddp opost onlcr:19200 sane oddp hupcl::conttyH
4. To change contty5H to "8 bits, no parity" (-parenb cs8, or -parity):
contty5H:19200 -parenb cs8 opost onlcr:19200 sane -parenb cs8 hupcl::conttyH
or
contty5H:19200 -parity opost onlcr:19200 sane -parity hupcl::conttyH
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 21
I. Configuring Serial Ports for UUCP
====================================
Parity in UUCP
--------------
People often get confused about running UUCP in 7 bits vs. 8 bits vs.
even vs. odd parity. Here's what's really going on and how to deal with it.
Both the caller and receiver must agree on parity (even, odd, none) during
the login sequence. 7 or 8 bit word length often doesn't matter, if you
"do the right thing" with parity.
Once the uucico's are running, UUCP's own protocol handles all these
issues for you, but you need to be concerned with it during login.
There are 4 parity-related options you can set up during the login chat:
P_ZERO - 8 bits, no parity
P_EVEN - 7 bits, even parity
P_ODD - 7 bits, odd parity
P_ONE - 7 bits, "1" or Mark parity
It is usually safest to set up parity on a per-system-to-call basis in
the /etc/uucp/Systems file, but it can also be set for all uses of the
port in /etc/uucp/Dialers file.
Example 1. Setting up a port within UUCP to run with 8 bits, no parity,
on a per-system-connect basis.
In the file /etc/uucp/Systems, include P_ZERO in the chat script,
as in:
outhost Any ACU 9600 5551212 "" P_ZERO ogin: mylogin ssword: mypass
This means that when you first start trying to contact the machine
"outhost" uucp expects nothing ("") and sets P_ZERO (8 bits, no parity).
Example 2. Setting up a port within UUCP to run with no parity, for all
uses of this port.
(This example assumes you are using the "tbfast" entry in your
/etc/uucp/Devices file)
In /etc/uucp/Dialers:
tbfast =W-, "" P_ZERO "" \dA\pA\pA\pTE1V1X1......
Feb 16 1995 Celeste's Tutorial on Solaris 2.x Modems & Terminals Page 22
Flow control with UUCP
----------------------
With UUCP, either use hardware flow control or no flow control. Please
remember that there is no incoming hardware flow control on Sun CPU
serial ports, only outgoing hardware flow control. (There is no such
limitation on non-CPU ports which claim to have hardware flow control.)
Sun has released a patch for some releases of Solaris 2.x to enable
hardware flow control on some systems' CPU serial ports. It may work on
your system, but it may not.
The lack of incoming hardware flow control is not a problem with UUCP,
usually, because the UUCP protocol is robust enough to request
retransmission of packets when the data isn't correct.
Using a good modem that has built-in UUCP protocol support (also known as
spoofing) may also help your throughput. (This is a good use for a
Telebit WorldBlazer.) If all else fails, slow down the connection
between the Sun and the modem to what you can support in your environment.
The string "STTY=crtscts" tells UUCP to use hardware flow control. It's
usually better to set this up on a per-port basis, rather than on a
per-system basis, but UUCP will let you configure it however you want.
Example 1. Setting up a port with UUCP to use hardware flow control for
all uses of this port. (Preferred way)
(This example assumes you are using the "tbfast" entry in your
/etc/uucp/Devices file)
In /etc/uucp/Dialers, add "STTY=crtscts" after the CONNECT:
tbfast =W-, "" \dA\pTE1.... \EATDT\T\r\c CONNECT STTY=crtscts
Example 2. Setting up a port with UUCP to use hardware flow control, on
a per-system-connect basis. (Do this if you feel you must, but there
are very few good reasons for it.)
In the file /etc/uucp/Systems, include "STTY=crtscts" in the chat
script, as in:
outhost Any ACU 9600 5551212 ogin: mylog ssword: mypass "" STTY=crtscts
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Celeste Stokely is an outspoken and pro-user Unix System Administration
consultant who has been trying to make the world safer for Unix System
Administrators since 1983. She lives in Silicon Valley, California and runs
Stokely Consulting with her husband, Peter and 3 bouncy cats. She can be
reached via email at celeste@xs.com.