Re: Upcoming time boundary events

Arne Vajhøj laid this down on his screen :

On 5/27/2025 8:15 AM, Simon Clubley wrote:

On 2025-05-23, Robert A. Brooks <FIRST.LAST@vmssoftware.com> wrote:

On 5/23/2025 14:11, Simon Clubley wrote:

The details are vague since it's been several years since I looked at
DECnet Phase IV, but there's a signed integer delta date field somewhere
in DECnet Phase IV (from a base date offset) that overflowed, at least
if you followed the spec, in 2021 (IIRC). I do remember that VMS treated
it as an unsigned integer, hence VMS wasn't affected.
>
I _think_ it was in EVL, but I can't be sure now.

   I fixed that one; it'll be good until my 100th birthday.
>

 $ set response/mode=good_natured
 I wonder if people will have stopped using DECnet Phase IV by then ? :-)

>
My impression is that:
* people are now preferring IV over V, because people only
   need IV functionality and IV is simpler
* people does not use DECnet that much today, but often enough
   that they still prefer to have it installed
* usage is almost entirely:
   - $ SET HOST
   - RMS file specs
   - task-to-task (for those running OSU HTTPD or something else
     requiring it)
>
Arne

From what I can see from this side of the pond, everyone uses DECnet
phase V exclusively with TCP/IP transport, so that any network gear can
be used, without having the network people involved.
Other advantage is that most OPenVMS installations today are used in
environments that must be certified, and external audit people usually
know nothing about DECnet. They are mostly just interested in which IP
ports are opened. Since for DECnet you just need a few, it's easily
justified. They couldn't be possibly bothered about what DECnet object
is enabled. They will complain about rlogin or telnet, but see nothing
wrong with set host. FTP ? God forbid. But FAL ? just fine... You can't
imagine how easy it was for me to get OpenVMS systems pass audits with
flying colors, while my open systems colleagues suffered...
--
Marc Van Dyck