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.c;CMRSD DIALER
.s
.c;Version 1.0
.s
.c;Hayes-Compatible AutoDialing CallBack Facility
.s
.c;22-Nov-87
.s
.c;Written By: Patrick T. McDonald
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.nmpg 1
.hl 1 Introduction
 The CMRSD DIALER utility is a collection of command procedures and 
executable programs which, taken together, provide the ability to have the 
VAX make phone calls through a Hayes-Compatible auto-dialing modem 
connected to a user-accessable terminal port.  This facility was written 
out of the need for several VAX users to connect to the VAX from remote 
locations which were long distance.  By allowing the VAX to make the phone 
call and initiate the connection, the division pays the expense of the 
phone call.  This version of the software is a complete rewrite of an 
earlier version (which was called CALLME).  Unlike the earlier version, 
this one works reliably under adverse conditions and is simple to use.  For 
most users, no setup at all is required.
.hl 1 Requirements
 In order to use this facility, the following requirements must bet met by 
the remote (presumeably your home) system which you want to VAX to call.  
These are:
.ls "o"
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Your modem must be capable (and configured) to act in ANSWER, as opposed to 
ORIGINATE, mode.  That is, when the VAX comes a'calling, it is YOUR modem 
which must emit the initial carrier signal.  This is the opposite of what 
happens when you call the VAX through a modem, and so will likely require a 
change on your end.
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If you are running communication software on a PC of some form, you might 
also have to make some changes to the software setup to allow the modem to 
answer the phone properly (for example, some PC software disables the modem 
from answering the phone in between calls by dropping the DTR signal).  You 
will have to consult your comm software documentation to check.
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The callback software will create some small files in your SYS$LOGIN: 
directory.  Typically, there will be one file of the form "DIALER_n.NUMBER" 
for each pending callback request you have.  These file are about 3 blocks 
in size apiece.  It is unlikely that this will cause problems with your 
disk quota, but the DIALER system makes no diskspace checks itself and a 
diskspace allocation error will cause unpredictable results.  DO NOT delete 
these files manually.  The DIALER software deletes them automatically when 
it is done with them, except in the case of some severe errors.
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.hl 1 Using The Software
 The DIALER system is available as a system-wide utility.  No special setup 
on your part is required in order to use it.  However, keep in mind that a 
lot of people are sharing a single resource (the ONE dial-out modem).  
Please try and limit your callback requests, and your time online once you 
get successfully connected.  Abuse of the dial-out facility will result in 
the loss of your access to it.
.hl 2 Making A Callback Request
 In order to make a request to the VAX, simply type "DIALME" at the VMS 
prompt.  This will invoke a command procedure which will prompt you for a 
number of pieces of information.  The first thing you will be asked for is 
the phone number that the VAX is to dial.  This phone number has one of 
three basic forms as follows:
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7xxxx - Use this form when you want to VAX to dial a number that is located 
on the lab.  Since this facility is intended primarily to be used for 
offsite long distance calling, it would be an unusual situation that would 
require this usage.
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9xxxxxxx - Use this form (9 followed by 7 digit phone number) for offlab 
local calls.  The same comments apply here as in (1).
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91aaaxxxxxxx - Use this form for all offlab long distance calling.  This 
will be the most usual form used since this is the situation for which the 
facility was written.
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The DIALER system makes no syntax checks on phone numbers.  If the phone 
number is bad, then the modem will choke on it and you will be out of luck.
The next item you are asked to supply is the time that you want the DIALER 
to start calling you.  This time is entered in the VAX/VMS standard 
date/time format of "DD-MMM-YYYY HH:MM:SS", and the date portion may be 
ommitted if you are scheduling a request for "today".  Note that you may 
schedule these requests as far in advance as you like.  If you enter a time 
earlier than the current time, then the request will start immediately 
(maybe).  The start time is only approximate.  The reason for this is that 
a batch job is queued to the FAST batch queue for each callback request 
made.  It is possible that, at the scheduled start time of the batch job 
(the start time you just entered) there may not be a free execution slot 
for the job to begin.  However, FAST batch jobs are limited in the amount 
of time they may use, and so the actual start time of the callback request 
should never be more than 15 minutes after the requested start time, and 
is usually within a minute.  The next item you must supply is the ending 
time of the request.  Again, this is provided in the standard VAX/VMS date 
time format.  This is a safety valve of sorts.  Under unusual 
circumstances, it is possible for a callback request to be delayed for 
hours passed its scheduled start time (this has only happened once but 
better safe than sorry).  This ending time is provided to allow to to 
specify the latest time you want the VAX to make a phone call to the 
specified number for this request.  Otherwise, you might get a series of 
phone calls at 3 o'clock in the morning, thus making the VAX a very 
expensive alarm clock.
 The next two items of information you must provide are related to the 
persistence of the DIALER.  For a number of reasons (busy signal, someone 
else using the dial-out modem, you were not ready on your end, etc.), the 
VAX may not connect to the modem on the number you specify at the first 
attempt.  Therefore, it will continue to make phone calls.  You may specify 
both the number of times it will try and call (the default is 10 attempts) 
and the amount of time to try in between calls (the default is one minute). 
Thus, the default situation will be to start at the time you specify and 
once a minute for the next 10 minutes, keep trying until either a 
connection is made or the safety valve ending time is reached.  The default 
conditions are usually adequate.
 Finally, you are asked if you want a logfile of the transaction kept.  
Recall that the DIALER system works as a batch job.  If you are having 
trouble getting the DIALER to call you properly, the first thing to do is 
try again, answering "Yes" (unless you are having problems, you may safely 
answer this question in the negative) to the question regarding the saving 
the the logfile.  The logfile will be named "SYS$LOGIN:DIALER.LOG".  If you 
cannot determine the problem from this logile, then there are addition 
debugging facilities available in the DIALER system which may be invoked.  
See you system manager for details.
.hl 2 Making A Connection
 Once you have queued a callback request in the manner described above, the 
batch job submitted to handle the request will sit dormant in the batch 
queue until the specified startup time.  At that time, the dialer will 
begin making the calls as per your specification.  You should be ready on 
your end, with your modem set to ANSWER mode as mentioned previously.  Once 
the DIALER detects that a modem connection has successfully been made, it 
will get out of the way, connecting the modem port directly to the VMS 
operating system.  At this point, you may type a couple of carriage returns 
to start a VAX login sequence, as you would normally during any other 
connection.  You should wait at least two seconds after your modem indicates 
a successfull connection before starting to login.  It takes about that 
long for the DIALER to get out of the way, and if you type the baud-sensing 
carriage returns too soon, VMS will missense your baud rate and you will 
have to disconnect and start over.
.hl 2 Breaking A Connection
 Unlike the normal dial-in modems, the Dial-Out modem will not 
automatically hangup the phone when you logout from VMS.  Thus, when you 
logout from a callback session, DO NOT just walk away from the terminal and 
forget about it.  You MUST break the connection from your end (this usually 
means turning off your modem, hanging up the phone, or telling your 
communications software on your PC to hangup the phone).  Failure to 
properly disconnect the line will result it it being tied up for a long 
time and IS considered an abuse of the facility.
.hl 2 Canceling a Pending Request
 Since pending callback requests are simply batch jobs waiting in the FAST 
queue to begin execution, you may cancel a pending request at any time by 
issuing the VAX command "DELETE/ENTRY=nnnn FAST" where "nnnn" is the number 
of the batch queue entry (which may be readily determined by issuing a 
"SHOW QUEUE FAST" command).