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Network Working Group E. Faeh Request for Comments: 437 Computer Systems Laboratory, UCSB NIC: 13701 30 June 1973 DATA RECONFIGURATION SERVICE AT UCSB This purpose of this RFC is to announce the availability of the Data Reconfiguration Service (DRS) at UCSB, and to describe the use of the DRS Time Sharing System. The DRS is an experiment in a flexible means for reformatting Network data streams. The DRS provides a means for coupling processes with different input/output interfaces, and carrying out user specified transformations on the data passing between them. Samples of representative uses of the DRS include field insertion, field deletion, variable length string processing, string length computation, field transposition, character packing and unpacking, and character set translations. To use the DRS, a user first defines a "form", or a description of the reformatting to be performed on data passing between two sockets (a form is associated with each unidirectional message path). DRS may then be directed to establish Network connections with the two processes involved and to monitor the dialogue between them. DRS receives an input stream from one process, reformats the input according to the rules specified by the form, and emits the reformatted data as an output stream to the second process. The two processes communicate as if they were directly connected to each other. Three major components comprise the DRS: a compiler which reduces DRS source programs (forms) to a simpler, machine independent instruction sequence (object program), an interpreter which executes the object program created by the compiler, and an executive program, the DRS Time Sharing System, which interfaces the Network user to the DRS. Detailed descriptions of the DRS source language and compiler are available in the following documents: "The Data Reconfiguration Service--An Experiment in Adaptable, Process/Process Communications", The Rand Corp., R-860-ARPA, November 1971. "Data Reconfiguration Service Compiler: Communications Among Heterogeneous Computer Centers Using Remote Resource Sharing", The Rand Corp.,R-887-ARPA, April 1972. The DRS Time Sharing System (DRS/TSS) and its server Telnet are currently available and addressable through socket 1281 decimal. DRS/TSS interfaces the user to the DRS. In addition to a subset of Faeh [Page 1] RFC 437 DATA RECONFIGURATION SERVICE AT UCSB June 1973 'TENEX-like' executive commands, commands are available for creating and storing forms by name, and for invoking the DRS compiler or interpreter. Since both the compiler and the interpreter run asynchronously to the DRS/TSS, the user is notified when execution of his requests for compilations or interpreting are initiated and terminated. In addition, a diagnostic message is supplied by the interpreter whenever it terminates execution of a form. When a user connects to DRS/TSS he is allocated an internal TTY number by which his terminal is identified. When the user issues a command to invoke the compiler or interpreter, his TTY number and a user specified job name are used to uniquely identify the request. The jobname is thereafter used to refer to the request. A Network host is specified by host name, or by host number preceded by #. A socket number is specified as an integer, optionally preceded by a (decimal) to indicate the radix used. Decimal is the default radix and positive the default sign. A negative socket number is maintained in two's complement form. The following control characters are recognized by DRS. Control A (SOH) or rubout (DEL) delete the last character, control V (SYN) deletes the last word, control W (ETB) deletes the last phrase, and control X (CAN) deletes the entire line. Control D (EOT) displays the current word, control E (ENQ) displays the current phrase, and control F (ACK) displays the entire line. Control Y (EM) displays the name of the current phrase. Command accept is carriage return- line feed, or period. A space will force recognition of the current word, and '?' will list the input(s) currently possible. The following sections describe the DRS/TSS command syntax. <CA> denotes command accept, and brackets [] denote optional information. All literal information is enclosed in quotes ''. Choose one alternative form items in parenthesized lists separated by |. DRS/TSS COMMAND SYNTAX Commands: 'ATTACH' <tty no.> <password> <CA> 'BREAK' (<tty list>|<CA>) <CA> 'COMPILE' <job name> <formid> <CA> 'CONVERT' <integer> ['TO'] <base> <CA> 'DEFINE' <formid> <CA> 'DELETE' [<file type>] <formid> <CA> <CA> 'DETACH' <CA> <CA> 'DIRECTORY' <formid> <CA> 'DISCONNECT' <CA> <CA> 'FULLDUPLEX' <CA> Faeh [Page 2] RFC 437 DATA RECONFIGURATION SERVICE AT UCSB June 1973 'HALFDUPLEX' <CA> 'HELP' <CA> 'LINE_AT_A_TIME' <CA> 'LINK' ('ENABLE'|'DISABLE'|<tty list>|<CA>) <CA> 'LIST' [<file type>] <formid> <CA> 'LOGIN' <userid> <password> <account number> <CA> 'LOGOUT' <CA> 'MONITOR' (<tty list>|<CA>) <CA> 'QUIT' (<job rename>|<CA>) <CA> 'RADIX' <base> <CA> 'RENAME' <formid> ['TO'] <formid> <CA> 'RESPONSE' ('ALL'|HANDHOLD'|'PROMPT'|'NORMAL'|'UNUSUAL'| 'ERRORS'|'NONE') <CA> 'RUN' <job name> ('SIMPLEX' <run parameters>| 'DUPLEX' '('<run parameters> <run parameters> ')' ) <CA> 'SELECT' (<tty list>|<CA>) <CA> ';' <text> <CA> Substitutions: <formid> = ['<' <userid> ',' <password> '>'] <form name> <base> = ('DECIMAL'|'HEXADECIMAL'|'OCTAL') <file type> = ('DIAGNOSTICS'|'OBJECT_CODE'|'SOURCE') <run parameters> = ('SICP' <socket number>|'UICP' [<hostid>] <socket number>|'RFC'[<hostid>] <socket number> [<hostid>] <socket number>) ['BYTE SIZE' <integer>] ['CONNECT_TIME' <integer>] ['RUN_TIME' <integer>] <formid> Definitions: <acct no> Account number is a character string whose maximum length is 4. <form name> Form name is a character string whose maximum length is 6, and whose first character is alphabetic. <hostid> Host number preceded by '#' or host name may be used to specify a Network host. <integer> Integers may optionally be preceded by a plus or minus sign, and by an H or X (hexadecimal), 0 (octal), or D (decimal) to specify the radix used. Decimal is the default radix and positive the default sign. Faeh [Page 3] RFC 437 DATA RECONFIGURATION SERVICE AT UCSB June 1973 <job name> Job name is a character string whose maximum length is 6, and whose first character is alphabetic. <password> The currently acceptable password is 'ARPA'. <socket number> Socket numbers are specified as <integer> (see above). <tty list> TTY List is one or more TTY numbers, separated by commas. <tty no.> TTY number is an integer representing a DRS terminal identification number. <userid> User ID is a character string whose maximum length is 8, and whose first character is alphabetic. Command Descriptions: 'ATTACH' <tty no.> <password> <CA> Connects the user's console to the DRS/TTS terminal with identification number <tty no.>. Terminal <tty no.> must have been previously detached, and must not have been deleted. (Currently, detached terminals are deleted after 1 hour.) 'BREAK' (<tty list>|<CA>) <CA> Causes links to the terminals specified in <tty list> to be broken. If <tty list> is not specified, all established links are broken. (See 'LINK', 'MONITOR', and 'SELECT' for a description of how links are established.) 'COMPILE' <job name> formid> <CA> Causes form <formid> to be compiled. Verification that the source for form <formid> exists, and that object code does not already exist is made before invoking the DRS Compiler, which executes asynchronously to the user's terminal. The DRS Compiler generates a diagnostic file for the form and, if no errors are encountered, object files. <job name> is used to identify the request and may not be used to identify any other job so long as the current request is outstanding. Faeh [Page 4] RFC 437 DATA RECONFIGURATION SERVICE AT UCSB June 1973 Because of main storage requirements, only one compilation is allowed in execution at any time. Subsequent requests are queued for later execution unless the request queue is full, in which case the request is refused. The user is notified when his compilation is initiated, and when it terminates. 'CONVERT' <integer> ['TO'] <base> <CA> Allows the user to convert octal, decimal, or hexadecimal integers from one radix to another. <base> specifies the desired radix of the result and may be 'OCTAL', DECIMAL', or 'HEXADECIMAL'. 'DEFINE' <formid> <CA> Allows the user to define a new source form, or append to an existing source form. The new line indicator '$' replaces the normal '