Net/Rom Node Information for the Sysop - Part Eleven

by Andy Nemec, KB9ALN


This is part 11 of a series designed to help node Sysops learn more about the popular TheNet X-1J series of nodes. We'll skip over the more common user commands and devote our discussion to commands used by the Sysop. In this part, we will discuss the MANGER, METER, MHEARD and MODE commands.

MANAGER

This command is intended to be a secondary Sysop command, but it does have some interesting (and potentially troublesome) "Gotchas" involved. For that reason, and a few others, it's recommended that you not use it.

The main purpose of the MANAGER command is to collect data that is displayed with the AUDIT command. It's intended as another way a user can do some minor Sysoping, but it somehow got expanded to include all Sysop priveleges.

The main "Gotcha" with this command is that you need to connect to the node with a level 4 connection in order to utilize it. Due to a timer discrepancy, the connection may not properly time-out. The Sysop commnad does not have this linitation and provides the same functionality.

The MANAGER command takes the following forms:

MANAGER [+] or [-] or [password]

MANAGER -

disables the MANAGER command, while

MANAGER +

enables it.To enter the MANAGER mode, the Sysop password is sent on the same line as the MANAGER command.

In order to keep confusion to a minimum, it is recommended that you disable this command, and instead use the SYSOP command to collect any data or make an changes that require Sysop privelges.

METER

The METER command is used in conjunction with the ADC command, and is used in the setup of the S-meter, Deviation meter or other analog measurement "Channel". The command syntax is a little too involved to fully explain here, and it requires some interaction with the ADC command. It's recommended that you consult the X-1J documentation if you plan on setting up a metering circuit of any kind.

Basically, it involves setting up a particular metering circuit's characteristics, such as how it will scale, so that it can render acurate readings to the users. The Meter outputs are shown when the MHEARD command is issued.

Of course, this is a Sysop-only command, and in order to set up any kind of meter parameters you will have to be connected in the Sysop mode and enter the password correctly.

MHEARD

The MHEARD command displays a comprehensive list of stations that have been heard by the node. It can be abbreviated as M and when issued, the format will look similar to this:

    WAPR1:WX9APR-5}

    Callsign      Pkts    Port    Time    Type
   WX9APR-4      22084     1      0:2:4   Node TCP/IP
   WX9APR-4      20830     1      0:2:9   Node TCP/IP
   KE9LZ-4           5     0    0:24:40   Node
   KB9ALN-7       8988     0     0:54:3
   KE9LZ             1     0    1:12:13   TCP/IP
   KB9ALN-5          1     0    1:12:14   TCP/IP
   KE9LZ-3          16     0    1:16:43
   N9PAV-2        2253     0    1:28:53   TCP/IP
   KB9MWR        10350     0    2:39:43   TCP/IP
While this may be thought of strictly as a User-level command (as it can be successfully issued by anyone connected to the node), it's included because it's so helpful to Sysops in troubleshooting network problems. As you can see, it shows the heard stations call-sign, followed by a count of packets, the port that the station was heard on, the time since it was last heard and the type of traffic it last heard from that station. If an S-Meter (or other analog measurement) was set up with the ADC and Meter commands, it would appear after the packet type.

MODE

The MODE command is used to set node parameters, such as TXDelay and the like. Think of it as the command used to set what is read with the PARMS command. It can use two different types of input - one is the original TheNet syntax, the other is a shorter and therefore easier form.

Before we look at an example of how to use the command, we'll need to review. Node paramaters are read with the PARMS command, and are displayed as a line of numbers. Unless you happen to know what order these appear, you won't make much sense of them. Here's a list of them, with each parameter numered, representing the order they appear from left to right:

     1 - Host mode enabled/disabled
     2 - CWID interval
     3 - The CWID Keyer speed
     4 - Port nodes broadcast control
     5 - The Crosslink KISS control
     6 - TXDelay value
     7 - Full Duplex on/off
     8 - RS-232 serial port node broadcast interval
     9 - Node Broadcast algorithm
   10 - Beacon interval
   11 - The "Connect" redirector
   12 - Help message enable flag, case sensitivity
   13 - TALK 8-bit flag
   14 - "Hash" node broadcast port control
   15 - Node uses extra aliases on/off
   16 - Remote disconnect causes reconnect to this node on/off
   17 - Controls "slime" trails
   18 - Digipeating uplinks or downlinks control

In order to be able to set a parameter with the MODE command, we'll need to know the parameter number. In the examples we'll use, we'll set the TXDelay to 350 ms, which is typical for a VHF 1200 bps node. We'll show two examples, as two forms of command syntax are permitted.

The TXDelay command is parameter number 6. In the first example, which has been used since TheNet 1.01, we use the * character with the MODE command. We insert 5 * characters as filler, and include the actual parameter value as the 6th parameter. Here is what that style of command would look like:

MODE *****35

Now compare that with the other form:

MODE /6 35

Both variations are acceptable and perform the same function - set the TXDelay to 350 milliseconds. Naturally, both types require you to be connected in the Sysop mode

That's all for this part. Next time, we'll continue our alphabetical exploration of the Sysop commands for this node firmware. Until then, 73 from Andy.
 

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