Release Notes DPBOX v5.00

Berlin, 20.09.96

Release Notes dpbox v5.00.00 / 20.9.96

Changes since v4.17.00 / 14.4.96

* dpbox now directly maintained on C source code base, no more in Pascal.

* code should be much faster because of changed calling conventions of
  subroutines.

* message list ("Checklist") now in one single database instead of the
  previous two lists for user mails and bulletins.

* lots of previously hard coded system status messages now variably defined
  in language files.

* added unproto message list output (as FBB does).

* added TPK-Unproto-Request-Mode (what a word). Is still untested, hope it
  works. Needs a TNT version > 0.9r to be effective.

* Added TPK file request mode in user S&F. Still untested, protocol may be
  erroneous due to the poor documentation available.

* To support the above TPK request modes, message indexing was completely
  recoded. When starting dpbox v5.00 for the first time on an older message
  base, automatic data conversion is done. This takes some time, just up to 5
  minutes. Keep patient and wait until the "successfully started" - prompt
  appears. BEWARE: YOU ARE NOT ABLE TO CHANGE BACK TO OLDER DPBOX VERSIONS!

* added "FBBMODDE" command: if "ON", checklist output includes FBB style
  message number output. Just for testing, not a real design decision.

* now sorting the checklist in background operation when applying the "CS"
  command. Sorted checklist output therefore no longer is limited to 2000
  lines.

* now displaying the resulting file name of a binary "EXPORT", if differing
  from the initial user export command.

* now supporting RSA(c) MD2 password authentication in user login and S&F.

* SFLEVEL 2 no more implemented (the THEBOX emulation). SF works anyway.

* german THEBOX system changed passwort prompting in SF login. Now detecting
  both kinds of prompts, the old and the new one.

* new path name check to prevent unauthorized file access.

* all user settable configuration parameters are now available for sysops
  too. Example: TTL DL8HBS ON

* new commands MD2, MD2SF, FBBMODE, UNPROTO, SHELL, TSHELL, FILESERVER
  -MD2 starts MD2 protected password login
  -MD2SF ON or (in user mode) MD2SF ON activates MD2-protection in S&F
  -FBBMODE ON enables FBB message list output for the CHECK command.
  -UNPROTO ON enables unproto request mode of a user. Sysop only.
  -SHELL starts a shell login. sysop only.
  -TSHELL starts a transparent shell login. No linefeed conversion. Sysop only
  -FILESERVER starts file server mode.

* added a "fileserver" mode (similar to that one implemented in FBB).

* automatic 7plus collector. WILL NOT CREATE AUTOMATIC .COR REQUESTS :)
  recombined files are moved into the file server area.

* automatic AUTOBIN extractor. Files are moved into the file server area.

* automatic binary to 7plus - converter. If a private mail contains binary
  data and the forwarding connection is not supporting full binary mail
  contents, the mail is converted automatically in 7plus.

* external commands ("run pograms") now started in a separate task. They may
  interact with the calling user and they are no more limited in execution
  time. stdin and stdout are redirected to the users connection.

* parameters for external commands now in environment variables.

* shell login command SHELL for sysops. If you want to omit this, recompile
  dpbox with -DNO_SHELL option activated in Makefile.

* supporting YAPPC in file server mode and in sysop file access.

* slightly modified auto routing algorithm. Results more reliable paths.

* trying to restart an activated PACSAT broadcast transmission every 30
  minutes in case of interface problems with TNT.

* New command U PATH gives you the ax.25 from- and to - fields of every
  user. Only supported with TNT > v0.9r!

* On a SEND command for a private mail now the date of the last HomeBBS
  update of the destination user is prompted.

* To make HomeBBS - pirating a bit more difficult, user and sysop get a
  warning if the HomeBBS was set from outside. Users mails are NOT redirected
  to the new address if the following conditions apply:
  - actual HomeBBS is THIS BBS
  - HomeBBS was changed to another BBS via network command
  - user has an activated password
  - READLOCK of this user is > 0
  Note that the HomeBBS IS changed. You are only warned and your yet arrived
  mails are not redirected. Newly arriving mails will be redirected. If it was
  a pirate action, you have to reset your HomeBBS with the MYBBS command.

* changed parameter in U - command: deleting user settings is done with "U
  -d" and no more "U -". Also "U @ -d". Should help to avoid typing errors.

* DPBOX now can be mirrored to a bbs of the same callsign. Seems to be
  interesting for sysops that want to install different bbs systems parallely
  at their location. Note that every bbs has to use a unique SSID.

* Fixing a little protocol problem with some NOS BBS. They seem to send the
  fields of the forward SEND command in lowercase. In user forward mode, this
  resulted in rejects. Should work now.
  BEWARE: THE BULLETIN ID _IS_ CASE SENSITIVE!

* Forgot in former versions the code fragment inhibiting the proposal of
  bulletins to forward partners that proposed the same bulletin to us. Was
  only implemented for fbb forward, now also in w0rli forward.

  dpbox is, BTW, relativly effective in pre-proposal-checks of this kind: it
  also checks the bbs' the bulletin passed through before and avoids proposals
  to any of them, not only to the last forwarder.

* And so many further code changes. DIFF between v4.17 and v5.00 is some
  700kB Hope I described the most important changes.

73 Joachim, DL8HBS@DB0GR.#BLN.DEU.EU

----

add to system/config.box:

# new with v5.00 (18.9.96):
#
#
# if you desire to do so, you can alter the standard system prompt
# refer to the description of the PROMPT command for valid macro definitions.
# A users PROMPT macro will override the standard prompt.
DEFAULTPROMPT (%b) %c de %m>
#
#
# better you let this parameter undefined... The callsign defined with
# SFCONNECTCALL is used for outgoing forward connections. Only under very
# special circumstances it is to set to a special callsign. Per default,
# it is (and should be) always the bbs' callsign. 
#SFCONNECTCALL callsign
#
#
# the incoming lifetime (counting in days) is used for auto deletion of
# files in the fileservers folders /incoming/, /newbin/ and /temp7pl/.
# A value of 7 days is a good compromise.
INCOMING_LIFETIME 7
#
#
# automatically export 7plus bulletins into the file server?
AUTO7PLUSEXTRACT ON
#
#
# automatically export autobin bulletins into the file server?
AUTOBINEXTRACT ON
#
#
# setting reduceextractlt to ON results in a reduction of lifetime setting
# of an incoming mail that was exported into the file server area. New
# lifetime will be <UNDEFBOARDSLT>.
REDUCEEXTRACTLT OFF
#
#
# the PACSRV parameter is existing since version v4.10 of dpbox. It was
# never documented cause it seemed to be useless. Anyway: Whenever a sysop
# erases bulletins in the dpbox AND PACSRV is defined with a valid routing
# address, remote erases are issued to the defined address. It was thought
# to be useful for stand alone PACSAT broadcast servers that thiswise could
# be maintained by one master bbs.
#PACSRV mbx
#
#
# Running different/multiple BBS with the same callsign at one location, you
# have to set the following three parameters. Note that every bbs has to use
# a different SSID.
#
# Are you running multiple bbs with the same callsign?
MULTI_BBS OFF
#
#
# is this bbs the "master" bbs of the multiple bbs^?
# let this parameter switched to "ON" or "TRUE" if you are _not_
# running multiple bbs with the same call but only one bbs.
# But beware: only ONE bbs in a set of multiple bbs^ may be switched to
# MULTI_MASTER TRUE ...
MULTI_MASTER TRUE
#
#
# If running different bbs with the same callsign, you have to define
# each one of them with a different "sub_bid". Range is from 0 to 6,
# default is 0.
SUB_BID 0
#
#
# to enable unproto message list broadcast as defined in system/unproto.box,
# set UNPROTO to ON
UNPROTO OFF
#
#
# may every user request a resync of the unproto message list or only those
# ones defined with a user setting of UNPROTO ON ?
ALL_UNPROTO OFF

# last updated 20.9.96 for dpbox v5.00.00 by DL8HBS

---

add to system/commands.box

FILESERVER 116 0 1
MD2 117 0 1
MD2SF 118 0 1
FBBMODE 119 0 1
UNPROTO 120 1 1
SHELL 121 1 1
TSHELL 122 1 1

--------------

new file system/unproto.box

#
# how many lines in message list broadcast may a request scroll back?
MAXBACK 100
#
# do we want to broadcast in F6FBB mode?
FBB OFF
#
# do we want to broadcast in DPBOX mode?
DPBOX ON
#
# broadcast via which path?
QRG LINK DB0BLO
QRG LINK DB0BLO DB0SPR

--------

add to system/whotalks.lan:

SO SP
SP SP
SQ SP
SR SP

-------

create new folders:

box/fileserv/
box/fileserv/incoming/
box/fileserv/newbin/
box/fileserv/temp7pl/
box/privserv/
box/privserv/temp7pl/

-------

install 7plus on your system. (may be located anywhere in a valid search path
of the system)

--------

overwrite box/language completely with the new set of files.

--------
