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Expanding System Libraries  



Some of the larger system libraries are shipped with the OpenVMS operating system in a data-reduced (compressed) format. Expanding (that is, decompressing) these libraries gives the system faster access to them but also consumes more disk space. To learn how to determine whether you have enough disk space to expand some or all libraries, refer to Determining Disk Space Available to Expand Libraries.

If you have delete access to the existing libraries and write access to the library directories, you can use either of the following methods to expand and reduce (compress) libraries:


NoteIn this discussion, "decompress" and "compress" refer to actions that result from using either the LIBDECOMP.COM procedure or the LIBRARY command with the /DATA=EXPAND or /DATA=REDUCE qualifier. These actions should not be confused with the results of specifying the /COMPRESS qualifier, which performs a different, unrelated function. For more information about the LIBRARY command and its qualifiers, refer to the HP OpenVMS Command Definition, Librarian, and Message Utilities Manual or online help.

Determining Disk Space Available to Expand Libraries  

Before you expand any libraries, make sure your system has enough free disk space to accommodate the expanded files. To find out how much free disk space you have, enter the following command:

$ SHOW DEVICE SYS$SYSDEVICE
The amount of space required to expand all the libraries that ship in data-reduced format differs, depending on your operating system and configuration. For Alpha and I64 systems, you need approximately 60,000 free disk blocks; VAX systems require less. For specific disk requirements, refer to the Upgrade and Installation Manual for your operating system.

If you have less free disk space than is required, or if you do not want to expand all the system libraries, you can choose to expand only some of them. For example, you might expand only the system help library (HELPLIB.HLB) and other libraries that are used frequently on your system, and leave the rest in data-reduced format.

Using the Library Decompression Utility (LIBDECOMP.COM)  

The Library Decompression utility is a command procedure, LIBDECOMP.COM, located in the SYS$UPDATE directory. LIBDECOMP.COM uses LIBRARY commands to expand (decompress) or reduce (compress) any or all of the system libraries that ship in data-reduced format. (For a list of these libraries, see Libraries on which LIBDECOMP.COM Operates.)

The LIBDECOMP.COM command procedure allows you to enter one command instead of multiple LIBRARY commands to expand or reduce all or many libraries in one operation. LIBDECOMP.COM can be executed interactively (see Using LIBDECOMP.COM Interactively) or in batch mode (see Using LIBDECOMP.COM in Batch Mode).

Libraries on which LIBDECOMP.COM Operates  

The Library Decompression utility works on a selected set of large libraries --- those that ship in data-reduced format. Some libraries are platform specific and ship only on VAX systems or on Alpha or I64 systems. Many libraries are optional components and may not be present on your system if all options were not selected when OpenVMS was installed. Libraries Recognized by LIBDECOMP.COM lists all the libraries known to LIBDECOMP.COM on VAX and Alpha or I64 systems.

Table 1   Libraries Recognized by LIBDECOMP.COM
Library Name Platform Description
[SYSHLP] directory; help library files (.HLB)
ACLEDT.HLB
All
Access Control List Editor help
BKM$HELP.HLB
All
Backup Manager help
DBG$HELP.HLB
All
OpenVMS Debugger help
DBG$UIHELP.HLB
All
OpenVMS Debugger help
EDTHELP.HLB
All
EDT editor help
EVE$HELP.HLB
All
EVE editor help
EVE$KEYHELP.HLB
All
EVE keypad help
EXCHNGHLP.HLB
All
Exchange utility help
HELPLIB.HLB
All
DCL help
LANCP$HELP.HLB
All
LAN Control Program help
LATCP$HELP.HLB
All
LAT Control Program help
MAILHELP.HLB
All
Mail utility help
NCPHELP.HLB
All
Network Control Program help
SDA.HLB
All
System Dump Analyzer help
SHWCLHELP.HLB
All
Show Cluster utility help
SYSGEN.HLB
All
System Generation utility help
SYSMANHELP.HLB
All
System Management utility help
TPUHELP.HLB
All
Text Processing Utility help
UAFHELP.HLB
All
Authorize utility help
[SYSLIB] directory; macro library files (.MLB)
LANIDEF.MLB
Alpha or I64
LAN internal driver macros
LIB.MLB
All
Operating system macros
STARLET.MLB
All
Operating system macros
SYSBLDMLB.MLB
VAX only
System build files
[SYSLIB] directory; object library files (.OLB)
DECCRTL.OLB
VAX only
HP C Run-time Library
STARLET.OLB
All three
System object library and run-time library
SYSBLDLIB.OLB
VAX only
System build files
VAXCRTL.OLB
All three
HP C RTL routine name entry points; VAX G_floating double-precision, floating-point entry points
VAXCRTLD.OLB
Alpha or I64
Limited support of VAX D_floating double-precision, floating-point entry points
VAXCRTLDX.OLB
Alpha or I64
VAX D_floating support; support for /L_DOUBLE_SIZE=128 compiler qualifier
VAXCRTLT.OLB
Alpha or I64
IEEE T_floating double-precision, floating-point entry points
VAXCRTLTX.OLB
Alpha or I64
IEEE T_floating support; support for /L_DOUBLE_SIZE=128 compiler qualifier
VAXCRTLX.OLB
Alpha or I64
G_floating support; support for /L_DOUBLE_SIZE=128 compiler qualifier
VMS$VOLATILE_PRIVATE_INTERFACES.OLB
Alpha or I64
OpenVMS bugcheck processing codes


[SYSLIB] directory; text library files (.TLB)
ERFLIB.TLB
All three
ANALYZE/ERROR device descriptions
LIB_ADA_SUBSET.TLB
All three
Ada programmers toolkit of operating system definitions
NTA.TLB
All three
Files to build against NTA facility
STARLET_RECENT_ADA_
SUBSET.TLB

All three
Ada programmers toolkit of operating system definitions
STARLETSD.TLB
All three
STARLET definitions used during layered product installations
SYS$LIB_C.TLB
Alpha and I64
Header files for C language; derived from LIB
SYS$STARLET_C.TLB
All three
Public header files for HP C

You can use the list function of the LIBDECOMP.COM command procedure to output a list of all libraries known to the Library Decompression utility, including their size and status on your system. For details and an example, see Listing Libraries.

Using LIBDECOMP.COM Interactively  

The basic command to run the Library Decompression utility is as follows:@ SYS$UPDATE:LIBDECOMP [parameters]

The Library Decompression utility accepts up to eight optional parameters. The first parameter controls which of the utility's three functions is performed. Additional parameters control which libraries the utility processes. The three functions are described in the following sections:

To get a brief online help display, enter the following command:

$ @SYS$UPDATE:LIBDECOMP HELP

Listing Libraries    

To list all VAX and Alpha or I64 libraries known to the Library Decompression utility, along with their size and status on your system, specify the LIST parameter in the command, as follows:

$ @SYS$UPDATE:LIBDECOMP LIST
The resulting list indicates which libraries are not present on your system, either because they do not ship with VAX or with Alpha or I64 or because the facility associated with them is not installed on your system. For libraries that are present, the list includes the library size and the current status (reduced or expanded). The following example shows the output from an Alpha or I64 system. (Note: File sizes are subject to change. For the most accurate information, refer to the LIST output on your own system.)
$ @SYS$UPDATE:LIBDECOMP LIST
 
                 OpenVMS Library Decompression Utility
                List of all libraries known to LIBDECOMP
      "Library not present" indicates not installed on this system
 
Libraries in SYS$SYSROOT:
 
     Library                     Size
 
  1) [SYSHLP]ACLEDT.HLB            70   Reduced format
  2) [SYSHLP]BKM$HELP.HLB         156   Reduced format
  3) [SYSHLP]DBG$HELP.HLB        1234   Reduced format
  4) [SYSHLP]DBG$UIHELP.HLB       269   Reduced format
  5) [SYSHLP]EDTHELP.HLB          154   Reduced format
  6) [SYSHLP]EVE$HELP.HLB         676   Reduced format
  7) [SYSHLP]EVE$KEYHELP.HLB       99   Reduced format
  8) [SYSHLP]EXCHNGHLP.HLB         83   Reduced format
  9) [SYSHLP]HELPLIB.HLB         9179   Reduced format
 10) [SYSHLP]LANCP$HELP.HLB       119   Reduced format
 11) [SYSHLP]LATCP$HELP.HLB       157   Reduced format
 12) [SYSHLP]MAILHELP.HLB         211   Reduced format
 13) [SYSHLP]NCPHELP.HLB          261   Reduced format
 14) [SYSHLP]SDA.HLB              308   Reduced format
 15) [SYSHLP]SHWCLHELP.HLB        103   Reduced format
 16) [SYSHLP]SYSGEN.HLB           337   Reduced format
 17) [SYSHLP]SYSMANHELP.HLB       492   Reduced format
 18) [SYSHLP]TPUHELP.HLB          575   Reduced format
 19) [SYSHLP]UAFHELP.HLB          241   Reduced format
 20) [SYSLIB]LANIDEF.MLB          181   Reduced format
 21) [SYSLIB]LIB.MLB             2715   Reduced format
 22) [SYSLIB]STARLET.MLB         2335   Reduced format
 23) [SYSLIB]SYSBLDMLB.MLB                            Library not present
 24) [SYSLIB]DECCRTL.OLB                              Library not present
 25) [SYSLIB]STARLET.OLB        27461   Reduced format
 26) [SYSLIB]SYSBLDLIB.OLB                            Library not present
 27) [SYSLIB]VAXCRTL.OLB         1163   Reduced format
 28) [SYSLIB]VAXCRTLD.OLB        1587   Reduced format
 29) [SYSLIB]VAXCRTLDX.OLB       1506   Reduced format
 30) [SYSLIB]VAXCRTLT.OLB        1434   Reduced format
 31) [SYSLIB]VAXCRTLTX.OLB       1449   Reduced format
 32) [SYSLIB]VAXCRTLX.OLB        1285   Reduced format
 33) [SYSLIB]ERFLIB.TLB            64   Reduced format
 34) [SYSLIB]LIB_ADA_SUBSET.TLB
                                 1839   Reduced format
 35) [SYSLIB]NTA.TLB               34   Reduced format
 36) [SYSLIB]STARLETSD.TLB       3940   Reduced format
 37) [SYSLIB]SYS$LIB_C.TLB       9442   Reduced format
 38) [SYSLIB]SYS$STARLET_C.TLB
                                 5864   Reduced format
 39) [SYSLIB]VMS$VOLATILE_PRIVATE_INTERFACES.OLB
                                  445   Reduced format
 40) [SYSLIB]STARLET_RECENT_ADA_SUBSET.TLB
                                 1100   Reduced format
 
 Total Libraries:  37           78568

Expanding (Decompressing) Libraries    

The default action for LIBDECOMP.COM is the expand function. You can explicitly specify EXPAND as the first parameter on your command line, but this is not necessary. Unless the first parameter is LIST or REDUCE, the expand function is used by default.

If the expand function is used, the remaining parameters specify which of the libraries to expand. You can specify ALL to expand all libraries known to the utility, or you can specify up to eight library names (seven names if EXPAND is specified). Wildcard characters are not permitted. The specified libraries must be known to the utility. (To expand any other libraries, you must use the LIBRARY command, as described in Using the LIBRARY Command with the /DATA Qualifier.) If you do not specify ALL or a list of libraries, LIBDECOMP.COM prompts you for the libraries to expand. You can specify any number of libraries in response to the prompt.


NoteExpanding or reducing all of the libraries known to LIBDECOMP.COM will generally take about five to ten minutes. However, depending on the specific hardware and software configuration of your system, and on other activity, this can take longer, up to half an hour or more in some cases.

The expand function produces a display similar to the one shown in the following OpenVMS Alpha example. After the header lines are displayed, there is a pause while LIBDECOMP.COM checks the status of each library.
                 OpenVMS Library Decompression Utility
                   Candidate Libraries to be expanded
   (Libraries not present and libraries already expanded are not listed)
 
     1  ACLEDT.HLB           13  NCPHELP.HLB          25  VAXCRTLD.OLB
     2  BKM$HELP.HLB         14  SDA.HLB              26  VAXCRTLDX.OLB
     3  DBG$HELP.HLB         15  SHWCLHELP.HLB        27  VAXCRTLT.OLB
     4  DBG$UIHELP.HLB       16  SYSGEN.HLB           28  VAXCRTLTX.OLB
     5  EDTHELP.HLB          17  SYSMANHELP.HLB       29  VAXCRTLX.OLB
     6  EVE$HELP.HLB         18  TPUHELP.HLB          30  ERFLIB.TLB
     7  EVE$KEYHELP.HLB      19  UAFHELP.HLB          31  LIB_ADA_SUBSET.TLB
     8  EXCHNGHLP.HLB        20  LANIDEF.MLB          32  NTA.TLB
     9  HELPLIB.HLB          21  LIB.MLB              33  STARLETSD.TLB
    10  LANCP$HELP.HLB       22  STARLET.MLB          34  SYS$LIB_C.TLB
    11  LATCP$HELP.HLB       23  STARLET.OLB          35  SYS$STARLET_C.TLB
    12  MAILHELP.HLB         24  VAXCRTL.OLB
 
         36  VMS$VOLATILE_PRIVATE_INTERFACES.OLB
         37  STARLET_RECENT_ADA_SUBSET.TLB
 
          A  ALL libraries to be expanded
          H  Display HELP information for LIBDECOMP
          E  EXIT this procedure
If you specified ALL, the following message is displayed, and the utility then expands all listed libraries.
"ALL" specified; all libraries will be processed
If you did not specify ALL, you are prompted as follows:
* Enter a letter or the number(s) of libraries to be expanded
  (Separate multiple numbers with a comma)
Enter A, H, E, or one or more numbers to indicate which libraries to expand. There is no limit to how many numbers you can specify.

If you enter parameters to identify specific libraries to expand, LIBDECOMP.COM does not display the list as shown in the example; rather, it lists each library as it is processed.

Examples

Reducing (Compressing) Libraries    

When you specify REDUCE as the first parameter in your command line, LIBDECOMP.COM reduces libraries that have been expanded.

You can specify ALL after REDUCE to reduce all of the libraries known to the utility, or you can specify a list of up to seven libraries. Wildcard characters are not permitted.

If you do not specify ALL or the name of at least one library, LIBDECOMP.COM prompts you for the libraries to reduce. There is no limit to the number of libraries you can list in response to the prompt.

The reduce function produces a display similar to that of the expand function except that it displays only the libraries eligible to be reduced.

Examples

Using LIBDECOMP.COM in Batch Mode  

You can submit the Library Decompression utility to a batch queue by using the DCL command SUBMIT with the /PARAMETERS qualifier, as follows:SUBMIT SYS$UPDATE:LIBDECOMP /PARAMETERS=(p1[,p2,...])

The batch procedure produces the same results as the interactive procedure, but with the batch job you must specify HELP, LIST, ALL, or at least one library name, because the batch job cannot prompt you for input.

You can specify up to eight parameters. If you specify more than one parameter, the parameters must be enclosed in parentheses and must be separated by commas.

Examples

Using the LIBRARY Command with the /DATA Qualifier  

An alternative to using the Library Decompression utility to expand or reduce an individual library is to use the DCL command LIBRARY with the /DATA qualifier. With this method, you can specify only one library per LIBRARY command.

Unlike LIBDECOMP.COM, which acts on only about 40 selected libraries that ship in data-reduced format, the LIBRARY command can be used to expand or reduce almost any library file, provided the library type (the file extension) is known to the OpenVMS Librarian utility. System libraries that you should not compress include the following:

To expand a specified library, use the following command format: LIBRARY library-name.ext /DATA=EXPAND

To reduce a specified library, use the following command format: LIBRARY library-name.ext /DATA=REDUCE

You must always specify the library extension (.HLB, .MLB, .OLB, or .TLB).

If the specified library is not located on your current default device and directory, you must also specify the device and directory in the library specification. Most system libraries are in either SYS$HELP ([SYSHLP]) or SYS$LIBRARY ([SYSLIB]). For example:

$ LIBRARY [SYSHLP]HELPLIB.HLB /DATA=EXPAND
For information about other qualifiers for the LIBRARY command, see online help for LIBRARY or refer to the HP OpenVMS Command Definition, Librarian, and Message Utilities Manual.
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