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Customizing Your X Stations

Before you begin configuring your X stations, you may want to review the section Local versus Remote Configuration for a brief overview on configuring X stations remotely or locally. For more information, see Configuration Options.

Optional customization topics in this chapter include the following:

Local versus Remote Configuration

You can configure your HP X stations remotely (from the host) or locally (from each X station's configuration screens).

For most customers, the best way to make users productive quickly is to configure the X stations from the host using either BOOTP or DHCP, and remote configuration. For details, see Using Remote Configuration.

However, other customers find that the flexibility to change configuration values from the X station's configuration screens is an important feature. For details, see Using the Configuration Screens.

Using Remote Configuration

You can use BOOTP/DHCP and remote configuration to configure the X station completely, and automatically. By default, at start up the X station requests that BOOTP or DHCP send the X station its network configuration information. After this has been received, the X station searches for its remote configuration file, which you can use to change any of the X station's configuration parameters.

The remote configuration file is created automatically when you install X stations (as described in Adding HP X Stations to Your Network). The remote configuration file (basepath/config/sample.cfg) is copied to terminalname.cfg for each X station you install. If you need to customize the remote configuration file, you should do so before the master file gets copied for each X station.

For specific values and syntax of remote configuration parameters, refer to Remote Configuration Parameter Reference.

Caution: If remote configuration is enabled, any configuration parameters set in the X station's terminalname.cfg file overwrite the X station's configuration at every power on. If you change the X station's configuration from the configuration screens, you may need to disable Remote Configuration. To do so:

  1. Press and hold [F12] to access the configuration screens.

  2. Select [Network].

  3. Select [General].

  4. Set the Network Parameters field to: From Fields Below

  5. Select the [Terminal] configuration screen.

  6. Click beside the Remote Config field to disable the download.

  7. Click on [OK].

By default, remote configuration is re-enabled by BOOTP or DHCP each time you power up the X station.

Using the Variables in the Remote Configuration File

The default remote configuration file contains variables of the form $(variablename). Variables can include other variables--the server expands each variable until it derives a unique parameter. Alternative values for variables are specified as comma-separated lists.

The X server supports the following variables:

$(BasePath)
All downloadable X station files have this path in common. Normally it is: /usr/lib/X11/700X. For HP-UX 10.x systems, this path is: /opt/hpxt/enware/xthome.
$(FileServerList)
This is the list of potential file servers and their access mechanisms. Elements are separated by commas. For example: /nfs/fileserver1,/tftp/fileserver2
$(SearchPath)
This is a variable that allows you to search for files on the current host and on other hosts you specify. Thus, for example, setting $(SearchPath) to $(BasePath), $(FileServerList)$(BasePath) could cause it to expand to /usr/lib/X11/700X and /nfs/fileserver/usr/lib/X11/700X.
$(LANG)
This is the language of the X station.
$(TerminalName)
This is the variable form of the Terminal Name parameter.
$(NodeNameList)
This is a list of the terminal names and IP addresses for each of the X terminal's network interfaces. Entries are separated by commas.
$(Personality)
By default, this is the $(NodeNameList) variable followed by a period and by nothing: $(NodeNameList).,, In the case of $(Personality)snmpdrc for an X terminal that has an IP address of 125.4.5.6 and a terminal name of xterm1, this expands to xterm1.snmpdrc, 125.4.5.6.snmpdrc, and snmpdrc
$(RGBClass)
This names a version of the rgb.txt file that has been customized to work with 98xxx or A10xx monitors. The X server determines the correct value automatically.

Using the Configuration Screens

Depending on your specific ENWARE installation, you may be able to modify many X station parameters from the configuration screens. To access the configuration screens:
Note: You can access the configuration screens during the initial phase of bootup. Depending upon the type of X station you have, you can: Once the X station has started to download its server file from the host, you cannot access the configuration screens until the download is complete.

Setting Your Monitor Type

Most monitor types synchronize automatically when you power on the X station:

If your monitor does not synchronize to the desired resolution, refer to the following sections.

Setting the Monitor Type Manually for an HP Monitor

  1. Switch the X station off and on.

  2. At the sound of the second beep, press and release the space bar. To set up your monitor:

    1. Hold down the left [Alt] (or [Extend Char]) key.

    2. Using the numeric keypad keys, type the numbers from the monitor's model number (for example, type [Alt][2][7][4][5] for a monitor type of C2745A).

    3. Release the [Alt] (or [Extend Char]) key.
Note: For some recently-introduced monitors, you may need to type in the model number of the monitor it replaced. If this applies to your unit, the monitor's box contains a sheet that tells you which model number to use.

Adjusting Your Monitor's Resolution

If your monitor synchronizes, but you want to adjust the monitor's resolution:

  1. Access the configuration screens by selecting [To Config] or the Setup icon.

  2. Click on [Terminal].

  3. Click on the [Monitor] button to view the list of supported monitors and resolutions.

  4. Click to highlight the resolution you would prefer.

  5. Click on [OK].
Alternatively, you can find an acceptable resolution by following these steps:

  1. Power the monitor OFF and ON again.

  2. Switch the X station OFF and ON.

  3. When the X station beeps twice, press and release the space bar.

  4. Hold down the left [Alt] (or [Extend Char]) key.

  5. Using the numeric keypad, type 0

  6. Release the [Alt] (or [Extend Char]) key.

  7. Repeat steps 4, 5 and 6 using: until you find an appropriate resolution setting for your monitor type.

Using Energy Star Monitors

If you have an Energy Star monitor, your X station sets your monitor to run in "suspend" mode when the screen saver timeout occurs. Suspend mode reduces the monitor's energy consumption. To exit suspend mode, simply move the mouse or press a keyboard key.

If the X station stays in suspend mode for more than an hour, the X station sets the monitor into "off" mode, in which the monitor uses the least amount of power. To leave "off" mode, again you simply move the mouse or press a keyboard key.

Depending upon the length of time the monitor has been in suspend mode, it may take a few seconds to warm up again.

Setting Your Keyboard Type

The default keyboard is USASCII PC 101/102. If you have a different PS/2 keyboard, you have to set up the keyboard language either by modifying the X station's remote configuration file (see Modifying the Remote Configuration File), or by using the configuration screens as follows:

  1. After your terminal has booted, press and hold down [F12] to access the configuration screens.
  2. Select the [Terminal] screen.
  3. On the Terminal screen, click on the [Configure] button to the right of the current keyboard window.
  4. Click to highlight the entry that matches your keyboard.
  5. Click on [OK] to exit the popup window.
  6. Click on [OK] to exit the configuration screens.
  7. Click on [Reset] to make your change take effect.

Communicating through a Gateway

The X station uses the subnet mask, its own IP address, and the destination IP address to determine whether the computers you want to access are on the local subnet or past a gateway.

If your X station has to go through gateways or routers to access computers, you need to set up the X station's gateway table.

For details, refer to the following sections:

How the X Station Uses the Gateway Table

The X station looks at its gateway table to find which gateway to use to reach a particular network or host. Each line of the gateway table has a "Gateway" entry and a corresponding "Route to" entry.

You can access the X station's gateway table through the [General Network] configuration screen.

For more information about setting the gateway table entries and networking in general, refer to:

Setting the Gateway Entry

The "Gateway" entry contains the IP address of the gateway. If your subnet has a name resolver, you can specify the name of a gateway instead of its IP address.

Setting the "Route to" Entry

The "Route to" entry describes the destination you want to access through the associated gateway. The destination can be described in terms of:

Understanding Subnetworks

Many large networks are subdivided into subnetworks to ease the task of network administration. When subnets are used, the X station uses the subnet mask to determine whether a particular device is on the same subnetwork, the same network, or needs to be directed via the routing table.

For example, before attempting to establish a communication link to a destination computer (for example, a file server), the X station logically ANDs the entry in the Subnet Mask field with the IP address of the X station and the IP address of the file server. If the resulting numbers differ, this indicates that the X station is on a different subnet than the file server. The X station will then use the entries in the routing table to establish communications.

The subnet masks for the various classes of IP addresses are as follows:

When used for routing, the subnet mask is applied only to the destination on the X station's own network (see Understanding Routing below).

Understanding Routing

The X station decides whether the destination IP address is:

  1. Within its own subnet, or

  2. Within a different subnet of its own network, or

  3. On a different network altogether.

If the destination is not on the X station's own subnet, the X station uses its gateway table to determine if there is a match, for example:

If there is a match, the X server routes to the associated Gateway entry. If there is no match, the X server routes to the default gateway. If there is still no match, there is no available route to the destination.

Setting the Default Gateway

If the X station is unable to route through a specified gateway, it attempts to route through the "default" gateway. Designate the default gateway with a Route to of "0.0.0.0". Set only one Route to entry to "0.0.0.0", otherwise one of the entries (the second) will not be used.

Route to entries must not specify two paths to the same network. If you have two gateways that can connect an X station to a computer, only one can be given the default Route to entry (0.0.0.0).

Using Proxy ARP

With the X server, you can use proxy ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) to route data to an otherwise unspecified subnet.

By using proxy ARP, you do not need to configure the X station to have a specified default gateway on the network. Instead, the X station relies on other devices on the network (such as routers and gateways) to have the routing information the X station needs. When the X station determines that it has data to send to a destination outside the local subnet and not serviced by any of the configured "Route to" entries, it broadcasts an ARP. The router that can transfer the packet to the correct subnet responds, giving the X station an initial destination for its data. The X station then sends its data to the router that can move the data towards its final destination.

To set the X station to use Proxy ARP, configure the gateway table so that the X station's address is the address of the default gateway:

Gateway
Route to
terminal_ipaddress
0.0.0.0

Using the X Station as a Router

Using an X station as a router is not supported and not recommended. If you use the X station as a router between two networks (for example, between a Token Ring or 100VG and an Ethernet network), do NOT put the X station itself in the gateway table unless you are using Proxy ARP.

Using Downloadable Extensions

You can use downloadable extensions to add additional capabilities to the X station when it boots up. There are two types of extensions:

You can configure an X station to download an X server with extensions at the next reboot as follows:

  1. Log into an X session.

  2. Press and hold [F12] to access the configuration screens.

  3. Click on [Server].

  4. Click on [Extensions...].

  5. Double-click the desired extensions so that the word Load appears under Next Reboot, click [OK], then click [OK] again.

  6. Switch the X station off and on again.

Once loaded in, the downloadable extensions remain until you disable them and reboot the X station.

The ENWARE X station software includes the following base extensions:

and the following X server extensions:

Note:

Controlling Downloadable Extensions with modules.ld

You can edit the modules.ld file to do the following:

The modules.ld file can be found in basepath/bin/modules.ld. Within the file, you will find a description of each extension and instructions for how to edit the file.

For example, to download the SXext (SharedX) extension automatically, include the autoload parameter as follows: 

 # DOWNLOADABLE X EXTENSIONS
 # SharedX requires that your HP-UX has SharedX installed and running
 SXext  "Ext xext autoload"  SharedX  "Shared X Extension"

Filtering Log Messages

Each X station can generate a variety of status and error messages. All of these messages are written to a log. You can also:

The following sections contain additional information:

Syslog Message Classes

Each message is tagged internally with a syslog message class. Although this class is not displayed to you directly, it has the following effects:

The following syslog message classes are defined:

Message Class
Description
<EMERGENCY>
Not currently used in ENWARE.
<ALERT>
Not currently used in ENWARE.
<CRITICAL>
(reverse bold text) The system has failed.
<ERROR>
(bold text) A function or action has failed.
<WARNING>
(reverse text) The system, a function, or an action has possibly failed.
<NOTICE>
(normal text) A situation requires attention.
<INFO>
(normal text) An informational update.
<DEBUG>
Not currently used in ENWARE.
<CLIENTERR>
(normal text) An error from a local client.
<CLIENT>
(normal text) Normal output from a local client.

For a list of ENWARE messages, see Messages.

Displaying Messages on Your X Station's Log Screen

You can specify which message classes are displayed in your Log screen in either of the following ways:

Using the Configuration Screens

  1. Press and hold [F12] to access the configuration screens.

  2. Click on [Diagnostics], then on [Log Screen].

  3. Click on the [Report] button to choose which message classes to display:
Errors Only
Displays message class <ERROR> or higher
Errors/Warnings
Displays message class <WARNING> or higher
All Messages
Displays all message classes.

Using the Remote Configuration File

  1. Edit your remote configuration file (basepath/config/terminalname.cfg)

  2. Change the Report variable to one of the following values:
    Errors Only
    Displays message class <ERROR> or higher
    Errors/Warnings
    Displays message class <WARNING> or higher
    All Messages
    Displays all message classes.

  3. When you are finished, save and quit the file.

  4. Press and hold [F12] to access the configuration screens.

  5. Select [Terminal].

  6. For the Remote Config option, select [Download].

  7. You are prompted to reboot your X station.

Sending Messages to a Host

If you want to send log messages to one or more hosts, set the values of two remote configuration parameters:

Follow these steps:

  1. Edit your remote configuration file (basepath/config/terminalname.cfg)

  2. Find the syslog Class Mask variable.

  3. List the message classes that you want to send. You can optionally use a delimiter, such as a comma, to separate the classes. For example: 
    syslog Class Mask = <ALERT>,<ERROR>,<WARNING>

  4. Look for syslog Host List.

  5. Add the hosts that you want to send the messages to, using either names or dotted decimal IP addresses. For example: 
    syslog Host List = hosta, 10.4.1.21

    Each name or address is optionally followed by a colon (:) and a syslog facility name, optionally followed by a colon (:) and a port number. The default facility name is logLocal0.

    Examples: 

    syslog Host List = hosta:logLpr:2000
syslog Host List = hosta:logLocal7
syslog Host List = hosta::2000

  6. Save and quit the file.

  7. Press and hold [F12] to access the configuration screens.

  8. Select [Terminal].

  9. For the Remote Config option, select [Download].

  10. You are prompted to reboot your X station.

  11. If you want to test that syslog is working correctly, generate a test message for each message class. For example, if you specified: 
      syslog Class Mask = <ALERT>, <ERROR>
  syslog Host List  = 10.4.1.21

    type the following commands on the command line:
    remsh terminalname putlog "<ALERT> ALERT test"
    remsh terminalname putlog "<ERROR> ERROR test"
    (On Sun systems, use rsh instead of remsh.)

    If syslog is working, these messages will appear in the syslog file that you configured on host 10.4.1.21.

Using Multiple Versions of ENWARE Software

If you want some X stations to run the latest version of ENWARE while other X stations stay with a previous version, you can operate multiple versions of ENWARE from the same host.
Note: This section assumes you have completed the preliminary procedures to set up multiple versioning, as described in the accompanying Installation Guide. This section does not apply to IBM AIX systems; refer to your AIX documentation for alternate approaches using smit.

If the file server for the X stations is the same server you use to run the administration scripts (xtadm), you can modify the ENWARE version as follows:

  1. Invoke the administration scripts, as described in Running the X Station Administration Scripts.

  2. Choose Manage software versions from the main menu.

  3. The Versioning menu appears: 
    HP X STATION ADMINISTRATIVE TASKS
       VERSIONING MENU
*NOTE*: this host must be the file server for the X station(s)
   1) Show installed versions
   2) Change default version site-wide
   3) Show/Change active version for an X station
   4) Remove a version
       ?) Help                p) previous menu
Please enter selection (default=1)

    1. Select 3) Show/Change active version for an X station.

    2. When prompted, enter the terminal name of the terminal whose version you want to modify.

    3. When prompted, select 'y' to reboot the terminal.

  4. At a later time when you are ready to switch all remaining X stations to the new version, select:
    2)Change default version site-wide

    At this time, you may wish to delete the previous version by selecting:
    4) Remove a version.

Customizing Your Keyboard

This section describes how you can use various features of the ENWARE software to customize your keyboard. For example, you can:

In addition, if you want to use national language characters:

Remapping Your Keyboard

If you cannot generate the characters you need with your keyboard or if you want to change the layout of your keyboard, HP-UX users can use the ENWARE Keyboard Mapper to change the characters their keyboards produce.


&ware; Keyboard Mapper

With the ENWARE Keyboard Mapper, you can:

Note: The ENWARE Keyboard Mapper is intended to remap a few keys for your convenience. To set your keyboard's layout and language, use the [Terminal] configuration screen.

Starting the Keyboard Mapper

To start the Keyboard Mapper, type:
/usr/bin/X11/700X/xkeymap &
or, for HP-UX 10.x systems, type:
/opt/hpxt/enware/bin/xkeymap &

A display of a USASCII PC-101 keyboard appears.

Selecting the Keyboard to Modify

To modify the keyboard of your X station:

  1. Click on [File].

  2. Select [Read Keyboard].

  3. From the "Read Keyboard" window, specify the ipaddress:0.0 or the terminalname:0.0 of your X station.

  4. Click on [OK].

A display of your X station's keyboard appears.

Note: To modify the keyboard of a different X station, specify that X station's IP address in the "Read Keyboard" window.

To modify a keyboard that is not associated with a particular X station:

  1. Click on [File].

  2. Select [New].

  3. From the "Language/Layout" window, choose the layout and language of the keyboard you want to modify.

Modifying the Keyboard

There are two ways to change the operation of your keyboard. If there are relatively few changes you wish to make, you can edit the current keyboard's keys directly. If there are many changes you wish to make, you probably want to make your keyboard emulate a particular type of keyboard. In this case, you can display the desired keyboard and copy its keys to your current keyboard.

Editing a Key Directly

To edit a key directly:

  1. Move the cursor to the desired key.

  2. Click on the right mouse button. From the popup you can modify a key in a number of ways, including:

Emulating a Different Keyboard

If there is a particular kind of keyboard you want to emulate:

  1. With the left mouse button, click on [Options].

  2. Select [Emulate Keyboard].

  3. From the "Language/Layout" window, choose the layout and the language of that keyboard.

  4. Click on [OK] to display that keyboard.

Copying a Key from the "Emulate Keyboard" Window

  1. Move the cursor to the desired key.

  2. Holding the middle mouse button, drag the key to the desired key on the current keyboard.

  3. Release the mouse button.

The displayed key cap does not change, but its functions (shown beside the word "Characters:") update.

Saving the Changes

You can apply the changes immediately or not until you switch the X station off and on:

Choosing Which Keys to Map

There are certain changes you might want to make if you have a PC 101/102 layout keyboard:

Customizing Keyboard Operation for Clients

In environments where you run clients on different types of hosts, you may want to have different keyboard functions available depending on which client you are using. This capability, called dynamic keyboard mapping, is the process of assigning a predefined keyboard map to a particular client. To use dynamic keyboard mapping:

  1. Define a keyboard map for each client that needs a non-standard keyboard map. Typically you would do this by using the ENWARE Keyboard Mapper (see Remapping Your Keyboard).

  2. Modify your $HOME/.xsession or $HOME/.vueprofile file to start your clients with customized keyboard maps the next time you log in.

  3. Log out and log in again.

Setting Up Dynamic Keyboard Mapping

If you need to set up a predefined keyboard map for a particular client, edit your $HOME/.xsession or $HOME/.vueprofile file.

For example, in the $HOME/.xsession file, after the line that reads: 

 ###  Add client commands below, one command per line.
add lines similar to the following (replacing terminalname with the name of your X station and client1 and client2 with the name of the clients you want to remap your keyboard for): 
/usr/bin/X11/700X/hpxt.dkmserver -port 2 &
xmodmap -display terminalname:0.0 -pke > terminalname.kbd
xmodmap -display terminalname:2.0 - < terminalname.kbd
xmodmap -display terminalname:2.0 - < client1.kbd
client1 -display terminalname:2.0 &
xmodmap -display terminalname:2.0 - < terminalname.kbd
xmodmap -display terminalname:2.0 - < client2.kbd
client2 -display terminalname:2.0 &

These example lines do the following:

Note: You cannot remap "modifiers" (Shift, Control, Lock, Mod1 to Mod5) using this client.

Using a PS/2 Keyboard with HP Clients

If you are primarily running HP clients and have a PS/2 keyboard, you can re-map your PS/2 keyboard to provide the missing functions required by some HP clients.

To re-map your PS/2 keyboard:

Note: The hpemulation line that maps [Delete Char] to [Delete] also makes it impossible to use [Ctrl] [Alt] [Delete] to reset the X station.

If this is unacceptable, you could use a line similar to the following to permit the reset key-combination to work and to map [Delete Char] to [Shift]+[Delete] and [Shift]+[Delete line] to [Alt]+[Delete]:
keycode 109 = Delete DeleteChar DeleteLine

The HP-HIL keyboard emulation on a PS/2 keyboard provides the following key mappings:

46021A Keys
Emulation on PS/2
[Stop]
[Scroll Lock]
[Reset/Break]
[Pause/Break]
[Delete Char]
[Delete]
[Shift]+[Delete line]
[Shift]+[Delete]
[Delete line]
[Alt]+[End]
[Insert Char]
[Insert]
[Shift]+[Insert line]
[Shift]+[Insert]
[Insert line]
[Alt]+[Home]
[Menu]
[Alt]+[Num Lock]
[Shift]+[Menu]
[Shift]+[Num Lock]
[User]
[Shift]+Numkpd [/]
[System]
[Alt]+Numkpd [/]
[Enter]
[Shift]+Numkpd [-]
[Select]
[Alt]+Numkpd [-]
[Clear line]
[Alt]+Numkpd [+]
[Shift]+[Clear line]
[Shift]+Numkpd [*]
[Clear display]
[Alt]+Numkpd [*]
[f1]...[f8]
[F1]...[F8]
Blank 1...Blank 4
[F9]...[F12]
Numkpd [Enter]
Numkpd [Enter]
right [Extend Char]
right [Alt]
Numkpd [Tab]
 

Using NLS Characters on Sun Systems

If you want to activate national language characters on your keyboard, you need to set the character type.

For applications to access the 8-bit Latin-1 character set (ISO 8859.1), add the following lines to the .cshrc file in your home directory:

You can now invoke an application using an 8-bit font, typically from the iso_8859.1 font directory. For example:
cmdtool -ls -fn timR10 &

Using NLS Characters on SCO Systems

Before you start applications that access 8-bit character sets on SCO systems, type the following lines in the terminal emulator window where you plan to run the application: 

LANG=english_us.8859
export LANG
stty cs8
Then, start the application, for example: 
/usr/bin/X11/xterm -ls -fn courr10
Note: You can add these lines to .xsession, to .profile, or to .cshrc in the user's home directory, as long as the X client calls that file. (With xterm, the -ls option ensures that .profile or .cshrc is called.)

For information on using non-U.S. English keyboards, "dead" keys, and compose keys, refer to the appropriate SCO Open Desktop manual. 

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