Date: 7 Oct. 1982 11:55 pm PDT (Thursday)
Sender: Levin.PA
Subject: Cedar 3.4 release (part 1 of 2)
From: Release Master
To: CedarUsers^, CedarImplementors^
cc: CedarCoordinators^
Reply-To: Levin

Cedar 3.4 is released.

This release includes major changes in the significant public interfaces.  All
interfaces have been recompiled, so all client packages must be recompiled and
rebuilt.  There are also substantial changes in the user interface, particularly in
the manipulation of viewers on the screen and in the executive and debugging
facilities.  Be sure to read the component descriptions for ViewersAndTioga and
UserExec before attempting to use this release.  Also, for the first time this
release includes Walnut, a mail system based on Viewers and the Cedar database
package.  Please read the documentation carefully before beginning to use it.

This release is stored exclusively on subdirectories of [Indigo]<Cedar>.  Other
directories (e.g., PreCedar, CedarLang, CedarLib) are NOT part of the release and
their contents should be treated with suspicion.  In general, users should access
release components using BringOver and the appropriate DF files; retrieving files
with the FileTool is likely to lead to version mismatches and confusion.  For this
release, all top-level DF files for release components that users are likely to need
are stored on [Indigo]<Cedar>Top>. 

This release announcement consists of four parts:

  Installation Procedure
  Known Problems
  List of System Components
  Summary of Release Component Changes since Cedar 3.3

This message contains the first two sections; a subsequent message holds the
second two (which are quite long). 


Installation Procedure
---------------------

This procedure assumes you have a Dolphin or Dorado with Cedar 3.3 installed. 
(Note to alpha-testers of Cedar 3.4:  this procedure works for you also.  Don't
attempt any shortcuts.).  Otherwise, you should read

     [Indigo]<Cedar>Documentation>Introduction.press

for further information.  However, this document is somewhat out of date, so you
should consult with an expert before attempting anything other than the
procedure below.

  0)  The Client volume must be erased before Cedar 3.4 is installed.  Failure
      to do so can result in peculiar failures at unpredictable times, for which the
      only cure is erasing the disk.  If there are any files on the Client volume
      that you wish to save, save them before proceeding.  You may wish to use
      DFDisk (see documentation of DFFiles component).

  1)  Get to Othello through the MesaNetExec.  DO NOT use the Othello on your
      Othello volume, since the command files accepted by the Othello included
      in this release are incompatible with those of the Cedar 3.3 release.

  2)  After booting, but before prompting for commands, Othello will ask you to
      login and ask whether you wish to protect your disk from unauthorized
      access.  Supply your credentials and answer the question appropriately.
      Othello will then prompt for commands in the familiar way.  (Note to
      Cedar 3.4 alpha-testers:  you will probably only be asked for credentials.)

  3)  Type Erase<CR> to Othello.  You will be prompted for the volume
      name, type Client<CR>.  Confirm as necessary.

  4)  Type @<CR> to Othello.  You will be prompted for a command file
      name.  Type either
	[Indigo]<Cedar>Top>DoradoRelease.cm          or
	[Indigo]<Cedar>Top>D0Release.cm
      as appropriate.  New boot files will be fetched for all volumes, as well as
      new microcode and germ files.

  5)  On Dorados, Cedar will automatically be booted upon completion of the
      command file.  (Actually, the CoPilot volume will first be booted, after
      then a physical volume boot will occur, causing Cedar to be booted.  Be
      patient.)  On Dolphins, the Alto partition will be booted; hold down
      the "P" key and press the boot button to boot Cedar.

  6)  The installation dialogue has changed somewhat since Cedar 3.3, but the
      questions should be self-explanatory (if you need more information, consult
      the introductory document cited above).  WARNING:  Don't use a personal
      DF file to bring over a personalized user profile, since a profile acceptable
      to Cedar 3.3 will almost certainly be unacceptable for Cedar 3.4.  Consult the
      documentation (UserProfile.doc, available through UserExec.df) for changes
      in the content of the user profile.  After installing Cedar 3.4 with the
      default user profile, you can edit your personal profile suitably and the
      changes will be noticed automatically.

As with previous releases, once the automatic installation procedure completes,
you may then optionally acquire lots of additional useful files by typing

	BringOver /a CedarClientFat.df    (Note:  NOT /p)

to the UserExec.  This will fetch the exported contents of most of the major
packages, whether released as part of the boot file or as separate BCDs.  Users
with limited disk space probably shouldn't do this.

Once you have brought over all the desired files, you may wish to make a
checkpoint, using the button at the top of the screen.

A note on credentials:

Cedar now takes the view that the credentials (logged-in name and password)
identify a human being sitting at the terminal.  It also tries to be intelligent
about recognizing situations in which the user is unlikely to have left the
terminal, and it tries to avoid unnecessary prompts for credentials.  The idea is to
provide reasonable security without inconvenience.  If you start Cedar in the
morning, use it all day, then go home, you should only have to type your
password once.  On the other hand, if you leave your machine unattended, it
shouldn't be vulnerable to unauthorized use.   These goals reduce to the
following operational behavior:

1)  Cedar (and Othello) will remember your name and password until either:
    a)  you push the physical boot button, or
    b)  you go to the Alto environment, or
    c)  you turn off the power to your machine, or
    d)  Cedar enters the "sleeping" state (see below).
Note that using any of the "soft" boot buttons (except "Alto") in the system menu
will NOT cause your credentials to be forgotten.

2)  The "sleeping" state, which you can recognize by the black screen with the
roving "Type Key" cursor, is the approved, secure state for a machine that is
unattended.  Once your system is in the sleeping state, you cannot resume
normal use of Cedar without supplying proper credentials.  Cedar enters the
sleeping state when you click "Idle" (extreme upper right corner of the screen),
or after a specified period of no terminal activity (default 20 minutes).

3)  If you choose to protect your disk against unauthorized access, only your
credentials can be used to regain entry after one of the events listed in item 1
above.

This view of credentials is rather different from the one familiar from the Alto
and Tajo worlds.  In future releases of Cedar, the strong identification of valid
credentials with human at the terminal will be exploited further; it will
determine the visible name space of files.  For now, the only tangible benefit of
this view is a reduction in the frequency of typing your password.


Known Problems
----------------

The following problems/glitches are known to exist in Cedar 3.4.

1. Occasionally, clearing and reloading a viewer will cause an address fault that
claims to come "from thin air".  While disquieting, this problem doesn't fatally
poison your environment, and you should be able to save your work and
rollback or boot.  It is not recommended, however, that you proceed as if the
address fault never happened.

2. An apparent microcode problem on Dolphins occasionally and unpredictably
causes stack errors.  We hope to correct this problem soon.

3. As noted earlier, the Othello in this release is incompatible with old command
files.

4. There are some unpleasant interactions of the auto-idle mechanism and
long-running command files that require access to the credentials.  If you wish
to construct such command files, consult with an expert.



The Release Master