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<!doctype linuxdoc system>
<article>
<title>FBB packet-radio BBS mini-HOWTO
<author>Miroslav "Misko" Skoric, YT7MPB,
<tt/m.skoric@eunet.yu/
<date>v1.3, 12 November 2000
<abstract>
<nidx>linux!windows nt!amateur!packet!radio!modem!TNC</nidx>
This mini-HOWTO covers the installation and use of
the most popular amateur packet-radio BBS
software FBB. That software works under Linux, DOS
and Windows operating systems. It serves as a
bulletin board system (BBS), a mailbox for
personal messages, a database for various texts,
documents and binary files, a server for small
useful calculations etc. Packet radio is a way of
connecting computers via amateur radio stations.
</abstract>
<sect>INTRODUCTION
<p>
I have been using FBB amateur radio software since
early nineties. It was the time of DOS operating
system, so most of us, system administrators (or, so
called system operators - sysop's), used various
packet radio software for DOS. Versions of FBB
packet radio BBS software for DOS, today are
known as DosFBB.
<p>
I still administer one DosFBB
database in the SRV (Amateur Radio Union of
Vojvodina, a part of SRJ). It is DosFBB v7.00g23
that runs on a 486DX computer with 16 MB of RAM
and Hercules b/w graphics. Since last December,
it runs without any re-boot (excepting some power
failures). Before that, it was a bit tricky to
set up all memory management properly, in order
to avoid "frozen" system. Although this server
runs under DOS, its "radio clients" don't depend
on that. In fact, users of that DosFBB might run
their client software under DOS, Windows, Linux
or any other operating system that offer amateur
packet radio abilities.
<p>Two years ago, after I got my new box, Pentium 166
with 32 MB of RAM and VGA color graphics, I
switched to a Windows version of FBB (so called
WinFBB). Author of the software, an radio amateur
from France, Jean-Paul F6FBB, has made many
versions of WinFBB, including 16 bit variant for
Windows 3.x and Windows 9x as well as 32 bit variant for
Windows NT. I have run both variants until now
(at the moment it is 16 bit WinFBB v7.00g25 that runs
ok under Windows NT 4.0).
<p>The main
difference between DosFBB and WinFBB is that the
second one offers you to do other jobs with your
computer, while FBB is running as just any other
application. Beside that, it is always nice to
copy a text from another application (for example,
from an Internet email) and to paste it into a
packet radio message.
<p>In the mean time, I upgraded my system to the
Celeron 400 MHz with 96 MB of RAM and a big hard
disk that has enough room to install Linux and try
LinFBB ...
<sect>INSTALLATION
<p>
<sect1>How to install X11 (Xwindows) version of LinFBB
<p>
<itemize>
<item>First of all, you should have running Linux
with a GUI installed. I am fully satisfied
with Gnome GUI but I suppose that KDE will
be ok too (or any other GUI available).
<p>
<item>Download or get a copy of LinFBB (the main ftp site
is <url url="http://ftp.f6fbb.org/" name=
"ftp.f6fbb.org"> but there are many mirror
sites too). For example, if you get a file
like <tscreen><verb>x700e_full.tgz</verb></tscreen>
it means that it is X11 version 7.00e and it
contains in a tgz archive all you need to install
the BBS. On the other hand, a name like
<tscreen><verb>xd700g_full.tgz</verb></tscreen>
means that it is <em>not</em> X11 but <em>daemon</em>
version 7.00g that is also complete to unpack. Further,
<tscreen><verb>x700f01.tgz</verb></tscreen>
and <tscreen><verb>x700g.tgz</verb></tscreen>
are "upgrades" to any previous "full" package.
<p>
<item>Copy the archive file in <filename id="directory">/tmp
</filename> directory.
<p>
<item>You have to make a "base" directory where
your FBB will be installed. For example you
may type: <command>mkdir /usr/local/fbb</command> if you want
FBB to be there. You have to be logged as
'root' or 'superuser' to install FBB.
<p>
<item>Then, you should locate yourself in that
directory: <command>cd /usr/local/fbb</command>.
<p>
<item>Now, you should unpack the archive:
<command>tar xvzf /tmp/x700b25.tgz</command> (<-- use the right
name of the archive here).
<p>
<item>When you finished unpacking the archive,
you may continue installing the software:
<command>./install.sh</command> is the command for that. The
setup will ask you for the 'base' directory
where FBB will be installed. If you chose
<filename id="directory">/usr/local/fbb</filename> again,
you will be told that
such directory already exists and all files
will be overwritten. It is ok, so you should
answer yes. If everything is ok, you should
see on the screen that fbb system
directories are created. At the beginning
of that procedure, program will ask you for
the BBS's callsign, name of the city, QTH
locator, your name etc. These details will
become a part of <filename>/usr/local/fbb/init.srv</filename>
file.
<p>
<item>After that, you MUST check this file
<bf>again</bf> manually in order to fix some other
details needed (because installation script does
not fix all parts within that file).
<p>
<item>Well, so far - so good. After you have checked
all configuration files, you may start the
software: <command>./xfbb.sh</command> (<-- type this within
an <em>xterm</em> or something similar). When you
start FBB for the <em>first</em> time, it will ask
you to create some files it needs, so you
should answer "yes" to the questions.
</itemize>
<p>
<sect1>How to install LinFBB in addition to existing WinFBB
<p>
<em>Notice: Folks, you see, at my place, I have a
dual-boot system, consisting of Windows NT and
Linux (each of them having their own partition(s)
and file system). I wanted to have 'independent'
operating systems that won't "see" each other. So, I
have made two partitions of NTFS type for NT. The
rest of the space used Linux as ext2 partitions.
Well, first I have installed WinFBB under NT and
LinFBB under Linux. Both of them worked, but there
was a big "problem": I could not share their
system files. You might say: So, what a big deal.
But, my FBB's should serve as a packet-radio forwarding
stations (regardless of which one I boot at the
moment), so it was really needed for new LinFBB
to "know", for example, the position where WinFBB
has stopped the mail exchange last time (and vice
versa, of course).</em>
<p>
<itemize>
<item>Well, in order to allow both WinFBB under
Windows NT and LinFBB under Linux to share
their system files, it is needed to put those
files in a place both operating systems can
"see". So, I do that by re-installing
WinFBB onto a FAT (FAT16) partition that is
recognized by NT and Linux. The best way to do
that is: a) to install a fresh copy of WinFBB on
a FAT partition and b) to copy the complete old
WinFBB from an NTFS partition over the fresh
installation (whenever you are asked to
rewrite existing files, you should answer
"yes").
<p>
<item>When that is finished, you should have a "clone"
of the existing old WinFBB, but this time on
the FAT partition that is visible from under
Linux. Anyway, you should check if the "new"
installation might be properly run as earliere.
<p>
<item>I could also recommended you to check the file
tree of WinFBB in order to become more
familiar with that. The file tree of LinFBB
is a bit different so it is advisable to
note various details.
<p>
<item>Some files can't be used as such under both
operating systems (without some neccesary
changes). That's why some file names should
be renamed:
<p>
<tscreen><verb>
init.srv -> init_w.srv
forward.sys -> forw_w.sys
port.sys -> port_w.sys
protect.sys -> prot_w.sys
</verb></tscreen>
<p>
FBB is able to recognize those changes.
<p>
<item>Make a backup of the new WinFBB (I do this
by copying the whole FBB file structure into
the other Windows partition that won't be
shared with Linux, like NTFS one).
<p>
<item>Now you should restart your machine and boot
Linux. Log on as 'root' or make 'su' from a
user's account.
<p>
<item>Mount a shared FAT directory:
<command>mount -t vfat /dev/hda2 /mnt/win </command>
(for example).
<p>
<item>Copy LinFBB archive to <filename id="directory">/tmp</filename> directory.
<p>
<item>Position yourself to the 'base' directory:
<command>cd /usr/local/fbb</command> (for example).
<p>
<item>Unpack the archive: <command>tar xvzf /tmp/filename</command>.
<p>
<item>Start the installation script <command>./install.sh</command>
and, after being asked for the 'base' installation
directory, chose <filename id="directory">/usr/local/fbb
</filename>. It doesn't matter if the program
warns you that such directory already exists so
existing files will be overwritten (by the way,
if you chose a mounted directory shared with NT,
many original WinFBB files, located there, would be
over-written by LinFBB files, so after returning
to Windows, its WinFBB might be not functional
as before).
<p>
<item>Copy <filename>/usr/local/fbb</filename> to
<filename>/mnt/win/fbb</filename> but do
*not* over-write existing files with the new files
having the same names.
<p>
<item>Copy <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/init_w.srv</filename> to a file
<filename>/mnt/win/fbb/init_l.srv</filename>
<p>
<item>Edit <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/init_l.srv</filename> to that what is
needed for Linux and LinFBB. You may use the existing
file <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/init.srv</filename> as an example.
<p>
<item>Copy newly edited <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/init_l.srv</filename>
over the <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/init.srv</filename> (if you do
not do that, maybe you wouldn't be able to start LinFBB
using <command>./xfbb.sh</command>, like me).
<p>
<item>Copy <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/system/port_w.sys</filename> to
<filename>/mnt/win/fbb/system/port_l.sys</filename> file.
<p>
<item>Edit <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/system/port_l.sys</filename> to
what is needed for Linux and LinFBB. You may use the
existing file <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/system/port.sys</filename>
as an example.
<p>
<item>Edit <filename>/mnt/win/fbb/xfbb.sh</filename> in order to fix
the right path.
<p>
<item>Ensure that you are in FBB's main directory:
<command>cd /mnt/win/fbb</command> (for example).
<p>
<item>Start the script <command>./xfbb.sh</command> to run LinFBB.
If everything is ok, your LinFBB under Linux
should run with the same configuration as
your "old" WinFBB under Windows.
</itemize>
<p>
<sect1>How to install Protus password utility
<p>
<em>Notice: Well, I have been using Protus
connection filters for a long time now. At
first, it was version 3.1/1.2 for DosFBB515c
and, later, version 3.3 for Dos/WinFBB700.
I have found Protus as very useful utility
because of its implementation of BBS-to-BBS
forwarding protection using MD2 algorythm.
One of the reasons I am going to cover Protus
in this document is a fact that its author
haven't made a manual in english yet. I keep
trying to translate the original manuals
from spanish into english, but it is a hard
process. Any good 'spanish-to-english'
translator is welcomed to contact me:
<htmlurl url="mailto:m.skoric@eunet.yu"
name="m.skoric@eunet.yu">.</em>
<p>
Protus offers several interesting features:
<p>
<itemize>
<item>It can send a presentation message to
all users, informing about possibility
to make users' access more safe,
<p>
<item>It can send messages to users who have
normal access, informing about utility's
existence,
<p>
<item>It can send messages to users who have no
valid access (before disconnecting them),
<p>
<item>It can send messages to new users who have
connected for the first time, informing
them about the password utility.
<p>
<item>It can send messages to users who entered
wrong password (before disconnecting them),
<p>
<item>It can inform sysop about quite everything
related to users' connections (new user on
the system, unsuccessful connections etc),
<p>
<item>Messages mentioned above could be translated
into various languages, similar to various
languages FBB uses,
<p>
<item>Messages mentioned above could be different
for different BBS ports,
<p>
<item>Protus could be activated/deactivated at various
intervals of time using <filename>cron.sys</filename> system file,
<p>
<item>Passwords could be managed remotely using an
external server, developed by Jose EB5IVB,
<p>
<item>...
</itemize>
<p>
Well, let's see what should be done in order to
implement secure access to the FBB packet
radio BBS, using Protus type of <em>c_filter</em>:
<p>
<itemize>
<item>Users of Dos/WinFBB versions of Protus
already know that it is needed to create a new
directory <tt>\FBB\PROTUS</tt> where several *.PRT
files should be placed. In addition, the
main C_FILT*.DLL files should be copied
into <tt>\FBB\BIN</tt> as well as a couple of "system",
i.e. config *.PRT files that are going to be
within <tt>\FBB\SYSTEM</tt> directory.
<p>
<item>After the sysop has copied all files into
the proper locations, it is needed to make
some configuration. The most important files
are two "system" ones: <tt>CONFIG.PRT</tt> and <tt>USERS.PRT</tt>
that should be carefully adopted to any
particular situation. Other *.PRT files will
work as they are in original, but they might
be translated because they are originated
in spanish (those files are just textual
information that are sent to users who
connect to the BBS). For your information,
I usualy don't care much about, because my
BBS's are, so called, "open systems". It means,
they work quite normal for all users in the
same way as they worked before using Protus.
Only a couple of callsigns have password
implemented and, when connecting, they know
what they are doing, so, they don't need
any additional info. Your mileage may vary.
<p>
<item>So far - so good. When everything mentioned is
done, you have to restart your FBB in order
for Protus utility to be activated. In all
connections to your BBS (including console),
you should see a line like this: <bf>{PROTUS-4.0}</bf>
just after a line [FBB-7.00-AB1FHMRX$]. It
only designates that Protus is active on the
system. Users of your system who don't have
their password, connect normally as before.
Users who's callsigns have password implemented,
are prompted for password just after their connections.
<p>
<item>The author of Protus, Jesus EB5AGF, has made
several working "modes" of its utility. It
is possible for users to have various kinds
of security: a fixed phrase as a password
(similar when you connect to the Internet
via telephone line, but this way the phrase
can be masqueraded within some longer answer);
a changeable answer to the 5 numbers (just
like usual FBB sysop's password); a mode
that uses automatic answer from user's client
packet programs; implementation of MD2 and
MD5 algorythms; FBB-to-FBB automatic forward
protection etc.
<p>
<item>Well, the situation regarding the position
of files under LinFBB is somewhat different.
I have become used to the directory structure
that DosFBB and WinFBB versions of Protus have
been using, so I considered that it was enough
just to copy the same directory structure when
I started the installation of Protus under LinFBB.
It was wrong. After having pulled out the
remaining hair, the thing started to work, so,
now I am going to tell you what to do.
<p>
<item>I think I have already told you that I have
been running here both WinFBB under Windows NT
and LinFBB under Linux (see also <tt>Linux+WinNT
mini-HOWTO</tt> and <tt>Lilo mini-HOWTO</tt>). That means
all Protus stuff has already been installed,
except Linux executable <filename>c_filter</filename> file.
I put that file into <tt>/fbb/bin</tt> directory and,
after the next restart of LinFBB, I got the
info mentioned above: {PROTUS-4.0}. But the
password protection was not likely to work.
I was told to make a new directory <tt>/var/ax25/fbb/protus</tt>
and put *.prt files there. I <em>didn't move</em> *.PRT
files from <tt>\FBB\PROTUS</tt> but <em>copied</em> them into
the new location, because I wanted Protus to
run further under WinFBB as before. The utility
still didn't want to run, unless I also copied
<em>also</em> *.PRT files from <tt>\FBB\SYSTEM</tt> to the
new location (<tt>/var/ax25/fbb/protus</tt>). After I
did that, Protus became functional.
<p>
<item>Well, I suppose, the above info would be
useful for those of you who intend to run
both Windows and Linux on the same machine.
For the majority of LinFBB-only users, it is just
important to make <tt>/var/local/fbb/protus</tt>
where <em>all</em> *.prt files should be placed. <em>Only</em>
<filename>c_filter</filename> executable should go to <tt>/fbb/bin</tt>
and that's it.
<p>
<item>About FBB-to-FBB protection: *both* partners
have to install Protus and the password for the
forwarding partner's callsign must be the
same at *both* sides of the link. The versions
of Protus don't need to be the same (neither
the versions of FBB, neither the operating
systems, HI!). Anyway, MD5 algorythm will only
work if both parties have Protus 4.x and
above (I still don't use that, but it is not
a problem, because my two boxes, DosFBB/Protus3.3 and
WinFBB/LinFBB/Protus4.0, make all things ok).
<p>
<item>One of the interesting features of Protus is to
log unsuccessful connections and other errors. Due to the
<em>different</em> locations of <filename>*.prt</filename>
files here, I have separate logs for WinFBB and LinFBB.
Those of you who are going to run only one version of
FBB, will have <em>one</em> complete log of all
errors, your users make when they try
connecting your BBS.
<p>
<item>As it was told earlier, if you implemented
password protection for only <em>some</em> of your
users (but not for all of them who connect
normally) - your system is considered as
an "open" one. It means that will be logged
only these unsuccessful tries to enter the system
by "protected" callsigns. But, if you have decided
that your BBS is to be accessed by <em>only</em> those
callsigns who are protected with Protus, it
means that your system is considered as the "closed" one.
Then, there is no way that other users (without passwords
given) could enter your FBB. Any unauthorized try to
connect your BBS is also logged. In addition,
you may decide to have a "guest" access or
a "read-only" as <em>default</em> for some ports and/or
for those users who enter the wrong password.
Many combinations are possible. You could
even password protect your own FBB console!
</itemize>
<sect>FURTHER INFORMATION
<p>
<sect1>Copyright
<p>
<em>Copyright is a source of much and continuous
debate on the LDP mailing list. For more in depth
information please consult the Manifesto at the
</em> <url url="http://www.LinuxDoc.org/"
name="LinuxDoc"> site.
<em>The purpose of having a license is to allow
appropriate distribution. You can use any license
that meets the Manifesto. What follows is a
boilerplatte license.
</em>
<p>
Copyright (c) 2000 by Miroslav "Misko" Skoric, YT7MPB.
<P>
Please freely copy and distribute (sell or give
away) this document in any format. It is
requested that corrections and/or comments be
forwarded to the document maintainer. You may
create a derivative work and distribute it
provided that you:
<itemize>
<item>
Send your derivative work (in the most suitable
format such as sgml) to the LDP (Linux
Documentation Project) or the like for posting
on the Internet. If not the LDP, then let the LDP
know where it is available.
<item>
License the derivative work with this same
license or use GPL. Include a copyright notice
and at least a pointer to the license used.
<item>
Give due credit to previous authors and major
contributors.
</itemize>
<p>
If you're considering making a derived work other
than a translation, it's requested that you
discuss your plans with the current maintainer.
<sect1>Disclaimer
<p>
Use the information in this document at your own
risk. I disavow any potential liability of this
document. Use of the concepts, examples, and/or
other content of this document is entirely at
your own risk.
All copyrights are owned by their owners, unless
specifically noted otherwise. Use of a term in
this document should not be regarded as
affecting the validity of any trademark or service
mark.
Naming of particular products or brands should not
be seen as endorsements.
You are strongly recommended to take a backup of
your system before major installation and backups
at regular intervals.
<sect1>News
<p>
This is not the first release of this mini-HOWTO. I
hope to improve it whenever possible. Beside that,
there are other documents that may help you to
use amateur radio stuff on your computer. You may
look for AX.25 (mini-)HOWTO at the same location
where you get FBB mini-HOWTO.
<em>This mini-HOWTO would be improved from time
to time. If you think that the HOWTO on your
Linux installation CD is some out-of-date, you
may check for newest release on the Internet. It
could be found within the main <url
url="http://www.linuxdoc.org/"
name="Linux Documentation Project">
homepage.
</em>
<sect1>Credits
<p>
<em>This version of mini-HOWTO can thanks to:</em>
<tscreen><verb>
Jean-Paul Roubelat, F6FBB, the author of FBB.
Per Olsen, LA6CU, the author of FBB documentation.
Jesus R., EB5AGF, the author of Protus.
</verb></tscreen>
Any comments or suggestions can be mailed to my
email address:
<htmlurl url="mailto:m.skoric@eunet.yu"
name="m.skoric@eunet.yu">.
<sect1>HOWTO
<p>
<nidx>disk!information resources!HOWTOs</nidx>
These are intended as the primary starting points to
get the background information as well as show you how to solve
a specific problem.
Some relevant HOWTOs are <tt/Bootdisk/, <tt/Installation/, <tt/SCSI/ and <tt/UMSDOS/.
The main site for these is the
<url url="http://metalab.unc.edu/LDP/"
name="LDP archive">
at Metalab (formerly known as Sunsite).
<sect1>Mini-HOWTO
<p>
<nidx>disk!information resources!mini-HOWTOs</nidx>
These are the smaller free text relatives to the HOWTOs.
Some relevant mini-HOWTOs are
<tt/Backup-With-MSDOS/, <tt/Diskless/, <tt/LILO/, <tt/Large Disk/,
<tt/Linux+DOS+Win95+OS2/, <tt/Linux+OS2+DOS/, <tt/Linux+Win95/,
<tt/Linux+WinNT/, <tt/Linux+NT-Loader/, <tt/NFS-Root/, <tt/Win95+Win+Linux/,
<tt/ZIP Drive/, <tt/FBB packet-radio BBS/.
You can find these at the same place as the HOWTOs, usually in a sub directory
called <tt/mini/. Note that these are scheduled to be converted into SGML and
become proper HOWTOs in the near future.
<sect1>Local Resources
<p>
<nidx>disk!information resources!local</nidx>
In most distributions of Linux there is a document directory installed,
have a look in the
<htmlurl url="file:///usr/doc"
name="/usr/doc"> directory.
where most packages store their main documentation and README files etc.
Also you will here find the HOWTO archive (
<htmlurl url="file:///usr/doc/HOWTO"
name="/usr/doc/HOWTO">)
of ready formatted HOWTOs
and also the mini-HOWTO archive (
<url url="file:///usr/doc/HOWTO/mini"
name="/usr/doc/HOWTO/mini">)
of plain text documents.
Many of the configuration files mentioned earlier can be found in the
<htmlurl url="file:///etc"
name="/etc">
directory. In particular you will want to work with the
<htmlurl url="file:///etc/fstab"
name="/etc/fstab">
file that sets up the mounting of partitions
and possibly also
<htmlurl url="file:///etc/mdtab"
name="/etc/mdtab">
file that is used for the <tt/md/ system to set up RAID.
The kernel source in
<url url="file:///usr/src/linux"
name="/usr/src/linux">
is, of course, the ultimate documentation. In other
words, <em>use the source, Luke</em>.
It should also be pointed out that the kernel comes not only with
source code which is even commented (well, partially at least)
but also an informative
<url url="file:///usr/src/linux/Documentation"
name="documentation directory">.
If you are about to ask any questions about the kernel you should
read this first, it will save you and many others a lot of time
and possibly embarrassment.
Also have a look in your system log file (
<htmlurl url="file:///var/log/messages"
name="/var/log/messages">)
to see what is going on and in particular how the booting went if
too much scrolled off your screen. Using <tt>tail -f /var/log/messages</tt>
in a separate window or screen will give you a continuous update of what is
going on in your system.
You can also take advantage of the
<htmlurl url="file:///proc"
name="/proc">
file system that is a window into the inner workings of your system.
Use <tt/cat/ rather than <tt/more/ to view the files as they are
reported as being zero length. Reports are that <tt/less/ works well here.
<sect1>Web Pages
<p>
<nidx>disk!information resources!WWW</nidx>
<nidx>disk!information resources!web pages</nidx>
There is a huge number of informative web pages out there and by their very
nature they change quickly so don't be too surprised if these links become
quickly outdated.
A good starting point is of course the
<url url="http://www.linuxdoc.org/"
name="Linux Documentation Project"> home page,
an information central for documentation, project pages and much, much more.
Please let me know if you have any other leads that can be of interest.
<sect>GETTING HELP
<p>
<nidx>(your index root)!assistance, obtaining</nidx>
In the end you might find yourself unable to solve your problems and need
help from someone else. The most efficient way is either to ask someone
local or in your nearest Linux user group, search the web for the nearest
one.
Another possibility is to ask on Usenet News in one of the many, many
newsgroups available. The problem is that these have such a high
volume and noise (called low signal-to-noise ratio) that your question
can easily fall through unanswered.
No matter where you ask it is important to ask well or you will not be
taken seriously. Saying just <it/my disk does not work/ is not going
to help you and instead the noise level is increased even further and if
you are lucky someone will ask you to clarify.
Instead describe your problems in some detail that
will enable people to help you. The problem could lie somewhere you did
not expect. Therefore you are advised to list up the following information
on your system:
<descrip>
<tag/Hardware/
<itemize>
<item>Processor
<item>DMA
<item>IRQ
<item>Chip set (LX, BX etc)
<item>Bus (ISA, VESA, PCI etc)
<item>Expansion cards used (Disk controllers, video, IO etc)
</itemize>
<tag/Software/
<itemize>
<item>BIOS (On motherboard and possibly SCSI host adapters)
<item>LILO, if used
<item>Linux kernel version as well as possible modifications and patches
<item>Kernel parameters, if any
<item>Software that shows the error (with version number or date)
</itemize>
<tag/Peripherals/
<itemize>
<item>Type of disk drives with manufacturer name, version and type
<item>Other relevant peripherals connected to the same busses
</itemize>
</descrip>
Remember that booting text is logged to <tt>/var/log/messages</tt> which can
answer most of the questions above. Obviously if the drives fail you might not
be able to get the log saved to disk but you can at least scroll back up the
screen using the <tt/SHIFT/ and <tt/PAGE UP/ keys. It may also be useful to
include part of this in your request for help but do not go overboard, keep
it <em/brief/ as a complete log file dumped to Usenet News is more than a
little annoying.
</article>
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