xpad(1)

Name

xpad - A Triple-X (X.3/X.28/X.29) PAD for UNIX

Syntax

xpad [-h] [hostname] [-d Address] [-N nui] [-u cud] [-t rpoa] [-C cug] [-DFRvsrpa] [-b parity] [-f fep] [-l link] [-n netid] [-B key] [-P size]

Description

xpad is a TSG utility which provides the user with a means of placing an X.25 SVC call over a network. If the destination accepts the call, xpad assembles characters you enter on your terminal into X.25 packets under the control of the current settings of the X.3 parameters. Similarly, xpad displays the contents of all data packets received from the X.25 circuit. xpad is a UNIX program which is a functional PAD (Packet Assembler/Disassembler). It implements all of the 1984 CCITT-defined Recommendations X.3, X.28, and X.29. Together, these Recommendations are known as "Triple-X".

These command line options are recognized:

Option Description

hostname specifies the X.25 host to call. Host names and their associated xpad command line options are defined in /etc/x25hosts. xpad will use parameters based on the values read from host default, followed by values from host hostname, followed by the command line options. Options may be overridden.

-d
specifies the X.25 Data Network Address to call. Up to 15 digits may be specified.

-N Network User Identifier (NUI) to place in outgoing call. Up to 14 binary characters may be specified. Characters other than alphanumerics must be given in the octal format \ooo. Even the null character (\000) may be specified.
Note: Backslashes in most shells must be entered as \\ **

-u
Call User Data (CUD) follows. xpad automatically fills in the first four bytes of CUD with binary 1 0 0 0, the CUD prefix for Triple-X calls. The argument of -u may have up to 12 bytes of binary data, unless Fast Select is also specified, in which case up to 124 bytes may be specified. Characters other than alphanumerics must be given in the octal format \ooo. Even the null character (\000) may be specified.
Note: Backslashes in most shells must be entered as \\ **

-t RPOA to place in this call. Up to three 4-digit RPOAs may be specified in the standard configuration for 1984 X.25 networks that support them. Normally, one 4-digit RPOA is specified.

-C Closed User Group (two digits only) selection for this call

-D set the Delivery Confirmation bit on all outgoing data packets

-F specify Fast Select on this call

-R specify Fast Select with Restricted Response on this call

-v Verbose mode; use for debugging only

-s strips the parity bit (high order bit) on each character received from the X.25 virtual circuit before it is sent to the user's terminal. Parity bit stripping is only necessary when a host sets the parity bit. PC consoles interpret characters with parity bits as special characters. If you get garbage on your screen after call establishment, try clearing the call, and invoking xpad with -s. See also the -a option.

-r Reverse charging on this call

-p
Priority call (Datapac only)

-P
specifies the packet size to use on outgoing calls

-B specifies break key to use

-a specifies raw input mode. xpad normally strips all keyboard input to 7 bits and space parity, after checking the input as per the current settings of -b and X.3 parameter 21. -a causes xpad to carry the parity bit through to the destination.
Warning: Specifying -a may prevent xpad from recognizing CR, LF, or other characters that you need it to.

-b specifies the type of parity bit: none, even, odd, mark or space. The default is space.

-f specifies the FEP (Front End Processor) number to make the call on. This option is defaulted to zero. Do not use in conjunction with -n, described below.

-l specifies the link number on the FEP for the call to go out on. This option is also defaulted to zero. Do not use in conjunction with -n, described below.

-n specifies the network ID number or network name (from /etc/packetnets) for the call to go out on. This option is defaulted to zero. Do not use in conjunction with -f and -l.

-h
prints out usage information

Environment Variables

These environment variables are recognized:

Variable Description

XPROFINIT filename of PAD profile to be used when xpad is invoked, defaults to /etc/xprofile/90

XPROFPATH list of directories to be searched by the PAD profile command to locate the specified profile. Directories must be separated by a colon and are searched from left to right.

Files

/etc/x25hosts: contains the definitions of host names

/etc/xprofile/90: the standard CCITT pad profile number 90

/etc/xprofile/91: the transparent CCITT pad profile number 91

/etc/xprofile/noaccent: removes all accents from accented characters

Example

xpad tsgfred

with /etc/x25hosts entry: tsgfred -d99999999 places an X.25 call to address 99999999 using link 0 of FEP 0.

Pad Commands

Any time after call establishment, you can use PAD command mode. This is done by entering <ctrl>-p (or the current command mode entry character established by X.3 parameter 1), then one of the commands below, and then <return>. Alternative command spelling is shown inside brackets. A complete description of these commands can be retrieved by using the PAD HELP command. These command are recognized:

Command Description

break perform break action specified by X.3 parameter 7

clr (clear) send a clear request

help display help text

iclr (iclear) send invitation to clear

int (interrupt)
send an interrupt packet

lang (language)

set extended mode language (English, French or Spanish)

par? (par, parameter, read) display parameter values

prof (profile) read in parameter data file

reset send reset request packet

rpar? (rread) read remote PAD parameters

rset? (rsetread) set and read remote PAD parameters

set set parameter values

set? (setread) set and display parameter values

stat (status) display status of connection

lcd change local directory (use !pwd to print current working directory)

! execute local UNIX command

To exit xpad, either initiate a clear by the remote by logging out of the system you call, or use the "clr" PAD command to clear the virtual circuit. The UNIX `kill' character will not kill xpad since xpad turns off the interception of that character by UNIX via an `stty -icanon', so it may be passed transparently to the remote host.

Language Support

xpad currently supports English, French and Spanish in the PAD command mode and for PAD service signals. To select a language, use the PAD LANGUAGE command at run-time, or change the default language specified in the XPROFINIT file.

French and Spanish require the use of accented characters. The definition of accents found in the standard CCITT pad profile number 90 will output the special codes for accented characters on IBM PC consoles. If your terminal does not support accents, use the definitions found in the noaccent profile; this displays the characters unaccented using standard ASCII codes.

Note: The PAD HELP command currently displays English text only. We would be pleased to incorporate translations.

X.3 Support

xpad fully supports all X.3 parameters:

Parameter Description

1 PAD recall using a character

0 Entry into PAD command mode is not possible

1 Character DLE (^p)

32-126 Possible; using one graphic character defined by user

2 Echo

0 No echo

1 Echo

3 Selection of data forwarding characters

0
No data forwarding characters

1 Alphanumeric characters (A-Z, a-z, 0-9)

2 Character CR

4 Characters ESC, BEL, ENQ, ACK

8 Characters DEL, CAN, DC2

16 Characters ETX, EOT

32 Characters HT, LF, VT, FF

64 All other characters from columns 0 and 1 of IA5

126 All characters in columns 0 and 1 and character DEL

Note: Values from 1 to 127 can be formed by combining above values

4 Selection of idle timer delay

0 Do not use timer to forward packets

1-255 Value of idle timer in twentieths of a second

5 Ancillary device control

0 No use of X-ON (DC1) and X-OFF (DC3)

1 Use of X-ON and X-OFF (data transfer state)

2 Use of X-ON and X-OFF (data transfer and command mode)

When non-zero, xpad sets the UNIX terminal attribute IXOFF, in order that UNIX sends XON/XOFF characters to the terminal when the input queue is nearly empty/full.

6 Control of PAD service signals

0 No PAD service signals are transmitted to the terminal

1 PAD service signals are transmitted in the standard format

5 PAD service signals and the PAD prompt are transmitted

8-15
PAD service signals are transmitted in a network dependent format

16

Extended dialog mode, PAD service signals are in English

32 Extended dialog mode, PAD service signals are in French

48 Extended dialog mode, PAD service signals are in Spanish

Note: Other values can be formed by combining above values

7 Operation on receipt of Interrupt Character

0 Nothing

1 Interrupt

2 Reset

4 Send to host an indication of break PAD message

5 Interrupt and indication of break

8
Escape from data transfer state to PAD command mode

16
Discard output, to terminal

21 Discard output, interrupt and indication of break

Note: Other values can be formed by combining above values

8 Discard output

0 Normal data delivery to terminal

1 Discard output to terminal

9 Padding after carriage return

0 No padding after CR

1-255 Number of padding characters inserted after CR

10 Line folding

0 No line folding

1-255 Number of graphic characters per line

11 Binary speed of terminal (Read only Parameter)

12
Flow control of the PAD

0 No use of X-ON (DC1) and X-OFF (DC3) for flow control

1 Use of X-ON (DC1) and X-OFF (DC3) for flow control

When non-zero, xpad sets the UNIX terminal attribute IXON, in order that UNIX responds to XON/XOFF characters sent by the terminal to start/stop output.

13 Linefeed insertion after carriage return

0 No linefeed insertion

1 Insert linefeed after transmission of CR to terminal

2 Insert linefeed after CR in the data stream from the terminal

4 Insert linefeed after echo of CR to the terminal

Note: Values 5, 6, 7 can be formed by combining above values

14 Padding after linefeed

0 No padding after linefeed

1-255 Number of padding characters inserted after linefeed

15
Editing

0
No use of editing in the data transfer state. PAD parameters 16, 17, 18 and 19 are ignored

1 Use of editing in the data transfer state

16 Character delete

0-127 One character used as the character delete key

The following table outlines the actions performed by the character delete editing key, depending upon the value of parameter 19:

Value Action

0 Character will be deleted, no output to terminal

1
Character will be deleted, output "a" to terminal

2 Character will be deleted, output BS SPACE BS sequence to terminal

8, 32-126 Character will be deleted, output character represented by value of parameter 19

other Character will be deleted, no output to terminal

17 Line delete

0-127 One character used as the line delete key

The following table outlines the actions performed by the line delete editing key, depending upon the value of parameter 19:

Value Action

0 Line will be deleted, no output to terminal

1, 8, 32-126 Line will be deleted, output "XXX" to terminal

2 Line will be deleted, output BS SPACE BS sequence for each character in line

other Line will be deleted, no output to terminal

18 Line display

0-127 One character used as the line display key

For all values of parameter 19, the line being edited will be re-printed.
Note: It is not illegal for the editing keys to overlap; when this occurs only one of the functions is performed. Line display will be performed instead of character delete which will be performed rather than line delete.

19 Editing PAD service signals

0 No editing PAD service signals

1 Editing PAD service signals for printing terminals

2 Editing PAD service signals for display terminals

8, 32-126 Editing PAD service signals using the delete character specified

20 Echo mask

0 No echo mask (all characters echoed)

1 No echo of CR

2 No echo of LF

4 No echo of VT, HT, FF

8 No echo of BEL, BS

16 No echo of ESC, ENQ

32
No echo of ACK, NAK, STX, SOH, EOT, ETB, ETX

64 No echo of of editing characters (Parameters 16, 17, 18)

128 No echo of all other characters in columns 0 and 1 and DEL

Note: Values from 1 to 255 can be formed by combining above values

21 Parity treatment. 'Parity' here is implemented as specified by the -b option.

0 No parity checking or generation

1 Parity checking

2 Parity generation

3 Parity checking and parity generation

22 Page wait

0 Page wait disabled

1-255
Number of line feed characters considered by the PAD for the Page wait function

A complete description of X.3 Parameters can be obtained using the PAD HELP command.

On startup, xpad initializes its parameters to the values defined in the file XPROFINIT.

X.29 Support

The following X.29 Qualified data packets are supported:

Error PAD message.
Invitation to Clear.
Indication of Break.
Read Parameter with or without parameter field.
Set Parameter with or without parameter field.
Set and Read Parameter with or without parameter field.

The only unsupported Qualified data packets are the PAD Reselection with/without TOA/NPI from the 1988 X.29 Recommendations.

In addition, xpad supports two special TSG Qualified data packets. These commands are used by the utility xfft.

Q GO Begin file reception. The data in the Q GO command is taken as a file name. xpad will open the file if possible and record all data received from this point on in the file. Incoming data is not echoed to the screen, and it is recorded exactly as received to the given file. During receiving, a message is displayed advising the user that keyboard input will be ignored.

Q STOP End file reception. When xpad receives this command it exits from file reception mode and closes the disk file received. xpad then returns to its ordinary mode of operation.

To use the file transfer capability, you must call a host that is running xfft based on some Call Id. Usually this is a string in the Call User Data which you may specify when you invoke xpad with the -u option. You must also ensure your current directory is the one you wish to place the file in, as xpad receives files into its current working directory.

Revision 6.1.0 (February 2003)

Option	Description
`hostname`	specifies the X.25 host to call. Host names and their associated xpad command line options are defined in /etc/x25hosts. xpad will use parameters based on the values read from host default, followed by values from host hostname, followed by the command line options. Options may be overridden.
`-d`	specifies the X.25 Data Network Address to call. Up to 15 digits may be specified.
`-N`	Network User Identifier (NUI) to place in outgoing call. Up to 14 binary characters may be specified. Characters other than alphanumerics must be given in the octal format \ooo. Even the null character (\000) may be specified. Note: Backslashes in most shells must be entered as \\ **
`-u`	Call User Data (CUD) follows. xpad automatically fills in the first four bytes of CUD with binary 1 0 0 0, the CUD prefix for Triple-X calls. The argument of `-u` may have up to 12 bytes of binary data, unless Fast Select is also specified, in which case up to 124 bytes may be specified. Characters other than alphanumerics must be given in the octal format \ooo. Even the null character (\000) may be specified. Note: Backslashes in most shells must be entered as \\ **
`-t`	RPOA to place in this call. Up to three 4-digit RPOAs may be specified in the standard configuration for 1984 X.25 networks that support them. Normally, one 4-digit RPOA is specified.
`-C`	Closed User Group (two digits only) selection for this call
`-D`	set the Delivery Confirmation bit on all outgoing data packets
`-F`	specify Fast Select on this call
`-R`	specify Fast Select with Restricted Response on this call
`-v`	Verbose mode; use for debugging only
`-s`	strips the parity bit (high order bit) on each character received from the X.25 virtual circuit before it is sent to the user's terminal. Parity bit stripping is only necessary when a host sets the parity bit. PC consoles interpret characters with parity bits as special characters. If you get garbage on your screen after call establishment, try clearing the call, and invoking xpad with `-s`. See also the `-a` option.
`-r`	Reverse charging on this call
`-p`	Priority call (Datapac only)
`-P`	specifies the packet size to use on outgoing calls
`-B`	specifies break key to use
`-a`	specifies raw input mode. xpad normally strips all keyboard input to 7 bits and space parity, after checking the input as per the current settings of `-b` and X.3 parameter 21. `-a` causes xpad to carry the parity bit through to the destination. Warning: Specifying `-a` may prevent xpad from recognizing CR, LF, or other characters that you need it to.
`-b`	specifies the type of parity bit: none, even, odd, mark or space. The default is space.
`-f`	specifies the FEP (Front End Processor) number to make the call on. This option is defaulted to zero. Do not use in conjunction with `-n`, described below.
`-l`	specifies the link number on the FEP for the call to go out on. This option is also defaulted to zero. Do not use in conjunction with `-n`, described below.
`-n`	specifies the network ID number or network name (from /etc/packetnets) for the call to go out on. This option is defaulted to zero. Do not use in conjunction with `-f` and `-l`.
`-h`	prints out usage information

Variable	Description
`XPROFINIT`	filename of PAD profile to be used when xpad is invoked, defaults to /etc/xprofile/90
`XPROFPATH`	list of directories to be searched by the PAD profile command to locate the specified profile. Directories must be separated by a colon and are searched from left to right.

Command	Description
break	perform break action specified by X.3 parameter 7
clr (clear)	send a clear request
help	display help text
iclr (iclear)	send invitation to clear
int (interrupt)	send an interrupt packet
lang (language)	set extended mode language (English, French or Spanish)
par? (par, parameter, read)	display parameter values
prof (profile)	read in parameter data file
reset	send reset request packet
rpar? (rread)	read remote PAD parameters
rset? (rsetread)	set and read remote PAD parameters
set	set parameter values
set? (setread)	set and display parameter values
stat (status)	display status of connection
lcd	change local directory (use !pwd to print current working directory)
!	execute local UNIX command

`Q GO`	Begin file reception. The data in the Q GO command is taken as a file name. xpad will open the file if possible and record all data received from this point on in the file. Incoming data is not echoed to the screen, and it is recorded exactly as received to the given file. During receiving, a message is displayed advising the user that keyboard input will be ignored.
`Q STOP`	End file reception. When xpad receives this command it exits from file reception mode and closes the disk file received. xpad then returns to its ordinary mode of operation.