3.1 Preinstallation Tasks

Note: Before attempting the following installation operations, back up all of the affected systems.

Prepare for the MPI installation by checking the software distribution kit. Read the online release notes, and check login privileges, software requirements, and disk space requirements.

For More Information:

See Section 3.1.1

3.1.1 Checking Installation Requirements

This section describes the documentation (online and hardcopy) that is available prior to installation. Licensing procedures, and activities such as checking system space and backing up your system are also discussed.

3.1.1.1 Checking the Software Distribution Kit

Use the bill of materials (BOM) to check the contents of your MPI software distribution kit.

In addition to this guide, the software distribution kit includes the following:

A CD-ROM optical disk for systems with optical disk drives
A CD-ROM booklet and CD-ROM cover letter

If your software distribution kit is damaged or incomplete, contact your Compaq representative.

3.1.1.2 Reading the Online Cover Letter

The online cover letter often contains important information that may not be included in this guide or in the release notes. Read this letter before proceeding further. To read the online letter prior to the installation, use the following steps:

Physically mount the media on the appropriate disk drive.
Log in as superuser (root) to the system where you are installing the software.
Enter the following command to ensure that you are at the root directory:
```
# cd /
```
Specify the /mnt directory to be the mount point for the distribution file system on the drive. In the following example, substitute the correct device unit number for x :
```
# mount -rd /dev/rzxc /mnt
```

Use the more command to display the file:

# more /mnt/pse190/documentation/pse190_cover.txt

3.1.1.3 Reading the Online Release Notes

Both online and hardcopy versions of the release notes are provided. Compaq strongly recommends that you read the release notes before using the product. The release notes may contain information about changes to the software.

The release notes are included both in the installation media and in the MPI kit. From the installation media, you can read the release notes using the following procedure:

Physically mount the media on the appropriate disk drive.
Login as superuser (login name root) to the system where you are installing the software.
Enter the following command to ensure that you are in the root directory:
```
# cd /
```
Specify the /mnt directory to be the mount point for the distribution file system on the drive. In the following example, substitute the correct device unit number for x:
```
# mount -rd /dev/rzxc /mnt
```

Use the more command to display the file:

# more /mnt/pse190/documentation/pse190_relnotes.txt

The PostScript version of the release notes can be printed on a PostScript printer or viewed using a PostScript previewer such as dxvdoc .

In addition to the cover letter and release notes, the distribution media includes the following documentation:

Software Product Description: pse190/documentation/pse190_spd.txt pse190/documentation/pse190_spd.ps
Installation Guide: pse190/documentation/pse190_iguide.txt pse190/documentation/pse190_iguide.ps

3.1.1.4 Checking Installation Procedure Requirements

This section discusses various requirements for installing the MPI software.

MPI installation takes less than 30 minutes, depending on your type of media and the complexity of the system configuration.

3.1.1.4.1 Login Privileges

In order to install the MPI software, you need to become a superuser (root) on all MPI cluster members.

3.1.1.4.2 Checking Software Requirements

The software requirements for Compaq MPI Version 1.9 are:

Tru64 UNIX version 4.0a or higher

In addition, if MEMORY CHANNEL[TM] support is needed, the following is required:

Compaq TruCluster software version 1.5 (requires Tru64 UNIX V4.0d or higher) (or TruCluster MEMORY CHANNEL[TM] Software Version 1.5)
You may also be able to use an earlier TruCluster version with a special patch (for details, see the Release Notes).

The MPI software also requires the subsets of the Tru64 UNIX software shown in Table 3-1 to be loaded on the system:

Table 3-1 MPI Subset Requirements

MPI Subset Title	Requirement
Compaq MPI V1.9 Binary (MPIBIN190)	OSFDCMT* TCRCOMMON* (for MEMORY CHANNEL[TM] support) TCRMCA* (for MEMORY CHANNEL[TM] support)

To check the subsets that are loaded, follow these steps:

Log in to the system where you will install the MPI software.
Enter the following command (Replace " . . . " with additional required subsets you want to check):
```
# /usr/sbin/setld -i | egrep 'OSFCLINET*| . . . '
```

Check the displayed rows for the name of the relevant subset. The word installed appears in a row after the subset identifier when a subset is loaded. If the word "installed" does not appear (the second column in a row is blank), the subset is not loaded. In this case, you must load the missing Tru64 UNIX software before installing the MPI software. For information about loading the operating system software, see the Compaq Tru64 UNIX installation guide.

3.1.1.4.3 Determining Which Subsets to Load

You must choose the subsets you want to load. The following subset is required for all MPI cluster members:

Compaq MPI Binary (MPIBIN190)

3.1.1.4.4 Determining Disk Space Requirements

Table 3-2 lists the disk space requirements for loading the MPI software subsets. These requirements apply to the disks where you load the MPI subsets.

Table 3-2 MPI Subset Sizes (Kilobytes Required)

Subset Title	Subset Name	/usr
Compaq MPI Binary V1.9	MPIBIN190	6144

Totals:		6144

3.1.1.4.5 Listing the Files Installed by MPI

You can list the files created by the MPI software installation by looking at:

/mnt/pse190/kit/instctrl/MPI*190.inv.

3.1.1.4.6 Checking Current Disk Space

To check the current amount of free space for a directory path, log in to the system where you will install the MPI software. You can check which directories are mounted and where they are by viewing the /etc/fstab file. Use the command:

# more /etc/fstab

To check the total space and the free space for the directories where the MPI software will reside, enter the df command, as follows:

# df -k

This free space displayed by this command must accommodate the subset requirements listed in Table 3-2.

3.1.2 MPI Cluster Member Requirements

Any MPI cluster member should meet the following requirements:

All MPI cluster members must run Tru64 UNIX Version 4.0a or higher.
If MEMORY CHANNEL[TM] support is needed, all MPI cluster members must run either TruCluster software version 1.5 (requires Tru64 UNIX V4.0d or higher), or MEMORY CHANNEL[TM] Software version 1.5. You may be able to use an earlier TruCluster version with a special patch (for details, see the Release Notes).
The passwd , group , hosts , and services information must be consistent across all MPI cluster members. This can be conveniently done by distributing this information using Network Information Service (NIS) or DNS.
Files used by all MPI applications (including the application image and, possibly, other data files) should be accessible by the same pathname from all MPI cluster members. Digital recommends setting up an Network File System (NFS) environment on all MPI cluster members with common directory mount points for user home directories and other directories that are used by MPI cluster applications. The automount daemon provides a convenient mechanism to manage these NFS mount points.
All cluster users should have rsh access without password to any cluster members they plan to use. This can be achieved by specifying the cluster members' hostnames in the .rhosts file in your home directory.

For More Information:

See the Compaq MPI User Guide