HOW TO MAKE A FIXPAK CD

This package describes how you can create your own CD of OS/2 FixPaks,
which you can install right off the CD -- without having to mess with
floppy diskettes or CID servers.



REQUIREMENTS

Making an installable CD of OS/2 FixPaks is quite easy.  You just need a few
things:

  1. A CD writer and appropriate software.  Actually, you can use the method
     described here with a hard drive as well, but I'll assume for convenience
     that you're making a CD.

     I'll assume you know how to use your CD-writing software; instructions on
     how to use CDRECORD, RSJ, or whatever, are beyond the scope of this
     document...


  2. Version 1.43 (or later) of the IBM Corrective Service Facility (the
     utility used to install FixPaks).  Earlier versions will probably work
     too, but it's better to use the latest.  You also need the RSU utility
     OS2SERV (at least, if you want to make full use of the scripts I've
     included here).

     You can download the CSF here:
          ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/ps/products/os2/rsu/csf143.zip
     This archive includes the RSU utilities, so you don't have to dig up
     OS2SERV elsewhere.


  3. FixPaks.  More specifically, you need extracted FixPak files, not just
     the downloadable diskette images.  Therefore, you will most likely also
     need a mechanism for extracting the diskette images onto a hard drive.

     I've included DSKXTRCT.EXE for this purpose, as well as the alternative
     (but less useful) DUINPACK.EXE from IBM, in case for some reason DSKXTRCT
     doesn't work for you...

     IBM FixPaks are kept on the Internet (in diskette image form) at:
          ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/ps/products/

     OS/2 FixPaks for the base OS are at:
          ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/ps/products/os2/fixes/

     And FixPaks for the LAN, TCP/IP, MPTS components, etc., are located in
     various other directories.


  4. A REXX script or somesuch thing which sets up the necessary environment
     variables, calculates all the correct command-line parameters, and calls
     the Corrective Service Facility to install the FixPak.  (Okay, strictly
     speaking you CAN do it all manually yourself, assuming you know how,
     but it's rather more trouble.)

     I've provided two such REXX scripts here, which you can use depending on
     your preferences.

I assume, of course, that you know what FixPaks are, and have at least a
general idea of how they are organized.  It's up to you to decide which
FixPaks you want.



CREATING THE CD

First, unzip the CSF143.ZIP archive into what will be the root directory of
your FixPak CD.  You should end up with four OS2SERV.* files in the root
directory (you can move or delete the FTPINSTL files, they're not needed), and
the directory 'CSF', which contains the Corrective Service Facility files.

Next (assuming you are using the REXX scripts I provide), place FIX.CMD and
APPLYFIX.CMD into the root directory of the CD as well.

Next, you have to decide on a directory structure for placing the FixPaks on
the CD.  My own preferred directory structure looks approximately like:

   \
   +--CSF
   +--DISKIMGS
   |     +--WARP3
   |     +--WARP4
   |     +--DRIVERS
   |     +--NETWORK
   |
   +--WARP3
   |     +--FIXPAK40
   |     ...
   |
   +--WARP4
   |     +--FIXPAK14
   |     ...
   |
   +--DRIVERS
   |     +--FIXPAK2
   |
   +--NETWORK
         +--MPTS
         |    +--16
         |    |   +--WR_8423
         |    |   ...
         |    |
         |    +--32
         |        +--WR_8610
         |        ...
         +--TCPIP
         |    ...
         +--LAN
              ...


But you can use anything you want, really, as long as you find it convenient;
even something as straightforward as

   \
   +--CSF
   +--XR_W040
   +--XR_M014
   +--XR_D002
   +--WR_8423
   +--UN_0980
   ...

You're also under no obligation to include the disk image files on the CD,
I just do (hence the \DISKIMGS directory in my first example) because I
occasionally find them useful to have around.

Once you've decided how the CD is going to be organized, extract the FixPak
files from the downloaded image files, and place them in the appropriate
directories.  See the section 'EXTRACTING FIXPAK FILES', below, for directions
on how to do this.

Finally, once all the files are in place, write them to CD.  And refer to the
next section, which describes how to use your shiny new FixPak CD.



USING THE CD

Most service updates are applied to an existing installation, using the IBM
Corrective Service Facility (CSF).  However, be cautioned that this is not
always true!

MPTS updates WR_8423, for instance, is actually a complete replacement package,
which is installed using its own executable install program.  (This is also
true for WR_8421, which WR_8423 replaced, and the alternative 32-bit versions,
WR_8600 and WR_8610.)

Check the documentation for each service update; it should make clear what
method is required for installation.  Of course, you should always study the
documentation for a FixPak (usually a README file) before installing it anyway.

To install a standard (CSF-enabled) FixPak off the newly-created CD, you can
use the FIX.CMD script in the root directory.

FIX.CMD will call OS2SERV.EXE (with the required parameters) to apply the
FixPak.  OS2SERV is a graphical program which offers you a number of options,
including whether you prefer to use the standard or "advanced" install process.
(The "advanced" method provides a bit more manual control, but correspondingly
requires more user input.)

To install a FixPak this way, run this command from the CD's root directory:

        FIX <fixpath>

where '<fixpath>' is the name of the directory on the CD where the FixPak to be
installed resides.  For instance, if you wish to install the FixPak residing in
the directory \WARP3\FIXPAK40, you would enter 'FIX \WARP3\FIXPAK40'.

FIX.CMD will automatically prepend a leading backslash ('\') to the fixpath if
one is not present.  You may specify a drive different from the currently
active one, but if you do not specify a drive letter, FIX.CMD will assume the
current drive.  If you do not specify a fixpath at all, FIX.CMD will default
to the root directory of the current drive (which will probably fail).

Installing a FixPak using FIX.CMD requires that the OS/2 graphical desktop
(Presentation Manager and/or the Workplace Shell) be up and running.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Alternate methods                                                           |
|                                                                             |
| I have provided an alternate, slightly more direct way to install a FixPak. |
| The APPLYFIX.CMD script does not use OS2SERV, but instead calls SERVICE.EXE |
| (the same program which the "advanced" method via OS2SERV uses) directly.   |
| This may be convenient for more advanced users who wish to install using    |
| SERVICE without having to go through OS2SERV to get there.  To use          |
| APPLYFIX, run:                                                              |
|                                                                             |
|       APPLYFIX <fixpath>                                                    |
|                                                                             |
| in exactly the same manner as you would use FIX.CMD, above.  Like the       |
| former method, the desktop GUI must be running.                             |
|                                                                             |
|                                                                             |
| The other possible method is only for users who truly know what they are    |
| doing, and it involves calling FSERVICE.EXE directly.  This method has the  |
| advantage of being useable when OS/2 is booted into command-prompt-only     |
| mode.  From inside the \CSF directory on the CD, run:                       |
|                                                                             |
|        FSERVICE /R:<response file> /S:<fixpath>                             |
|                                                                             |
| where '<fixpath>' is as described for FIX.CMD, and '<response file>' is the |
| response file containing instructions for the FixPak installation.          |
|                                                                             |
| Creating a response file is beyond the scope of this document; if you don't |
| know what they are or how they work, then you shouldn't be using this       |
| method.  However, the file RESPONSE.WP4 in the \CSF directory is suitable   |
| for use in a first-time, straightforward install of a base OS/2 FixPak      |
| (under either Warp 3 or Warp 4) - e.g to install FixPak 40 on a base Warp 3 |
| system, you could use 'FSERVICE /R:csf\response.wp4 /S:warp3\fixpak40'.     |
| (Use the file RESPONSE.WP3 for Warp 3 FixPaks earlier than about 35 or so.) |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+



EXTRACTING FIXPAK FILES

FixPaks generally come in diskette images created with the 'SAVEDSKF' utility,
and have names like *.DSK or *.?DK.  The actual FixPak files must be extracted
from these images.  The REXX script EXTRACT.CMD (provided) is the best way of
doing this; it relies on the DSKXTRCT.EXE utility.  DSKXTRCT.EXE is a very
handy program written by Alan Arnett, and is available in the archive 
DSKXTR12.ZIP -- included in this package (and also available at
http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/pub/os2/system/patches/fixpak ).

To extract the files using this method, make sure that both EXTRACT.CMD and
DSKXTRCT.EXE are either on the system PATH or in the current directory.  Place
all the image files on a local drive (preferably the hard drive), and then enter
the command:

        EXTRACT <files>

where "<files>" is the file specification of the diskette images to be
extracted.  It will probably be either '*.?DK' or '*.DSK', depending on the
FixPak.  Obviously, if the image files are not in the current directory, any
applicable drive and directory qualifiers must be included in the file
specification.

The EXTRACT script will extract the files into a subdirectory of the current
working directory called 'csdfiles'.  Therefore, EXTRACT must be run from a
writable directory with sufficient drive space available (allow at least 25 Mb
for a base OS/2 FixPak; other products may require less).

The EXTRACT/DSKXTRCT method just described should work for most if not all
FixPak image files.  It is possible, however, that you may encounter image
files which are incompatible with this utility.  For this eventuality, the
IBM DIUNPACK utility has been included.  Usage of DIUNPACK is roughly the
same as for EXTRACT, but it does not require DSKXTRCT.  The disadvantage of
DIUNPACK is that it does not perform error-checking on the image files; thus,
it is recommended that you use EXTRACT/DSKXTRCT method whenever possible.


--
Alex Taylor (C)2000  - alex@eddie.cis.uoguelph.ca
Last modified on 2000-11-15

