  Shared storage interconnects without clustering? 
 The Question is:
 
1 How can I share information on DSSI disks between
a VAX cluster running 6.2 and an Alphp running 7.1?
 
I have been mounting DSSI drives on the VX cluster
and mouting them /nowrite on the Alpha.  When the
Alpha becomes our production machine, I will reverse
the writability.  The Alpha remounts the DSSI
disks every 2 hours in a batch process.  Is this
remounting necessary? I have noticed that after
changing a file on the VAX, sometimes the Alpha does
not need to remount the drive in order to see the new
version of the file.  When do I need to remount the
disk to see changes?
 
Is there some guidance on sharing disks across this
mixed platform, non clustered configuration?
 
2.  I have an 8mm tape device that I move from
the VAX to the Alpha as needed, then back.  I have
the TMSCP_LOAD = 1, and TMSCP_SERVE_ALL = 2 on
both VAX and Alpha.  Neither system can see the
8mm device  mka0 on the other system.  BUT, once
I noticed that the VAX could see the Alpha 8mm.  I
even did not believe it.  I copied a file from
the VAX to the Alpha 8mm device without problem.
Thereafter, I have never seen both devices being
available.  Help me understand this behavior.  Is
there an assured way of serving the tape device
between the Alpha and the VAX cluster?
 
Oh, I did not purchase the cluster software for the Alpha.
I did not think the $10,000 price was worth it
for our transitional period, which has dragged on.
 
 
 
 The Answer is:
 
  All nodes sharing a SCSI, DSSI, or CI bus must be members of the
  same OpenVMS Cluster, and the VOTES and EXPECTED_VOTES must be
  configured per the OpenVMS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).
 
  The particular DSSI configuration you are presently operating in
  is not considered a supported configuration, and is definitely not
  a recommended configuration.  The potential for system crashes and
  for data corruptions due to uncoordinated access can exist in this
  particular configuration.
