BOINC and SETI@home quick install guide for HPUX

From Lars Bausch

0. Releases

There are some different depots for specifiy (optimized) plattforms available :

 - seti-boinc_parisc_32.depot.gz :  32 Bit PARISC (PARISC 1.1 CPUs, aka PARISC
   7x00 and 2.0 8x00 CPUs (aka PARISC 2.0). Runs on 64 Bit also, The seti app
   is 20 % slower than the 64 bit optimized binary). Should also run on IA64
   (Itanium), but very slow. HPUX 11.x (11.0, 11.11 (11i Version 1) and 11.23 (
   11i Version 2)

 - seti-boinc_parisc_64.depot.gz : 64 bit for PARISC 8x00 (aka PARISC 2.0).
   Should run slow on IA64. HPUX 11.x (11.0, 11.11 (11i Version 1) and 11.23 (
   11i Version 2)

 - seti-boinc_ia64_32.depot.gz : 32 bit for Itanium on HPUX 11.2x (11i Version
   1 and Version 2).

>From more informations about the defintion from workstation/server/model to
architecure and cpu version look at /usr/bin/sched.models.



1. Install the package

1.1 Install with swinstall

Unzip the depot package :
        gunzip seti-boinc_32.depot.gz

Swinstall the depot
        swinstall -s $PATH_TO_BOINC_DEPOT/seti-boinc_32.depot \* 

Source your /etc/profile with the new entries required for boinc and seti :
        . /etc/profile


1.2 Install not via swinstall

If you don't wan't to intstall the binaries with swinstall. i

gunzip seti-boinc_parisc-64_1.4.depot.gz

tar -xvf seti-boinc_parisc-64_1.4.depot

cp -R seti-boinc_64/*/opt/boinc /opt/

cp ./catalog/seti-boinc_64/SETI_BOINC-LIB/postinstall /opt/boinc
    -> now you can make a tar file for example, from the destination directory
       /opt/boinc to copy it to other sytems, or move wherever you want.

Add this to /etc/profile, or the in the profile of the user  :
        SHLIB_PATH=$DESTINATION_DIR_FROM_BOINC/lib:$SHLIB_PATH
        -> for example SHLIB_PATH=/home/seti/lib
        export SHLIB-PATH

Source your /etc/profile, with the new entries required for boinc and seti :
        . /etc/profile



2. add a group and a user

Don't run the boinc client and seti app as root !

This steps require a root account :

Add a group (groupadd -g $GROUPID $GROUPNAME ) :
        groupadd -g 200 seti

Add a user (useradd -u $USERID -g $GROUPID  -d $HOMEDIRECTORY $USERNAME) :
        useradd -u 200 -g 200  -d /opt/boinc seti

Change the password for you new user (passwd $USERNAME):
        passwd seti

Change the owner and group for the boinc directory, where the client is located (
chown $USERNAME:$GROUPNAME $SETIDIRECTORY)
        chown seti:seti /opt/boinc

Feel free to change the directories, if you want...



3. Register your Account for seti@home

You can use the standard registration mechanism within the client :
        ./boinc_client -attach_project setiweb.berkeley.edu $ACCOUNT_KEY

If this don't work, whis workaround helps :

Change $ACCOUNT_KEY in the file /opt/boinc/account_setiathome.berkeley.edu.xml
in the key you get from email from the seti@home project.
Edit line 3, and do not set any blanks before or after the key.

<account>
    <master_url>http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/</master_url>
    <authenticator>$ACCOUNT_KEY</authenticator>
    <project_name>SETI@home</project_name>
    <host_venue>home</host_venue>
<project_preferences>
</project_preferences>
</account>



4. Start client and seti app

Login as your new user, and start the boinc_client :

seti@windu:/opt/boinc # ./boinc_client
2005-06-08 08:53:22 [---] Starting BOINC client version 4.32 for hppa1.1-hp-hpux11.11
2005-06-08 08:53:22 [---] Data directory: /opt/boinc
2005-06-08 08:53:22 [SETI@home] Using your default project prefs
2005-06-08 08:53:22 [SETI@home] Found app_info.xml; using anonymous platform
2005-06-08 08:53:22 [SETI@home] Host ID not assigned yet
2005-06-08 08:53:22 [---] No general preferences found - using BOINC defaults
2005-06-08 08:53:22 [---] Running CPU benchmarks
2005-06-08 08:54:21 [---] Benchmark results:
2005-06-08 08:54:21 [---]    Number of CPUs: 1
2005-06-08 08:54:21 [---]    407 double precision MIPS (Whetstone) per CPU
2005-06-08 08:54:21 [---]    823 integer MIPS (Dhrystone) per CPU
2005-06-08 08:54:21 [---] Finished CPU benchmarks
2005-06-08 08:54:21 [---] Resuming computation and network activity
2005-06-08 08:54:21 [---] Insufficient work; requesting more
2005-06-08 08:54:26 [---] Insufficient work; requesting more
2005-06-08 08:54:26 [SETI@home] Requesting 8640.00 seconds of work
2005-06-08 08:54:26 [SETI@home] Sending request to scheduler: http://setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu/sah_cgi/cgi
2005-06-08 08:54:36 [SETI@home] Scheduler RPC to http://setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu/sah_cgi/cgi succeeded
2005-06-08 08:54:36 [SETI@home] General preferences have been updated
2005-06-08 08:54:36 [---] General prefs: from SETI@home (last modified 2005-04-29 22:36:58)
2005-06-08 08:54:36 [---] General prefs: using your defaults
2005-06-08 08:54:37 [---] May run out of work in 2.00 days; requesting more
2005-06-08 08:54:37 [SETI@home] Requesting 104104.99 seconds of work
2005-06-08 08:54:37 [SETI@home] Sending request to scheduler: http://setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu/sah_cgi/cgi
2005-06-08 08:54:37 [SETI@home] Started download of 10ja05aa.4505.3922.473568.100
2005-06-08 08:54:40 [SETI@home] Finished download of 10ja05aa.4505.3922.473568.10
2005-06-08 08:54:40 [SETI@home] Throughput 6378 bytes/sec
2005-06-08 08:54:41 [SETI@home] Resuming computation for result 10ja05aa.4505.3922.473568.10 using setiathome version 4.07

If you get some SIGSEGV from the boinc_client or setiathome app at
HPUX 11.11(11i V.1), it could be, that you will need some additional patches.
Look at 6.2.



5. Installation finished.

If you have some problems, try a look in the forum of the setiathome website (
setiweb.berkeley.edu) or Paul Bucks excelent documentations (www.boinc-doc.net)
If you have some problems with the hpux binary, feel free, to contact me.



6. Additional Configurations 

6.1 Multi processor systems

For muli processor systems, you need to setup the preferences on your account
page. If this is not configured, your multi processor system will only use one
cpu.

At the seti homepage (setiweb.berkeley.edu) login with your account.
Click to "View or edit general preferences". Then to "Edit preferences"
Add in the section "On multiprocessors, use at most XX processors" the number
of CPUs your system have, and click to "Update preferences".

Now, you need to update your client with the new preferences you made on the
website :
seti@windu:/opt/boinc # ./boinc_client -update_prefs http://setiathome.berkeley.edu

You client will download some new work...


6.2 Patches + OS Revisions

You can dowload this patches and patchbundles at the HP IT Resource Centre (
itrc) at itrc.hp.com.
The registration at the itrc is for free and don't depends on any support
agreements.


6.2.1 HPUX 11.0

Minimum Patches : Quality Pack (QPK) September 2003 and General Relase Patches
                  November 1999

Recommended Patches : Quality Pack (QPK) and HardwareEnablement (HWE) patches
                      from June 2004, Required Patches June 2003


6.2.2 HPUX 11.11 (11i Version 1)

Minimum Patches : Gold Pack (GPK) and HardwareEnablement (HWE) patches from
                  Dec.2003. Required Patch Bundle June 2003

Recommended Patches : Gold Pack (GPK) and HardwareEnablement (HWE) patches from
                      Dec. 2004, and Required Patch Bunlde Dec.2004

If you have some problems, that you get a SIGSEGV with the minimum or recommened patches,
please install this additional patches :
- PHCO_31903 (libc cumulative patch)
- PHKL_32806 (Cumulative VM patch)
- PHKL_32647 (Extending Physical I/O Addressing)
- PHSS_30970 (ld(1) and linker tools cumulative patch)
- PHKL_32204 (VM core(4) related changes)


6.2.3 HPUX 11.23 (11i Version 2 at PARISC)

Minimum Patches : Required Patch Bundle September 2004


6.2.4 HPUX 11.2x (11i Version 1 and Version 2 at Itanium (IA64))

Minimum Patches : Required Patch Bundle September 2004


6.2.5 HPUX 10.20

Not tested, but the binaries should run successfull.


6.3 Kernel Parameters

The binaries will run with the default HPUX Kernel parameters. But if you wan't
to use more than one Application or have some special things running on your
system, you should have a look at your kernelparameters.

Changing some kernelparameters will increase the perfomance of the whole system.
Some kernelparameters which should changed to increase performance :
maxfiles        1024
maxuprc         256
maxdsiz_64bit   0X40000000
maxfiles        1024
maxssiz         0X4000000
maxssiz_64bit   0X4000000
maxtsiz         0X4000000
maxtsiz_64bit   0X40000000
shmmax          0X4000000
maxusers        128 or higher for Servers (256..512). But a good start for a
                    workstation)


6.4 Startup script

In /sbin/init.d is a script for start boinc at boot and stop for shutdown.
It's linked to /sbino/rc3.d/S990boinc.
It will also redirect stdout and stderr from the boinc client, redirect the
output from the boinc script /opt/boinc/boinc.sh to /opt/boinc/boinc.log. The
script will keep on boinc running in a look, and could mail you, if boinc was
terminated abnormaly.
This script is configurable by /etc/rc.config.d/boinc. For details how to
configure, please look into /etc/rc.config.d/boinc.



7. Additional notes

This quick install guide is available as "readme" in the swpackage, and if you
have installed it under /opt/boinc/doc/install.
In /opt/boinc/doc there are some further readmes about the boinc client and
seti app.




V.1.6, 31.7.05, Lars Bausch