The UUCPGate is a CommuniGate communication module supporting e-mail message transfer using the uucp protocol and regular modem connections; uucp communications do not require a direct Internet connection (i.e. they do not use the TCP/IP protocol).
The UUCPGate module supports multi-line communications and can support connections with several other uucp systems (so your CommuniGate system can be a network provider for other uucp e-mail systems).
The UUCPGate module can work together with SMTP module providing both TCP/IP and UUCP Internet e-mail. The CommuniGate Router takes care of directing messages to a proper gate.
Installation
Place the UUCPGate module into the Modules folder that has been created inside the CommuniGate Folder in your System Folder. Restart the CommuniGate Server (by restarting the MacOS on that computer).
Configuring
After the UUCP module is placed in the Modules folder on the server computer, you can configure it from any workstation that has the "can configure" privilege.
1. Choose UUCP Gate from the Monitor section of the Server menu.
2. When the UUCP Monitor window appears, choose "Service Settings…" from the UUCPGate menu. Enter the uucp "host name" (also called "system name") in the "system name" field. If you use a network provider, this name should be assigned to you by that company.
3. Choose Add Line from the UUCP Gate menu. Select the "host descriptor" radio button and enter the UUCP system name of the host you want to make connections to. Your network provider should inform you about the UUCP system name of their host. Click Create, and the Host record should appear in the UUCPGate Monitor window.
4. Select Line Settings… from the UUCPGate menu. The Host Settings dialog box should appear.
5. Select the "Call this Host" option, and enter the login name and password to be used when connecting to this host. Your network provider should inform you about the login name and the password assigned to you. Actually, there is a table of 4 string pairs: the left column contains the prompts UUCPGate expects to receive from the host, the right column contains the answer strings. You may want not only enter the strings to be used with the "login:" and "password:" prompt, but also the prompt strings. For example, if the host uses the "username:" prompt instead of "login:", you should modify the string in the left column. Some hosts require an additional string to be sent in response to a prompt before or after the "login" prompt. For example, if the host sends a prompt message "anex:", and then requires a string "uucp" to be entered, you should enter "anex:" and "uucp" in the first row of the table, and put the login and password strings in the second and the third rows. The administartor of each host will provide you with the information about the prompts and answers strings to be used.
All strings in the left column should be in the low case (actual strings read from the host will be converted to the low case letters). All strings in the right column are sent with the <return> symbol added at the end. If the <return> symbol should NOT be sent, add the backslash "\" symbol at the end of the string.
6. The table on the bottom part of the dialog box contains the call schedule for this host. Use the Add.../Remove/Edit buttons to create and modify the schedule. Each entry contains the time period you want to call this host (for example, 23:00-06:00 can be used to allow calls at night time only), how often you want to call this host if the server does not have any message to deliver (i.e. how often do you want to poll the host to get mail from it), and how often you want to call this host if you have mail to be delivered to that host. The last field contains the phone number to be used. Enter the phone number in the same format as used with fax and voice numbers, i.e. with the area code (see the Dialer chapter in the CommuniGate Server manual).
7. Don't turn the "Supports long data block option" on. Try with this option turned off, and when you are sure that communication with that host is reliable, try to turn this option on.
8. If you make UUCP connections not only with some network provider host, but with other systems as well (acting as a network provider for them, for example), you may create more host descriptors. If some of those systems are expected to call your system, you should check the "This host calls in" option. You should assign a login name/password pair to that host, and inform that host's postmaster, so she/he can configure their system.
9. Choose the "Add Line" from the UUCPGate menu and select the "Communication Line" option. The menu appears and lists the serial ports available on the server computer. The LineShare ports are shown in bold. The ports currently in use with other applications and/or modules have their names dimmed. Select the serial port you want to use for UUCP connections and click "Create". The Line monitor appears in the UUCPGate Monitor window.
10. Since the UUCP Gate Monitor window has several entries now, you have to select an entry in order to configure it. Click to select the communication line entry, then choose Line Settings from the UUCPGate menu.
11. Set the operation mode for this line. When a line is configured to receive incoming calls, the UUCPGate keeps the serial port open all the time. You may want to use a LineShare port if you want to use the same line for other purposes: faxing, outgoing data calls, etc. If the line is configured for "outgoing only", the UUCPGate opens the port only during calls, and waits if the port is in use with some other application amd/or module.
12. Set the log level.
Note: if you select the "All Info" log level, the log file will become very large very soon and the system may operate slowly when a uucp connection is in progress.
13. Set the port speed to be used. Don't put the speed to high: it can cause problems on slower machines. Start with 19200, and try to increase the speed later, watching the performance and the number of errors.
Note: if you use a LineShare port, the LineShare script can configure the port to use a different speed.
14. You may want to enter additional AT-commands to be used with the modem connected to the serial port. If you do enter those commands, DO NOT add the "AT" prefix, i.e. you may enter a string like this one:
L3M3\N0
15. If you have several modems to be used for UUCP, create more Communication Lines using the "Add Line" menu item, and configure them as well.
Troubleshooting
If you see that UUCPGates tries to call a host, but it cannot connect, or it cannot negotiate with that host, switch the log level for the CommuniCation Line to "Low-Level Info" or "All Info". After the next attempt, switch logging back and examine the log. If you still cannot find the source of the problem, and the administrator of the host you call cannot help either, copy that part of the log and e-mail it to support@stalker.com with the detailed description of the problem as you see it. Include the information about the versions of your CommuniGate Server and UUCPGate.
Attachments
The UUCPGate converts all attachments on the fly into the BinHex format while sending the message. It also detects the BinHex enclosures in the incoming messages and converts them into the attachments. If conversion fails, the unmodified original BinHex text is included in the message body.
Routing (advanced users only)
When the CommuniGate Server Router cannot route a message to any other module, and UUCPGate is the only e-mail module installed, then all the messages are routed via the first host defined with this module. If the only UUCP host defined is the network provider's uucp host, this does what you need: all e-mail messages that should not go to any user on the same server will be sent to Internet via the network provider's host.
If you plan to connect to several hosts, you should not only create the descriptions of those hosts with the "Add Line" command, but you should also enter the domain names and routing information into the CommuniGate Server Router (see the Read Me First file).
Special e-mail addresses
There are some certain types of e-mail addresses that are detected by the UUCPGate module itself and routed to uucp hosts:
messages with addresses of type xxxxx@bbbb.uucp will be routed to the uucp host "bbbb"
messages with addresses of type xxxxx@bbbb or bbbb!xxxxx where bbbb has no period signs (.) will be routed to the uucp host "bbbb".
messages addressed to the user "uucp" on the local machine are directed to the user "Postmaster".
Miscellaneous
The UUCPGate module keeps the original RFC822 message header with the message, and creates such a header when it sends a message that does not contain one. The current version of CommuniGate does not have a "legal" way to view those headers, but you can do so by opening the message, selecting the subject field and pressing <ctrl>R.
The UUCPGate module uses the "X-Cover:" and "X-Voice-System:" header fields to store/retrive the "fax cover page" and "voice system" attributes. You may want to use these fields explicitly when using a CommuniGate server over e-mail from a non-CommuniGate system, like in this sample:
To: 4153837164%faxGate@stalker.com
X-Cover: GuestCover
[... message text .... ]
This message will be received by the CommuniGate Server "stalker.com", it will be routed to the FaxGate installed there, and it will be faxed to 415 383 7164 with the cover page "GuestCover". Of course, a cover page with that name should exist on that CommuniGate Server.
Revision History
1.4:
• Port Speed can be selected explicitly.
• Buffering has been improved, so long data blocks can be used even on slower machines.
• Return-Receipt-To, MessageID, X-Cover and X-Voice-System header fields are now supported.
• The "supports long blocks" option is now enabled.
• Bug fix: the CLOSE packets are always sent at the end of sessions.
• Bug fix: "short data blocks" are generated correctly now.
1.3:
• In the "Send Only" mode, UUCP Gate now takes the serial port only when it places a call. So, you do not have to use a LineShare "Data Port" if you don't want to receive incoming uucp calls.
• When connection fails, the module suspends either the "Communication Line" or the "Host" depending on the type of the problem that occured.
1.2:
• Special AT-command settings do not require an AT prefix itself.
• UUCP "From" line is corrected, and now can contain the name of the local user.
• Licensing Key support is implemented
• The "Bcc:" message has changed to "X-Bcc:" to avoid problems with "smart" Unix hosts that remove "Bcc:" (UUCPGate sends separate copies to each "Bcc" address).
1.1:
• Special AT-command settings added.
• The prompt-response table for outgoing calls is implemented.
