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HP OpenVMS DCL Dictionary
HELP/MESSAGE
Displays descriptions of system messages.
Format
HELP/MESSAGE [/qualifier [...]] [search-string]
Parameter
search-string
Specifies a message identifier or one or more words from a message's
text. By default, HELP/MESSAGE displays a description of the message
produced by the last executed command (that is, the message
corresponding to the value currently stored in the CLI symbol $STATUS).
The Help Message utility (MSGHLP) operates on the search string using
the following conventions:
- Words containing fewer than three alphanumeric characters are
ignored.
- Words can be specified in any order.
You can minimize search
time by specifying the most unusual word first.
- Nonalphanumeric characters are ignored in the search. Exceptions
are the percent sign (%) and hyphen (-) when they prefix a message;
therefore, you can paste a full message into the search string,
provided you include these special characters and delete any variables
(such as file names) that were inserted into the message.
If Help
Message fails to find a pasted message in the database, submit the
command again and omit the leading special character, facility, and
severity. Some common messages are documented as "shared" messages
rather than facility-specific messages.
- Help Message matches all words that begin with the characters
specified in the search string. Use /WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD to specify
that only whole words be matched.
Description
The Help Message utility accesses message descriptions in a text file.
This text file is derived from the latest OpenVMS system messages documentation and,
optionally, from other source files, including user-supplied message
documentation. By default, Help Message provides information on how the
last executed command completed.
You can extract all messages produced by one or more specified
facilities. By directing this output to a file, you can create and
print your own customized message documentation.
For full details about adding comments or messages to the Help Message
database, see the OpenVMS System Messages: Companion Guide for Help Message Users.
Qualifiers
/BRIEF
Outputs the message text only.
/DELETE=filename.MSGHLP
Deletes all messages contained in the specified .MSGHLP file from
whichever of the following files is found first:
- A .MSGHLP$DATA file specified with the /LIBRARY qualifier
- The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in a search path specified by the
/LIBRARY qualifier
- The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in the default search path (defined by
logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY)
- SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA (the default .MSGHLP$DATA file)
You must have write access to .MSGHLP$DATA files supplied by HP to
delete messages from the database supplied by HP.
Note
If you create a .MSGHLP file by specifying a search string, check the
output .MSGHLP file to be sure the search did not pick up any
unexpected messages that you do not want to delete from the database.
Edit any such messages out of the .MSGHLP file before you perform the
delete operation.
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/EXTRACT=filename.MSGHLP
Extracts messages from the database and generates a .MSGHLP file that
can be edited, if desired, and used as input for /INSERT and /DELETE
operations. /EXTRACT retrieves data from a .MSGHLP$DATA file or logical
search path specified by /LIBRARY or, by default, from files in the
search path defined by logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY. When /EXTRACT is
not specified, Help Message produces output in standard text format by
default (see /OUTPUT).
/FACILITY=?
/FACILITY=(facility-name [,...])
/FACILITY=ALL
Specifies which facilities in the database are to be searched for a
match.
Enter /FACILITY=? to output a list of all facilities in the default
database or in a database specified by /LIBRARY.
To narrow your search, specify one or more facility names with
/FACILITY. (Multiple facilities must be enclosed in parentheses and be
separated by commas.) Help Message then outputs only matching messages
produced by the specified facility or facilities.
Specify /FACILITY=ALL to output messages for all facilities in the
database. /FACILITY=ALL is the default unless another facility is
implied; for example, specifying /STATUS or defaulting to the value of
the CLI symbol $STATUS automatically identifies a specific facility.
Similarly, cutting and pasting a message that includes a facility name
invalidates use of the /FACILITY qualifier.
See the OpenVMS System Messages: Companion Guide for Help Message Users for more details about using the /FACILITY
qualifier.
/FULL (default)
Outputs the complete message description, including message text,
facility name, explanation, user action, and user-supplied comment, if
any.
/INSERT=filename.MSGHLP
/INSERT=TT:
Updates the first of the following files to be found with new or
changed information from the specified .MSGHLP file, or, if TT: is
specified, with the data entered immediately at the terminal:
- A .MSGHLP$DATA file specified with the /LIBRARY qualifier
- The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in a search path specified by the
/LIBRARY qualifier
- The first .MSGHLP$DATA file in the default search path (defined by
logical logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY)
- SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA (the default .MSGHLP$DATA file)
You must have write access for the .MSGHLP$DATA files supplied by HP to
insert data into these files. User-supplied data is identified by
change bars in Help Message output.
/LIBRARY=disk:[directory]filename.MSGHLP$DATA
/LIBRARY=disk:[directory]
/LIBRARY=logical-name
Defines the messages database for the current command to be a
particular .MSGHLP$DATA file, all the .MSGHLP$DATA files in a specified
directory, or all the files in a search path defined by a logical name.
For most operations, the default database is either
SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA or a search path of .MSGHLP$DATA
files defined by the logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY.
For /DELETE and /INSERT operations, the default database is either
SYS$HELP:MSGHLP$LIBRARY.MSGHLP$DATA or the first file in a search path
defined by the logical name MSGHLP$LIBRARY.
/OUTPUT=filespec
Writes output to the specified file. By default, Help Message writes
output to SYS$OUTPUT, which is normally the terminal. (Use of
/OUTPUT=filespec is incompatible with /PAGE.)
/PAGE (default for screen display)
/NOPAGE
Displays terminal output one screen at a time. The page length is
automatically set to one line less than the value specified by SET
TERMINAL/PAGE. (Use of /PAGE is incompatible with /OUTPUT=filespec.)
/SECTION_FILE=*
/SECTION_FILE=file-spec
Identifies the specified message section file to the system so that
Help Message can interpret the $STATUS values for the messages in that
file. The default file specification is SYS$MESSAGE:.EXE. Specifying
/SECTION_FILE=* automatically includes all message section files
supplied by OpenVMS. For more information, see the OpenVMS System Messages: Companion Guide for Help Message Users.
Note
The results of using this qualifier are entirely independent from those
created by the SET MESSAGE command. The Help Message utility and
Message utility do not interact. You must separately code each utility
to obtain the results you want.
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/SORT
/NOSORT (default)
Sorts output in alphabetical order. If a sort fails, retry the
operation using the /WORK_FILES qualifier.
/STATUS=status-code
/STATUS='symbol'
/STATUS='$STATUS' (default)
Outputs the message corresponding to the specified status code. You can
specify the status code with a decimal or hexadecimal number or a
symbol enclosed in apostrophes. You can omit leading zeros, but you
must prefix any hexadecimal number with "%X".
If a HELP/MESSAGE command does not include a search string, Help
Message by default outputs the message corresponding to the CLI symbol
$STATUS; that is, Help Message displays information on how the last
executed command completed.
You cannot specify a search string or /FACILITY with /STATUS. /FACILITY
is also illegal if you omit the search string and default to
/STATUS='$STATUS'.
/WORD_MATCH=INITIAL_SUBSTRING (default)
/WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD
/WORD_MATCH=INITIAL_SUBSTRING matches all words that begin with a word
specified in the search string. The search string can contain multiple
words to be matched. Only messages that match every word in the search
string (in any order) are output.
/WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD matches whole words only and refines your search
to the exact words specified. For example, an exact search on ACC
screens out dozens of other messages containing words that begin with
the letters ACC.
/WORK_FILES=nn
/WORK_FILES=0 (default if qualifier is omitted)
/WORK_FILES=2 (default if qualifier is entered with no value)
Specifies that work files are to be used if the /SORT qualifier is
specified. You can specify a value from 0 to 10 for nn. This
qualifier has no effect if /SORT is not specified.
Examples
| #1 |
$ SHOW DEVICE KUDOS
%SYSTEM-W-NOSUCHDEV, no such device available
$ HELP/MESSAGE
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The first command creates an error. The default HELP/MESSAGE command
(with no qualifiers) displays a description of the SYSTEM facility
message NOSUCHDEV.
| #2 |
$ HELP/MESSAGE ACCVIO
$ HELP/MESSAGE/BRIEF ACCVIO
$ HELP/MESSAGE/FACILITY=SYSTEM ACCVIO
$ HELP/MESSAGE VIRTUAL ACCESS
$ HELP/MESSAGE/STATUS=12
$ HELP/MESSAGE/STATUS=%XC
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These commands demonstrate how you can use various qualifiers to access
and display the ACCVIO message (sometimes several!) in different
formats.
| #3 |
$ HELP/MESSAGE/BRIEF ACC
$ HELP/MESSAGE/BRIEF/WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD ACC
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In the first command, Help Message by default matches dozens of words
beginning with the string "ACC." The /WORD_MATCH=WHOLE_WORD
qualifier dramatically refines the search to match the exact word only.
| #4 |
$ HELP/MESSAGE/FACILITY=(BACKUP,SHARED)/SORT/OUTPUT=MESSAGES.TXT
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This command selects all messages issued by the BACKUP facility and
those messages documented as "Shared by several facilities,"
alphabetizes them, and outputs them to a printable file called
MESSAGES.TXT.
By selecting the messages you want and directing them to a file, you
can create and print your own customized messages documentation.
| #5 |
$ HELP/MESSAGE/EXTRACT=BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP BADMESSAGE
$ HELP/MESSAGE/DELETE=BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP-
_$ /LIBRARY=SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA
$ CONVERT SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA-
_$ SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA
$ PURGE SYS$LOGIN:MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA
$ HELP/MESSAGE/INSERT=BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP
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The first command in this sequence extracts the hypothetical message
BADMESSAGE from the default database and outputs it to file
BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP.
The second command uses the BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP file to delete the
BADMESSAGE description from the MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA file specified
by the /LIBRARY qualifier.
The next two commands compress the MYMESSAGES.MSGHLP$DATA file to save
disk space after the deletion.
The last command uses the BADMESSAGE.MSGHLP file (possibly an edited
version at a later time) to insert the BADMESSAGE message into the
default .MSGHLP$DATA file.
| #6 |
$ HELP/MESSAGE/EXTRACT=NOSNO.MSGHLP NOSNO
$ EDIT/EDT NOSNO.MSGHLP
1NOSNO, can't ski; no snow
2XCSKI, XCSKI Program
3Your attempt to ski failed because there is no snow.
4Wait until there is snow and attempt the operation again.
5If you don't want to wait, go to a location where there is
5snow and ski there.
5
5Or, try ice skating instead!
[EXIT]
$ HELP/MESSAGE/INSERT=NOSNO.MSGHLP
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This command sequence shows how users with write access to .MSGHLP$DATA
files supplied by HP can add a comment to a message.
The first command extracts hypothetical message NOSNO to file
NOSNO.MSGHLP. The second command edits the .MSGHLP file to add a
comment at the end of the message. Each comment line, even blank lines,
includes a "5" prefix. The next command updates the database
by using NOSNO.MSGHLP to insert the updated message into the default
.MSGHLP$DATA file.
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