Phoenix Rising BBS/phoenixrising.zip/phoenixrising/e-zines/guide.tj2

Text File | 1992-09-26 | 26KB | 658 lines

The LOD/H Technical Journal: File #4 of 10


       A Guide to the PRIMOS Operating System

                     Written by,
                   Carrier Culprit
                         and
                The Legion Of Hackers

  This is Part I of a II part series on the PRIME
  operating system.  In this article I will give a
  general overview of the system and command usage.


 Note: This article will center around the Primos version 19, and revisions
19.1
and up.


[Background Information]

  Primos is the operating system for the PRIME mainframe, and supermini
systems.  The operating system is usually run on the Prime 750.  Primos is a
relatively secure system. Externally security is great, but the internal
security needs help.  The latest revision of version 19 is 19.4.0 (as of this
writing). This revision is more secure in both external and internal security
than its predecessors. By the time this article is released, Version 20
should
be out and an article on that version will be forthcoming.


[Logging in V18.x.x]

  It is quite easy to hack into a Prime running a version 18 of Primos.
The external security is rather poor.  All you need is an ID to logon.
There is no password prompt, thus getting an operator's account is
rather easy. Occasionally, there will be some additional security software
running and passwords will be needed. I am not going to go into detail on
version 18 because it is obsolete, any questions regarding version 18 please
leave me mail.


[Logging in V19.x.x]

  A Primos system is very easy to recognize.  Once you are connected,
hit a few returns to get the "ER!" prompt or you may be prompted
with the ID prompt.  If you do get prompted with the ID prompt, you need
not put "Login" in front of the ID. Here is an example of a Primos login:

ATDT 123-4567

[2 RETURNS]

ER! Login CARRIER
Password:

 Prime (user 31) Logged in Friday, 5-Sept 14:27:20
 Welcome to  Primos Version 19.4.5
 Last login Thursday, Sept 4 1986 02:01:12
 (1 mail waiting)

 Note: You usually get 1 try to login before being disconnected.

  In some cases the 2 c/r's are not needed and some systems won't respond
until
you type "login" and a return. Passwords and ID's are 6 characters, they may
consist of letters and numbers.  Finding passwords on a Primos can be hard,
but
there are some common ID's and passwords.  You must use "login" before
entering
your ID.  In this case my ID is "CARRIER".  Here is a common list of ID's and
passwords I have come across:

  ===============================
  |  ID name     |  Password    |
  ===============================
  |  PRIME       |  PRIME       |
  | *SYSTEM      |  SYSTEM      |
  |  PRIMOS      |  PRIMOS      |
  | *ADMIN       |  ADMIN       |
  |  RJE         |  RJE         |
  |  DEMO        |  DEMO        |
  |  GAMES       |  GAMES       |
  |  GUEST       |  GUEST       |
  |  REGIST      |  REGIST      |
  |  TEST        |  TEST        |
  |  NETMAN      |  NETMAN      |
  |  PRIRUN      |  PRIRUN      |
  |  TOOLS       |  TOOLS       |
  |  CMDNC0      |  CMDMNC0     |
  | +TELENET     |  TELENET     |
  ===============================
 Note: * means that that ID is most likely to have SYS1 priorities.
 Note: + account belongs to Telenet or some employees of Telenet in which the
         Primos will be located on the Telenet packet network.

System Accounts:

SYSTEM- This account usually contains configuration programs.  It
        also contains system messages, logs, and userlists.

TOOLS-  This account usually contains the utility to add users and the
Netlink
        utility (Explained later).

CMDNC0- Contains help files.

  These are default accounts which are standard in new Primos systems. They
should be there unless the userfile has been modified by the system operator.

  You can also mix them around, ie- Login SYSTEM  Password:PRIME
There is no "systat" or extensive on-line help before logging in. Don't you
wish people would model their operating systems after TOPS-10 (chuckle)?  The
best account to get on under would be an account with SYS1 priorities. This
account is for people who advise regular users.  Ok, lets assume you have
hacked onto a regular account something like games.

  The command prompt for Primos is "OK,".  The first thing we would
want to do is to see who is logged in. We would type "Users" and
would get something like this:

 OK, Users
 Users=8

  This is telling us that there are 8 users currently logged in, which isn't
extremely helpful. To get a full listing of usernames we would type "Status
Users" or "Status -Users".  We would get a status of users currently on-line.
It would show us usernames, devices, and other sub-categories.  Here's a
sample
of what you would get:

User                  Number         Device
ADMIN                   3            <MDF0>
SYSTEM                  1            <MFD0> <MFD1>
OBB                    31            <MFD0>
CRIMINAL               12            <MFD1>

  If you see that other people are logged in, it may be best to log off and
call back later, as the operators can perform the same command, and if they
know that user should not be on the system at that time, you will obviously
be
kicked off.  If there are 2 devices specified, the user is either receiving
output from a different device, sending input to that device, or has logged
out
incorrectly (tsk tsk).

  To get a full status of memory and accounting, you would type "Status
System"
This is usually in a Menu driven program, and you will get different options.
ie- Log of users, memory, devices, etc.

  We can access different priority levels by using the "CHAP" command.  This
is
the way we can find out what our priority level is. We would do:

OK, CHAP UP

OK, CHAP DOWN X or CHAP DOWN

 to return to your original priority level:

OK, CHAP ORIGIN or CHAP DEFAULT

  Usually a user may leave his priority level rather low. You can then try to
raise your level.  There should be 6 different priority levels. A 0 meaning
lowest, and 6 meaning highest.  Here is a little diagram that will give you a
list of ID's and what most of them will have access to.

Note: Some may have access to more or less than what I have written, but
      the comments are accurate for most systems.

       !=================================================!
       !     ID         !          Comments              !
       !=================================================!
       !   GAMES        !Allows user to view low level   !
       !                !directories, and execute regular!
       !                !commands. ie-CHAP, STATUS       !
       !=================================================!
       !   DEMO         !Allows user to run games, and   !
       !                !execute the tour program.  Most !
       !                !commands will not work, and it  !
       !                !has a time limit. Lastly, it can!
       !                !only access low lvl directories.!
       !=================================================!
       !   PRIME        !Allows user to execute all      !
       !                !commands, except operator cmds. !
       !                !User can also access PRIMENET if!
       !                !the system supports it.  Access !
       !                !to only low level directories.  !
       !=================================================!
       !   ADMIN        !Access to view all directories &!
       !                !bypass all ACL'S.  Can setup an !
       !                !accounts on other Primos systems!
       !                !via PRIMENET (if available).    !
       !                !User can execute any command.   !
       !=================================================!
       !  SYSTEM        !Same as ADMIN, except cannot    !
       !                !view feedback to ADMINS.        !
       !=================================================!
       !  RJE           !Same as games, except a RJE     !
       !                !user can erase user log and spy.!
       !=================================================!
       !  TEST          !Able to access any directory,   !
       !                !only restriction is a test user !
       !                !is not authorized to shut down  !
       !                !the system.                     !
       !=================================================!
       Note: RJE is a Remote Job Entry

  Priority levels may vary on different Primos systems, they can range from
0- to any number up to 10.  The most common range is 0-6.  On some Primos
systems you can do a CHAP PRIORITY to see what the range is.

  Ok, we have checked priorities, and the system status.  Lets move to
directories.  To list a directory type "LD" short for List Directory.
This will list the directory you are attached to.  In this case it
will be your home directory.  You will get a list of files within your own
directory.  To view someone elses directory you would type AT
nameofdirectory.
Lets say we are logged into a DEMO account.  And we would like to
view the files in the GAMES account.  We could do either of the following:

OK, AT GAMES

This is telling the system we would like to default to the Games directory.
This is similar to the Set Default name on a VAX/VMS system. (See Lex
Luthor's
Hacking VAX/VMS 3 part series for more information on VMS)

or we could do

OK, FUTIL
>AT GAMES

  This is the same thing, except in the first method you can still execute
Primos commands while still attached to the Games account.  But when using
FUTIL (File UTILity program) you can only list,  create and copy files.  To
get
out of the file utility program just hit a Control P. Here is a chart of file
types and how to execute them:

-------------------------------------------
|   File type    |    How to execute it   |
===========================================
|     .CPL       | CPL pathname           |
|     .SAVE      | SAVE pathname          |
|     .SEG       | SEG pathname           |
|     .BASICV    | BASICV pathname        |
|     .TXT       | SLIST pathname         |
|     .COM       | CO pathname            |
-------------------------------------------
Note: SLIST will also show the program lines of the file, whether it be a
      CPL file or COM file.  This is a good way to learn CPL (Command
Procedure
      Language).

  Most files will not have suffixes.  To execute them type "Resume pathname",
filenames are called pathnames on PRIMOS.  Unlike VMS, the PRIMOS system
doesn't have the type of file as a suffix.  On some files you'll get the
suffix, but if not try: Resume pathname and that should execute the file,
especially files with an "*" preceding them.  If a file is in the format of,
"*filename" do "Resume *filename".  Usually basic files have an * preceding
their titles.

To create a directory type:

OK, Create directname [-password] [-access]

  A password can be from 1-6 letters, if I wanted to have a password on
my directory I would do-

OK, Create directname [-limp] [-access]

  If you don't put in an access level, the directory will automatically be
set to ALL access.  Here's a list of access rights:

      P         =       Protect a directory
      D         =       Delete entries from directory
      A         =       Add entries to directory
      L         =       Read the contents within directory
      U         =       Attach to a directory
      R         =       Read contents of a file
      W         =       Edit contents of a file
    ALL         =       All of the Above^^^^^
   NONE         =       Denies all access

  Typically, if you are logged into a DEMO account your directory will be set
to ALL access.  If it is, someone can attach to the demo directory and
do anything they want with it.  Here is a list of accounts and what access
they will usually have on their directory.

         DEMO      =    ALL
         GAMES     =    LUR
         PRIME     =    ALL
         SYSTEM    =    LUR
         ADMIN     =    NONE
         TEST      =    LUR
         JBB       =    NONE
         RJE       =    LUR

  Most directories have LUR access which is access to read contents of the
directory, attach to the directory, and read contents of a file.  If
you have enough privileges (priority levels) you can do the following to
change the access rights:

OK, Set_Access ALL [-LUR]

  This is setting access from ALL to LUR.  ALL was the present access, now we
changed it to LUR.  You should only do this if it's your own personal account
as changing access rights on hacked accounts could lead to your detection and
subsequent expulsion from the system.

  To create a file, preferably a text file, type "Mail pathname", then you
will
be thrown into the Mail subsystem which I believe is version 3.1 now.  You
can
type in all the info you want, when finished hit a Control-P.  It will ask
you
for a pathname to save it to.  Enter the name you would like.  It will look
something like this:

OK, Mail DOE

  Mail 3.1
>Hello.  This is your system operator.  Any ideas on how to keep those
>pesky little computer criminals out of our system?
>Comments can be directed to SYSTEM.
Enter Filename: Pesky.Txt

The above method is rather primative but works good if you are only creating
a
text file.  It is a common method used on version 18, and is easy to perform.
The other method is more common on version 19, and is commonly used today.

OK, Create Test.Txt
OK, Ed

EDIT
$
Note: $ is not dropping you into DCL, so you DCL programmers are out of
      luck (chuckle).

  From the $ prompt you can type 'help' to get a list of commands which can
be
used in the Editor.

$ (return)

  By hitting return we are given the "&" prompt, here we can input our
file.  Or if you know CPL you can start programming.  Do not hit return
on a blank line or you will be thrown into the main Editor prompt ('$').

& Hello this is Bif (the system operator) I am testing the Editor
& because we have added new enhancements.  This is only a test.
& (return)

  Thus by hitting return we are given the $ prompt once again.  To
save our file we can type-

$ Save Test

  In this case the filename is test.  The system will reply by saying
'Test Saved'.  The file should be located at the end of the files list
when you List files.

  To make sure the contents are saved type "Slist Test.Txt", it will display
the text you typed in mail or the editor.  A couple of important notes:

1: Never use a "?" anywhere in the file, or it will erase all of the contents
   in the file.
2: Never hit a c/r twice.  In other words if you hit a c/r on a blank line
the
   system will recognize this as mail and will send it to the name you
entered.

  If you want to make a basic program or basicv type "Basic" or "BasicV"
at the "Ok," prompt and you will be thrown into that language.  If you
would like to make a CPL program you can enter it from the main prompt since
that is the default language for Primos.

  To delete a file just type "Delete filename".

  To get a list of directories with their ACLs (Access Control Lists) type
"List_Access".  It would look something like this:

OK, LIST_ACCESS

      ACL  "<Current Directory>":

      ADMIN : NONE
       DEMO : LUR
     SYSTEM : LUR
     ROBERT : ALL
      GAMES : LUR
      PRIME : ALL


  To get a listing of just files type "Listing", it will give you a list
of files in the directory you're attached to.  The only difference between
this method and "LD" is that LD tells you what access rights is on that
directory.

<Tour Program>

  On some Prime systems you may find a program located within the Demo or
Games
account.  The name of the program is "Tour" and you can execute it by doing
CPL
Tour.  The program will be inputing commands and the system will execute
them.
 There is a bug within that program which can be used to your advantage.
First
execute it by doing CPL Tour, once the program has begun it will have a
couple
of pauses (while it is loading).  First hit 3 Control P's.  By doing this you
are breaking out of the program.  Next, attach to the SYSTEM directory.  Once
attached, SLIST the Tour program (Slist Tour).  When it begins listing the
file
do a Ctrl-P again.  Now, go into the editor (ED).  When you receive the $
prompt hangup on the system.  The system is now hung in the Editor, and the
Tour program is still executing (from the Demo or Games account). You must
call
right back (and prey that the line hasn't been captured by a system
operator).
You will be put right into the tour program, while it is being executed.  You
will need no pw to login as you are attached right to it.  You now have
access
to write and read anything your little heart desires.  If you plan on trying
this, do it at night, since you will most likely be the only one on the
system.
 Always do it on a 1 line system.  Never on a Prime that is used constantly
(unless you have perfected this method).  Remember to call right back after
you
have hung up, or someone like BIF may call and wonder why he did not get the
ID
prompt.  So be careful.

  I also know different ways you can modify the tour program to have
a little fun (using CPL commands) but due to obvious reasons I will not
publicize the lines.  If you are interested please get in contact
with me.

<Message>

  To send a message to someone on the system type "Message username". It
would
look something like this:

OK, Message PRIME
Hi, can you tell me why the system was down last week.

Note: Remember DON'T use ?'s.

  The user PRIME will receive the message, unless he's busy or has executed
a command which refuses messages.  It would look like this:

OK, Message Prime
Hi, can you tell me why the system was down last week.

User Prime not accepting messages

  If you do not receive that message then the user will get your message.
This
is like Phone username on VMS, except on a VMS it looks better (chuckle).

<Mail>

  To send mail you type: "Mail xxxxx".  If I wanted to send mail to user
SYSTEM, I would type "Mail System", I would be thrown into the mail
subsystem.
To end a message hit a c/r on a blank line.  You will be notified when you
get
mail when you first logon.  It will say "(mail waiting)".  To read it type
"Mail".  If you have no mail and you type Mail it will say "sorry no mail
today".  Once again no ?'s are allowed or the contents of the mail will be
erased.

<Status>

  Status followed by a topic will give you a system status on that topic.
You
can get information on the following using Status-

Status ALL        =      Information on who is logged in and devices.
Status DI         =      Information on devices, what devices are in use.
Status SYSTEM     =      Information on what version of Primos is being run.
Status NETWORK    =      Information on Netlink, and network nodes.

  There are others but these are probably the most important, and of course,
"Status Users" which I mentioned earlier, which will give you a list of users
currently logged in.

<Change_Password>

  Allows a user to change his password.  It will look something like this:

OK, Change_Password
Old Password:Z102345
New Password:
Verification :

  Notice how new password and verification don't echo, this is for security
purposes so don't be alarmed.  Changing passwords of hacked accounts is not a
good idea. We don't want to get detected now do we?

<Info>

  Gives info on the system. ie-who it belongs to, what version its running
on and new features.

<Languages>

  Gives a list of languages the system supports.

<Help>

  Gives a list of help commands and a small description.


<Netlink>

  By typing Netlink at the main prompt (OK,) you will be thrown into the
Netlink utility.  Netlink is found on Primenet (which is the networking
software for Primes).  Netlink is used to communicate with other remote
systems.  You will find the netlink utility on most packet networks, since
there is much use for it there.  Netlink can be accessed by all users on
the system.  Once netlink is typed you will get a message, similar to:

Netlink version x.xx
>(this being the main prompt)

  Once again on-line help is available if you have no idea what you are
doing.  To call another system, you would use the NC xxxxxx format.
If you were on Telenet using Primenet supporting the Netlink utility you
could call any system on Telenet.  For example if I wanted to call my
favorite VMS I would type-

>NC 201111

  201111 being the address.  You will get a pause for about 5 seconds and you
will be connected to the remote system.  It is fairly slow, but it is
sufficient.  The whole process would look something like this-

OK, NETLINK

Netlink [Version 1.x]

>NC 201111
<Pause for about 5 seconds>

Username:
Password:

  Username and Password shows that I have connected to the Vax running VMS. I
would log onto the remote system (the VMS in this case) like I would any
other
time.  Once I am done looking around on the remote system I can just logoff
by
doing a Control P (this will put you back into the utility), or I could just
logoff properly by using the VMS logout command and be put back into the
Netlink utility program.

  If you ever receive the message "WILL NOT ACCEPT COLLECT CONNECTION" from a
system off of Telenet, you can just reverse the charges to the Prime you are
on
and log onto the remote system.  You can do this by using the NC format
above.
This allows you to bypass the need for a Telenet ID.

  Netlink won't compare to something like DECNET but it gets the job done.
Remember if you aren't too sure what you are doing just type "help" for
on-line
help.  To exit the Netlink utility type "Quit" or just hit Control-P.  This
will give you the main prompt once again.

<Upcase/Lowcase>

  Toggles upper and lower case.

<Control characters>

Control S = Pauses Text
Control P = Aborts Text or Utility
Control Q = Resumes Text

<Author Notes>

  If you gain access to Primos supporting on-lines games, which can be found
by
(AT)taching to the Games directory.  There may be a game called "FRITZ", it's
a
fun game dealing with questions on the Primos system.  It can also test your
knowledge on the system.

  Usually if a person hangs up on the system without properly logging off you
may be able to call the system and be attached to that account.  This usually
works on systems with one line.  I called a Primos one day and was attached
to
a system account modifying a config program.  It was interesting...

There are many Prime systems on Telenet so I suggest getting ahold of the
updated LOD/H Telenet Directory from Issue I and jot down a few.  Preferably
Primenet, since they support the Netlink utility.

============================================================================

Here's a list of some major differences between PRIMOS version 18.x.xx and
Version 19.x.xxx

 1.  Version 19 supports Access Control Lists, which allows the user to set a
     specific access right on his/her directory.
 2.  Version 19's security has been tightened.  A user will be prompted with
     the password prompt.  A user is usually allowed only 1 unsuccessful
login,
     if the ID or password is incorrect the user will be logged off.
 3.  Once a user has tried to execute a command/file without sufficient
     access rights he will be logged off of the system.  The account will
     automatically be suspended until an operator has contacted the user.
 4.  Users have to change their password every 30 days.
 5.  The "CHAP" command can be executed by users to toggle their priority
     level.
 6.  Netlink has been enhanced with more commands.
 7.  A primary password may be used for better security.
 8.  After logging out you will be disconnected from the system, rather
     than prompted with the ER! prompt.
 9.  Dec VT132 is the commonly used operator terminal on version 19.
10.  There have been new enhancements to the editor.
=============================================================================

  As you can see, PRIMOS is a very versatile system. It's not very popular
among hackers since there hasn't been too much information released on it.
Most commands will be the same on version 18, if not just execute the Help
file. The final element to PRIMOS will be alarm (it will be similar to the
one
on VMS).  I will go a little more in-depth on the ALARM system in Part II (I
will have more information on it, and by that time it will be inserted in
later
revisions of version 20).  Basically the alarm will record all unsuccessful
logins and will alert the operator at the terminal.  The alarm will be a
standard part of PRIMOS and can not be shut on and off, from a reliable
source,
the alarm may come in a different package.
=============================================================================

Part II:  I will discuss new commands, creating accounts, go more in-depth on
          the Netlink utility, and any other changes in PRIMOS Version 20.


Until then....

You can reach me via the TJ staff account, for questions, requests for more
information, and corrections to this article.



Downloaded From P-80 International Information Systems 304-744-2253 12yrs+