Introducing IRIX 6.2: Proven 64-Bit UNIX for High- Performance Visual computing and Data Serving IRIX 6.2 is the first desktop-to-data-center, all-platform, 64-bit IRIX release. Based on UNIX System V Release 4, IRIX 6.2 provides exceptional desktop multimedia functionality, with performance networking and advanced data management for servers, plus extensive support for industry standards. IRIX 6.2 provides industry- leading scalability across the Silicon Graphics® product line, with up to 36 processors on the CHALLENGE® XL server. It preserves your software investment by providing binary compatibility with IRIX 5 or 6.1 applications. Optionally recompiled 32-bit applications can take full advantage of the latest MIPS® performance features.

Compatibility and Performance Options

Users and developers can choose from three development paths to maximize binary compatibility, performance, or addressability:

• 32-bit IRIX 5 binaries "just run" on IRIX 6
• New or existing 32-bit applications can be recompiled to take full advantage of the additional floating-point and argument registers available on the MIPS R4400, R5000, R8000, and R10000 processors
• Applications can be ported or recompiled to take advantage of the exceptional performance and data capacities of 64-bit systems

Industry-Leading Standards

IRIX 6.2 is the first operating system from a major vendor to receive XPG4 Base 95 Profile branding from the X/Open Company Limited. This milestone is required of all vendors who support the evolution of UNIX to a single common specification.

Kernel Support of 64-Bit Performance

IRIX 6.2 makes 64-bit processing and data manipulation a reality across the full range of Silicon Graphics systems. All IRIX 6.2 systems provide 64-bit registers, data manipulation, application development, and access to local and remote 64-bit files and filesystems.

Huge Filesystems for Time-Sensitive Data

XFS, the Silicon Graphics 64-bit filesystem with integrated volume management and guaranteed-rate I/O, is included as a standard feature with IRIX 6.2. XFS assures fast recovery and data integrity through journaling technology, eliminating the traditional, slow UNIX filesystem checking utility. On a 64-bit platform running IRIX 6.2, XFS supports:

• File sizes to 9 million terabytes
• Filesystems to 18 million terabytes
• Millions of files in a single directory
• Parallel dump and restore

XFS scales in performance with the CHALLENGE architecture. The XFS volume manager, xlv, now has an integral graphical user interface, xlvm. Disk striping, concatenation, and optional disk mirroring are supported with xlv. XFS supports contiguous data through filesystem extents, allowing you to create block sizes from 512 bytes to 1 gigabyte. XFS is the only UNIX filesystem that allows applications to reserve a specific bandwidth to or from the filesystem. EFS and XFS are both supported under the IRIX 6.2 virtual filesystem.

Indigo Magic User Environment

From desktop utilities to digital media applications to collaborative tools, Indigo Magic provides everything necessary for both the novice and the experienced user to take advantage of the power of visual computing. Indigo Magic is much more than a generic desktop environment.

Implemented using the visually enhanced Silicon Graphics version of the Motif toolkit rendered using the X Window System, this tightly integrated environment includes:

• Icon catalogs for easy access to software tools
• Multiple desks for switching between tasks
• IRIS InSight for on-line help and documentation
• Graphical system administration tools
• Network searching for printers, peripherals, systems, and users
• Proactive system monitoring tools
• PC compatibility (SoftWindows*, DOS format disks)

Bundled Multimedia Products

• Digital Media Tools is a suite of tools that allow you to enrich your communications with all forms of digital media. Tools such as MovieMaker, SoundEditor, and ImageWorks make manipulating movies, audio, and images as natural as working with text. This complete package of capture, edit, playback, and translation capabilities supports a broad range of formats, including QuickTime for movies, AIFF for audio, and GIF, TIFF, and JPEG for images.
• MediaMail is a comprehensive SMTP/MIME-compliant electronic mail package that enables you to send and receive multimedia messages and manage your mail efficiently
• IRIS Showcase is a superb multimedia authoring and presentation tool that allows you to create digital media-rich, highly interactive presentations using audio, video, 3D models, and more. Showcase can also export PostScript®, EPS, Inventor, and VRML 3D models.
• InPerson is desktop videoconferencing software that enables real-time multiway conferencing from your desktop with interactive video, audio, 3D models, images, text, and more.
• Mindshare OutBox is the first drag-and-drop Web publishing tool that enables every desktop to become a Web-based collaboration system in a heterogeneous environment. Simply drag and drop files to share them with PCs, Macintosh® computers, Sun® systems, or other platforms that support Web browsing.
• WebMagic is a powerful WYSIWYG authoring tool for creating multidatatype HTML World Wide Web pages.
• Netscape Navigator is the Web's leading browser for global information retrieval.
• WebSpace Navigator is the industry's first commercially available VRML browser for viewing 3D Web environments.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader 2.1 software lets you view information in Adobe's Portable Document Format (PDF), an emerging industry standard for electronic exchange of documents.
• Insignia SoftWindows layered software* allows you to run off-the-shelf DOS and Windows PC software. SoftWindows is an X Windows System application for UNIX that emulates an Intel® personal computer in software. SoftWindows includes Microsoft DOS 6.21 and Windows 3.1.

New Setup and System Administration Tools

The user-friendly setup and system administration tools greatly simplify a wide range of tasks. The set includes:

• Loadable drivers
• Systune kernel tuning tool
• FLEXlm and Netls software licensing tools
• Graphical software installation and management tools, including support for installation from the Web

Security

IRIX 6.2 incorporates technology developed for Trusted IRIX/B1 to provide identification, authentication, and auditing. These features are designed to meet the C2 level of trust, and include shadow passwords, expanded login options, and password aging. An optional Trusted IRIX/B1 level security operating system is available.

DHCP Plug and Play

The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) extensions to bootp (RFC, 1541, 1532-1534) are bundled in IRIX 6.2. This allows client systems to use DHCP servers to obtain networking configuration data needed when systems are installed or moved.

Database Acceleration

IRIX DBA* optimizes your database scalability by improving kernel performance in asynchronous I/O, list-directed I/O, semaphores, and memory pinning.

Large UIDs

Up to 2 billion unique user ID values allow large sites greater flexibility in user accounts and better account administration.

Extended Accounting

As a high-end user, you may need to bill compute time to multiple projects or sum up resources used across the nodes of a POWER CHALLENGEarray system. Project accounting allows you to bill multiple projects separately. Array sessions group processes together under a single identifier for unified accounting, job control, and more.

Checkpoint Restart

Hibernator II is a layered "kernel-level" job execution management tool that allows a system administrator to suspend operation of a job in mid-execution, then restart that job at a later date or on a different machine of the same architecture.

Fairshare Scheduling

Share II, an improved Fairshare scheduler, allows you to create a custom allocation policy based on an assessment of how resources should be distributed to individuals or groups. Share II provides control of CPU time, diskspace, system memory, connect time, and more.

High Availability

IRIS FailSafe is an optional high-availability product available on IRIX 6.2. This package allows two machines to act as backups for each other. If the primary system should fail, the backup will take over the primary's IP address. In addition, filesystems mounted on the primary will be switched over to the backup system and be accessible through it. FailSafe also has the ability to restart certain applications by executing supplied or site-specific shell scripts. FailSafe/Web and FailSafe/NFS can be purchased to add Netscape and NFS failover, respectively.

IRIX Service and Support Program Improvements

IRIX 6.2 includes new software and service enhancements for large SMP systems. Systems under support can be configured to automatically perform crash dump analysis, and to route the availability and diagnostic information to local or remote support locations. Other software will utilize this information to isolate faults at the field-replaceable-unit (FRU) level.

Silicon Graphics offers a variety of electronic services to IRIX 6.2 customers who purchase support. With call logging, customers can open support requests electronically and track the status of their calls directly from their desktops. Customers can also access up-to-date support information and download patches via Silicon Surf. For more information on the electronic support services, see http://www.sgi.com/Support.

Confidence Tests

Silicon Graphics provides confidence tests to confirm device functionality for trouble-shooting problems. IRIX 6.2 tests include: Video, Presenter, ISDN, Mouse, Audio, CD-ROM, Tape, Keyboard, Dials&Buttons, Floppy/Floptical, Spaceball, and Tablet.