03/15/85 auth

Syntax as a command:  x auth device authentication_characters


Function:  authenticates a tape or disk volume, i.e., verifies that the
correct volume has been mounted.  The system asks you to authenticate
the volume whenever the volume name in the volume label does not match
the volume name that was requested.


Arguments:
device
   is the name of the device on which the volume is mounted.
authentication_characters
   is an encoded form of the volume name, consisting of three
   alphabetic characters for tape drives, or the characters described
   in "Notes" below for disks.


Notes:  Use of the volume authentication feature requires that labels
displaying the volume name and corresponding authentication characters
be pasted on each tape volume in use at the site.  See the
make_volume_labels command.  The effect of typing the correct
authentication characters is to indicate to the system that you have
mounted a volume whose name matches the requested name, and that it is
safe to ignore the volume name on the label.

The authentication characters for disk volumes correspond to the label
type specified in the authentication request message.  The allowable
characters are:  "ss", "io", "urd", and "urg" corresponding to label
types of Storage System, IO, UnReaDable, or UnReGistered respectively.
If you wish to deny authentication you may use the authentication
characters "no".


If authentication is requested for a tape volume that does not have
authentication characters displayed on it, an authentication character
string consisting of three asterisks (***) may be given, to force
authentication to be bypassed for that volume.  Routine use of this
feature should be discouraged because it lessens the security of the
system.  If none of the tape volumes at the site have authentication
characters displayed on them, the authentication feature can be
disabled by the system administrator until the tape volumes have been
properly labeled.


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Historical Background

This edition of the Multics software materials and documentation is provided and donated
to Massachusetts Institute of Technology by Group BULL including BULL HN Information Systems Inc. 
as a contribution to computer science knowledge.  
This donation is made also to give evidence of the common contributions of Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
Bell Laboratories, General Electric, Honeywell Information Systems Inc., Honeywell BULL Inc., Groupe BULL
and BULL HN Information Systems Inc. to the development of this operating system. 
Multics development was initiated by Massachusetts Institute of Technology Project MAC (1963-1970),
renamed the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence in the mid 1970s, under the leadership
of Professor Fernando Jose Corbato. Users consider that Multics provided the best software architecture 
for managing computer hardware properly and for executing programs. Many subsequent operating systems 
incorporated Multics principles.
Multics was distributed in 1975 to 2000 by Group Bull in Europe , and in the U.S. by Bull HN Information Systems Inc., 
as successor in interest by change in name only to Honeywell Bull Inc. and Honeywell Information Systems Inc. .

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Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute these programs and their documentation for any purpose and without
fee is hereby granted,provided that the below copyright notice and historical background appear in all copies
and that both the copyright notice and historical background and this permission notice appear in supporting
documentation, and that the names of MIT, HIS, BULL or BULL HN not be used in advertising or publicity pertaining
to distribution of the programs without specific prior written permission.
    Copyright 1972 by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Honeywell Information Systems Inc.
    Copyright 2006 by BULL HN Information Systems Inc.
    Copyright 2006 by Bull SAS
    All Rights Reserved