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From: barber@rabbit1.UUCP (Steve Barber)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.xenix
Subject: Re: Huh?
Message-ID: <338@rabbit1.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 17-Jul-87 11:49:38 EDT
Article-I.D.: rabbit1.338
Posted: Fri Jul 17 11:49:38 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 22-Jul-87 03:24:25 EDT
References: <143@lakesys.UUCP> <141@hobbes.UUCP> <133@ddsw1.UUCP> <199@krebs.acc.virginia.edu>
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Organization: Rabbit Software Corp., Malvern PA
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Summary: What is System V anyway? An analysis

A framework that I find very useful for comparing and understanding
the difference between UNIXes in general, and Microport and Xenix
in particular, is to keep in mind the geneology and histories of their
evolution.  Microport is an honest-to-God port of AT&T System V Release 2.
Xenix started as a port of V7, was heavily hacked and extended with local
(Microsoft) and BSD extensions, then brought into conformance with SVID
while retaining more or less the same kernel.  Xenix is fairly mature
and high-priced.  Microport is new and relatively inexpensive.  It is
not surprising then that it is not yet stable, though with time I believe
it will be.

There is a world of difference between conforming to the SVID (as it
applies to V.2), and actually being System V. In particular, the SVID
specifies a programming interface (system call, library calls and shell
commands by now I guess), but doesn't cover the sysadmin stuff or
certain utility subsystems like uucp, cron, etc.

So the answer to the question "Is Xenix a System V?" is "It depends on
what you mean by 'System V'."

(P.S. to SVID folks:  I'm basing my info off an old SVID spec, so I may
 be out of date on some details.  Feel free to flame me *by mail*.)
-- 
Steve Barber    Rabbit Software Corp.
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(215) 647-0440  7 Great Valley Parkway East  Malvern PA 19355