Invitation to Tender to Provide Support for the QUIPU Directory Software and/or the PP Electronic Mail Software ______________________________________________________________ 1 Introduction The Joint Network Team is sponsoring the development of two complementary first-generation public-domain OSI products: QUIPU, which implements the ISO 9594/X.500 Directory Service; and PP which is a multi-protocol electronic mail protocol convertor. Both these developments are being undertaken by the Department of Computer Science, University College London (under the supervision of Mr S E Kille) with some of the development sub-contracted. QUIPU forms part of the ISODE public-domain package, while PP is currently a separately- released package utilising ISODE. Each UK University is being provided with a single suitable UNIX hardware platform on which it can mount either or both the QUIPU DSA (to provide a Directory service) and the PP MTA (to provide protocol conversion between Grey Book electronic mail and ISO/IEC 10021). The hardware supplier is responsible for providing hardware maintenance and software support for the operating system and the communications software up to the CONS interface. These DSAs/Mail Protocol convertors will be operated in a service environment, but frequently the staff responsible have little UNIX experience. In all cases, the PP and QUIPU software is new. Currently, twenty sites have received a SUN 4/330 with 24 MB memory, 2 x 337 MB disks, a streamer tape, and an MCP communication board (to provide 64K bps X.25). X.25(1984) and CONS/LLC.2 with a sockets interface are part of the hardware requirement which has yet to be supplied. The hardware operational requirement is available from the JNT on request. All these sites have mounted QUIPU. Approximately ten further sites are expected to receive hardware to mount QUIPU in July, with the remaining twenty sites receiving hardware later in 1990 or in 1991. The first general release of the PP software is expected in June/July 1990. The rate at which sites will wish to mount it depends on the availability of other ISO/IEC 10021 products, but it is expected that most of the sixty sites will require it by Summer 1991. This Initiation to Tender is seeking appropriate organisations to provide a software support service for each of QUIPU and PP. 2 Support Requirement The support required is to be provided to the nominated system manager at each UK Academic Community Computing Service site [initially approximately 20, growing almost immediately to approximately 30, and within a year to approximately 60] operating PP and/or QUIPU. It should provide assistance where the SUN hot-line stops. It will involve close liaison with the PP and QUIPU development groups. For PP, support is required for the Grey Book and ISO/IEC 10021 protocol channels, but not for other protocol channels. Support for future additions to PP and QUIPU which have been commissioned by the JNT will be required when these are released. For sites receiving new hardware, the support organisation must ensure that the system is correctly configured, either by pre-configuration at its premises or by on-site assistance to the new sites. For new software releases, both from the hardware supplier and for PP and QUIPU, the support organisation must make appropriate QA checks and provide the software in a form which minimises the time and skill required to install it. Binary releases containing an appropriate configuration of software components will probably be appropriate. Sites who take software sources and compile their own versions should only expect support for problems which can be reproduced in the supported packaged version. Additional documentation may need to be provided. The support organisation must provide a service to resolve problems which is available both through e-mail and through a UK telephone number. The support organisation must indicate a response time in which it guarantees to acknowledge problem reports with an estimate of time to fix. The Annex provides an indication of the support requirements for QUIPU and for the UK Academic Community Directory Pilot. Similar requirements for PP are likely. Note that the PP Grey Book channel uses unix-niftp, and thus support for unix-niftp as used by the PP Grey Book channel is required. Where software is still under development, simple bugs may be fixed by the support organisation in liaison with the developers, but complex bugs will require to be referred to the software developers. For software which is not the subject of a JNT development contract or supplier support contract, all bugs must be fixed by the support organisation. 3 Responses Responses to this Invitation to Tender may be for one of: o QUIPU only o PP only o both PP and QUIPU The costings should assume that each site is operating on identical hardware and using the software as packaged by the tendering support organisation. If any additional cost would be made if all hardware platforms are not identical, this should be quoted for two cases: o slight differences (eg different discs on identical CPUs) o a second hardware platform from another supplier. The JNT will loan the support organisation one hardware platform (or if two hardware platforms, one of each) for the duration of the support contract. Responses should indicate in detail how much effort will be expended meeting these requirements, and full details of all costs involved. The initial support contract is expected to be for a period of three years, but tenders should indicate costs for each year separately. Once sites have gained experience with PP and QUIPU and the software becomes more stable, the support load can be expected to decrease. 4 Timetable Responses to this Invitation to Tender must be received no later than 9 am BST on Friday 18 May 1990. Any successful tenderer will be notified by Friday 15 June 1990, and will commence support for QUIPU on 1 July 1990. The commencement date for support of PP may be later than 1 July 1990. 5 Return of Tenders Tenders should be returned to: J A I Craigie Joint Network Team c/o Rutherford Appleton Laboratory Chilton Didcot Oxfordshire OX11 OQX Telephone: 0235-445539 Fax: 0235-445808 Further information can be obtained from Steve Kille or Paul Barker at the Department of Computer Science, University College, London, or from John Dyer or Jim Craigie at the JNT. 6 Organisations which have asked to receive the Invitation to Tender University of Cambridge Computing Laboratory (M J T Guy) Edinburgh University Computing Service (B A C Gilmore) Manchester University Computer Centre (P Mills) Salford Software Services Limited (A E Howard) X-Tel Services Limited (H T Smith) Annex QUIPU Support Requirements: Further Details Individual Site Support Some of this work is fleshing out the area covered by the Pilot configuration guide. - Helping sites to get an initial system working. - Helping sites who have subsequently stumbled, possibly due to UNIX inexperience - ISODE/QUIPU support. [There is almost certainly a need for a further guide, aimed at sites with little directory experience, to help them with the sort of questions posed below.] o Why don't my EDB files load? o I can't understand the access control syntax/semantics. o How do I configure my system to run 2 DSAs? o How do I replicate subtree ABC on a daily basis? o Help to get FTAM going (useful for subsequent distributions of the system). o Network service configuration (configuring X.25, Pink Book Ethernets). o Tailoring of logging. Software Support This is currently given through the QUIPU-support list. All QUIPU support queries come to this address. There is probably a need for specific UK academic support. - Bug fixing - Interworking problems with non-QUIPU systems - I need to be able to do ... how can I achieve this with the software? UK Pilot Support - Administration of the Directory root and the UK Directory tree. o Assigning DSA names o Managing the root and UK EDBs [provision of the DSA for the root and UK EDBs is not required] - General administrative support. o Can I come to the next meeting, and when is it? o Is there a document which summarises exactly what I need to know? o What is the Directory Groups view on ...? o Can you make me a tape with ...?