Message Router addresses are loosely based on the X.400 series of recommendations for electronic mail. The format of these addresses is drastically different from the format described by RFC 822, which is what PMDF uses. Thus, a rather complex address mapping is needed to interoperate with Message Router.

PMDF-MR uses two files to implement this mapping. Both of these files are standard PMDF databases that can be created with the PMDF CRDB utility. The options TO_MR_DATABASE and FROM_MR_DATABASE in the channel option file can be used to specify the names of the databases a channel should use.

For MR channels, these channel options are usually not set so PMDF defaults to using the files specified via the PMDF_TO_MR_DATABASE and PMDF_FROM_MR_DATABASE logicals, usually PMDF_TABLE:to_mr.dat and PMDF_TABLE:from_mr.dat, respectively. For MRIF channels, the channel options usually direct the channel to use the files PMDF_TABLE:to_mrif.dat and PMDF_TABLE:from_mrif.dat.

A PMDF_TABLE:to_mr.dat or PMDF_TABLE:to_mrif.dat file maps PMDF 822-style addresses into Message Router addresses.

Such a database is customarily built from a file PMDF_TABLE:to_mr.txt or PMDF_TABLE:to_mrif.txt, respectively, with commands such as:

$ PMDF CRDB/DUPLICATE/LONG PMDF_TABLE:to_mr.txt PMDF_TABLE:to_mr.tmp $ RENAME PMDF_TABLE:to_mr.tmp PMDF_TO_MR_DATABASE

Other text files can be used as a source of information for this database in some configurations, of course.

A PMDF_TABLE:from_mr.dat or PMDF_TABLE:from_mrif.dat file performs the inverse mapping from Message Router addresses to 822-style addresses.

Such a database is customarily built from the file PMDF_TABLE:from_mr.txt or PMDF_TABLE:from_mrif.txt with commands such as:

$ PMDF CRDB/DUPLICATE/LONG PMDF_TABLE:from_mr.txt PMDF_TABLE:from_mr.tmp $ RENAME PMDF_TABLE:from_mr.tmp PMDF_FROM_MR_DATABASE

Other text files can be used as a source of information for this database in some configurations, of course.

The general format of these mapping databases is dauntingly complex. Furthermore, most sites have no need for much more than a rudimentary database. In order to eliminate the need to understand the format fully in most cases, the PMDF-MR configuration utility generates an initial set of mapping databases. This utility can be all that you ever need; if so, you will not need to do anything other than skim the subsequent sections of this documentation. If you have run the PMDF-MR configuration utility, then these databases have already been generated for you.