[TUHS] V6 Distribution Tape

[Will Senn via TUHS]

Hi all,

I'm digging into the Sixth Edition standalone boot loaders and have run 
into a question that I haven't been able to answer from the manuals or 
source.

The "Setting Up UNIX – Sixth Edition" document explains how to /use/the 
distribution tape. For example, |tmrk|copies tape block 100 to disk 
block 0 (the RK bootstrap), then copies blocks 101–4099 as the binary 
filesystem. Likewise, the source and document filesystems begin at 4101 
and 8101 respectively.

Looking at |/usr/source/mdec/mboot.s|, however, it appears that the 
beginning of the tape is itself a small |tp|-style archive. 
|mboot|prompts for a filename, scans what looks like a |tp|directory, 
finds entries such as |tmrk|, reads the corresponding records, and 
transfers control to the selected standalone program. I've read 
|mboot.s|, |tboot.s|, etc, and of course, /Setting Up UNIX – Sixth 
Edition/, and I understand how the boot tape is consumed. What I'm 
looking for is the original build/mastering process, if anyone remembers 
it or has documentation.

Was there a script, makefile, or documented procedure that:

  *

    assembled and stripped the standalone programs,

  *

    created the |tp|archive containing |tmrk|, |htrk|, |tmrp|, etc.,

  *

    installed |mboot|/|hboot|at the beginning of the tape,

  *

    positioned |rkuboot|, |rpuboot|, and |hpuboot|at their fixed record
    numbers,

  *

    and finally appended the three 4000-block filesystem images?

Or was the tape assembled in some other way entirely?

I'm not looking for modern reconstruction techniques—I can build one 
today. I'm interested in how Bell Labs originally mastered the V6 
distribution tapes. If anyone remembers the release procedure, or knows 
of surviving documentation or scripts, I'd appreciate any pointers.

Thanks,

Will