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From: rees@dabo.citi.umich.edu (Jim Rees)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apollo
Subject: Re: Apollos in a classified (SECRET) processing environment
Message-ID: <519de2a3.cb12@dabo.citi.umich.edu>
Date: 17 May 91 13:42:22 GMT
References: <9105161235.AA15192@ray.com>
Sender: usenet@terminator.cc.umich.edu (usenet news)
Reply-To: rees@citi.umich.edu (Jim Rees)
Organization: University of Michigan ITD
Lines: 23

In article <9105161235.AA15192@ray.com>, esther@rayssd.ssd.ray.com ("Esther A. Paris") writes:

  ... However, this means that its 760-MB disk is locked up in a safe as
  a classified SECRET document.  I'm looking for advice on how to 
  declassify this disk.

  [ elaborate method of writing 1 and 0 to all locations on the disk ]

I used to have a Secret level clearance myself, so I'm familiar with some of
the stupid rules, but this one takes the cake.  Why isn't it sufficient to
format the disk?  I would trust a disk format much sooner than I would trust
the given procedure.

But given your constraints, the method you used should have worked.  We used
to read and write to the raw device all the time when we were doing the Mach
port here.  There is only one raw device, and it covers the whole disk.
There is no 'block' special, only a 'character' special device (to use the
Unix terms), since I/O to the raw device is always unbuffered.  You can't
open the raw device if the disk is mounted.  And there are no separate raw
devices for the separate partitions (logical disks), just one for the whole
thing.

I can't explain why you're having trouble, it should work.