Re: Boot failure on 3100/95

On Friday 20 April 2007 16:33, Miod Vallat wrote:
> > I'm trying to install 4.0 on a MicroVAX 3100/95. The installation
> > process appeared to run smoothly but I'm having a problem booting
> > the
> >
> > installed system from local disk. The console output is:
> > >>>boot dka200
> >
> > (BOOT/R5:10000000 DKA200)
> >
> >   2..
> > ?06 HLT INST
> >         PC = 000031A6
> > Bootstrap failure.
> >
> >
> > However, if I netboot a kernel with the '-a' option, I can select
> > the local disk as root and the system boots up normally, so the
> > installation appears to have been successful apart from the boot
> > loader (full console output included below). Is there anything I
> > can do to fix local booting?
>
> [...]
>
> > scsibus0 at asc0: 8 targets
> > asc0: wide mode 1
> > probe(asc0:2:0): max sync rate 12.50MB/s
> > sd0 at scsibus0 targ 2 lun 0: <COMPAQ, ST34572W, 0892> SCSI2
> > 0/direct fixed sd0: 4094MB, 6300 cyl, 8 head, 166 sec, 512
> > bytes/sec, 8386000 sec total
>
> It looks like you are using a wide scsi disk behind a wide-to-narrow
> converter. Thus, I am supposing this disk is not the disk which was
> in the machine when you received it.
>
> Have you tried with a regular narrow disk? Does it work better? The
> PROM might not be able to talk to your drive correctly.
>
> You might also want to check if your disk is jumpered to ID #2 or to
> ID #10 (which is more common for a wide drive and, through a
> wide-to-narrow converter, will appear as ID #2).
>
> Miod

Miod,

There is a company called "MC Price Breakers" who build high quality 
converters. I found them a year or two ago when the project was in need 
of 50pin disks of reasonable size. I bought and sent off one of their 
converters to Marco (if I remember correct) for testing but I'm not 
sure if he ever got to testing it.

http://www.mcpb.com/html/sca.f80rb.50m.html
http://www.mcpb.com/html/sca2.f80rb.50m.html

According to what I was told by the company, their converters correct 
the problems in vaxen and other narrow systems that choke on newer 
drives (when used with most cheap converters). At the moment, I've got 
no proof if they really work.

kind regards,
jcr