Setting up an ISA tape Controller

[Alexios Chouchoulas]

On Thu, 2 Apr 1998, Tassos Mavroudeas wrote:

> 	 8elw va xrhshmopoihsw sto Linux eva Tape Streamer pou exw agorasei
> priv kapoia xrovia. To tape streamer eivai eva Seagate TapeStor 3200 kai
> o controller tou eivai o Seagate CTC-2Mb floppy disk controller.

  Tyxerakia. :-)  Egw exw ena arxaio Archive pou grafei se 2120 tainies kai
kathetai panw ston floppy controller, me apotelesma XAMHLES taxythtes. Esy
tha'xeis kai megales xwrhtikothtes kai megales taxythtes. :-)


> 	Brika sto internet to ftape (eav to 3erei kaveis) kai 8a h8ela va to
> eggatasthsw.

  (a) Frontise na einai prosfath ekdosh, px 3.03 kai panw.

  (b) Exe yp'opsh oti to ftape einai pleon meros tou kernel, opote ektos ki
an theleis poly eidikevmenes dynatothtes (nomizw oti pleon den yparxei
kammia diafora metaksy twn dyo ekdosewn -- kernel kai external) mporeis na
bolefteis kai me thn kernel ekdosh tou. Ftiaxto ws module, omws, mia kai
spania (sygkritika) tha xrhsimopoieis to /dev/{*,}ft* kai to synolo twn
diaforwn yposysthmatwn mporei na einai megalo se ogko.


> 	To problhma dev eivai to pws 8a to eggatastisw alla kati allo. O
> controller eivai ISA kai ta IRQ DMA kai IO-port settarovtai me jumpers.

> 	To akoma pio para3evo omws eivai pws to IRQ kai IO tou controller katw
> apo linwx fevaite oti xrhshmopoiouvtai apo alla devices. Auto me thv
> prwth matia mou faivete para3evw mias kai pisteuw oti kapoio conflict 8a
> eprepe va emfavizotav.

  Oxi ypoxrewtika. Ta conflicts eksartwntai apo para pollous paragontes.
Ousiastika den mporeis POTE na ksereis. Akoma kai dyo idioi syndyasmoi
kartwn me to idio conflict se diaforetika mhxanhmata mporoun na exoun
diaforetika symptwmata. Eksartatai kai apo to paramikro spike thorybou stis
grammes elegxou, elaxistes diafores xronismou, fortwmenes grammes pou
anebainoun/katebainoun argotera ap'oti tha'prepe, klp. Apla einai adynato na
ksereis ti ginetai.

  Fysika afou gnwrizeis oti yparxei conflict, kalo einai na to diorthwseis,
EIDIKA an h allh syskevh einai shmantikh (floppy, diskos, klp). Den thes na
ginontai corrupt ta dedomena pou pane stous diskous sou kata th diarkeia
tou DMA! :-/


> * Mhpos kapoios exei avtisthxh emphria eggatastovats eva Tape Drive h'
> mia ISA card ;

  Allazeis ta settings sthn ISA karta!


> * Ti givete av uparxei conflict meta thv eggatastash tou driver ; Eivai
> toso epikivdivo oso favtazomai h o kernel apla 8a parakamsei tous
> conflicted drivers ;

  Tipota apo ta dyo. Se antithesh me o,ti isxyrizontai ta Winblows, to
conflict detection DEN einai POTE 100% dynato. Enas H/Y pou nosei den mporei
na dei ton eafto tou ws nosounta -- ta apotelesmata den einai
nteterministika. Tespa, to gegonos paramenei: to conflict detection
basizetai se dedomena apo to Xwse & Paikse BIOS [1] (to opoio ypothetei oti
oles sou oi ISA kartes einai XwsePaikse) kai to PCI, to opoio snomparei
agria to ISA.
  
  Ara, to systhma sou tha moirasei omorfa kai kala ola ta IRQs, DMAs kai I/O
ports opws prepei, mono pou den mporei na kserei oti exeis mia
hardware-configurable, non-PnP ISA karta sth mesh.

  O kernel tou Linux den prospathei na kanei tetoies eksypnades. Tha se
kraksei an anakalypsei oti yparxei kapoio sigouro conflict, mia kai otan
dinei system resources ta dinei apokleistika se enan driver kai opoios allos
paei na ta parei menei me to Pi sto Xi. Alla afto mporei na to kanei mono
opou mporei na MATHEI poia einai ta IRQ/DMA/PIO settings. Sthn periptwsh tou
controller sou, afto apla den mporei na ginei. Fysika, an pas na
egkatasthseis drivers kai gia ta dyo pragmata pou moirazontai to idio
resource tha prepei na se kraksei, alla den mporei na to anakalypsei xwris
kammia  boitheia (s'afth thn periptwsh mporei epeidh ston FTape driver
dineis me to XERI ta resources ths syskevhs sou).

  Tespa, epikindyno den einai, ektos ki an exeis conflict sta resources
kammias shmantikhs block syskevhs (SCSI, IDE), opote kai mporei na symbei
otidhpote, apo tipota mexri na grafei tyxaia to tape drive [2] , mexri na
exeis data corruption sta dedomena sou. To'xw pathei [3], DEN thes na to
patheis ki esy, pistepse me [4].


> * To Linux port gia i386 xrhsimopoiei tis times twv PnP BIOS h' pirazei
> to PCI configuratuion opos gia paradhgma sto Alpha port ;

  Edw tha se gelasw. Den exw idea. Mia fora sto diko mou mhxanhma to PCI
configuration einai sto autodetect kai den exw PaikseXwse kartes. JUMPERS!
JUMPERS! PERISSOTERA JUMPERS! KATW TO SOFTWARE CONFIGURATION! THELW TOSA
JUMPERS STO PC MOU OSA KAI H MESH KARTA VME GIA SUN3!

  Ok, erxetai h nosokoma me tis eneseis mou.


--------------------
[1] Plug'n'Pray^H^H^Hlay

[2] (mallon apithano krinontas apo ta dika mou tape drives, theloun mish wra
     -- diapragmatefseis stroggylhs trapezhs me ton kernoula prin ksypnhsoun)

[3] Oxi apo hardware conflict, apo... kalwdio trofodosias 220V. Gia kapoio
    logo o diskos mou einai evaisthitos s'afto, opws anakalypsa. Den douleve
    mesa sto kouti (konta sto kalwdio 220V pou paei ston mprostino diakopth)
    kai den douleve oute monwmenos kai den yphrxe diarroh apo to sassi ston
    disko. Otan ebgala to disko eksw apo to sassi (den eixa allh thesh)
    doulepse to rhmadi. Magic or More Magic?

[4] DOS: silent data corruption (akoma ypoferei). Linux: data corruption
    alla me eidopoihseis. Kai meta rwtane giati den xrhsimopoiw DOS kai
    Windows.

-------------------------- ,o88,o888o,,o888o. --------------------------------
Alexios Chouchoulas         '88    ,88'   ,88'   http://www.vennea.demon.co.uk 
The Unpronounceable One    ,o88oooo88ooooo88oo,     alexios at vennea.demon.co.uk

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