Subject: AlphaStation 1000A
To: None <port-alpha@netbsd.org>
From: Paul Mather <paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu>
List: port-alpha
Date: 12/13/2002 13:05:07
The DEC 3000/500S hardware I'm using is flaking out.  I'm getting
thousands of "Warning: received processor correctable error" even to
the point that under even modest load now (e.g., the /etc/daily run)
the machine will sometimes spontaneously reboot (logs inform me
"savecore: reboot after panic: panic: trap").  This is not good. :-(

Fortunately, there's an AlphaStation 1000A here in the lab that they
want to surplus that I've asked to use to replace the DEC 3000/500S
that's ailing.  I've no experience with non-TurboChannel alphas, so I
was wondering if there were any "gotchas" I should be aware of when
migrating NetBSD onto the 1000A?

In particular, the boot log states "Firmware revision: 5.5-75."  I did
an online search and the latest firmware for the 1000A is listed as
V5.7.  However, I vaguely remember some firware "upgrades" to be
retrograde steps for some of the PCI alphas (e.g., it leads to boot
problems, etc.).  Is it okay to upgrade the 1000A to V5.7?  (I'm
presuming it's running SRM as it's currently running Tru64 5.)

Also, it apparently has two DEC TULIP ethernet cards in it:

  tu0: DECchip 21140: Revision: 1.2 
  tu0 at pci0 slot 11 
  tu0: DEC TULIP (10/100) Ethernet 
   _Interface, hardware address: 
   _00-00-F8-02-10-1C 
  tu0: console mode: selecting 100BaseTX 
   _(UTP) port: full duplex 
  tu1: DECchip 21040: Revision: 2.4 
  tu1 at pci0 slot 12 
  tu1: DEC TULIP (10Mbps) Ethernet 
   _Interface, hardware address: 
   _00-00-F8-22-C9-B6 
  tu1: console mode: selecting 10BaseT 
   _(UTP) port: half duplex 

What is the recommended driver for these?  (I seem to recall there
being two, one of which is considered "buggy," or am I confusing this
with something else?)

Finally, is this graphics adapter supported under X?

  cirrus0: Cirrus Logic CL-GD5428 (SVGA)
   _512 Kbytes
  cirrus0 at eisa0

Sorry for the questions, but although this model is listed as being
supported from 1.4 onwards, I couldn't find any mention of it in the
"Notes on Supported System Models" page at the NetBSD WWW site.

FWIW, appended at the end is the Tru64 boot log entry, in case
anyone can spot any obvious problems with hardware compatibility.

Cheers,

Paul.

e-mail: paul@gromit.dlib.vt.edu

"Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production
 deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid."
        --- Frank Vincent Zappa

>>>>>
     Alpha boot: available memory from 
      _0xd46000 to 0x7fce000 
     Digital UNIX V5.0 (Rev. 910); Mon Nov  
      _1 15:23:35 EST 1999 
     physical memory = 128.00 megabytes. 
     available memory = 114.56 megabytes. 
     using 483 buffers containing 3.77 
      _megabytes of memory 
     Firmware revision: 5.5-75 
     PALcode: UNIX version 1.23-6 
     AlphaServer 1000A 5/300 
     Mem_size = 132128768, consmem = 255 
     pci0 (primary bus:0) at nexus 
     eisa0 at pci0 
     ace0 at eisa0 
     ace1 at eisa0 
     lp0 at eisa0 
     gpc0 at eisa0 
     fdi0 at eisa0 
     fd0 at fdi0 unit 0 
     cirrus0: Cirrus Logic CL-GD5428 (SVGA) 
      _512 Kbytes 
     cirrus0 at eisa0 
     pci1 (primary bus:0 subordinate bus:2) 
      _at pci0 slot 8 
     isp0 at pci1 slot 0 
     isp0: QLOGIC ISP1020A 
     isp0: Firmware revision 5.57 (loaded 
      _by console) 
     scsi0 at isp0 slot 0 
     Loading SIOP: script c000c000, reg 
      _81011000, data 40d4c000 
     scsi1 at psiop0 slot 0 
     tu0: DECchip 21140: Revision: 1.2 
     tu0 at pci0 slot 11 
     tu0: DEC TULIP (10/100) Ethernet 
      _Interface, hardware address: 
      _00-00-F8-02-10-1C 
     tu0: console mode: selecting 100BaseTX 
      _(UTP) port: full duplex 
     tu1: DECchip 21040: Revision: 2.4 
     tu1 at pci0 slot 12 
     tu1: DEC TULIP (10Mbps) Ethernet 
      _Interface, hardware address: 
      _00-00-F8-22-C9-B6 
     tu1: console mode: selecting 10BaseT 
      _(UTP) port: half duplex 
     Loading SIOP: script c0018000, reg 
      _81100000, data 40d4e000 
     scsi2 at psiop1 slot 0 
     Created FRU table binary error log 
      _packet 
     kernel console: cirrus0 
     dli: configured 
     NetRAIN configured. 
     changer_post_config: changer majnum = 
      _83 
     ATM Subsystem configured with 1 
      _restart threads 
     ATMUNI: configured 
     ATMSIG: 3.x (module=uni3x) configured 
     ILMI: 3.x (module=ilmi) configured 
     ATM IP: configured 
     ATM LANE: configured. 
     ATM IFMP: configured 
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