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This chapter contains notes that only apply to processors supported by Digital UNIX Version 4.0B:
The following sections apply to more than one processor type.
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On PCI machines that include ATI Mach64 graphics controllers in the configuration, the console environment variable pci_parity must be set to off. Due to a hardware limitation, hardware machine checks will occur if this variable is not turned off. Use the following commands:
>>>
set pci_parity off
>>>
init
In Digital UNIX Version 3.2D and subsequent releases, PCI-based system and I/O support code is shared interrupt capable. The only exception is the 53C810 (onboard or option) SCSI controller.
You can use the following console firmware command to determine if your system has a 53C810 SCSI controller:
>>>
show config
In order to set up your PCI-based system to share interrupts, you must ensure the following:
Refer to your Digital UNIX layered product documentation (for example, for MME or Open3D) for information about the shared interrupt capabilities of the software.
The following notes apply to the Digital AlphaStation 255 series systems.
This release supports power management for the Digital AlphaStation 255 system. The power management capability allows you to control:
The user may control power management settings using a graphical user interface /usr/bin/X11/dxpower A command line interface sysconfigdb is also available. Specific monitor settings can also be modified using the xset command.
See the System Administration manual and the xset(1X) and sysconfigdb(8) reference pages for more information.
Note that a system (root) disk cannot spin down due to normal system activity. User disks will spin down unless applications are running and the applications require constant access to the user disks.
Monitors that do not support Display Power Management Signaling (DPMS) can be damaged by the activation of the DPMS feature. Check your monitor specifications.
Monitors that support DPMS and are put in a power savings state will vary in the time it takes to come out of power savings. Users will observe that the longer the monitor is in power-off state, the longer it takes for the display to return as a result of mouse or keyboard activity. This is the result of the monitor phosphor cooling down and the time required to heat it back up, and not a result of Digital UNIX.
In addition, there are some monitors (for example, the VRC21-HX) that turn off the Power On/Off LED when they enter DPMS_OFF state. Moving the mouse or typing at the keyboard will not bring the display back. Only by pressing the power switch off, then on again, will mouse and keyboard activity cause the display to return. Because of the varying behavior of monitors when in certain DPMS states, it is important to read your monitor specification for the expected behavior and other visual features while in each power savings state.
The following notes are specific to Digital AlphaServer 1000 and 1000A systems.
This note applies to users who utilize the on-board Cirrus VGA graphics controller.
The default setting for the VGA graphic controller when running the EISA Configuration Utility diskette V1.10 is Disabled. For previous versions the default is Enabled.
When you run the V1.10 ECU for the first time on a system which was previously configured with an earlier version of the EISA Configuration Utility diskette, the setting for the on-board VGA graphic controller will be automatically set to Disabled. While running the EISA Configuration Utility, select Step 3: View and edit details and set the VGA graphic controller to Enabled before exiting the EISA Configuration Utility. If you do not set the VGA graphic controller to Enabled prior to booting Digital UNIX, your Xserver will not start and you will use generic console support when you boot Digital UNIX.
The default resolution for Digital AlphaServer 1000A systems containing built-in Cirrus video with 1MB of video ram is 1024x768. If the optional 512KB of video ram is not present, Digital UNIX will only support resolutions of 640x480 (by default) or 800x600.
The default resolution for Digital AlphaServer 1000 systems containing built-in Cirrus video with 512KB of video ram is 640x480. This configuration will also support 800x600 resolution.
To use 800x600 resolution, edit the /usr/lib/X11/xdm/Xservers file and change the following line:
:0 local /usr/bin/X11/X -nice2
to:
:0 local /usr/bin/X11/X -nice2 -screen0 800
To use 800x600 resolution for the CDE session manager, edit the /usr/dt/config/Xservers and Xservers.con files to change the following line:
:0 Local local@console /usr/bin/X11/X :0 -nice2
to:
:0 Local local@console /usr/bin/X11/X :0 -nice2 -screen0 800
Before editing these files for XDM or CDE, be sure that your system's monitor supports 800x600 resolution.
Updating the firmware on the KZPSA SCSI adapter is not supported when the adapter is behind the PCI-to-PCI bridge. See your hardware installation guide for further information. A later version of the console firmware will support this feature.
On AlphaServer 1000A 5/266, 5/333, and 5/400 systems with a Qlogic ISP1020A, during bootup the following CAM errors may occur:
pci2000 at pci0 slot 8 isp0 at pci2000 slot 0 isp0: QLOGIC ISP1020A cam_logger: CAM_ERROR packet cam_logger: bus 0 isp_probe NVRAM parameters invalid, using driver Fast10 defaults
To aleviate the error, halt the system, reset the isp1020 defaults at the console, and boot the system:
>>> isp1020_edit -sd pka0.7.0.2000.0 NVRAM is invalid, using defaults old NVRAM 00000000 49 53 50 20 02 7a 01 00 01 f6 08 03 fa 00 00 01 00000010 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00000020 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 00000030 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 00000040 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00000050 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 00000060 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 00000070 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 00 00 00 00 new NVRAM 00000000 49 53 50 20 02 7a 01 00 01 f6 08 03 fa 00 00 01 00000010 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00000020 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 00000030 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 00000040 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00000050 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 00000060 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 00000070 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 fd 10 19 1c 00 00 00 00 00 5a
>>> boot
This note applies to IRQs for PCI options on Digital AXPpci 33 systems.
PCI options are assigned IRQs after ISA options are configured. Available IRQs are {5, 9, 10, 15}. The firmware automatically assigns PCI IRQs from this list. IRQ 11 is assigned to the internal SCSI controller.
The Digital Alpha VME 4/nnn and 5/nnn series are Digital's latest VME-based single board computers (SBCs).
Support for the VME VIP/VIC64 VME adapter on the Digital Alpha VME 4/nnn and 5/nnn series SBCs is the same as the support for this adapter on Digital AXPvme SBCs and Digital Alpha VME 2100 systems. The following notes are specific to Digital Alpha VME 4/nnn and 5/nnn SBCs.
The sizer utility identifies Digital Alpha VME 4/nnn and 5/nnn SBCs as Digital Alpha 4/nnn or 5/nnn family members.
The sizer -c command displays the following output for Digital Alpha VME 4/224 and 4/288 SBCs:
sysname> sizer -c cpu "DECALPHAVME_224"
The sizer -c command displays the following output for Digital Alpha VME 5/nnn SBCs:
sysname> sizer -c cpu "DECALPHAVME_320"
Before installing the Digital UNIX software kit, make sure that your system has the correct firmware version. The minimum firmware versions required are Version 1.2 or higher for a Digital Alpha VME 4/224 or 4/288 SBC, and Version 1.0 or higher for Digital Alpha VME 5/nnn SBC. If you have an earlier firmware version, update your firmware before installing the Version Version 4.0B software. For information on how to update your firmware, refer to the firmware documentation.
To determine the version of firmware on your system, enter the following console firmware command at the prompt:
>>> show version
The following restrictions apply to Digital Alpha VME 4/nnn and 5/nnn SBCs.
In addition to sparse and dense addressing modes, the Digital Alpha VME 5/nnn SBC hardware supports byte addressability. This includes the ability to perform simple math on a byte address to derive and access other byte addresses.
Currently byte addressability is not supported by the Digital UNIX interface mmap.
VMEbus device drivers running on Digital Alpha VME 5/nnn SBCs can continue to use the same sparse and dense space macros as in previous Digital UNIX releases and in existing VMEbus device drivers. Note that using the macros to access memory can help maintain the driver's binary compatibility (portability) across VMEbus platforms.
Byte addressability for Digital Alpha VME 5/nnn SBCs will be supported in a future release of Digital UNIX.
The Digital Alpha VME 4/nnn and5/nnn SBCs do not support VME autovectors.
A Digital Alpha VME 4/nn or 5/nnn SBC that has the network configured in an UP state must have its external network connection properly terminated. If the network connection is unplugged or not properly terminated, then the network software will periodically time out and perform a network reset. This is normal for an unterminated Digital Alpha VME system. However, it will cause high system latencies during the reset period, resulting in delays of about 10 milliseconds that can affect the real-time performance of the system.
Note that a loopback connector is not sufficient to terminate the network connection.
For information about writing VMEbus device drivers and configuring the VMEbus on Digital Alpha VME systems, refer to the Digital UNIX manual Writing VMEbus Device Drivers
The Digital Modular Computing Components (DMCC) EBM2n-xx and BM4x-xx are Digital's latest PCI/ISA-based single board computers (SBCs).
The EBM2n-xx is a PICMG-compliant processor card based on the Digital Alpha 21164 CPU. The EBM4n-xx is a PICMG-compliant processor card based on the Digital Alpha 21064A CPU.
The following notes are specific to Digital DMCC EBM2n class and EBM4n class single board computers.
The sizer utility identifies Digital DMCC EBM2n class and EBM4n class SBCs as DMCC EBM2n or EBM4n family members. The sizer -c command displays the following output for Digital DMCC EBM2n class SBCs:
sysname> sizer -c cpu "DECEV56_PBP"
The sizer -c command displays the following output for Digital DMCC EBM4n class SBCs:
sysname> sizer -c cpu "DECEV45_PBP"
Before installing the Digital UNIX software kit, make sure that your system has the correct firmware version. The minimum firmware versions required are X4.7-1165 or higher for the Digital DMCC EBM2n class SBCs and X4.7-1275 or higher for the Digital DMCC EBM4n class SBCs. If you have an earlier firmware version, update your firmware before installing the Version 4.0B software. For information on how to update your firmware, refer to the firmware documentation.
To determine the version of firmware on your system, enter the following console firmware command at the prompt:
>>> show version
The following restrictions and known problems apply to Digital DMCC EBM2n class and EBM4n class SBCs.
DMCC EBM2n class and EBM4n SBCs can be used on DMCC backplanes in the ETMXB-xx family. The list of supported DMCC backplanes currently includes the following:
| Part Number | Description of Backplane |
| ETMXB-AA | 7-slot PICMG (2 PCI, 1 PCI/ISA, 3 ISA, 1 CPU) |
| with onboard SCSI controller | |
| ETMXB-AB | 14-slot PICMG (7 PCI, 6 ISA, 1 CPU) |
| ETMXB-BB | 14-slot PICMG (10 PCI, 3 ISA, 1 CPU) |
| ETMXB-AC | 19-slot PICMG (10 PCI, 8 ISA, 1 CPU) |
| ETMXB-BC | 19-slot PICMG (13 PCI, 5 ISA, 1 CPU) |
All ETMXB-xx backplanes, except ETMXB-AA, use PCI-to-PCI bridge (PPB) technology to provide both primary (in front of the bridge) and secondary (behind the PPB) slots.
Only the ETMXB-AA contains an onboard SCSI controller. The other ETMXB-xx backplanes require a SCSI option card such as KZPAA-AA.
The option cards shown in Table 2-1 have been found to work behind (as well as in front of) the bridge. These cards can be plugged into any available slot.
| Option Type | Part Number | Description |
| Graphics | PBXGA-AA | ZLXp-E1 8 Plane Adapter |
| Graphics |
PBXGB-AA |
TGA2 2MB PowerStorm 3D30 |
| Graphics | PB2GA-JA | Trio64 2MB PowerStorm 3D10 |
| Disk | KZPAA-AA | PCI-SCSI Host Bus Adapter, FNS |
| Network | DE435-AA | PCI Bus, 32 Bit, PC NIC |
| Network | DE450-CA | PCI NIC (TP, TW, AUI) |
Table note:
The PB2GA-FA graphics option card (ATI Mach64 CX 2D GFX) does not function behind the bridge. This card must be plugged into primary slots only.
The Digital UNIX operating system does not support the operator control panel or watchdog timer. These server management features are supported only in the hardware and firmware.
The AlphaPC 164 is Digital Semiconductor's latest Single Board Computer (SBC).
The following notes are specific to the AlphaPC 164 single board computers
The AlphaPC 164 single board computers are identified by the Digital UNIX operating system as EB164.
Before installing the Digital UNIX software kit, make sure that your system has the correct firmware version. The minimum firmware version required for the AlphaPC64, EB64+, EB66+, and EB164 SBCs is V4.5 or higher. If you have an earlier firmware version, update your firmware before installing the Version 4.0B software. For information on how to update your firmware, refer to the Alpha SRM Console for Alpha Microprocessor Evaluation Boards User's Guide.
To determine the version of firmware on your system, enter the following console firmware command at the prompt:
>>>
show version
When an AlphaPC 164 system is booting up, it will display the following message:
Module 1095:646 not in pci option table, can't configure it
This message, which you will see for any version of Digital UNIX or firmware, can be safely ignored.
The message is generated by Digital UNIX as it probes the PCI bus for PCI option cards. It compares the information returned by these cards to a table of known, supported PCI options. Module 1095:646, a SMC PCI IDE controller, is not listed in this table because Digital UNIX does not support IDE controllers. When the operating system encounters this device, it reports that the option cannot be configured.
There is no workaround to prevent this message, and there are no plans to support this option in a future release of Digital UNIX.
The following note applies to the Digital UNIX software running on the following single board computers (SBCs):
For information on how to configure AXPvme single board computers, see the Writing VMEbus Device Drivers manual.
The following restriction applies to the VIP/VIC adapter used on Digital AXPvme SBCs and Digital Alpha VME 2100 systems.
Performing master block transfers with a data width of D64 can produce unpredictable results in the following cases:
Memory must be mapped to the VMEbus prior to D64 slave access.
Access to memory must coincide with the appropriate access mode. If supervisory mode access is specified when memory is mapped, memory accesses must use supervisory mode. If user mode access is specified, both supervisory and user access are allowed.
See the Writing VMEbus Device Drivers manual for more information on slave and master block transfers.
You can follow the instructions in the Installation Guide and those provided by your hardware and firmware documentation when you add new options or change your system hardware. However, if the new option is only supported in the newest version of Digital UNIX, you must perform the upgrade in the following sequence: