22 Jan
2006
22 Jan
'06
10:59 a.m.
I did a few more tests with the RK07.
As I did not have the correct bulkhead, I made one from a
"decommissioned" RL02 drive. The socket to the cable is identical to
the one for the RK07.
AFAIK the bulknhead connectors and the 40 wy ribbon cables are the same
for the RL's and the RK07. The cables between the bulkheads and the
drives, or between the drives, are not. I assume you are not trying to
use an RL cable here.
As nothing seemed to work, I guessed that I might have
the flatcable
between the socket on the "bulkhead" and the RK611 controller (M7904
module) the wrong way around installed.
So, I installed the flatcable the other way around on the bulkhead.
I get quite different responses now! The command ".INIT DM0:" gives
the response "?DUP-F-Error reading bad block replacement table DM0:"
but the FAULT light is turned on!
When I enter the command ".FORMAT DM0:", the FAULT light goes off,
and I get the response as written in my previous post.
When I enter "DIR DM0:" the FAULT light is turned on also.
On many occasions the system hangs, although that is not apparent
from the front panel on the 11/34. But the system does not respond
nor echo anything I type on the VT100 console terminal anymore.
What is even more strange, is that when I repeat (after rebooting)
the .INIT command or the .FORMAT command, is that I can see clearly
the READY lamp flash off/on, and after a few more attempts, I can
hear the movement, and *see* the whole drive "shake" (it still on
its wheels and not on the rubber "feet"). I can even see the "A"
lamp go on and off a few times, so that shows that the controller
accesses the drive. Then the system hangs again.
Can I conclude that the cable is now correctly connected from the
RK611 controller -> bulkhead -> RK07 drive ?
What could explain the symptoms that I see?
I wouid love to know haw 'hung' the machine is. In particular, is it
stuck in a state with one of the BG or NPG lines asserted?
I think at this point I'd check the cabling very carefully (I've been
known to 'buzz out' the connectios between the driver chips in the
controller and the receiver chips in the drive, and vice versa, just to
be sure). Then I'd try sending commands to the RK611 from the front
panel, at least to do seeks. Run the drive with the rear cover off and
the logic box folded out, so you can see the head movement and the LEDs
on the boards in the drive. See if those commands work without FAULT, and
without ant errors in the controller registers.
One final thing. IIRC, the RK611 is quite power-hungry. Have you checked
your power lineas re all correct still?
-tony