XMI goodies?

On 3/9/07, Richard <legalize at xmission.com> wrote: I should probably let Doc chime in here, but I can't resist... it's the CPU/memory bus used in late-model DEC VAXen like the VAX 6000 line. One stuffs a few CPUs, some memory, perhaps some network or cluster controllers and maybe a VAXBI cage or two on the XMI bus and you have a fully-loaded VAX 6xxx (where the exact model number is a product of the number and speed/variety of the CPUs). If I remember correctly, one may stuff up to 6 CPUs on the XMI bus, which is limited to a smallish number of total slots), but if one wants to max out the memory and have other peripherals in there, it might not be possible to have all 6 CPUs loaded. Interesting stuff, if you want to run a VAX the size of a refrigerator. The last one I saw in the wild was a few years ago, but there are quite a few in hobbyist hands. Someone (here?) has described how to run one off of either single-phase or US 220VAC, but they shipped from DEC with 3-phase power, IIRC. -ethan