6 Aug
2011
6 Aug
'11
12:25 p.m.
With the help of various knowledgeable people on this list, it was
pointed out that
I did not have the connection to the tape drive controller in the
correct position.
To test the tape drive, I used the programmer's console on my PDP-11/05 to
issue a read command to a mounted tape. When I issued a read command by
depositing a command into the TMA-11 command register, the tape advanced
slightly and then stopped. The 'Bus Grant Late' error was set in the TMA-11
status register. The status register did indicate the controller and tape drive
were both ready. No data was read in.
The read command was issued while the processor is halted.
This particular system did not originally have any external devices hooked up
to it.
Beginning at the processor, the system has the following components installed:
KD11-B PDP-11/05
LS11 line printer card (connects to a Centronics 101A printer)
MM11-U 16K x 16 core memory
MM11-U 16K x 16 core memory
RK11-D RK05 disk controller
(See http://www.iamvirtual.ca/collection/systems/minis/PDP11-10/Boards.html
for details)
The BC11 cable leading to the TMA-11 controller is put on the Unibus
out connection
at the last slot of the RK11-D controller.
Based on previous posts from others, I suspect I don't have the processor grant
set up correctly.
I am currently reading several different manuals to get a description of how the
grant lines should be hooked up. I have read many descriptions of the
signalling,
but I have not located information on where to use the Grant Continuity cards
or making changes to the wire-wrapped bus. In my case, I will need to make
changes to the bus, since I do not have any of the Grant Continuity cards ;-)
Am I on the right track to assume that the problem is likely to be
the processor
grant wiring, or should I be looking elsewhere?
Many thanks for any pointers!
--barrym
7 Aug
7 Aug
4:57 a.m.
From: "B M" <iamvirtual at gmail.com>
Sent: Saturday, August 06, 2011 6:25 PM
To: <cctech at classiccmp.org>
Subject: TMA-11/TS03
With the help of various knowledgeable people on this
list, it was
pointed out that
I did not have the connection to the tape drive controller in the
correct position.
To test the tape drive, I used the programmer's console on my PDP-11/05 to
issue a read command to a mounted tape. When I issued a read command by
depositing a command into the TMA-11 command register, the tape advanced
slightly and then stopped. The 'Bus Grant Late' error was set in the
TMA-11
status register. The status register did indicate the controller and tape
drive
were both ready. No data was read in.
The read command was issued while the processor is halted.
I am always careful to give a response, because I am sure there are more
knowledgeable people here. True, you can give a command to the TMA-11,
like move tape forward, but if you command to read data, to must also
actually read data! Otherwise a buffer overflow will occur and then the
"late"
message will appear. I think ...
But as the tape moves a little, it seems that probably nothing died by the
wrong connection. Try XXDP at it. ( I have to do that too ... one day).
Based on previous posts from others, I suspect I
don't have the processor
grant set up correctly.
I am currently reading several different manuals to get a description of
how
the grant lines should be hooked up. I have read many descriptions of the
signalling, but I have not located information on where to use the Grant
Continuity cards or making changes to the wire-wrapped bus. In my case,
I will need to make changes to the bus, since I do not have any of the
Grant Continuity cards ;-)
Am I on the right track to assume that the problem is likely to be
the processor grant wiring, or should I be looking elsewhere?
Again, I am not sure, but if you can control the system and access the
UNIBUS, I'd say there is no GRANT problem. You can easily check this
by sending a character to the XMIT register of the console.
Just deposit 066 (whatever) at 777566 and see if a character is
printed on the terminal. If so, you know the UNIBUS is OK.
Grant cards are small "knockle-busters". They go in position D and connect
4 grant wires. I would not wire-wrap those 8 pins, but find a G727A.
I am sure somebody local to you has plenty of them.
The NPR Grant module G7273 goes in position C and D. It has the 4
connections as the G727A plus the 'connection for NPR in slot C. Those
are also relatively easy to obtain.
If you "mess" with UNIBUS systems it is handy to have a few G727A and
G7273 lying around.
- Henk.
Many thanks for any pointers!
--barrym
5:24 a.m.
On Sat, 6 Aug 2011 10:25:41 -0600
B M <iamvirtual at gmail.com> wrote:
I am currently reading several different manuals to
get a description
of how the grant lines should be hooked up.
This is a good roundup:
http://www.retrocmp.com/how-tos/setup-a-pdp-11-unibus-backplane
... especially the NPG jumper hack at the end.
--
\end{Jochen}
\ref{http://www.unixag-kl.fh-kl.de/~jkunz/}
1:06 p.m.
To test the tape drive, I used the programmer's
console on my PDP-11/05 to
issue a read command to a mounted tape. When I issued a read command by
depositing a command into the TMA-11 command register, the tape advanced
slightly and then stopped. The 'Bus Grant Late' error was set in the TMA-11
status register. The status register did indicate the controller and tape drive
were both ready. No data was read in.
Were you toggling in commands on the front panel with the CPU halted? I
seem to remmber that some PDP11s will not handle bus requrests / NPRs if
the processor isn't running, and thus if you try to operate such a
peripheral in this wa, you will get a 'late grant' problem. It's better
to enter a short program from the panel and run that. All the program
needs to do is deposit the correct device command word in the right I/O
location (you can set up all the other values -- the address, word count,
etc -- from the panel) and loop either until the device indicates the
command has completed, or just loop forever, and you can halt the program
after a suitable time and examine device registers, memory ,etc.
The read command was issued while the processor is halted.
This particular system did not originally have any external devices hooked up
to it.
Beginning at the processor, the system has the following components installed:
KD11-B PDP-11/05
LS11 line printer card (connects to a Centronics 101A printer)
MM11-U 16K x 16 core memory
MM11-U 16K x 16 core memory
RK11-D RK05 disk controller
(See http://www.iamvirtual.ca/collection/systems/minis/PDP11-10/Boards.html
for details)
The BC11 cable leading to the TMA-11 controller is put on the Unibus
out connection
at the last slot of the RK11-D controller.
Based on previous posts from others, I suspect I don't have the processor grant
set up correctly.
My first question is 'Does the RK05 work correctly?'. The RK11-D is an
NPR device too, so if its's working, grants must be getting as far as
that. If the're then not getting to the tape controller, there must be a
fault either in the cable between those devices, or a fault in the RK11-D
itself (I have had a device that failed to pass on a grant, I think one
of the bus driver ICs had fialed. It was an easy fix, anyway...)
-tony
2:48 p.m.
I think you said the system worked before installing the TM11. The
grants and everything should still be fine. If you only extended the
Unibus with the TM11, you shouldn't need to change anything or add
grant cards. There were 4 or 5 11/05 backplanes. I thinK the Unibus
troubleshooting guide shows some of them. I assume your memory is in
the cpu backplane, and that you only have the the cpu backplane and
the RK11-D backplane.
Does the RK05 still work?
If in doubt about the BC11A going to the TM11, you can swap it out
with the one going to the RK05 and see what happens.
Paul
On Sat, Aug 6, 2011 at 11:25 AM, B M <iamvirtual at gmail.com> wrote:
With the help of various knowledgeable people on this
list, it was
pointed out that
I did not have the connection to the tape drive controller in the
correct position.
To test the tape drive, I used the programmer's console on my PDP-11/05 to
issue a read command to a mounted tape. ?When I issued a read command by
depositing a command into the TMA-11 command register, the tape advanced
slightly and then stopped. The 'Bus Grant Late' error was set in the TMA-11
status register. ?The status register did indicate the controller and tape drive
were both ready. No data was read in.
The read command was issued while the processor is halted.
This particular system did not originally have any external devices hooked up
to it.
Beginning at the processor, the system has the following components installed:
? ? KD11-B ? ? ?PDP-11/05
? ? LS11 ? ? ? ? ?line printer card (connects to a Centronics 101A printer)
? ? MM11-U ? ? 16K x 16 core memory
? ? MM11-U ? ? 16K x 16 core memory
? ? RK11-D ? ? ? RK05 disk controller
(See http://www.iamvirtual.ca/collection/systems/minis/PDP11-10/Boards.html
for details)
The BC11 cable leading to the TMA-11 controller is put on the Unibus
out connection
at the last slot of the RK11-D controller.
Based on previous posts from others, I suspect I don't have the processor grant
set up correctly.
I am currently reading several different manuals to get a description of how the
grant lines should be hooked up. ?I have read many descriptions of the
signalling,
but I have not located information on where to use the Grant Continuity cards
or making changes to the wire-wrapped bus. ?In my case, I will need to make
changes to the bus, since I do not have any of the Grant Continuity cards ;-)
Am I on the right track to assume that the problem ?is likely to be
the processor
grant wiring, or should I be looking elsewhere?
Many thanks for any pointers!
--barrym
4766
days inactive
4767
days old
4 comments
5 participants
participants (5)
-
ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk -
henk.gooijen＠hotmail.com -
iamvirtual＠gmail.com -
jkunz＠unixag-kl.fh-kl.de -
useddec＠gmail.com