8 Sep
2014
8 Sep
'14
5:16 a.m.
I have a quadruplet of U5s that has one working NVRAM between them. I
pulled one open to see if I could employ the battery modification that has
been used by others (several on this list, no less)... but the U5
appears to have quite a different NVRAM module.
The earlier ones that I've seen modification pictures of have the
'backpack' battery/xtal, and just a potted nub that requires scraping open
to provide access to the battery contacts.
The U5 NVRAMs are fully encased in a plastic housing that appears to be
epoxy bonded onto the IC/battery/xtal.
Are these also modifyable, or should I suck it up and pay $15 a NVRAM at
Mouser?
Thanks;
- JP
8 Sep
8 Sep
6:22 a.m.
Sent from my iPhone
On Sep 8, 2014, at 9:16, JP Hindin <jplist2008 at
kiwigeek.com> wrote:
I have a quadruplet of U5s that has one working NVRAM between them. I
pulled one open to see if I could employ the battery modification that has
been used by others (several on this list, no less)... but the U5
appears to have quite a different NVRAM module.
The earlier ones that I've seen modification pictures of have the
'backpack' battery/xtal, and just a potted nub that requires scraping open
to provide access to the battery contacts.
The U5 NVRAMs are fully encased in a plastic housing that appears to be
epoxy bonded onto the IC/battery/xtal.
Are these also modifyable, or should I suck it up and pay $15 a NVRAM at
Mouser?
What model NVRAM from mouser?
Thanks;
- JP
7:07 a.m.
If you can get a direct replacement from Mouser (or - try Jameco - they
have some older, stranger stuff; I just bought some 6809s there a few weeks
ago; find anyone else still selling those...) and the restoration project
is worth it to you, I'd do that. Yeah, it's $20 but you'll be good for
another decade and you won't have a grievous hack on the battery :) That's
my stance on it.
I have a couple of old SGI machines where I need to go through the same
process here pretty soon. Should probably do one of my SS20s as well, but
at least those will start up with a dead NVRAM and I have plenty of SBus
NICs with fixed MAC addresses...
On similar topic, let's say an Indigo2 and an Indy take the same model of
Dallas chip (I haven't checked). If the Indigo2's chip still had some
"juice" in it, could you swap it into the Indy and get it to fire up? Or
will I just end up with a corrupted NVRAM that neither system will touch
(don't want that...)?
I have two live Dallas chips that still have "juice" - one in my Indigo2
that I actually run and one in a spare. I'd like to transfer the one in the
spare to my Indy, but I don't want to not ever be able to put the chip back
into an Indigo2.
Best,
Sean
On Mon, Sep 8, 2014 at 10:22 AM, Cory Smelosky <b4 at gewt.net> wrote:
Sent from my iPhone
On Sep 8, 2014, at 9:16, JP Hindin <jplist2008
at kiwigeek.com> wrote:
I have a quadruplet of U5s that has one working NVRAM between them. I
pulled one open to see if I could employ the battery modification that
has
been used by others (several on this list, no
less)... but the U5
appears to have quite a different NVRAM module.
The earlier ones that I've seen modification pictures of have the
'backpack' battery/xtal, and just a potted nub that requires scraping
open
to provide access to the battery contacts.
The U5 NVRAMs are fully encased in a plastic housing that appears to be
epoxy bonded onto the IC/battery/xtal.
Are these also modifyable, or should I suck it up and pay $15 a NVRAM at
Mouser?
What model NVRAM from mouser?
Thanks;
- JP
9 Sep
9 Sep
noon
On Mon, 8 Sep 2014, Cory Smelosky wrote:
Zikes. I posted before actually hunting. Looks like the M48T59Y isn't
stocked by anyone anymore, except "memoryxsun.com", which is $40 a pop...
and I'm more than a little dubious about it.
I guess I'm even more committed to figuring out how to add a battery. The
plastic shell covers the IC and there's a tidy layer of epoxy in between.
Any good suggestions on removing it, besides "cut Very Carefully"?
- JP
On Sep 8,
2014, at 9:16, JP Hindin <jplist2008 at kiwigeek.com> wrote:
I have a quadruplet of U5s that has one working NVRAM between them. I
pulled one open to see if I could employ the battery modification that has
been used by others (several on this list, no less)... but the U5
appears to have quite a different NVRAM module.
The earlier ones that I've seen modification pictures of have the
'backpack' battery/xtal, and just a potted nub that requires scraping open
to provide access to the battery contacts.
The U5 NVRAMs are fully encased in a plastic housing that appears to be
epoxy bonded onto the IC/battery/xtal.
Are these also modifyable, or should I suck it up and pay $15 a NVRAM at
Mouser?
What model NVRAM from mouser? 
10 Sep
10 Sep
11:18 a.m.
On Tue, 9 Sep 2014, JP Hindin wrote:
A dremel will be very helpful in this task. Before doing the surgery,
make sure you write down the number on top of the module. Use epoxy
rather than super glue to affix the button cell holder. It make reclosing
the wound fairly easy.
--
David Griffith
dgriffi at cs.csubak.edu
A: Because it fouls the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
A: Top-posting.
Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?
What model
NVRAM from mouser?
Zikes. I posted before actually hunting. Looks like the M48T59Y isn't
stocked by anyone anymore, except "memoryxsun.com", which is $40 a pop...
and I'm more than a little dubious about it.
I guess I'm even more committed to figuring out how to add a battery. The
plastic shell covers the IC and there's a tidy layer of epoxy in between.
Any good suggestions on removing it, besides "cut Very Carefully"?
11:34 a.m.
On Wed, 10 Sep 2014, David Griffith wrote:
On Tue, 9 Sep 2014, JP Hindin wrote:
A dremel will be very helpful in this task. Before doing the surgery,
make sure you write down the number on top of the module. Use epoxy
rather than super glue to affix the button cell holder. It make reclosing
the wound fairly easy.
That was my feeling, also. I figure I'll take the sides off one, and try
and peel off the top and see how potted in epoxy it is. I'm hoping it
won't be too impossible to figure out where the wires are that lead into
the IC itself (with luck they're still exposed on one end of the IC and
it's just covered by the outer casing, rather than anything more
complicated).
Hopefully I won't completely destroy it, but if I sacrifice one to figure
out how to successfully do the others I have wouldn't be horrible. It's
not like they're working _now_.
- JP
What
model NVRAM from mouser?
Zikes. I posted before actually hunting. Looks like the M48T59Y isn't
stocked by anyone anymore, except "memoryxsun.com", which is $40 a pop...
and I'm more than a little dubious about it.
I guess I'm even more committed to figuring out how to add a battery. The
plastic shell covers the IC and there's a tidy layer of epoxy in between.
Any good suggestions on removing it, besides "cut Very Carefully"? 
12:07 p.m.
>> I guess I'm even more committed to
figuring out how to add a
>> battery. [...]
> A dremel will be very helpful in this task. [...]
Unless you're short of time and have some successful "surgeries" under
your belt, I recommend _not_ using a dremel, nor any other power tool.
It's way too easy to cut too far too fast by mistake. I recommend a
round file, the kind designed for use on metal, of somewhere around
3/16" diameter, or 4-5mm for those who prefer mm to inches. (I think
the one I've used was intended for sharpening chainsaw blade teeth.)
I also recommend reading the squirrel.com NVRAM FAQ, if only for
background information (unless you have one of the models listed
therein, in which case it _should_ be more than just background). I
haven't seen it mentioned yet in this thread, but perhaps I've just
missed something; as of this writing, it appears to be at
http://www.squirrel.com/squirrel/sun-nvram-hostid.faq (plain text) and
http://www.squirrel.com/squirrel/sun-nvram-hostid.faq.html (HTMLized).
Hopefully I won't completely destroy it, but if I
sacrifice one to
figure out how to successfully do the others I have wouldn't be
horrible. It's not like they're working _now_.
I've lost track of which models you're talking about here, but, if it's
like the ones I've known, an NVRAM with a dead battery is still useful
for its clock (keeping selftest happy on reboot, if naught else).
Of course, "destroy" is relative; you may wreck the battery connections
without ruining the clock chip proper. And I'm hardly going to try to
tell you what you should or shouldn't do with your own hardware. :-)
But I've damaged hardware through ignorance of dangers simply because I
hadn't heard of them, and I'd hate for that to happen to you.
/~\ The ASCII Mouse
\ / Ribbon Campaign
X Against HTML mouse at rodents-montreal.org
/ \ Email! 7D C8 61 52 5D E7 2D 39 4E F1 31 3E E8 B3 27 4B
10:28 p.m.
On Wed, 10 Sep 2014, JP Hindin wrote:
On Wed, 10 Sep 2014, David Griffith wrote:
The leads to the cell are concealed in an epoxy-filled notch. In the
example of my IPX seen at http://gigawa.lt/gigawa.lt/Sun_NVRAM.html, I
didn't saw the entire cell compartment off as the page author did. I cut
only about a quarter of the way in. This allowed for more room for the
new holder. In retrospect, I should have either pointed the holder in the
opposite direction or used a holder that you load from the top instead of
the side. The way it is there makes it impossible to remove the battery
while the NVRAM module is inserted.
--
David Griffith
dgriffi at cs.csubak.edu
A: Because it fouls the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
A: Top-posting.
Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?
On Tue, 9 Sep 2014, JP Hindin wrote:
A dremel will be very helpful in this task. Before doing the surgery,
make sure you write down the number on top of the module. Use epoxy
rather than super glue to affix the button cell holder. It make reclosing
the wound fairly easy.
That was my feeling, also. I figure I'll take the sides off one, and try
and peel off the top and see how potted in epoxy it is. I'm hoping it
won't be too impossible to figure out where the wires are that lead into
the IC itself (with luck they're still exposed on one end of the IC and
it's just covered by the outer casing, rather than anything more
complicated).
Hopefully I won't completely destroy it, but if I sacrifice one to figure
out how to successfully do the others I have wouldn't be horrible. It's
not like they're working _now_. What
model NVRAM from mouser?
Zikes. I posted before actually hunting. Looks like the M48T59Y isn't
stocked by anyone anymore, except "memoryxsun.com", which is $40 a pop...
and I'm more than a little dubious about it.
I guess I'm even more committed to figuring out how to add a battery. The
plastic shell covers the IC and there's a tidy layer of epoxy in between.
Any good suggestions on removing it, besides "cut Very Carefully"? 
13 Sep
13 Sep
11:31 p.m.
Am 08.09.14 15:16, schrieb JP Hindin:
The U5 NVRAMs are fully encased in a plastic housing
that appears to be
epoxy bonded onto the IC/battery/xtal.
Are these also modifyable
Yes. IIRC I fscked the NVRAM of my U10 using the same
technique as for
the older Sun4c era NVRAMs.
--
tsch??,
Jochen
15 Sep
15 Sep
11:59 a.m.
On Sun, 14 Sep 2014, Jochen Kunz wrote:
Am 08.09.14 15:16, schrieb JP Hindin:
I gently sliced away the outer cap, showing the full epoxy block under it.
I've got no idea where anything is in here and I'm having my doubts I can
break the epoxy away without destroying any exposed wiring for the
battery. This is not as easy as I was hoping it to be...!
Alas.
- JP
The U5 NVRAMs are fully encased in a plastic
housing that appears to be
epoxy bonded onto the IC/battery/xtal.
Are these also modifyable
Yes. IIRC I fscked the NVRAM of my U10 using the same
technique as for
the older Sun4c era NVRAMs.
16 Sep
16 Sep
9:39 a.m.
Am 15.09.14 21:59, schrieb JP Hindin:
I've got no idea where anything is in here and
I'm having my doubts I can
break the epoxy away without destroying any exposed wiring for the
battery.
Usually the quartz is at the pin 1 half and the battery is at the other.
File the top of the battery part of the resin down until you get to the
battery. Work your way into the resin flat from top to bottom. You will
get to the + pole of the battery. There is a spot welded lead from the
top of the battery going 90 degrees around down into the resin. You can
prepare it with a cutter or with a Dremel like tool and a very small
milling head. I use a broken 0.6 mm drill for this. Once you freed
enough of the + lead cut it loose from the battery at the top, solder a
wire to it and cover it with hot glue. Connect the - pole of the new
battery to the GND pin of the chip. I leave the dead battery in place. I
never had any problems with leakage from lithium coin cells.
It sounds more complicated then it is. If you did it once you will know
where everything is. If you do it again you will get it done much
faster. For me this surgery is a matter of minutes.
--
tsch??,
Jochen
3581
days inactive
3589
days old
10 comments
6 participants
participants (6)
-
b4＠gewt.net -
dgriffi＠cs.csubak.edu -
jkunz＠unixag-kl.fh-kl.de -
jplist2008＠kiwigeek.com -
mouse＠Rodents-Montreal.ORG -
scaron＠umich.edu