HP Apollo DN5500 Disk and sysboot - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

9 Dec 2003

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 Message: 9
 Date: Mon, 8 Dec 2003 17:16:05 +0100
 From: "Aro Hirohi" &lt;arohirohi(a)hotmail.com&gt;
 Subject: HP Apollo DN5500 disk and sysboot
 To: &lt;cctalk(a)classiccmp.org&gt;
 Message-ID: &lt;Law15-DAV19gFrYILoy00004a51(a)hotmail.com&gt;
 Content-Type: text/plain;       charset="iso-8859-1"

 I am trying to salvage a nice Apollo DN5500 server. Unfortunately I had to swap the
original Maxtor ESDI 760 HD - it makes a clunky noise -  for a lower capacity Micropolis
and I have some difficulties to reinstall DomainOS software.
 The system starts under service mode. It can read a bootable tape and install the mini
DomainOS software but it cannot boot DomainOS directly from the hard disk ... it dies with
an "Error: sysboot not found"

 What I've done ...
 in service mode, with a 10.3.4 boot tape inserted,
  re
 di c
 ex config, ex calendar, ex invol ... to enter the new hd configuration, setup date/time
and format hd then ...
 ex domain_os ... does a lot of shoeshinning, copy base OS from tape to hd and says that
sysboot is found and skipped ...  ) go ... goes to HP logo and login or ) sh runs a
text shell ... I was delighted  ... but now if I shutdown and reboot the system in normal
mode, it passes the tests ok but fails to start the base OS complaining about
"sysboot not found". Same result in service mode if I do a > re and > ex
domain_os.
 Considering that it boots fine from a tape, I assume that the sysboot is not a eprom
program and that it has been erased by formatting the drive. Does anybody know how to
install the sysboot. Does it have anything to do with the 40KB file copied from the tape
to //nodeXXX/sysboot on the hard disk?

 Kind regards,

 Aro

...
  Hi,  Aro 
Did you set up the bad spot list inside Invol ???  Is the drive a listed
size drive 170, 380 or 760 meg ??  The "System boot" is the code that
gets you from the Rom monitor to the System OS.  You should be
able to enter "ld" at the monitor prompt and the system will list the
machine dependent boot files (not system boot).  The "system boot"
is installed when the drive is involed.  It is also checked when the
OS is loaded.  That's why you get the message that it was found and
is being skipped.  If the monitor can't find any system files do a "di w"
and try again.

I still have a Apollo ring here with a working AA install area. if you get in
a jam  contact me by email.   The tapes are not reliable in age and can
have fatal errors if used a lot.

Jerry

Jerry Wright
JLC inc