QNX 425E & Fsys.aha8scsi

QNX Newsgroups (Archives) qdn.public.qnx4
1

We are attempting a from scratch install (vs. update) of QNX 425E from
the QNX Product Suite May2001 CD onto a PC w/ an Adaptec 19160 controller
and a 4 gig hard drive but are unable to complete the install successfully.

The basic problem is that the install does not start Fsys.aha8scsi,
the driver we think is appropriate for the 19160 controller.

We note that AHA8 SCSI Controller is not listed on the
Select Hardware to Auto-detect page. Pushing ahead anyway,
during the AUTO DETECT HARDWARE step, the Installed Hardware list
does not show /dev/hd0 under Disk Adapters, though the SCSI PCI
is listed under PnP/PCI Resources. A partial copy of the page:

  • Disk Adapters
    EIDE Disk Controller #1 1F0,3F0 14?

  • EIDE Disk Controller #2 170,370 15

  • /dev/cd1.0 [E-IDE-CD-ROM 40X]

  • Floppy disk controller 3f0 6

  • /dev/fd0

  • PnP/PCI Resources

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (IDE) PCI device (by Intel)

  • I/O: F000 - F00F

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (SCSI) PCI device

  • I/O: E800 - E8FF

  • irq 9

  • RAM: EA000000 - EA000FFF

Bringing up a shell window and loading Fsys.aha8scsi by hand yields
the error msg: No adaptors found!

An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” reveals:
-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 112419 Sep 27 1999 /bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

A “use Fsys.aha8scsi” yields:
ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA
-DEVELOPMENT RELEASE - June / 1999

Armed with the info that the driver was an ALPHA release, we got a
copy of Fsys.aha8scsi from another system here that was updated
to 425E. An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” for that reveals:

-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 178730 Feb 06 09:37 /bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

Loading this newer version of the driver succeeds and the install will
continue on until we hit the next wall: no boot image is created.

This seems to be related to the earlier failure to detect the SCSI
hard drive. We edit the /boot/build/hard.ata.1 file and substitute
Fsys.aha8scsi for Fsys.ata and are able to generate a boot image.
Again we continue with the install and all seems OK until we reboot.
We get the msg: “QNX missing operating system.” Note: we do
reconfigure the partitioning during the install to result in a single
4 gig partition.

Repeating the install but exec’ing “fdisk /dev/hd0” by hand before
the reboot reveals:

Name type Start End Cyls Blocks Size Boot
QNX 77 0 4338 4339 8886240 4338 MB * MAYBE

Config: 64 heads
32 Sectors/track

Last cylinder is 4339

We are aware that the missing O/S msg is related to the “* MAYBE” above.
This indicates some problem with positioning the boot image withing
the 1st 1024 cyls doesn’t it? What we are wondering is why, on a
virgin disk, this would be happening?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Glen Legere

2

Hi Glen,

I recommend creating 2 partitions a small booting partition and then your large main partition.
You can create a very small (2M) partition for booting which mounts the second parition.

Regards,

Joe

Glen A. Legere <glen@wordstock.com> wrote:


We are attempting a from scratch install (vs. update) of QNX 425E from
the QNX Product Suite May2001 CD onto a PC w/ an Adaptec 19160 controller
and a 4 gig hard drive but are unable to complete the install successfully.

The basic problem is that the install does not start Fsys.aha8scsi,
the driver we think is appropriate for the 19160 controller.

We note that AHA8 SCSI Controller is not listed on the
Select Hardware to Auto-detect page. Pushing ahead anyway,
during the AUTO DETECT HARDWARE step, the Installed Hardware list
does not show /dev/hd0 under Disk Adapters, though the SCSI PCI
is listed under PnP/PCI Resources. A partial copy of the page:

  • Disk Adapters
    EIDE Disk Controller #1 1F0,3F0 14?

  • EIDE Disk Controller #2 170,370 15

  • /dev/cd1.0 [E-IDE-CD-ROM 40X]

  • Floppy disk controller 3f0 6

  • /dev/fd0

  • PnP/PCI Resources

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (IDE) PCI device (by Intel)

  • I/O: F000 - F00F

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (SCSI) PCI device

  • I/O: E800 - E8FF

  • irq 9

  • RAM: EA000000 - EA000FFF

Bringing up a shell window and loading Fsys.aha8scsi by hand yields
the error msg: No adaptors found!

An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” reveals:
-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 112419 Sep 27 1999 /bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

A “use Fsys.aha8scsi” yields:
ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA
-DEVELOPMENT RELEASE - June / 1999

Armed with the info that the driver was an ALPHA release, we got a
copy of Fsys.aha8scsi from another system here that was updated
to 425E. An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” for that reveals:

-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 178730 Feb 06 09:37 /bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

Loading this newer version of the driver succeeds and the install will
continue on until we hit the next wall: no boot image is created.

This seems to be related to the earlier failure to detect the SCSI
hard drive. We edit the /boot/build/hard.ata.1 file and substitute
Fsys.aha8scsi for Fsys.ata and are able to generate a boot image.
Again we continue with the install and all seems OK until we reboot.
We get the msg: “QNX missing operating system.” Note: we do
reconfigure the partitioning during the install to result in a single
4 gig partition.

Repeating the install but exec’ing “fdisk /dev/hd0” by hand before
the reboot reveals:

Name type Start End Cyls Blocks Size Boot
QNX 77 0 4338 4339 8886240 4338 MB * MAYBE

Config: 64 heads
32 Sectors/track

Last cylinder is 4339

We are aware that the missing O/S msg is related to the “* MAYBE” above.
This indicates some problem with positioning the boot image withing
the 1st 1024 cyls doesn’t it? What we are wondering is why, on a
virgin disk, this would be happening?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Glen Legere

3

“Hardware Support Account” <hw@qnx.com> wrote in message
news:9jkenb$hkd$1@nntp.qnx.com…

Hi Glen,

I recommend creating 2 partitions a small booting partition and then your
large main partition.
You can create a very small (2M) partition for booting which mounts the
second parition.

Regards,

Joe
Joe,

Thanks for the response.

We had already tried what you suggest and things do work that way.
However, for backwards compatibility with our standard disk setup
under QNX we really want a single partition.

Is this not possible?

Is there a “defect” in the driver that makes this impossible?

Lastly, what about the convoluted steps required for an install involving
Fsys.aha8scsi - will these be corrected?

Thanks.

Glen

Glen A. Legere <> glen@wordstock.com> > wrote:


We are attempting a from scratch install (vs. update) of QNX 425E from
the QNX Product Suite May2001 CD onto a PC w/ an Adaptec 19160
controller
and a 4 gig hard drive but are unable to complete the install
successfully.

The basic problem is that the install does not start Fsys.aha8scsi,
the driver we think is appropriate for the 19160 controller.

We note that AHA8 SCSI Controller is not listed on the
Select Hardware to Auto-detect page. Pushing ahead anyway,
during the AUTO DETECT HARDWARE step, the Installed Hardware list
does not show /dev/hd0 under Disk Adapters, though the SCSI PCI
is listed under PnP/PCI Resources. A partial copy of the page:

  • Disk Adapters
    EIDE Disk Controller #1 1F0,3F0 14?

  • EIDE Disk Controller #2 170,370 15

  • /dev/cd1.0 [E-IDE-CD-ROM 40X]

  • Floppy disk controller 3f0 6

  • /dev/fd0

  • PnP/PCI Resources

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (IDE) PCI device (by Intel)

  • I/O: F000 - F00F

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (SCSI) PCI device

  • I/O: E800 - E8FF

  • irq 9

  • RAM: EA000000 - EA000FFF

Bringing up a shell window and loading Fsys.aha8scsi by hand yields
the error msg: No adaptors found!

An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” reveals:
-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 112419 Sep 27 1999
/bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

A “use Fsys.aha8scsi” yields:
ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA
-DEVELOPMENT RELEASE - June / 1999

Armed with the info that the driver was an ALPHA release, we got a
copy of Fsys.aha8scsi from another system here that was updated
to 425E. An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” for that reveals:

-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 178730 Feb 06 09:37
/bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

Loading this newer version of the driver succeeds and the install will
continue on until we hit the next wall: no boot image is created.

This seems to be related to the earlier failure to detect the SCSI
hard drive. We edit the /boot/build/hard.ata.1 file and substitute
Fsys.aha8scsi for Fsys.ata and are able to generate a boot image.
Again we continue with the install and all seems OK until we reboot.
We get the msg: “QNX missing operating system.” Note: we do
reconfigure the partitioning during the install to result in a single
4 gig partition.

Repeating the install but exec’ing “fdisk /dev/hd0” by hand before
the reboot reveals:

Name type Start End Cyls Blocks Size Boot
QNX 77 0 4338 4339 8886240 4338 MB * MAYBE

Config: 64 heads
32 Sectors/track

Last cylinder is 4339

We are aware that the missing O/S msg is related to the “* MAYBE” above.
This indicates some problem with positioning the boot image withing
the 1st 1024 cyls doesn’t it? What we are wondering is why, on a
virgin disk, this would be happening?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Glen Legere

\

4

Glen A. Legere <glen@wordstock.com> wrote:

Joe,

Thanks for the response.

We had already tried what you suggest and things do work that way.
However, for backwards compatibility with our standard disk setup
under QNX we really want a single partition.

Is this not possible?

It is not garenteed to work.

Is there a “defect” in the driver that makes this impossible?

Not a defect a limitation.

Lastly, what about the convoluted steps required for an install involving
Fsys.aha8scsi - will these be corrected?

‘disktrap’ was not updated to detect Fsys.aha8scsi devices in Patch E.
During the install…after the hardware detection, start a shell and start up
the driver.

In any upcomming releases this would be addressed.

Regards,

Joe



Thanks.

Glen

Glen A. Legere <> glen@wordstock.com> > wrote:


We are attempting a from scratch install (vs. update) of QNX 425E from
the QNX Product Suite May2001 CD onto a PC w/ an Adaptec 19160
controller
and a 4 gig hard drive but are unable to complete the install
successfully.

The basic problem is that the install does not start Fsys.aha8scsi,
the driver we think is appropriate for the 19160 controller.

We note that AHA8 SCSI Controller is not listed on the
Select Hardware to Auto-detect page. Pushing ahead anyway,
during the AUTO DETECT HARDWARE step, the Installed Hardware list
does not show /dev/hd0 under Disk Adapters, though the SCSI PCI
is listed under PnP/PCI Resources. A partial copy of the page:

  • Disk Adapters
    EIDE Disk Controller #1 1F0,3F0 14?

  • EIDE Disk Controller #2 170,370 15

  • /dev/cd1.0 [E-IDE-CD-ROM 40X]

  • Floppy disk controller 3f0 6

  • /dev/fd0

  • PnP/PCI Resources

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (IDE) PCI device (by Intel)

  • I/O: F000 - F00F

  • (other entries here…)

  • Mass storage (SCSI) PCI device

  • I/O: E800 - E8FF

  • irq 9

  • RAM: EA000000 - EA000FFF

Bringing up a shell window and loading Fsys.aha8scsi by hand yields
the error msg: No adaptors found!

An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” reveals:
-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 112419 Sep 27 1999
/bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

A “use Fsys.aha8scsi” yields:
ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA - ALPHA
-DEVELOPMENT RELEASE - June / 1999

Armed with the info that the driver was an ALPHA release, we got a
copy of Fsys.aha8scsi from another system here that was updated
to 425E. An “ls -l /bin/Fsys.aha8.scsi” for that reveals:

-rwxrwxr-x 1 root root 178730 Feb 06 09:37
/bin/Fsys.aha8scsi

Loading this newer version of the driver succeeds and the install will
continue on until we hit the next wall: no boot image is created.

This seems to be related to the earlier failure to detect the SCSI
hard drive. We edit the /boot/build/hard.ata.1 file and substitute
Fsys.aha8scsi for Fsys.ata and are able to generate a boot image.
Again we continue with the install and all seems OK until we reboot.
We get the msg: “QNX missing operating system.” Note: we do
reconfigure the partitioning during the install to result in a single
4 gig partition.

Repeating the install but exec’ing “fdisk /dev/hd0” by hand before
the reboot reveals:

Name type Start End Cyls Blocks Size Boot
QNX 77 0 4338 4339 8886240 4338 MB * MAYBE

Config: 64 heads
32 Sectors/track

Last cylinder is 4339

We are aware that the missing O/S msg is related to the “* MAYBE” above.
This indicates some problem with positioning the boot image withing
the 1st 1024 cyls doesn’t it? What we are wondering is why, on a
virgin disk, this would be happening?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Glen Legere

\