*BSD News Article 16067


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Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.questions
Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!munnari.oz.au!constellation!osuunx.ucc.okstate.edu!moe.ksu.ksu.edu!crcnis1.unl.edu!wupost!uunet!world!hd
From: hd@world.std.com (HD Associates)
Subject: Re: Elusive SCSI problems (Adaptec 1542C)  <snarl!>
Message-ID: <C70nBJ.387@world.std.com>
Keywords: Adaptec 1542C, Quantum, SCSI, 386bsd
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
References: <1993May12.023959.20121@sophia.smith.edu> <1993May14.004015.23497@sophia.smith.edu> <hastyC708F2.CGH@netcom.com>
Date: Fri, 14 May 1993 12:14:07 GMT
Lines: 69

In article <hastyC708F2.CGH@netcom.com> hasty@netcom.com (Amancio Hasty Jr) writes:
>Try to leave the last device on your scsci unterminated.
>
>I had problems with my toshiba 1.2g and the 1542c very similar to your
>problem so I took the drive and the 1542c back to the store.
>they also couldn't get it to work. However one the techies found
>out that with some drives the last device should be left unterminated or
>the adaptec unterminated and the last drive terminated.
>
>With the disk drive unterminated and the adaptec 1542c terminated my system 
>has been working like a charm.

This was in comp.periphs.scsi:
>From: nauck@ibr.cs.tu-bs.de (Detlef Nauck)
>Subject: Write errors on external connector of Adaptec's 1542C ?
>Message-ID: <1993May12.114233.18318@ibr.cs.tu-bs.de>
>Originator: nauck@neuro.ibr.cs.tu-bs.de
>Sender: postnntp@ibr.cs.tu-bs.de (Mr. Nntp Inews Entry)
>Reply-To: nauck@ibr.cs.tu-bs.de (Detlef Nauck)
>Organization: TU Braunschweig, Informatik (Bueltenweg), Germany
>Date: Wed, 12 May 1993 11:42:33 GMT
>Lines: 37
>
>
>Hi,
>
>two days ago I read in a german computer magazine (c't 6/93) that the new 
>Adaptec 1542C has a bug concerning devices at the external connector. 
>
>It says, when you use it without the ASPI interface you can get write 
>errors when you transfer large blocks. You won`t notice that before you 
>do a seperate compare run. 
>
>This happens e.g. when you use tapes under UNIX. You don't notice this bug as
>long as you are using DOS and the ASPISYS drivers because internal hard drives 
>are not concerned, and the drivers include a workaround. That means Adaptec 
>knew of this error before selling the piece (says the mag).
>
>The magazine states that Adaptec has not yet determined what to do, e.g. 
>call back all adapters or give a free replacement to people who have the need.
>
>That article just stopped me from running to my computer shop to buy the 1542C.
>I have to make a decision in the next few days, and I really like to get 
>the adapter, because I think it's a good piece of hardware if you forget 
>about this bug. But I want to use Linux in the future, and I am not sure what 
>this bug will mean to me some day.
>
>Yesterday I asked in a computer shop if there will be a solution. They said
>that there will be some kind of exchange, but they couldn't tell me when and 
>how.
>
>Has anybody out there more information how serious this bug is? Are there 
>workarounds under UNIX?  Any information on what Adaptec will do?
>
>Detlef.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I also have problems if I don't use
illegal termination configurations.  Yesterday I was trying to use an
old Seagate drive for some testing and found I had to change the
termination to get it to work - that is, though I had a stable
working setup (by leaving the 1542C terminated when I shouldn't)  I
had to change things when I added different external peripherals.

And the 1542B works flawlessly with all these devices.  I wish
I had a scope here in the office.


Peter Dufault
HD Associates