*BSD News Article 38544


Return to BSD News archive

Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!yarrina.connect.com.au!werple.apana.org.au!otis.apana.org.au!serval.net.wsu.edu!netnews.nwnet.net!oracle.pnl.gov!osi-east2.es.net!lll-winken.llnl.gov!trib.apple.com!amd!news.kgc.com!kpc!nntphost!ambrisko
From: ambrisko@kpc.com (Douglas Ambrisko)
Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.questions
Subject: Re: FreeBSD and Adaptec 1542CF SCSI
Date: 28 Nov 1994 18:16:42 GMT
Organization: Kubota Graphics Corporation; Santa Clara, CA, USA
Lines: 40
Message-ID: <AMBRISKO.94Nov28101642@tasha>
References: <3b2u2e$27u@scoob.xap.com> <Roy-2711942134250001@adept.cts.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: 144.52.28.40
In-reply-to: Roy@AdeptSolutions.com's message of Mon, 28 Nov 1994 05:34:25 GMT

In article <Roy-2711942134250001@adept.cts.com> Roy@AdeptSolutions.com (Roy Lovejoy) writes:

   In article <3b2u2e$27u@scoob.xap.com>, nb@xap.com (Nathan Bradshaw) wrote:

   > Hi, FreeBSD hackers!  We've got a puzzlin' problem here that probably has a
   > real simple solution.
   > 
   > My roommate installed 2.0 RELEASE yesterday on his new Pentium 90 VLB/PCI
   > 16Mb with an ISA Adaptec 1542cf and a Conner 1.2Gb disk.  Overnight it
   > bombed out with an error much like:
   > 
   > sd0: aha0: aha154x debug: timeout (again)  retrying: (frozen?)
   > 
   > ...repeated again and again forever.  It boots fine and if left alone will
   > have this condition again after a couple hours.

   Nathan:

   This isn't really regarding FreeBSD, although I have a Dell 486 running
   NeXT Step, but IT has an Adaptec 1542c card. I get the same message(s) if
   the SCSI chain is too long. I think that the spec's say something like 6-9
   feet, but the adaptec card likes < 4. That's really not too much,
   considering most SCSI <-> SCSI cables are 3 feet. 

   My advice is to get those 18" cables and keep your SCSI connections AS
   SHORT AS POSSIBLE.

   That has *ALWAYS* solved the AHA timeouts for me.

   -Roy

Also make sure your SCSI is terminated.  I had trouble with an external
tape that worked fine when I terminated it.  However, I also have a real
old card that had troubles with an external drive until I replaced it with 
a faster drive.
--
In Real Life: Doug Ambrisko        o   o      / \o/  
e-mail:       ambrisko@kpc.com    //\ //\    /  //   
voice:        (408)987-5820     /\`\/\`\/\  / /\'\/\ 
                                \/ '\/ '\/ /  \/  \/