*BSD News Article 38835


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From: nate@bsd.coe.montana.edu (Nate Williams)
Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.bugs
Subject: Re: FreeBSD 2.0R fails on npx 387
Date: 4 Dec 1994 04:46:42 GMT
Organization: Montana State University, Bozeman  Montana
Lines: 51
Message-ID: <3brhji$apt@pdq.coe.montana.edu>
References: <T54mwc2w165w@oasys.pc.my>
NNTP-Posting-Host: bsd.coe.montana.edu

In article <T54mwc2w165w@oasys.pc.my>,
Othman bin Hj. Ahmad <othman@oasys.pc.my> wrote:
>I've tried FreeBSD 2.0R boot disk just now.
>
>All devices tested are shown even if they don't exist, cluttering my
>display.

Well, those folks who *have* those devices want to know that it
at least *attempted* to find those devices.

>When it detects the devices, its details are not given, like io
>address and interrupt number, causing me to have difficulty in
>diagnosing the error. Sometimes the IRQ no could be correct but not
>its io address.

Examples...

>FreeBSD 2.0R detects my Intel 387 on 386DX25 motherboard as "np" but
>reported an error, so it uses emulation.

Do you mean 'npx'?

>Please note that 386bsd 0.1 with patchkit installed, detects this 387
>correctly. I don't really know if the 387 is actually used or not but
>my programs run nicely there.
>
>I recalled that the FreeBSD 1.1.5 also had problems with some
>motherboards with 387.

Hmm, never heard of any problems with FreeBSD and x87 chips of any
kinds.  However, there *were* problems with the alternative FPU emulator
which required some kernel programs to be rebuilt due to some kernel
structures being aligned differently.

Note, the FPU probe in FreeBSD is much improved over the stock 386BSD
version, though that fix probably made it into one of the patchkits
if I remember correctly.

>Has this been fixed. What actually causes this problem.

Didn't know about, so I can't tell you.



Nate

-- 
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