Conference nesbit::modular

175.0. "ARCBIOS modifications, possible or not?" by NBOSWS::BLUNDELL () Tue Feb 18 1997 08:58

    Hi
    
    Tell me where else this should be posted, I believe this is the correct
    starting place!
    
    The customer in question will (hopefully:-) )maintain LEGO using his
    existing support services. He has asked that we provide detiled info on
    how LEGO is tested during powerup (POST) and what diagnostics are
    avaoilable to pinpoint failures. Our logistics proposal is Return to
    Factory, however faulty module replacement may possibly be done on
    site. Hence I need info to help with faulty module isolation. The
    situation is complicated by a custom designed PCI card!
    
    If customer develops his own PCI interface card (requirement is
    specialised I/O, very simple, Fibre based, 40-100 MBytes/sec, will
    proabably be FC based) what needs to be done (if anything) to ARCBIOS
    to get POST functionality and to get the card's PCI interface
    initialised? More specifically:-
    
    1. What level of testing is done by ARCBIOS on the generic PCI
    interfaces of devices which are found during the PCI bus probe?
    
    2. Can ARCBIOS be modified to test the new card during startup? Testing
    would be the same level of confidence as say, memory, graphics etc but
    would be specific to the card.
    
    3. ARCBIOS console display shows the PCI cards that have been found during
    the PCI startup probe. Assuming the new card is fully PCI compliant
    then the card will show up in this display. Correct?
    At this stage is it safe to assume that all PCI initialisation has been 
    completed and the appropriate data will be passed upto WNT? 
    Put the question another way,
    under what situations would additional, card specific initialisation 
    code be needed in ARCBIOS? (I think only if the card is a boot device?)
    
    4. Is there a detailed description of the ARCBIOS POST tests anywhere?
    Is there a set of test utilities (perhaps those used in manufacturing
    LEGO) which a site engineer could use to debug LEGO? Currently the
    customer is fairly happy with ARCBIOS but perhaps we have something
    else more detailed?
    
    5. How can such customer specific changes to ARCBIOS be implemented?
    Or should the card specific tests be implemented as a separate program
    which can be called via ARCBIOS? 
    
    Rgds
    
    Bill
    

Bill,

The countdown codes for AlphaBIOS are in the user manual. PCI card testing 
will probably be limited to configuring the device. 

The Windows NT driver for the card will be able to do much mode diagnostics 
on the third party card - then you wouldn't have to modify the AlphaBIOS. 
Windows NT will be able to report that the card's driver didn't start.

>    Assuming the new card is fully PCI compliant
>    then the card will show up in this display. Correct?

Not unless the AlphaBIOS has a lookup table of Vendor/device IDs against 
vendor and card names.

>    5. How can such customer specific changes to ARCBIOS be implemented?

If they are using the card as a storage device then they may be able to run 
a BIOS on the card.

>    At this stage is it safe to assume that all PCI initialisation has been 
>    completed and the appropriate data will be passed upto WNT? 
>    Put the question another way,
>    under what situations would additional, card specific initialisation 
>    code be needed in ARCBIOS? (I think only if the card is a boot device?)

Yes, to both questions.


Gordon