tan@bronson.UUCP (N.R. "Tan" Bronson) (04/12/88)
I would like to upgrade my PC limited 8mhz '286, running SCO 2.1.3,
to a '386 running SC0 2.2.
The most attractive would appear to be to replace my motherboard.
So what options do I have? I want to run SCO xenix and I want to be able
to run vp/ix. The features I'd like are:
- 16-20Mhz
- 64-128k cache
- 4Meg of zero wait state memory
- BIOS which will let me run vp/ix and use my WD1003 disk controller
- fit into my PC Limited chassis w/minimal changes
- verified to work w/SCO xenix
The Intel motherboard seems like the major choice I have.
What are the 'safe' revisions to purchase ?
What price should I be able to get ?
How much faster is this going to be than my '286 system ?
What other options do I have ?
--
Name....: Tan Bronson
Company.: Microvation Consultants
US Mail.: 20 Sperry Rd Madison, CT 06443 (203)-421-5061
UUCP....: ...{decvax!genrad!teddy,yale,mfci}!bronson!tandyer@spdcc.COM (Steve Dyer) (04/13/88)
In article <539@bronson.UUCP>, tan@bronson.UUCP (N.R. "Tan" Bronson) writes: > I would like to upgrade my PC limited 8mhz '286, running SCO 2.1.3, > to a '386 running SC0 2.2. > The features I'd like are: > - BIOS which will let me run vp/ix and use my WD1003 disk controller VP/ix doesn't use your machine's BIOS. It runs a BIOS provided by Phoenix which runs on the virtual 8086 machine provided by XENIX. > How much faster is this going to be than my '286 system ? Like going from a Z80 to a 286, the 386 is SO much better in every way than the 286 that it's unimaginable to ever go back. -- Steve Dyer dyer@harvard.harvard.edu dyer@spdcc.COM aka {ihnp4,harvard,husc6,linus,ima,bbn,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
landolt@yunccn (J. Paul Landolt) (04/14/88)
In article <539@bronson.UUCP>, tan@bronson.UUCP (N.R. "Tan" Bronson) writes: > > I would like to upgrade my PC limited 8mhz '286, running SCO 2.1.3, > to a '386 running SC0 2.2. > The most attractive would appear to be to replace my motherboard. [ The new motherboard, among other things, must be ] > - verified to work w/SCO xenix Write to the companies I am about to list and ask them about their mother boards. They can give you a full description, and tell you wether they feel it is Xenix ready. But, chances are each of these boards will run Xenix just fine. > The Intel motherboard seems like the major choice I have. > What are the 'safe' revisions to purchase ? > What price should I be able to get ? Several other boards exist alongside the Intel board: Dyna SX386 - Dyna Computer Inc. $1,650 - designed to fit in an XT chassis Hauppauge 386 Motherboard - Hauppauge Computer Works Inc. $1,495 - fits into PCs and XT chasses (ies?) Intel iSBC 386AT - Intel Corp. sbout $1,995 - fits in the full size AT chassis - memory expansion through 32-bit slots instead of 16-bit - onboard serial/parallel ports (this can be a downfall to some people) Monolithic Microframe 386 - Monolithic Systems Corp. $3,295 - fits in full size AT case (XT version may exist) Zeos 386 Motherboard - Zeos International Ltd. $1,395 - fits in full size case - on board SCSI interface All of the preceding information was lifted from PC Magazine, January 88 issue. The addressed to these companies can be found in the same article If I did something wrong (by Usenet standards) by printing this info, someone please tell me. As you can see, most of the boards were designed for the full size AT case. It might be in your best interests to go out and spend $50 on a new case. > How much faster is this going to be than my '286 system ? The Intel board is the only one that runs at only 16Mhz. All the rest run at 20. The added speed as well as the better architechture (sp?) of the 386 will make for a noticably faster computer. Check out the benchmark tests in the aforementioned copy of PC MAgazine. all of these boards are compared against an XT and a 286AT. The 386 is, overall, about twice as fast as the 386, and over 6x the XT speed. Disk speeds were about the same between the 286 and the 386 I hope this information helps those people interested in upgrading to a 386. -- J. Paul Landolt world: ...uunet!ontmoh!yunccn!landolt nccn: ...!yunccn!landolt
donegan@stanton.TCC.COM (Steven P. Donegan) (04/16/88)
In article <354@yunccn>, landolt@yunccn (J. Paul Landolt) writes: > In article <539@bronson.UUCP>, tan@bronson.UUCP (N.R. "Tan" Bronson) writes: > > > > I would like to upgrade my PC limited 8mhz '286, running SCO 2.1.3, > > to a '386 running SC0 2.2. > > The most attractive would appear to be to replace my motherboard. > > [ The new motherboard, among other things, must be ] > > - verified to work w/SCO xenix > > Dyna SX386 - Dyna Computer Inc. $1,650 > > Hauppauge 386 Motherboard - Hauppauge Computer Works Inc. $1,495 > > Intel iSBC 386AT - Intel Corp. sbout $1,995 > > Monolithic Microframe 386 - Monolithic Systems Corp. $3,295 > > Zeos 386 Motherboard - Zeos International Ltd. $1,395 > I went through the same decision process, I wanted a faster Xenix system so that my compiles and number crunches didn't take so long. I found an outfit that sells the Novas motherboard line. The one I purchased cost 550$ (0K RAM) and runs at 16mhz near 0 wait state (I would need many lines to describe 'near' 0 ws's). It benchmarks at 18.7 (Norton 3.0) under dos which is the same number you get from most 16mhz 80386. With a 80287-8 it runs around 360k whetstones, fairly respectable for a 80286. Novas uses the Harris CMOS 80286 which runs almost cold. Harris is supposed to have a 20mhz version out this month and Novas is ready with a motherboard that will use it. I run SCO Xenix 2.2.1 on my system with 5.5 meg of ram and 2 ST-4096 drives, the overall feel is not much slower than my 16mhz 0ws PC's limited 386. Unless you have to have a 386 box for 386 Xenix I would highly suggest that you spend your money on a 286 board like this and a 287 to go with it. The company I bought mine from is: Computrader, 780 Montague Expressway Suite 501, San Jose, Ca 95131 408-435-2662 A very satisfied customer. -- Steven P. Donegan Sr. Telecommunications Analyst Western Digital Corp. donegan@stanton.TCC.COM
ipc@drexel.UUCP (Image Processig Center) (04/20/88)
In article <24@stanton.TCC.COM>, donegan@stanton.TCC.COM (Steven P. Donegan) writes: > In article <354@yunccn>, landolt@yunccn (J. Paul Landolt) writes: > > In article <539@bronson.UUCP>, tan@bronson.UUCP (N.R. "Tan" Bronson) writes: > > > > > > I would like to upgrade my PC limited 8mhz '286, running SCO 2.1.3, > > > to a '386 running SC0 2.2. > > > The most attractive would appear to be to replace my motherboard. > > > > [ The new motherboard, among other things, must be ] > > > - verified to work w/SCO xenix > > > > Dyna SX386 - Dyna Computer Inc. $1,650 > > > > Hauppauge 386 Motherboard - Hauppauge Computer Works Inc. $1,495 > > > > Intel iSBC 386AT - Intel Corp. sbout $1,995 > > > > Monolithic Microframe 386 - Monolithic Systems Corp. $3,295 > > > > Zeos 386 Motherboard - Zeos International Ltd. $1,395 > > > > Unless you have to have a 386 box for 386 Xenix I would highly suggest that > you spend your money on a 286 board like this and a 287 to go with it. > The company I bought mine from is: Computrader, 780 Montague Expressway > Suite 501, San Jose, Ca 95131 > 408-435-2662 > > -- I disagree with the above reccomendation. I've written an article which will appear in Micro/Systems Journal this August in which I investigated the performance of the three 386 UNIX ports (SCO XENIX, Microport, and Interactive using the INTEL INBOARD 386 and a plain-jane 10mhz knockoff of the original IBM 6 mhz AT motherboard. First, bear in mind that the 386 runs native mode code twice as fast as emulated 286 code. Therefore, a 16mhz 286 running SCO XENIX 286 will not be as fast as 16 mhz running XENIX 386. Second, consider that all 386 UNIX's have demand paged, virtual memory kernels which typically give 10 megabytes to a job, WITHOUT segment limitations, and with vastly more efficient memory management for multiple jobs and users. Third, I have found that when running 386 code, as opposed to 286 code, the performance of the INBOARD is truely excellent, exceeding the ISBC386 or the old 16 mhz COMPAQ even using 16 bit memory off the bus. When using the 3 meg of memory on the INBOARD and daughtercard, the performance is about 27% better. Summarized results: The INBOARD does 3600 dhrystones out of standard AT 1 wait state memory, about 4400 out of no wait state memory, such as provided by a cheap EVEREX 3 meg ram card, and 6000 dhrystones out of 32 bit memory, which is the equivalent of a SUN 3/260, a $50k machine. The cost of the INBOARD is typically $1000 retail, with the special cable. You must be careful that your machine adheres to or can be made to adhere to standard AT timing for the motherboard memory. INTEL has a compatibility specialist to help you answer that question; ask for "Al". Note that SCO provides specific support for the INBOARD in the form of a boot line switch which switches the INBOARD into the high speed mode. I wish I could discuss my results in detail, but the editors would be extremely annoyed if I scooped myself. Please do not mail questions in this line, as I will regrettably be unable to answer them. I did find, through extensive torture, that the INBOARD is an extremely reliable device, and I use two of them for AI R&D here at Automata Design Associates. Bob Morein > Steven P. Donegan > Sr. Telecommunications Analyst > Western Digital Corp. > donegan@stanton.TCC.COM
fred@cdin-1.uucp (Fred Rump) (04/25/88)
Looking forward to the August review. Trouble is with timing. By August who knows what miracles will have sprung forth to make worthless yesterday's news. We've been using AMI (American Megatrends International) -MYLEX- boards with 64 KB cache and 4MB on board. It's a screamer. The 20MhZ version equals the Compaq 20MhZ in performance for substantially less cost. It's just a matter of pulling an old IBM AT board out and sticking the new one in.