[comp.protocols.appletalk] FastPath PROM/Mgr version 4.1 bug?

farrell@EREBUS.STANFORD.EDU (Phil Farrell) (01/18/89)

I just upgraded a FastPath 4 to the new 4.1 PROMs, 4.1 FastPath Manager II,
and 5.03 K-STAR Download file.  We encountered difficulty loading K-STAR
into the upgraded box.  Basically, the FastPath seemed determined to 
auto-configure itself as an Atalk only router and we had to work hard to 
bludgeon it into submission.

After using RESET to clear out the existing program, we found that there was
a very short timeout (less than 20 seconds) to start the process of loading
the new K-STAR download file.  If you didn't work very fast, the FastPath
would jump into auto-config mode and then refuse to accept your download
request.  After the RESET, we had to do FIND ALL GATEWAYS, select the 
FastPath, turn off AUTO CONFIG, select DOWNLOAD A FILE, and open the 
K-STAR Download, all within that 20 second or less timeout period.  
This is simply too short of a timeout, especially since it took us a long
time to figure out that there was in fact a timeout (it may be documentd,
but frankly, I didn't want to pore through the manual looking for such).
Are you listening, Kinetics?  Can you increase this timeout to something
more reasonable?  Say at least 45 seconds?

Another, probably unrelated bug.  FastPath Mgr would crash our Mac Plus
if we started the program while the FastPath was powered off and then 
powered on the FastPath.

Phil Farrell, Computers Systems Manager, Stanford Univ. Earth Sciences
farrell@erebus.stanford.edu

morgan@JESSICA.STANFORD.EDU (01/18/89)

Phil Farrell writes:

> Basically, the FastPath seemed determined to auto-configure itself as
> an Atalk only router and we had to work hard to bludgeon it into
> submission.  After using RESET to clear out the existing program, we
> found that there was a very short timeout (less than 20 seconds) to
> start the process of loading the new K-STAR download file.

What works for me every time is:

1) Fire up FPM, open screen for Kbox.
2) Uncheck Auto-configure, Check Remote Boot.
3) Push Restart (*** NOT RESET ***) button.
4) Find and open Kbox again.
5) Download, configure, etc.

I don't have the Kinetics documentation at hand, but it seems to me
that even with documentation this sequence is non-intuitive.  I
understand the struggle between auto-configuring and manual
configuring, but there should be a "shut up and listen" button in the
FPM that will allow it to be configured without breaking the FPM
session.

 - RL "Bob" Morgan
   Networking Systems
   Stanford

falken@caen.engin.umich.edu (David R Falkenburg) (01/19/89)

In article <Added.sXp13Iy00UkT85K094@andrew.cmu.edu>, farrell@EREBUS.STANFORD.EDU (Phil Farrell) writes:
> I just upgraded a FastPath 4 to the new 4.1 PROMs, 4.1 FastPath Manager II,
> and 5.03 K-STAR Download file.  We encountered difficulty loading K-STAR
> into the upgraded box.  Basically, the FastPath seemed determined to 
> auto-configure itself as an Atalk only router and we had to work hard to 
> bludgeon it into submission.
> 
> After using RESET to clear out the existing program, we found that there was
> a very short timeout (less than 20 seconds) to start the process of loading
> the new K-STAR download file.  If you didn't work very fast, the FastPath
> would jump into auto-config mode and then refuse to accept your download
> request.  After the RESET, we had to do FIND ALL GATEWAYS, select the 
> FastPath, turn off AUTO CONFIG, select DOWNLOAD A FILE, and open the 
> K-STAR Download, all within that 20 second or less timeout period.  
> This is simply too short of a timeout, especially since it took us a long
> time to figure out that there was in fact a timeout (it may be documentd,
> but frankly, I didn't want to pore through the manual looking for such).
> Are you listening, Kinetics?  Can you increase this timeout to something
> more reasonable?  Say at least 45 seconds?
> 
> Another, probably unrelated bug.  FastPath Mgr would crash our Mac Plus
> if we started the program while the FastPath was powered off and then 
> powered on the FastPath.
> 
> Phil Farrell, Computers Systems Manager, Stanford Univ. Earth Sciences
> farrell@erebus.stanford.edu

Ouch!  I thgought they would've fixed that in rev 4.1!   (I'm STILL waiting
for 4.1 upgrades as of today and have been running v3.1 w/ FastPath Mgr 1.1d
since august!)

shades of ED2000?

-dave
-- 
Dave Falkenburg @ University of Michigan Computer Aided Engineering Network
ARPA: falken@caen.engin.umich.edu    UUCP: umix!caen.engin.umich.edu!falken

billn@kinetics.UUCP (Bill Northlich) (01/20/89)

In article <Added.sXp3MOy00UkTE8V08V@andrew.cmu.edu> morgan@JESSICA.STANFORD.EDU writes:
>Phil Farrell writes:
>
>> ... there was a very short timeout (less than 20 seconds) to
>> start the process of loading the new K-STAR download file.
>
>...
>...even with documentation this sequence is non-intuitive.

yep, sigh.

>...there should be a "shut up and listen" button in the FPM

There is -- "Pause".

/b

shibumi@well.UUCP (Kenton A. Hoover) (01/21/89)

In article <Added.sXp3MOy00UkTE8V08V@andrew.cmu.edu> morgan@JESSICA.STANFORD.EDU writes:
>
>Phil Farrell writes:
>
>> Basically, the FastPath seemed determined to auto-configure itself as
...
...
>5) Download, configure, etc.
>
What we found (we have about 12 KFP-4s in our building) is that if a KFP gets
a RTMP packet that lets it pick a network number while it is loading, it
barfs on the download and autoconfigures with its new network number and
name.

The cure: Disconnect it from the appletalk...this seems to work just fine.
We suspect that PAP status messages will also cause it to restart, but
this has not yet been proven.

-- 
!   Kenton A. Hoover                    {hplabs,apple,pacbell}!well!shibumi  ! 
!   Phoenix Project Manager                  SNAIL: One Bush Street          !
!   Hambrecht & Quist                               San Francisco, CA 94105  !
!          "Evil will always triumph over good because good is dumb!"        !