[comp.sys.next] Replacing 105 MB Drive on Slab

kkw@wam.umd.edu (Katarina Kim Wong) (04/27/91)

Question:  Is it possible to replace the 105 MB hard drive that comes with
some NeXTstations with something bigger from a third-party vendor?  It seems
that one could save money by buying  an 8/105 station, selling the 105 HD 
and then replacing it with something in  the 400 MB range.
Advice anyone?

Katarina Kim Wong
kkw@cscwam.umd.edu

auvhess@auvc6.tamu.edu (David K. Hess) (04/29/91)

In article <1991Apr27.161102.4582@wam.umd.edu> you write:
|> Question:  Is it possible to replace the 105 MB hard drive that comes with
|> some NeXTstations with something bigger from a third-party vendor?  It seems
|> that one could save money by buying  an 8/105 station, selling the 105 HD 
|> and then replacing it with something in  the 400 MB range.
|> Advice anyone?
|> 
|> Katarina Kim Wong
|> kkw@cscwam.umd.edu

I'm curious why NeXT is not selling any diskless configurations in
the university bookstore market. From looking through documentation
and listening to news on the net it appears that these machines have
the capability to run diskless via bootparamd, etc.

It would be nice to have a diskless configuration available so that I
could save my money on a third party drive. I could then boot diskless
from a NeXTStation or Cube acting as a server, format the drive and
copy an image of the complete file system from the server (assuming the
server has a reasonably pristine OS installed).  Alternatively I could
more easily add the drive into a Cube and format/dup it there. Since
buying a system gives you the right to the OS there should be no legal
problems, right? Admittedly this scenario works best at a university
where you have a number of NeXT machines around and hopefully willing
owners.

The advantage is I would not have to worry about an external drive in
addition to an internal 105MB drive or about having to sell the 105MB
drive as mentioned above.

IMHO I would think this would actually help NeXT and make for a dirt
cheap system (though you would have to get a drive from somewhere).
They would not have to obtain drives, and install the OS before
shipping.  Just do a ROM level check of the mother board and drop it in
a box.

Any comments?

Dave Hess
Graduate Student
Texas A&M University
auvhess@auvsun1.tamu.edu