[comp.unix.i386] ISC Installation problems partially solved

gvokalek@augean.ua.OZ.AU (George Vokalek) (07/24/90)

OK, I have ISC 2.2 up and running after a 5-day fight.

First, some outstanding problems:

Looking Glass bombs with the following message:

Program Abort: 'vsxerr' not set

The local vendor currently has another customer with the same
problem.  The vanilla installation of LG does not seem to leave
much room for errors, and the only documentation is user documentation
(ie useless for problems).

Question:

When I run twm with the supplied defaults.twmrc as my resource
file, everything works except that the xterm windows completely
ignore keyboard input.  The cursor sort of flashes every time I hit
a key, but no input is echoed or processed.  I can use the mouse to
clip text within the xterm window and the shell will execute it.
Anybody got ideas?

**********************************************************************

Now for problems and solutions:

Problem: My hard disk has 1661 cylinders and ISC bombs if I try to
        make the unix partition use cylinders above 1024, despite
        the fact that it states explicitly that it can manage it.

        The error I was getting was:

        PANIC: athd_int never got non-busy, got 0x000000D1

        This error would always occur during the construction of
        /usr2 (or whichever file system crossed the 1024 boundard,
        I presume).  My disk is a 1661cyl x 53 sec/tk x 15 head
        unit, with a WD1007V ESDI controller.

Solution: Use fdisk to make 2 partitions.
        type    start   end
        unix    1       1020
        other   1021    1661

        After doing this, use the mkfs utility to build a filing
        system on the second partition.  The special file (driver)
        for the second partition is /dev/dsk/0p2.  This is documented
        in the maintenance section of the manual.

        After doing a mkfs, you can mount the new partition.  Thus
        you lose no disk capacity, which is the important thing.

        One thing I am not sure about is how to map out bad blocks
        in this 'other' partition.  Can someone offer hints here?


Problem: Things go crazy if you have 2 partitions called 'unix'
        created by fdisk.  All of the formatting and installation
        will occur on the second 'unix' partition.

Solution: make only 1 unix partition, call the remainder 'other' or
        'DOS' even if you plan to put a unix file system on them
        using the above method.


Problem: NMI traps  occuring during installation or use.

Solution: In my case it was the VGA card.  Some apparently use
        NMI (via the IO CH CK signal), but mine does not have
        a jumper (that I can find) to disable its use.

        The problem in my case was visible during installation.
        I installed by using a Hercules card.  After installation,
        I put the VGA card in and it *worked*.  Except during
        floppy accesses, and system shutdowns.

        I don't think the problem is software, since I have just
        installed the latest bios in the VGA, with no effect.
        (my VGA is an EXPERT using TRIDENT chips, BIOS TVGA V1.03).

        Fix : buy a new VGA card if you can't jumper yours to work.


Problem: File system on INSTALL floppy disk fills up after entering
        160 (ie many) bad blocks into the formatting utility.

Solution: Hit CTRL-\ while the INSTALL disk is in the drive.
        Type 'rm /usr/lib/keyboard/*' to delete all the keyboard
        map files which you probably wont use anyway (if you choose USA
        keyboard).  This will give you about 10k more room on the disk
        Then type 'shutdown' and reboot the system when prompted.


Problem: TMC830 with Maxtor 4380S causes hangs during 'Booting Unix..'
        phase.

Solution: No satisfactory solution yet.


..G..

eric@femto.mks.com (Eric Gisin) (07/25/90)

	From: gvokalek@augean.ua.OZ.AU (George Vokalek)

	Looking Glass bombs with the following message:
		Program Abort: 'vsxerr' not set
	The local vendor currently has another customer with the same
	problem.  The vanilla installation of LG does not seem to leave
	much room for errors, and the only documentation is user documentation
	(ie useless for problems).

----

You need to run the license server.
The instructions for doing this are hidden in the user manual
on page 27: Using the License Server.
Interactive should have mentioned this
in the install script or the release notes.

The icons in Looking Glass are neat.
Set your directory to /bin and /usr/bin and select 'view as icons'.

stevea@i88.isc.com (Steve Alexander) (07/26/90)

In article <871@augean.ua.OZ.AU> gvokalek@augean.ua.OZ.AU (George Vokalek) writes:
>When I run twm with the supplied defaults.twmrc as my resource
>file, everything works except that the xterm windows completely
>ignore keyboard input.

I've seen this problem if the twmrc config file refers to keys that
don't exist on the keyboard.  I got bit using the .twmrc from my
Sun on a 386 without "L" function keys.

Hope this helps.

--
Steve Alexander, Software Technologies Group    | stevea@i88.isc.com
INTERACTIVE Systems Corporation, Naperville, IL | ...!{sun,ico}!laidbak!stevea

darryl@ism780c.isc.com (Darryl Richman) (07/26/90)

In article <871@augean.ua.OZ.AU> gvokalek@augean.ua.OZ.AU (George Vokalek) writes:
"Problem: My hard disk has 1661 cylinders and ISC bombs if I try to
"        make the unix partition use cylinders above 1024, despite
"        the fact that it states explicitly that it can manage it.
"
"        The error I was getting was:
"
"        PANIC: athd_int never got non-busy, got 0x000000D1
"
"        This error would always occur during the construction of
"        /usr2 (or whichever file system crossed the 1024 boundard,
"        I presume).  My disk is a 1661cyl x 53 sec/tk x 15 head
"        unit, with a WD1007V ESDI controller.

The problem is that a 1007V looks just like a 1007A, but it reserves
the last two cylinders on the disk, unlike the A.  Sometimes trying to
use the whole disk works out anyway, but usually reads work and writes
on the last cylinder fail.

The solution is, while installing, to not let Unix use the last two
cylinders.  This can be accomplished in one of three ways:

	- using the low level formatter on the 1007 and telling it to
	use a translated geometry

	- setting up the Unix partition so that it doesn't use the last
	two cylinders

	- not accepting the default disk parameters and decreasing the
	number of cylinders by 2.

These work arounds should allow you to use the full extent of your
disk, while providing the benefits of being able to map out bad
sectors.  We are working on a fix to the driver so that it can
distinguish between the two controllers.

		--Darryl Richman
-- 
Copyright (c) 1990 Darryl Richman    The views expressed are the author's alone
darryl@ism780c.isc.com 		      INTERACTIVE Systems Corp.-A Kodak Company
 "For every problem, there is a solution that is simple, elegant, and wrong."
	-- H. L. Mencken

randyt@asdnet.uucp (Randy Terbush) (07/26/90)

In <ERIC.90Jul25160948@femto.mks.com> eric@femto.mks.com (Eric Gisin) writes:


>	From: gvokalek@augean.ua.OZ.AU (George Vokalek)

>	Looking Glass bombs with the following message:
>		Program Abort: 'vsxerr' not set
>	The local vendor currently has another customer with the same
>	problem.  The vanilla installation of LG does not seem to leave
>	much room for errors, and the only documentation is user documentation
>	(ie useless for problems).

>----

>You need to run the license server.
>The instructions for doing this are hidden in the user manual
>on page 27: Using the License Server.

This is not entirely true.  lg runs fine at init level 2 but
fails consistently at init level 3.  I have yet to determine
the fix for this problem.
-- 
Randy Terbush - Advanced System Design - Boise, Idaho - Voice +1 208 342 0835
UUCP: asdnet!randyt --------------------- UNIX Workstation Design and Support
INET: asdnet!randyt@sunstone.idbsu.edu -- CAD Graf*ix BBS --- +1 208 342 8541

emeyer@cup.portal.com (Eric Paul Meyer) (07/28/90)

1) LG

I got the same problem before loading TCP/IP.
Now I have TCP/IP up, and LG keeps telling me it
cannot find a server even so I started vls.
And I also did a vls -a before... vls seems to run fine.

vls seems to use service 5257/udp, but there is not entry for
it in /etc/services. Thus, I think it might be this missing
entry that gives me problems, however I cannot find a solution
in the rather terse documentation.

2) TWM

The sample .twmrc distributed with X11R3 had a bug. Just start
from scratch and build up... and it will work fine.


Eric Meyer
ELIABEL
emeyer@cup.portal.com
415 349 1021

birch@felix.UUCP (Stephen Birch) (08/02/90)

In article <1990Jul26.165348.3749@asdnet.uucp> randyt@asdnet.uucp (Randy Terbush) writes:
>
>>You need to run the license server.
>>The instructions for doing this are hidden in the user manual
>>on page 27: Using the License Server.
>
>This is not entirely true.  lg runs fine at init level 2 but
>fails consistently at init level 3.  I have yet to determine
>the fix for this problem.

I contacted the original author of looking glass (visix) about this problem
and guess what - THERE IS A BUG IN THE LICENSE SERVER ! Having read some
of the previous comments attacking the license numbers introduced in 2.2, I
can't help grinning at the irony of this situation :-). Anyway, Visix is hard
at work correcting the problem. If you need to chat with them, try 
1-800-832-8668 - I found them to be very pleasant and helpful.

By the way, I have also noticed that lg runs at init 2. It seems that
lg bypasses the license server if it finds that TCP/IP is not running. If
you do not need to access lg over the net, you can start it at init 2 and
then increase to level 3, lg then continuesto run just fine. This leaves 
you with the net up and running and lg running locally.

Steve Birch
hplabs!felix!birch