[comp.sys.mips] RC3230 General Query

richard@ghp.UUCP (Richard Chan) (09/08/90)

This is my first time posting to this group and I have no experience with
MIPS machines, so please forgive any blunders in the following: 


Does anyone out there have any experience with the MIPS RC3230 RISComputer?

We are considering a RC3230 RISComputer running 8 users simultaeously off serial
ports.

What is the response time like ?  ( I have the brochure benchmarks, but user
opinion is always nice :-) )

Any problems with the hardware/software/support ?

Any hidden costs/bottlenecks/problems?

The configuration we are considering is:

	MIPS computer systems
		RC3230 RISCcomputer at 25 MHz
		R3010 Floating point processor at 25 MHz
		64 KB of I&D caches
		8 MB of main memory
		2 serial ports
		SCSI controller
		2 200 MB 3.5" disks (seagate drive)
		thick Ethernet interface
		TCP/IP and NFS networking software
		power supplies and cabling
		RISC/os 4.50 (UNIX SYS V.3.2) license
	Terminal(console), keyboard and line printer
	additional 8 MB of main memory
	6013-N 120 MB,1/4" cart. tape drive
	ROS45B-MED RISC/os media
	ROS-00-DOC RISC/os documentation set
	16 port serial I/O board.
		

Any response will be appreciated.
( Assume I know nothing about the MIPS machine, but fairly conversant in 
UNIX and other technical details )
Please send via E-mail.   

-- 


.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------.
| Richard Chan, Gellman.Hayward & Partners Ltd                                |
| 33 Yonge St., Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5E 1G4        Voice: (416)862-0430 |
| UUCP:richard%ghp@mnetor.uucp                                                | 
`-----------------------------------------------------------------------------'

smithw@yvax.byu.edu (09/09/90)

8 users, and we have 24 Mb RAM.  But it becomes rather piggish if anyone
runs a job that uses lots of memory.  So, if you were planning something
awful like 8 users running a CAS, then you should invest in a lot more
RAM since I/O can really bog this machine down it seems.  Just one users
experience.

bin@primate.wisc.edu (Brain in Neutral) (09/10/90)

You want more RAM than 8MB.  You probably also should invest in one
of these "intelligent" serial boards, and not use 8 separate ports on
the AT bus (if that's what you intend to do) to lessen the interrupt
load on the processor.

Paul DuBois
dubois@primate.wisc.edu

pbickers@groucho (09/11/90)

In article <659@ghp.UUCP> richard@ghp.UUCP (Richard Chan) writes:
>
>We are considering a RC3230 RISComputer running 8 users simultaeously off serial
>ports.
>
>The configuration we are considering is:
>
>	MIPS computer systems
>		RC3230 RISCcomputer at 25 MHz
>		R3010 Floating point processor at 25 MHz
>		64 KB of I&D caches
sounds like RC3240; 3230 has 32KB of each
>		8 MB of main memory
>		2 serial ports
sounds like 3230; 3240 has 4 ports + 4 AT slots
>		SCSI controller
>		2 200 MB 3.5" disks (seagate drive)
>		thick Ethernet interface
>		TCP/IP and NFS networking software
>		power supplies and cabling
>		RISC/os 4.50 (UNIX SYS V.3.2) license
>	Terminal(console), keyboard and line printer
>	additional 8 MB of main memory
>	6013-N 120 MB,1/4" cart. tape drive
>	ROS45B-MED RISC/os media
>	ROS-00-DOC RISC/os documentation set
>	16 port serial I/O board.
>		
could be either; the 3230 has a single ISA slot which will take the I/O
board

I draw attention to this because I have seen 2 postings in reply which
clearly assume you mean a 3240 (essentially an upgraded M120) rather than
the new (released last May) 3230.

The 3230 takes (cheap) 3rd party SIMMS and so increasing the RAM is not 
a problem.  Get the 8MB version and add all you can afford.

-- 
Paul Bickerstaff                 Internet: pbickers@neon.chem.uidaho.edu
Physics Dept., Univ. of Idaho    Phone:    (208) 885 6809
Moscow ID 83843, USA             FAX:      (208) 885 6173