info-vax@ucbvax.ARPA (01/31/85)
From: Jim Lewinson <a.Jiml@SU-GSB-WHY.ARPA> We have a VAX-11/780 and I have a whole pile of blank 8" floppies that I would like to use to build a new Console Floppy. However, the floppies seem to not be formatted and all of my attempts to get the Vax to do so have failed. I have tried under Unix 4.2bsd with rxformat, except it seems to have no clue that the console is a floppy disk, VMS doesn't seem to have a program to do the job, and DEC's Diagnostics also seem to be unable to cope with someone who wants to format the console media. Has anyone managed to do this?? Thanks, Jim -------
info-vax@ucbvax.ARPA (01/31/85)
From: Richard Garland <OC.GARLAND%CU20B@COLUMBIA.ARPA> To format floppies (for 780 console) try FLX - $ Run Sys$System:FLX FLX> CS1:/RT/ZE (or something like that.) Also consult SYS$UPDATE:CONSCOPY.COM. There is also a pile of LSI-11 type diagnostics which should run from the console (stand-alone) which includes a set of RX01 diagnostics - probably a formatter is in there. We had a problem with our RX01 a while back and we dug out these things, unused in about 5 years. Rg -------
info-vax@ucbvax.ARPA (01/31/85)
From: Rudy.Nedved@CMU-CS-A.ARPA Jim, In general DEC's floppy drives use the sync signal from the disk for operations. Therefore unless the floppy is already formatted somehow... you can not format them. I have been burned several times with this...occasionally the buyer for various data junk like tapes, chips and floppies gets me unformatted and voilia...I quickly find I have problems trying to get arff to work under Unix or R FORMAT under RT-11. -Rudy
info-vax@ucbvax.ARPA (02/07/85)
From: cbosgd!clyde!watmath!utcsrgv!orton@BERKELEY (Ed Orton) I have encountered similar problems. It can be done with one of the DEC field service utilities, but the process takes so long that I did them all on myhome micro.