Re: [9fans] SGI Challenge Series

Re: [9fans] SGI Challenge Series

[presotto]

We run on an L and XL with R4X00's.  I seem to remember that the IO4 card used
to change fairly often and we'ld have to change our kernel to keep up.
I have no idea if we've kept up well enough.  We're still running an
XL with 8 processors.  I don't know what a DM is.

Here's the start up cruft from our challenge.  It tells what we really
run on at the moment, you can check it against your own machines.

	IP19 PROM (BE) SGI Version 13  built 02:03:53 AM Aug 29, 1993
	Checking system endianess...                    Big endian
	Initializing hardware inventory...              ...done.
	    CPU 07/00 is bootmaster
	Testing and clearing bus tags...                ...passed.
	Configuring memory...
	    Using standard interleave algorithm.
	Running built-in memory test... 01 03
                                                ...passed.
	Writing cfginfo to memory
	Initializing MPCONF blocks
	Checking EAROM...                               ...passed.
	Testing secondary cache...                      ...passed.
	Checking processor diag results...
 	   Enabled 512 Megabytes of main memory
	    Enabled 8 processors
	Downloading PROM header information...
	Jumping into IO4 PROM.
	IO4 PROM Monitor SGI Version 1.09 Rev A IP19,   Aug 28, 1993 (BE)
	Sizing caches...
	Initializing exception vectors.
	Initializing IO4 subsystems.
	Fixing vpids...
	Initializing environment
	Initializing software and devices.
	S1 - WD95A SCSI controller 0
	S1 - WD95A SCSI controller 1
	All initialization and diagnostics completed.
	Bootmaster processor already started.
	Starting processor #1
	Starting processor #2
	Starting processor #3
	Starting processor #4
	Starting processor #5
	Starting processor #6
	Starting processor #7
	Comparing EAROM checksums...
	Checking hardware inventory...


	System Maintenance Menu

	1) Start System
	2) Install System Software
	3) Run Diagnostics
	4) Recover System
	5) Enter Command Monitor

	Option? 5
	Command Monitor.  Type "exit" to return to the menu.
	>> hinv
                   System: IP19
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache, (cpu 1)
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache, (cpu 2)
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache, (cpu 3)
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache, (cpu 4)
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache, (cpu 5)
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache, (cpu 6)
                Processor: 150 Mhz R4400, 1M secondary cache, (cpu 7)
              Memory size: 512 Mbytes
	>> 

Amazingly enough, the hundreds of times I've seen it check
over the years, its always come out big endian.

Re: [9fans] SGI Challenge Series

[Christopher Nielsen]

On Thu, 28 Sep 2000 presotto@plan9.bell-labs.com wrote:

> We run on an L and XL with R4X00's.  I seem to remember that the IO4
> card used to change fairly often and we'ld have to change our kernel
> to keep up. I have no idea if we've kept up well enough.  We're still
> running an XL with 8 processors.  I don't know what a DM is.

The Challenge DM is the four-processor version in the Challenge series.

> Here's the start up cruft from our challenge.  It tells what we really
> run on at the moment, you can check it against your own machines.

Excellent! Thanks!

> Amazingly enough, the hundreds of times I've seen it check over the
> years, its always come out big endian.

*grin* It may surprise you some day and come up as little endian.

-- 
Christopher Nielsen
cnielsen@pobox.com

[9fans] SGI Challenge Series

[Christopher Nielsen]

I have the opportunity to purchase one of the SGI Challenge series of
servers. I've read in "The Various Ports" that these are used in the labs
as CPU servers, but I couldn't find enough detail on which ones are
supported. I also searched the 9fans archives for any detailed discussion
of MIPS support.

Before I plunk down the money for one of these beasties, which processors
and which, if any, of the Challenge (DM|L|XL) are supported? Do I need to
run these with R4x00s or can I use R10ks?

-- 
Christopher Nielsen
cnielsen@pobox.com