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Ian Mapleson
*nix forums addict
Joined: 29 Apr 2005
Posts: 54
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 Posted: Wed Jul 12, 2006 9:27 am Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Igor Sobrado wrote:
| Quote: | Mine had 4.3 before upgrading too. I think that 4.18 is a recent
firmware release (i.e., 4.18 is not 4.1.8, 4.18 > 4.3). In fact,
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Whoops! Indeed, I was misreading that as decimal...
| Quote: | Quite sure, but it does not allocate a lot of space for user files! 
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True, but I meant as in enough for testing, etc. Afterwards, if all
is well, you could clone onto a larger drive and proceed from there.
| Quote: | Are you Ian Mapleson??? ...
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Er, yes. :D
| Quote: | ... I printed a lot of information you provide
on SGI's systems some years ago. An *excellent* reference for SGI
users!!!
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Thanks!  So much more to add, so little time...
Cheers! :)
Ian. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Wed Jul 12, 2006 7:15 am Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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mapesdhs@yahoo.com wrote:
| Quote: |
Igor Sobrado wrote:
As this machine is currently EOL'd, I suppose that 4.18 is the latest
firmware release. ...
If 4.18 is the latest, how come I've seen O2s that report V4.3 and in
one
case V4.7?
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Mine had 4.3 before upgrading too. I think that 4.18 is a recent
firmware release (i.e., 4.18 is not 4.1.8, 4.18 > 4.3). In fact,
it was releases at some time at 2002, if I am not wrong. PROM 4.3
was on this machine. And it was never updated since it was adquired
in the mid-90's.
| Quote: | Btw, a default install of 6.5.26 *will* fit onto a 2GB disk. Just. Uses
1.8GB.
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Quite sure, but it does not allocate a lot of space for user files! :)
| Quote: | is dangerous and an unsupported configuration. I will install a new
SCA drive on that machine and install a newer IRIX relase then. It
is a very good advice. Thanks a lot.
Btw, if it's of any help, my site has an installation guide for 6.5:
http://www.futuretech.blinkenlights.nl/6.5inst.html
Feel free to ask any other questions you may have.
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Are you Ian Mapleson??? I printed a lot of information you provide
on SGI's systems some years ago. An *excellent* reference for SGI
users!!!
Best regards,
Igor. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Wed Jul 12, 2006 7:07 am Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Walter Roberson <roberson@hushmail.com> wrote:
| Quote: | In article <e8l19l$92e$1@string1.ciencias.uniovi.es>,
Igor Sobrado <igor@nospam.invalid> wrote:
I changed
the SCA drive to a mostly noisy 4GB Sun SCA drive. I really do not
want to remove the HDDs from the MultiPack enclosure, as these drives
are currently set up as a RAID-5 with two hot spares.
Note that sometimes drives that are part of a RAID are formatted
with a slightly larger sector size... ummm, 520 bytes per sector
is what floats to mind.
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Indeed! But this drive was never added to the MultiPack enclosure. The
Sun StorEdge MultiPack has six 9 GB SCA drives on it. This drive was the
system disk on an Ultra 2 Creator workstation attached to the RAID.
Thanks for the advice!
Igor. |
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Ian Mapleson
*nix forums addict
Joined: 29 Apr 2005
Posts: 54
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| Posted: Wed Jul 12, 2006 1:55 am Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Igor Sobrado wrote:
| Quote: | As this machine is currently EOL'd, I suppose that 4.18 is the latest
firmware release. ...
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If 4.18 is the latest, how come I've seen O2s that report V4.3 and in
one
case V4.7?
Btw, a default install of 6.5.26 *will* fit onto a 2GB disk. Just. Uses
1.8GB.
| Quote: | is dangerous and an unsupported configuration. I will install a new
SCA drive on that machine and install a newer IRIX relase then. It
is a very good advice. Thanks a lot.
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Btw, if it's of any help, my site has an installation guide for 6.5:
http://www.futuretech.blinkenlights.nl/6.5inst.html
Feel free to ask any other questions you may have.
Cheers! :)
Ian.
SGI Depot: http://www.futuretech.blinkenlights.nl/sgidepot/
Email: mapesdhs@yahoo.com (eBay ID: mapesdhs)
Backup email (send copy to this too): sgidepot@blueyonder.co.uk
Home: +44 (0)131 476 0796 (best to call this number first) |
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Walter Roberson
*nix forums Guru
Joined: 19 Feb 2005
Posts: 1300
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| Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2006 4:15 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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In article <e8l19l$92e$1@string1.ciencias.uniovi.es>,
Igor Sobrado <igor@nospam.invalid> wrote:
| Quote: | I changed
the SCA drive to a mostly noisy 4GB Sun SCA drive. I really do not
want to remove the HDDs from the MultiPack enclosure, as these drives
are currently set up as a RAID-5 with two hot spares.
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Note that sometimes drives that are part of a RAID are formatted
with a slightly larger sector size... ummm, 520 bytes per sector
is what floats to mind. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2006 7:08 am Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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josehill <josehill@canada.com> wrote:
| Quote: | Igor Sobrado wrote:
Another reason for manually upgrading a firmware would be fixing a
known issue on a production system were an OS upgrade is not possible,
even if IRIX has not been installed by cloning a hard disk drive.
Yes! Good point -- I forgot about that.
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Your point was certainly more important! :-)
I have just upgraded the SGI O2 PROM to release 4.18. I will look for
a list of changes on this release (my goal was upgrading from 4.3 to
4.12, as it was the latest firmware release provided in a patch for
my old IRIX release, but I finally installed IRIX 6.5.22). I changed
the SCA drive to a mostly noisy 4GB Sun SCA drive. I really do not
want to remove the HDDs from the MultiPack enclosure, as these drives
are currently set up as a RAID-5 with two hot spares.
I am just curious about the improvements from 4.12 up to 4.18. I will
look for some information at sgi.com.
Thanks to all for helping me on this issue!
Best regards,
Igor. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Fri Jul 07, 2006 7:03 am Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Benjamin Gawert <bgawert@gmx.de> wrote:
| Quote: |
Well, the disks used in these desktop workstations usually don't contain
any special firmware. The only thing that differs from the generic disk
is the identification string and the much shorter warranty. There is
absolutely no advantage on a desktop workstation like an O2 to have a
disk with SGI firmware. More contrary, newer standard disks are usually
noticeably faster than the ancient drives that were sold with these
machines...
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Same happens with Solaris and the Sun HDDs. It is a nice feature being
able to identify the HDDs from the SPARC OBP, but certainly not required
for a workstation.
Cheers,
Igor. |
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Benjamin Gawert
*nix forums Guru Wannabe
Joined: 24 Mar 2005
Posts: 190
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| Posted: Sat Jul 01, 2006 5:17 am Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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* Igor Sobrado:
| Quote: | Indeed, I have some SCA drives here (e.g., I have a Sun StorEdge
Multipack disk drive array with six 9 GB SCA drives on it... a fine
and very fast RAID-5!). I have not installed an SCA drive on that
machine as I prefer a drive with the right firmware on it... don't
know if SGI firmware is "recommended" on drives for reliable workstations,
but I am trying to avoid replacing the original HDD with a standard
drive if it is possible.
|
Well, the disks used in these desktop workstations usually don't contain
any special firmware. The only thing that differs from the generic disk
is the identification string and the much shorter warranty. There is
absolutely no advantage on a desktop workstation like an O2 to have a
disk with SGI firmware. More contrary, newer standard disks are usually
noticeably faster than the ancient drives that were sold with these
machines...
Benjamin |
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josehill@canada.com
*nix forums beginner
Joined: 22 May 2005
Posts: 19
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| Posted: Fri Jun 30, 2006 6:19 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Igor Sobrado wrote:
| Quote: | Another reason for manually upgrading a firmware would be fixing a
known issue on a production system were an OS upgrade is not possible,
even if IRIX has not been installed by cloning a hard disk drive.
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Yes! Good point -- I forgot about that.
Thanks and best regards.
-j |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:37 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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josehill <josehill@canada.com> wrote:
| Quote: | * Benjamin:
Exactly! The only reason I could think of for doing this as part of a
"normal" operation would be if someone has multiple, identical hardware
systems, and they want to upgrade their OSs by cloning system disks,
rather than by running a manual installation on each system. Since
cloning the system disk doesn't flash the PROMs on the target systems,
a manual approach would be appropriate, but even then, it shouldn't be
done casually.
|
Indeed, a manual firmware upgrade should not be required when doing
a normal IRIX installation. I will install a new HDD on the O2 and
upgrade the operating system as usual. Thanks a lot for this advice.
Another reason for manually upgrading a firmware would be fixing a
known issue on a production system were an OS upgrade is not possible,
even if IRIX has not been installed by cloning a hard disk drive.
Best regards,
Igor. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:33 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Benjamin Gawert <bgawert@gmx.de> wrote:
| Quote: | * josehill:
I'm curious, however. Why do you need to upgrade the PROM if you are
not upgrading the OS? Unless you have a specific need to do so, it
really isn't something that is recommended practice, and you risk
trashing your system if the flash fails.
Right, and besides that, there also is the chance of experiencing
problems older IRIX releases might have with a newer PROM version...
The best bet probably is to go to the latest IRIX release with which
PROM update is done automatically...
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Hi again, Benjamin.
Agreed, these new firmware releases are probably not being tested
with old IRIX releases. An OS upgrade is the right way to update
the firmware.
Thanks a lot for this advice!
Igor. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:31 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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josehill <josehill@canada.com> wrote:
| Quote: | As of this writing (and with IRIX 6.5.29), the latest version of the O2
PROM (both R5k and R10k/R12k) is 4.18. An earlier poster was correct --
the prom is automatically flashed when installing the OS.
You might want to take a look at the man page for "prom" for some more
information. I believe that you can manually flash the prom from the
prom command line, but flashinst should work fine, as long as the prom
version is good (i.e. newer than what is installed and uncorrupted).
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Thanks for this advice. I will try to upgrade the firmware installing
a new IRIX release then. I tried a firmware upgrade from the operating
system, but the computer shows a "bad PROM revision" message. Forcing
an upgrade is certainly a bad idea. Better installing a new IRIX
release.
| Quote: | I'm curious, however. Why do you need to upgrade the PROM if you are
not upgrading the OS? Unless you have a specific need to do so, it
really isn't something that is recommended practice, and you risk
trashing your system if the flash fails.
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As this machine is currently EOL'd, I suppose that 4.18 is the latest
firmware release. I usually upgrade the firmware in all devices I can
either when a serious problem is discovered or when the latest release
is available (and I certainly do not expect a newer firmware release
for the SGI O2).
When flashing any device (a PC BIOS, a HDD firmware, a wireless NIC
firmware, a CD-ROM firmware...) I usually download twice the driver
and check it using a hash function (usually MD5, but sometimes other
checksums too). I never try an upgrade if the device is not
connected to a UPS either.
I was just looking to fix some possible issues on the firmware.
Certainly upgrading the firmware without installing a new OS release
is dangerous and an unsupported configuration. I will install a new
SCA drive on that machine and install a newer IRIX relase then. It
is a very good advice. Thanks a lot.
Cheers,
Igor. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:24 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Benjamin Gawert <bgawert@gmx.de> wrote:
| Quote: |
I wouldn't call 25$ for a 9GB drive affordable. Especially since Igor
can't use the sled which is probably the only thing that's really worth
some money in this auction...
Igor, just look around for a 3,5" SCSI disk drive that uses SCA
connector. There should be plenty around on ebay, and 25$ should bring
you at least an 18GB drive if not a 36GB drive. I'd not waste any money
on a 9GB disk...
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Hello, Benjamin.
Indeed, I have some SCA drives here (e.g., I have a Sun StorEdge
Multipack disk drive array with six 9 GB SCA drives on it... a fine
and very fast RAID-5!). I have not installed an SCA drive on that
machine as I prefer a drive with the right firmware on it... don't
know if SGI firmware is "recommended" on drives for reliable workstations,
but I am trying to avoid replacing the original HDD with a standard
drive if it is possible. Certainly, Sun firmware on the MultiPack
disks help supporting these disks on the OBP and SOlaris.
I can certainly replace the 2GB drive on that workstation with
a larger SCA drive.
Thanks a lot for this advice,
Igor. |
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igor@nospam.invalid
*nix forums addict
Joined: 17 Aug 2005
Posts: 81
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| Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:18 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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Robert Ramsey <ramseyrt@comcast.net> wrote:
Hi, Rob.
It would be great if the HDD bracket is compatible with the O2,
as there is a HDD bay empty on this machine. But I think that
these drives are not compatible with this workstation case.
Cheers,
Igor. |
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josehill@canada.com
*nix forums beginner
Joined: 22 May 2005
Posts: 19
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| Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2006 6:35 pm Post subject:
Re: upgrading the SGI O2 PROM
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* Benjamin:
Exactly! The only reason I could think of for doing this as part of a
"normal" operation would be if someone has multiple, identical hardware
systems, and they want to upgrade their OSs by cloning system disks,
rather than by running a manual installation on each system. Since
cloning the system disk doesn't flash the PROMs on the target systems,
a manual approach would be appropriate, but even then, it shouldn't be
done casually.
-j
Benjamin Gawert wrote:
| Quote: | * josehill:
I'm curious, however. Why do you need to upgrade the PROM if you are
not upgrading the OS? Unless you have a specific need to do so, it
really isn't something that is recommended practice, and you risk
trashing your system if the flash fails.
Right, and besides that, there also is the chance of experiencing
problems older IRIX releases might have with a newer PROM version...
The best bet probably is to go to the latest IRIX release with which
PROM update is done automatically...
Benjamin |
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