Promise PDC20268 FastTrack 100 TX2 (PDC20268)
Hello all,
I have a Promise FastTrack 100 TX2 (PDC20268) IDE-controller (BIOS v2.00.0.24) used in a linux MD-RAID. Aside from various other annoying Promise-problems, I am not able to perform a remote boot because the brain-dead Promise-BIOS "complains" that no array is defined, and requires one to press ESC to continue booting. I would very much appreciate any tips as to how I can circumvent this "feature".
Best regards,
Robert
PS. Please CC me, as I am not in the list.
Quoted 7 lines
I have a Promise FastTrack 100 TX2 (PDC20268) IDE-controller (BIOS v2.00.0.24) used in a linux MD-RAID. Aside from various other annoying Promise-problems, I am not able to perform a remote boot because the brain-dead Promise-BIOS "complains" that no array is defined, and requires one to press ESC to continue booting. I would very much appreciate any tips as to how I can circumvent this "feature".
Well, if you don't usually need a keyboard on that machine, in theory, you might be able to connect the keyboard input to the PS/2 mouse port of another machine, and write a program to send the correct bytes for that keypress to the other machine. Then, you could reboot the machine with the Promise card in it, then log in to the other machine, and run the program to send the keypress.
Not sure how practical this solution would be though... You'd probably have to simulate the keyboard initialisation responses as well, which would make it a bit complicated
John.
Quoted 15 lines · John Bradford
Quoted 7 lines
I have a Promise FastTrack 100 TX2 (PDC20268) IDE-controller (BIOS v2.00.0.24) used in a linux MD-RAID. Aside from various other annoying Promise-problems, I am not able to perform a remote boot because the brain-dead Promise-BIOS "complains" that no array is defined, and requires one to press ESC to continue booting. I would very much appreciate any tips as to how I can circumvent this "feature".
Well, if you don't usually need a keyboard on that machine, in theory, you might be able to connect the keyboard input to the PS/2 mouse port of another machine, and write a program to send the correct bytes for that keypress to the other machine. Then, you could reboot the machine with the Promise card in it, then log in to the other machine, and run the program to send the keypress.
Quoted 3 lines
Not sure how practical this solution would be though... You'd probably have to simulate the keyboard initialisation responses as well, which would make it a bit complicated
That won't work, of course - while the PS/2 and keyboard ports are the same, they are master/slave - the computer is master and the device is slave - you cannot connect master to master.
It'd work if you used bitbanging on the parallel port, though.
Or a keyboard with something heavy on the 'esc' key ;)
Another possibility is just to remove the BIOS from the card or tell the on-board BIOS not to initalize it.
Signature · 2 lines
Vojtech Pavlik SuSE Labs
make a single drive strip array - promise will see array defined and the reboot will pass correctly.
Then you can use sw raid.
Milan Roubal
[email protected]
----- Original Message -----
From: <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, January 20, 2003 7:34 PM
Subject: Promise PDC20268 FastTrack 100 TX2 (PDC20268)
Quoted 15 lines
Hello all,
I have a Promise FastTrack 100 TX2 (PDC20268) IDE-controller (BIOS v2.00.0.24) used in a linux MD-RAID. Aside from various other annoying Promise-problems, I am not able to perform a remote boot because the brain-dead Promise-BIOS "complains" that no array is defined, and requires one to press ESC to continue booting. I would very much appreciate any tips as to how I can circumvent this "feature".
Best regards,
Robert
PS. Please CC me, as I am not in the list.