[Info-vax] InfoServer 150

[Bill Gunshannon]

On 1/28/19 3:27 PM, Mark DeArman wrote:
> On Monday, January 28, 2019 at 6:18:13 AM UTC-8, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
>> On 1/27/19 11:03 PM, Mark DeArman wrote:
>>> On Sunday, January 27, 2019 at 6:29:05 PM UTC-8, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
>>>> On 1/27/19 8:53 PM, Mark DeArman wrote:
>>>>> On Sunday, January 27, 2019 at 5:42:19 PM UTC-8, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
>>>>>> On 1/27/19 8:25 PM, Mark DeArman wrote:
>>>>>>> On Saturday, January 26, 2019 at 6:10:50 AM UTC-8, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
>>>>>>>> So, do we have any InfoServer experts here?  I have a problem.
>>>>>>>> I finally got the chance to work on the InfoServer I have had
>>>>>>>> for at least a decade and never got to do anything with.  The
>>>>>>>> hard disk is blank, I assume wiped by the previous owner before
>>>>>>>> giving it away.  I have all the disk images from the Freeware
>>>>>>>> 5.0 CD.  I think I have identified them all.  Two should be
>>>>>>>> software loads and the others are licenses for features. Now,
>>>>>>>> here's the problem.  None of them will boot.  They are all
>>>>>>>> Files-11 format and I assume you just boot them in the CDROM
>>>>>>>> and they will have install scripts that run automatically.
>>>>>>>> But, no luck.  Anybody have any suggestions?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> bill
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I second using ImgBurn on Windows.  Use FastCopy to verify copies off of the Freeware media.  Use SIMH to verify it is valid after transferring to the PC.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> How is SIMH going verify anything that the real machine won't?
>>>>>> People have already said SIMH does not emulate the 3100, it
>>>>>> certainly wouldn't do the Infoserver which seems to be a really
>>>>>> strange 3100.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> bill
>>>>>
>>>>> If there are problems involved in moving it onto the PC, which are trashing the img file before it gets burnt to the CDR media.  Mount it under SIMH, verify the filesystem integrity. This is the most common issue I run into burning ODS-2 or other foreign images onto CD-R.  ImgBurn has no issue burning byte exact copies.  Just make sure to run a verify pass afterwards, many  contemporary CD-R units are flakey.
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> They won't mount on a real VAX running VMS, why would I expect
>>>> them to mount on SIMH?  I am loading ImgBurn.  That will be
>>>> the 7th total and 3rd Windows application.  You will pardon me
>>>> if I don't feel confident that this is going to solve the
>>>> problem.
>>>>
>>>> bill
>>>
>>> Okay.  I was able to burn the image and mount the disk under SIMH, with the CDROM in RAW device mode.  The closest I can approximate to a VAX with a CDROM.
>>>
>>> You can either rename *.img to *.iso and make sure your burning software selects MODE1/2048,
>>
>> Tried that early on.  It didn't work.
>>
>> or rename it to ag-r7lfa-bs.bin and create a text ag-r7lfa-bs.cue with
>> the following:
>>>
>>> FILE "ag-r7lfa-bs.bin" BINARY
>>> TRACK 1 MODE1/2048
>>> INDEX 1 00:00:00
>>>
>>> to be sure the correct mode is selected.
>>
>> What burn package uses cue files?  Not anything I have that I am
>> aware of.
>>
>> bill
> 
> ImgBurn works for either method I outlined and creates a valid CD mountable under VMS.  I don't have a way to attempt to boot it.  But, SIMH can locate the files with /R5:D0000001 flag before it halts on bad instruction.
> 

As I said earlier, I got ImgBurn.  It showed the right mode
so I didn't use the CUE file.  It did offer to  make one for
me so maybe that will be something else to try in the future.
I tried wodim with the little CUE File someone provided but
it kept coming up with problems and everytime I fixed one it
just complained about another.  Obviously the CUE file needs
a lot more than those three lines.


Another data point....

I ran all the diagnostics on the Infoserver and if the results
are to be accepted it passed with flying colors.  So I guess
I can eliinate hardware as the problem.  Don;t know what to do
next.

bill