SCO 5.0.7 No Root Controller Found

Fairlight fairlite at fairlite.com
Sun Sep 13 08:47:43 PDT 2020 

Why not call SCO support?  I mean...that was ostensibly the main reason for
using them anyway, was that it was supported by a commercial entity.  So we
were repeatedly told, back in the day.

m->


On Sun, Sep 13, 2020 at 11:36:25AM -0400, Brian K. White via Filepro-list thus spoke:
> Sadly, this was 100% me, for quite a while I was all over that, doing fresh
> installs on different hardware, and I will be no help. It's been too long
> and I don't have any test machines to try things on, and to get that kind of
> stuff right, it always takes some trial & error, even when I was still
> installing and supporting sco boxes every day. You only ever do that arcane
> bootstrap stuff one time at install, and then you have to figure it out
> again by the time the next fresh install comes around, and each new system
> with it's own different hardware needs it's quirks worked out new each time.
> 
> Today, of course, no way in the world would I spend any time even trying.
> Invest the time instead converting sco-dependent code and scripts to linux.
> He already knew that would the obvious suggestion, but, it still is the most
> sensible suggestion. Even if it means paying fp to replace sco fp binaries
> with linux ones, or EVEN if it means installing linux on the hardware and
> installing SCO in virtualbox or vmware (for which write-ups of working fresh
> install incantations exist, unlike for this particular real hardware).
> 
> If I had this machine in my hands, the only way I myself would get it
> working would be a day or several of hands-on direct trial & error and
> debugging/diagnosing to prove what things are working and how they are
> working. With hardware there are all kinds of variables like bios settings
> etc and it takes some experimenting and lots of reboots sometimes to figure
> out that you need to turn off the usb controller or move scsi drive id
> jumpers or enable something in the scsi card raid bios etc etc. No way is it
> going to get figured out by email. At least, I don't think so. Someone else
> might deliver a miracle.
> 
> But I did this all the time for a long time and got real good at it and
> nailed all the hard cases every time, and was all over porting and compiling
> modern gnu software on sco too, and I myself would not even try to get this
> thing installed  this way today. It makes no sense to install a sco os today
> except as a retro hobby project for the pure purpose of preserving an
> example system, not for actual use.
> 
> -- 
> bkw
> 
> On 9/13/20 8:02 AM, Jason Garner via Filepro-list wrote:
> > Good Morning,
> > 
> > I am working with John Esak loading SCO Openserver 5.0.7 on a Dell
> > Precision T7400 workstation. We have been unable to get the SCO
> > bootstrapper to detect the root disk controller. John asked me to post this
> > request for help on the filepro list server. See Below:
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Jason,
> > 
> > I think I may have exhausted my old and decrepit knowledge on SCO
> > Openserver 5.07 and bootstrapping invarious BTLD???s at install time.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > The server you have been helping me load with 5.07 will become my personal
> > FilePro server if I can ever get it loaded properly.  It is such a nice
> > machine??? I am really impressed with it. Built like a tank and will be more
> > than I ever need.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Maybe you could forward  this question out to the FilePro list??? there are
> > (or used to be) many highly capable people on that list using Openserver
> > 5.0.7, and though many have probably switched to Linux, they will
> > definitely  remember more than I do about the correct syntax for loading
> > the WD BTLD drivers at install time with BTLD floppy disks.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > I think all we really need to know, is **what** is the name of the HBA on
> > the motherboard of the Dell Precision T7400 server?  A name that matches up
> > with the correct BTLD driver for WD through SATA??? whether the early group,
> > or the later additions done with ahslink instead of link.
> > 
> > As to the layout of the motherboard on the machine, there are 3 SATA ports
> > that are available as well as 4 more under AHCI/ATA through an  onboard
> > HBA.  The HBA seems to enumerate as a SAS6, but I don???t see that as a BTLD
> > available in either the first BTLD release or the second.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > This is obviously a bit before PERC5 and PERC6 controllers.  I remember
> > using LSiL as the controller/driver in the past for some DELL machines, but
> > since that hasn???t worked??? I???m now running through the end of the variations
> > I can remember.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > I???ve tried using a USB CDROM (instead of the SATA one that came with the
> > machine) to continue with the install and have used just about every
> > bootstring I can imagine to load different drivers so that the T7400 can be
> > loaded from scratch with a valid boot floppy  and/or  valid install CD.
> > The BTLD for the WD supplements all load perfectly, but it never actually
> > lets me see the hard drive root disk controller.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > I have tried dozens (feels like millions)  of combinations of defbootstr
> > commands, but none get it right??? obviously this is because I don???t know
> > what to call the HBA on the T7400 motherboard.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > I have of course tried loading directly to the main 3 motherboard SATA
> > ports as well without using AHC, but ATA mode??? every choice seems to be
> > fruitless.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > I have a junk old machine that has a ???legacy??? choice for its SATA/PATA
> > configuration instead of just ATA/AHC and what is called ???compliant???.  This
> > would be more what I???m used to seeing and expecting, but the few attempts
> > with that machine are yielding the same results  even though it **also**
> > perfectly loads the WD BTLLD with no errors, it gets me all the way to the
> > place where it should see the hard drives, but just like the Dell,  no
> > joy.  I have tried different media, cables, etc. I???m very certain this is a
> > simple need for a correct ???defbootstr??????
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > I???m hoping someone knows a trick or a gotcha get-around for the Dell T7400
> > that I have not found.  Dell, obviously, won???t talk to me without a service
> > contract???. Unfortunately, This was a used, but perfect condition server I
> > found???. So no help there.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Maybe some of you might  remember, I???m looking for something like this:
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Boot:  defbootstr link=fd(60)wd Srom=lsil(0,0,2,0) Sdsk=lsil(0,0,3,0)
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > I???ve run through some stuff about ???atapishift??? to no avail, and even tried
> >   to  install using a USB CDrom with something like:
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Defbootstr Srom=usb_msto(0,0,3,0)
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > And so forth???Nothing gets me all the way to ???seeing??? the root controller. ???
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > If anyone has any ideas, please contact us  through a return email to Jason
> > ??? through Jason???. Or me at john at timescape.com..
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Thanks, Jason??? maybe someone from days of yore will know the answer to this
> > frustrating sticking point.
> > 
> > Talk to you soon, and thanks for forwarding this to the ???list??? for me.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > John
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > --
> > 
> > John Esak
> > 
> > Tucson, AZ
> > 
> > 
> 
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-- 
Audio panton, cogito singularis.

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