Greetings,
Couple issues I've tried to bring up on this ML, but I think was blocked due my having an AOL.com address (which most people on this list probably categorize as spam). Anyways...
The two issues I've run into are my failure to get a kernel compiled from linux-mips.org CVS to actually boot, and linux, when I use a working kernel, does not detect the full 320MB of ram in my machine.
On the first issue, the kernel builds fine, just does not boot. There is no output from the kernel on why it refuses to boot. It just stops responding to any input, and I hear no disk activity from the machine indicating it's actually doing something. I even tried with with an antiquitated 2.4.3 kernel apparently off CVS as well, same result. However, using a stock kernel off kernel.org plus a debian patch for 2.4.19, a workable kernel can be built and it boots fine. I've since modified this debian patch to work with newer kernels (up to 2.4.21-pre7), and it works, no problems. I have no further idea what is wrong in this case.
On the second issue, a "hinv" command at the PROM Monitor lists my machine as having 320MB of ram, however the kernel is apparently only detecting 256. Upon the advice of Keith Wesolowski of Project Foobazco, I enabled the DEBUG #define in arch/mip/arc/memory.c to see what the ARC Memory descriptor dump was like. Keith said the dump indicated that whatever was going on between the kernel and the PROM/ARC, the kernel was specifically being told there is 256MB of ram.
For reference, the first eight slots are filled with 32meg SIMMs, and the last four filled with four 16MB simms, for a total of 320MB. I tried testing only the four 16MB simms in the first bank, and both hinv and the kernel reported a functional amount of ram roughly equal to 64MB. I tried putting 128MB in bank 1, 64MB in bank 2, and the remaining 128MB in bank 3, thinking linux just doesn't see the last bank of ram...ARC/PROM still reported 320MB, the kernel said 256MB.
Really I'm at a loss as to what is wrong. I do know that when I briefly had installed an IP28 mainboard + R10K module, and all the ram and booted Thiemo's experimental 2.5.1 IP28 kernel, it saw all 320MB of ram. However, that being a totally different mainboard, such information is probably not pertinent to this little investigation here...
I've included a log of what hinv says, my attempt to boot a CVS kernel, and a working kernel. Of notice, is with the CVS kernel, I also enabled DEBUG in arch/mips/arc/memory.c, and that did print debug output , however nothing further to indicate the CVS kernel booting. My PROM chip also says this information: P/N: 070-1367-010, 3895 S6275. I include that only on the odd circumstance I have an extremely weird PROM. Who knows...
If any other information is needed, let me know, I'll provide whatever I can. It may not seem like much, it's only another 64MB of ram not available, but it's definitely out of the norm, so I figure it's worth a good look into.
--Kumba Gentoo/Sparc/Mips Developer
// hinv output
System: IP22
Processor: 250 Mhz R4400, with FPU
Primary I-cache size: 16 Kbytes
Primary D-cache size: 16 Kbytes
Secondary cache size: 2048 Kbytes
Memory size: 320 Mbytes
SCSI Disk: scsi(0)disk(1)
SCSI Disk: scsi(0)disk(2)
SCSI CDROM: scsi(0)cdrom(4)
Audio: Iris Audio Processor: version A2 revision 1.1.0
// linux-mips CVS kernel Boot attempt
>> boot -f 2421pm
ARCS MEMORY DESCRIPTOR dump:
[0,a8748a48]: base<00000000> pages<00000001> type<Exception Block>
[1,a8748a64]: base<00000001> pages<00000001> type<ARCS Romvec Page>
[2,a8748a2c]: base<00008002> pages<000001dd> type<Standalone Program Pages>
[3,a87492fc]: base<000081df> pages<00000561> type<Generic Free RAM>
[4,a87492cc]: base<00008740> pages<000000c0> type<ARCS Temp Storage Area>
[5,a87492b0]: base<00008800> pages<0000f800> type<Generic Free RAM>
// 2.4.21-pre7 off kernel.org + modified debian patch
>> boot -f 2421p7d
ARCS MEMORY DESCRIPTOR dump:
[0,a8748a48]: base<00000000> pages<00000001> type<Exception Block>
[1,a8748a64]: base<00000001> pages<00000001> type<ARCS Romvec Page>
[2,a8748a2c]: base<00008002> pages<000001ee> type<Standalone Program Pages>
[3,a87492fc]: base<000081f0> pages<00000550> type<Generic Free RAM>
[4,a87492cc]: base<00008740> pages<000000c0> type<ARCS Temp Storage Area>
[5,a87492b0]: base<00008800> pages<0000f800> type<Generic Free RAM>
ARCH: SGI-IP22
PROMLIB: ARC firmware Version 1 Revision 10
CPU: MIPS-R4400 FPU<MIPS-R4400FPC> ICACHE DCACHE SCACHE
CPU revision is: 00000460
FPU revision is: 00000500
Primary instruction cache 16kb, linesize 16 bytes.
Primary data cache 16kb, linesize 16 bytes.
Secondary cache sized at 2048K linesize 128 bytes.
Linux version 2.4.21-pre7 (root@isengard) (gcc version 3.2.2) #2 Sat Apr 12 17:3
0:18 EDT 2003
MC: SGI memory controller Revision 3
Determined physical RAM map:
memory: 00001000 @ 00000000 (reserved)
memory: 00001000 @ 00001000 (reserved)
memory: 001ee000 @ 08002000 (reserved)
memory: 00550000 @ 081f0000 (usable)
memory: 000c0000 @ 08740000 (ROM data)
memory: 0f800000 @ 08800000 (usable)
On node 0 totalpages: 98304
zone(0): 36864 pages.
zone(1): 61440 pages.
zone(2): 0 pages.
Kernel command line: root=/dev/sda3
EISA: Probing bus...
EISA: slot 4 : TCM5970 detected.
EISA: Detected 1 card.
ISA support compiled in.
Calibrating system timer... 1250000 [250.00 MHz CPU]
GIO: Scanning for GIO cards...
GIO: Card 0x7f @ 0x1f000000
GIO: Card 0x04 @ 0x1f400000
Console: colour dummy device 80x25
zs0: console input
Console: ttyS0 (Zilog8530), 38400 baud
Calibrating delay loop... 124.92 BogoMIPS
Memory: 255108k/259392k available (1603k kernel code, 4284k reserved, 108k data,
88k init, 0k highmem)
Dentry cache hash table entries: 65536 (order: 7, 524288 bytes)
Inode cache hash table entries: 32768 (order: 6, 262144 bytes)
Mount cache hash table entries: 512 (order: 0, 4096 bytes)
Buffer-cache hash table entries: 32768 (order: 5, 131072 bytes)
Page-cache hash table entries: 131072 (order: 7, 524288 bytes)
Checking for 'wait' instruction... unavailable.
POSIX conformance testing by UNIFIX
isapnp: Scanning for PnP cards...
isapnp: No Plug & Play device found
Linux NET4.0 for Linux 2.4
Based upon Swansea University Computer Society NET3.039
Initializing RT netlink socket
Starting kswapd
Journalled Block Device driver loaded
devfs: v1.12c (20020818) Richard Gooch (rgooch@atnf.csiro.au)
devfs: boot_options: 0x1
parport0: PC-style at 0x278 [PCSPP,TRISTATE,EPP]
initialize_kbd: Keyboard failed self test
keyboard: Timeout - AT keyboard not present?(ed)
keyboard: Timeout - AT keyboard not present?(f4)
pty: 256 Unix98 ptys configured
DS1286 Real Time Clock Driver v1.0
lp0: using parport0 (polling).
tipar: parallel link cable driver, version 1.18
tipar: registering to devfs : major = 115, minor = 0, node = 0
tipar0: using parport0 (polling).
tipar0: link cable not found.
Hardware Watchdog Timer for SGI IP22: 0.2
sgiseeq.c: David S. Miller (dm@engr.sgi.com)
eth0: SGI Seeq8003 08:00:69:0a:6d:33
RAMDISK driver initialized: 16 RAM disks of 4096K size 1024 blocksize
loop: loaded (max 8 devices)
3c59x: Donald Becker and others. www.scyld.com/network/vortex.html
See Documentation/networking/vortex.txt
3c59x: 3Com EISA 3c590 Vortex 10Mbps at 0x4000. Vers LK1.1.16
ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff, IRQ 3
product code ffff rev ffff.15 date 15-31-127
Full duplex capable
1024K word-wide RAM 3:5 Rx:Tx split, autoselect/<invalid transceiver> interfac
e.
Enabling bus-master transmits and early receives.
3c59x: scatter/gather enabled. h/w checksums disabled
SCSI subsystem driver Revision: 1.00
wd33c93-0: chip=WD33c93B/13 no_sync=0xff no_dma=0 debug_flags=0x00
setup_args=,,,,,,,,,
Version 1.25 - 09/Jul/1997, Compiled Apr 12 2003 at 16:25:26
wd33c93-1: chip=WD33c93B/13 no_sync=0xff no_dma=0 debug_flags=0x00
setup_args=,,,,,,,,,
Version 1.25 - 09/Jul/1997, Compiled Apr 12 2003 at 16:25:26
scsi0 : SGI WD93
scsi1 : SGI WD93
sending SDTR 0103013f0csync_xfer=2c Vendor: SEAGATE Model: ST19171W
Rev: 2219
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 02
sending SDTR 0103013f0csync_xfer=2c Vendor: IBM Model: DCHS09F CLAR09
Rev: SG53
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 02
sending SDTR 0103013f08sync_xfer=28 Vendor: TOSHIBA Model: CD-ROM XM-5701TA
Rev: 1557
Type: CD-ROM ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Attached scsi disk sda at scsi0, channel 0, id 1, lun 0
Attached scsi disk sdb at scsi0, channel 0, id 2, lun 0
SCSI device sda: 17783112 512-byte hdwr sectors (9105 MB)
Partition check:
/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target1/lun0: p1 p2 p3 p4 p5 p6 p7 p8 p9
SCSI device sdb: 17796078 512-byte hdwr sectors (9112 MB)
/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target2/lun0: p1 p2 p3 p4
Attached scsi CD-ROM sr0 at scsi0, channel 0, id 4, lun 0
scsi0 channel 0 : resetting for second half of retries.
SCSI bus is being reset for host 0 channel 0.
scsi0: reset. sending SDTR 0103013f08sync_xfer=28<3>sr0: CDROM (ioctl) error, c
ommand: 0x1a 00 2a 00 80 00
sr00:00: sns = 0 0
Non-extended sense class 0 code 0x0
Raw sense data:0x00 0x00 0x00 0x00
sr0: scsi-1 drive
Uniform CD-ROM driver Revision: 3.12
SGI Zilog8530 serial driver version 1.00
tty00 at 0xbfbd9830 (irq = 45) is a Zilog8530
tty01 at 0xbfbd9838 (irq = 45) is a Zilog8530
NET4: Linux TCP/IP 1.0 for NET4.0
IP Protocols: ICMP, UDP, TCP
IP: routing cache hash table of 4096 buckets, 32Kbytes
TCP: Hash tables configured (established 32768 bind 65536)
NET4: Unix domain sockets 1.0/SMP for Linux NET4.0.
sending SDTR 0103013f0csync_xfer=2c<6>kjournald starting. Commit interval 5 se
conds
EXT3-fs: mounted filesystem with ordered data mode.
VFS: Mounted root (ext3 filesystem) readonly.
Mounted devfs on /dev
Freeing prom memory: 768kb freed
INIT: version 2.84 booting
Gentoo Linux; http://www.gentoo.org/
Copyright 2001-2003 Gentoo Technologies, Inc.; Distributed under the GPL
[snip]
