IRIX Base Documentation 2002 November/SGI IRIX Base Documentation 2002 November.iso/usr/relnotes/eoe/chA.z/chA

Text File | 2002-10-08 | 15.6 KB | 331 lines

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       1.  _C_H_A_L_L_E_N_G_E_/_O_n_y_x__I_O_4__P_R_O_M

       This chapter contains information about the CHALLENGE/Onyx
       IO4 PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory) Monitor.  While in
       most cases the CHALLENGE/Onyx PROM is similar to the PROMs
       discussed in the user's manuals, it contains a new graphical
       user interface and contains a number of new hardware
       configuration features. And while most of these same
       operations may be applied on other SGI systems, notably the
       Indy and Indigo2, please refer to the _p_r_o_m(1M) manual page
       for a complete description of all of the common commands and
       environment variables.

       1.1  _T_h_e__P_R_O_M__G_r_a_p_h_i_c_a_l__U_s_e_r__I_n_t_e_r_f_a_c_e

       In an attempt to improve the look and feel of the PROM user
       interface, the IO4 PROM presents you with a graphical
       interface on Onyx systems when the _c_o_n_s_o_l_e environment
       variable is set to ``g''.  In all cases you can use the
       keyboard instead of the mouse, and in most cases the
       keystrokes required to perform a particular task are
       identical.

       For example, the main five-item panel displayed when the
       system first starts up is identical to the five-item menu
       found on previous systems.  To make a selection, you either
       click any mouse button on one of the five buttons on the
       left, or you press the corresponding number key.  The top
       item (``Start System'') is option number 1, and the last
       item (``Enter Command Monitor'') is option number 5.

       1.2  _C_H_A_L_L_E_N_G_E_/_O_n_y_x__H_a_r_d_w_a_r_e__C_o_n_f_i_g_u_r_a_t_i_o_n__C_o_m_m_a_n_d_s

       The IO4 PROM provides a number of commands that you to
       examine and modify the hardware configuration of your
       system.

       1.2.1  _C_h_e_c_k_i_n_g__a_n_d__U_p_d_a_t_i_n_g__t_h_e__H_a_r_d_w_a_r_e__I_n_v_e_n_t_o_r_y  When
       the system first starts up, the IO4 PROM automatically
       examines all of the boards in the system to determine
       whether any components have failed.  During this process,
       the IO4 PROM reads a copy of the hardware inventory out of
       nonvolatile memory and compares the system's current
       configuration with the last known inventory.  If it finds a
       discrepancy, the PROM prints a warning message.  When errors
       are found, the PROM automatically pauses before continuing
       so that the administrator has a chance to examine the error
       notices.  The following example shows the output of the
       inventory checker if it notices that one of the processors
       on an IP19 is missing.












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       CCCChhhheeeecccckkkkiiiinnnngggg iiiinnnnvvvveeeennnnttttoooorrrryyyy............
       ************     SSSSlllliiiicccceeee 1111 oooonnnn tttthhhheeee IIIIPPPP11119999 iiiinnnn ssssllllooootttt 2222 iiiissssnnnn''''tttt vvvviiiissssiiiibbbblllleeee
       PPPPrrrreeeessssssss <<<<EEEENNNNTTTTEEEERRRR>>>> ttttoooo ccccoooonnnnttttiiiinnnnuuuueeee

       If system uptime is critical (if, for example, your system
       is a central server) and operators aren't available around
       the clock, you might not want the PROM to wait for operator
       intervention when the hardware inventory checker notices a
       problem.  To force the system to continue booting in the
       face of non-fatal failures, set the _n_o_n_s_t_o_p environment
       variable to ``1'' (see Section A.3, ``Environment
       Variables'').

       The hardware inventory routines are incapable of
       differentiating between hardware that has been physically
       removed from a system and hardware that is so broken that it
       doesn't appear to be present.  For this reason, if you
       change the configuration of your CHALLENGE/Onyx system, you
       must explicitly update the system's hardware inventory.  To
       do this, first enter the PROM monitor by selecting the
       ``Enter Command Monitor'' option from the PROM menu.  When
       the command monitor displays its prompt (``>>''), type
       update, then press the <Enter> key.  This tells the PROM
       that the system's current configuration is correct and
       prevents it from complaining in the future.  Next, type
       reset and press the <Enter> key to reset your system.

       If you see error messages when no hardware modifications
       have occurred, a component in your system might have failed.
       Call your service provider.  In this situation, the hardware
       inventory information might provide valuable insight into
       the nature of the problem.  For this reason, do not update
       the hardware inventory until a field service engineer first
       examines the system.

       1.2.2  _D_i_s_p_l_a_y_i_n_g__C_u_r_r_e_n_t__H_a_r_d_w_a_r_e__C_o_n_f_i_g_u_r_a_t_i_o_n  To display
       a list of boards installed in a CHALLENGE or Onyx system,
       using the command monitor (with prompt ">>"), type hinv -b.
       The ----bbbb option forces _h_i_n_v to display bus-specific
       information.  The ----vvvv switch, when used with the ----bbbb switch,
       causes _h_i_n_v to display more detailed information about
       boards.  For example, typing:

       hhhhiiiinnnnvvvv ----bbbb ----vvvv

       displays the configuration of all the processors, memory
       banks, and IO adapters in the system.

       1.2.3  _P_O_D__M_o_d_e  In the unlikely event of an extreme
       hardware failure, the system might drop into a low-level
       diagnostic environment known as POD (Power-On Diagnostics)











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       mode.  POD mode helps in system diagnosis and is not
       intended for use by customers.  Entering POD mode is usually
       a sign of severe hardware problems; consult a service
       provider.

       1.3  _E_n_v_i_r_o_n_m_e_n_t__V_a_r_i_a_b_l_e_s

       This section describes special procedures to customize
       certain aspects of the PROM Monitor.  Many aspects of the
       system startup process can be customized by changing PROM
       environment variables.  Some of these PROM environment
       variables are stored in nonvolatile memory, which retains
       its value after the system is powered off.  Some common
       customizations are described in the sections below.  More
       information is provided in the _p_r_o_m(1M) manual page.

       Environment variables can be changed with the _s_e_t_e_n_v command
       in the PROM Command Monitor.  To get to the PROM Command
       Monitor, first choose ``Stop for System Maintenance'' when
       the system is starting in order to get to the System
       Maintenance Menu, then choose ``Enter Command Monitor'' by
       either clicking on it with the mouse or pressing 5.

       1.3.1  _S_e_l_e_c_t_i_n_g__t_h_e__C_o_n_s_o_l_e__D_e_v_i_c_e  Servers and
       workstations can be configured to use a terminal connected
       to serial port #1 as their console.  If a system has a
       graphics board, the PROM Monitor uses it as the console if
       the _c_o_n_s_o_l_e environment variable is set to ``g''; if
       graphics aren't installed or the _c_o_n_s_o_l_e variable is set to
       ``d'', the system uses the serial port as the system
       console.

       To force the console to be the serial port, set the _c_o_n_s_o_l_e
       variable to ``d'' using the _s_e_t_e_n_v command:

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv ccccoooonnnnssssoooolllleeee dddd

       To change the console back to the graphics screen, set the
       _c_o_n_s_o_l_e variable to ``g'':

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv ccccoooonnnnssssoooolllleeee gggg

       Typing init reinitializes the system and forces it to switch
       to the selected console device.

       1.3.2  _B_o_o_t_i_n_g__F_r_o_m__a_n__A_l_t_e_r_n_a_t_e__D_i_s_k  There are three
       environment variables in the PROM for specifying the device
       to boot from.  The _S_y_s_t_e_m_P_a_r_t_i_t_i_o_n variable specifies the
       location of the device volume header.  Its default value is
       ``dksc(0,1,8),'' which specifies SCSI controller 0, disk 1,
       partition 8.  The _O_S_L_o_a_d_P_a_r_t_i_t_i_o_n variable specifies the











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       device from which the IRIX kernel should be loaded.  The
       default value for the _O_S_L_o_a_d_P_a_r_t_i_t_i_o_n variable is
       ``dksc(0,1,0),'' which tells the PROM to look for the kernel
       in partition 0 on disk 1 of SCSI controller 0.  By
       convention, the volume header is always partition 8 on a
       disk, and the kernel is always located in partition 0.

       The _r_o_o_t variable is the third variable that needs to be
       changed when selecting a different boot device.  The _r_o_o_t
       variable tells IRIX the name of the device that holds the
       root filesystem.  Because it is used by IRIX rather than the
       PROM, its format is different from that of the
       _O_S_L_o_a_d_P_a_r_t_i_t_i_o_n and _S_y_s_t_e_m_P_a_r_t_i_t_i_o_n variables.  The default
       value of _r_o_o_t is ``dks0d1s0,'' which specifies that the root
       filesystem is stored on partition 0 of disk 1 on SCSI
       controller 0.

       To boot from disk number two on controller 0, type:

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv SSSSyyyysssstttteeeemmmmPPPPaaaarrrrttttiiiittttiiiioooonnnn ddddkkkksssscccc((((0000,,,,2222,,,,8888))))
       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv OOOOSSSSLLLLooooaaaaddddPPPPaaaarrrrttttiiiittttiiiioooonnnn ddddkkkksssscccc((((0000,,,,2222,,,,0000))))
       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv rrrrooooooootttt ddddkkkkssss0000dddd2222ssss0000

       To boot from disk number one on controller 1, type:

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv SSSSyyyysssstttteeeemmmmPPPPaaaarrrrttttiiiittttiiiioooonnnn ddddkkkksssscccc((((1111,,,,1111,,,,8888))))
       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv OOOOSSSSLLLLooooaaaaddddPPPPaaaarrrrttttiiiittttiiiioooonnnn ddddkkkksssscccc((((1111,,,,1111,,,,0000))))
       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv rrrrooooooootttt ddddkkkkssss1111dddd1111ssss0000

       Finally, to boot from disk number 3 on controller 2, type:

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv SSSSyyyysssstttteeeemmmmPPPPaaaarrrrttttiiiittttiiiioooonnnn ddddkkkksssscccc((((2222,,,,3333,,,,8888))))
       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv OOOOSSSSLLLLooooaaaaddddPPPPaaaarrrrttttiiiittttiiiioooonnnn ddddkkkksssscccc((((2222,,,,3333,,,,0000))))
       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv rrrrooooooootttt ddddkkkkssss2222dddd3333ssss0000


       1.3.3  _S_t_a_r_t_i_n_g__t_h_e__S_y_s_t_e_m__A_u_t_o_m_a_t_i_c_a_l_l_y  By default, the
       PROM starts the operating system after waiting a brief
       period of time each time the system is powered on.  If you
       do not click on the ``Stop for System Maintenance'' button,
       or press the <Esc> key, the system attempts to start the
       operating system by loading it into memory and executing it.
       The environment variable _a_u_t_o_l_o_a_d can be set to ``yes'' to
       enable this feature, or to ``no'' (the default) to inhibit
       it.  If automatic startup is disabled, the PROM displays the
       System Maintenance Menu after running power-on diagnostics.

       1.3.4  _B_o_o_t_i_n_g__W_i_t_h__N_o_n_-_T_e_r_m_i_n_a_l__H_a_r_d_w_a_r_e__F_a_i_l_u_r_e_s  By
       default, the PROM stops and prints a warning message if it
       discovers that a component has failed in some manner.  In
       many cases, however, the failure of a single processor or











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       bank of memory isn't enough to keep the system from coming
       up.  If your CHALLENGE/Onyx system is configured with eight
       processors, losing one of them is non-fatal.  To prevent
       such non-fatal hardware problems from stopping the system in
       the PROM, you can set the _n_o_n_s_t_o_p variable to 1:

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv nnnnoooonnnnssssttttoooopppp 1111

       To ensure that the system displays a notification message in
       the event of any hardware failures, set nonstop to 0:

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv nnnnoooonnnnssssttttoooopppp 0000

       1.3.5  _R_e_b_o_o_t_i_n_g__I_m_m_e_d_i_a_t_e_l_y__A_f_t_e_r__C_r_a_s_h_e_s  Normally, the
       system will pause waiting for user intervention after a
       system crash.  In environments which demand high
       availability such a pause may be undesirable.  To force the
       system to reboot immediately after a panic, set the _r_e_b_o_u_n_d
       environment variable to ``y'' using the PROM's setenv
       command:

       sssseeeetttteeeennnnvvvv rrrreeeebbbboooouuuunnnndddd yyyy

       To return to the default behavior of waiting for user
       intervention, set _r_e_b_o_u_n_d to 'n'.

       1.3.6  _R_e_s_t_o_r_i_n_g__D_e_f_a_u_l_t_s  The PROM environment variables
       can be reset to their factory defaults by issuing the
       _r_e_s_e_t_e_n_v command from the PROM Command Monitor.  Because
       _r_e_s_e_t_e_n_v also resets the _n_e_t_a_d_d_r environment variable, you
       may wish to note the system's IP address before using this
       command.

       1.4  _K_n_o_w_n__B_u_g_s

       The following list details all known IO4 PROM bugs at the
       time of release.  Because the IO4 PROM is software-writable,
       these bugs will be fixed by PROM updates in future releases
       of the operating system.

       1.4.0.1  _T_h_e__G_U_I__h_a_n_d_l_e_s__u_n_e_x_p_e_c_t_e_d__w_a_r_n_i_n_g__m_e_s_s_a_g_e_s__p_o_o_r_l_y
       If an unexpected warning or status message is printed, the
       graphical user interface switches over to a text port to
       display the message.  The PROM continues to execute, but
       additional information is displayed textually rather than
       graphically.  This bug is usually seen if an informational
       message is displayed while the miniroot is being loaded
       during the installation process.