File:  [NetBSD Developer Wiki] / wikisrc / ports / mvmeppc.mdwn
Revision 1.1: download - view: text, annotated - select for diffs
Wed Dec 19 03:50:46 2012 UTC (10 years, 3 months ago) by mspo
Branches: MAIN
CVS tags: HEAD
commit more port pages for today.  will pick back up tomorrow

[[!template id=port
port="mvmeppc"
cur_rel="6.0"  
future_rel="7.0"
changes_cur="6.0"
changes_future="7.0"
thumbnail="http://www.netbsd.org/images/ports/mvmeppc/mvme2600.gif"
about="""
NetBSD/mvmeppc is the port of NetBSD to Motorola's PowerPC VME Single Board
Computers (SBC). The first Motorola SBC (68k-based) was introduced in 1988.
Motorola has continued development on 68k and PowerPC based SBC VME modules.

Development activity on NetBSD/mvmeppc continues at a speed that depends on
people's spare time and access to hardware. NetBSD runs on a subset of the now
obsolete MVME160x family of PowerPC-based MVME boards, but support for more
recent boards will be added as and when hardware becomes available to NetBSD
developers.
"""
supported_hardware="""
###Supported System Models

* MVME160x family 

###Boot Options

'Supported:'

* network

'Unsupported:'

* disk
* CD-ROM
* tape

"""
additional="""
###What are the jumpers on the backplane

The jumpers on the backplane are for Bus Grant and Interrupt Acknowledge. Some
VMEbus boards, like disk controllers, do their own VMEbus I/O instead of using
DMA from the CPU. The I/O board requests control of the VMEbus, the arbiter on
the CPU board releases control of the VMEbus, and then the arbiter on the CPU
sends a Bus Grant signal down the backplane.

There are only 4 Bus Grant levels, and you can have several boards, on the same
Bus Grant level. The Bus Grant signal daisy-chains down the backplane through
each I/O board. If you have an empty slot you break the daisy-chain.

Backplane manufacturers put jumper pins next to the connectors so you can jumper
across empty slots. Unfortunately the jumpers may be to the right or left of a
slot depending on the manufacturer.

You may also find that some VMEbus boards don't pass on daisy-chain signals that
they don't use. This means that you may have to leave jumpers on even when a
board is in a slot.

If the boards are side-by-side without an empty slot between the CPU and the
VMEbus boards you may not need any jumpers. That might be worth a try. 


###History
Using NetBSD/prep as a base, NetBSD was ported to an MVME1603-051 by Steve
Woodford. The board was one of two donated to the NetBSD Foundation by Gan
Starling on the condition that a port be attempted.

Following receipt of the boards, and replacement of the VxWorks bootcode by a
PPCBUG image kindly provided by Motorola Computer Group, NetBSD/mvmeppc was up
and running multi-user within two weeks. 
"""
]]
[[!tag tier2port]]

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