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Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!rutgers!cbmvax!jesup
From: jesup@cbmvax.commodore.com (Randell Jesup)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga,comp.sys.amiga.tech
Subject: Re: HD Errors
Message-ID: <17444@cbmvax.commodore.com>
Date: 12 Jan 91 00:55:10 GMT
References: <Plenty!> <1991Jan5.235810.25940@nas.nasa.gov> <17158@cbmvax.commodore.com> <1991Jan10.045625.20489@nas.nasa.gov>
Reply-To: jesup@cbmvax.commodore.com (Randell Jesup)
Organization: Commodore, West Chester, PA
Lines: 56

In article <1991Jan10.045625.20489@nas.nasa.gov> ranma@noc.arc.nasa.gov (Robert Michael Gutierrez) writes:
>The Syquest's were originally on 2090a's, in an external box (yes, I've got the
>terminators right!).  On the 2090a, I could FFS format, but eventually, I
>would get the famous 'read/write' error.  OK, disksalv the contents, then
>reformat.  The format does NOT report any bad blocks.  Stuff the old contents
>back into the Syquest.  Give it about a month, WHAM!  Another 'read/write'
>error.  Eventually OFS formatted the disk, no problems in 3 months use.
>
>Now, got the 2091.  HDTools says 1 head, 2550 sectors (approx). Used one
>partition (I need the space!!!), FFS.  Format and data verify, all clean.
>Start moving files onto the cart, WHAM! 'read/write error'.  OK, HDTools
>Data Verify says no errors!  Format again, turn off reselection this time,
>and WHAM! 'read/write error'.

	First, I really think you may have a hardware error here.  I advise
taking it in to Syquest for a check-over.  Second, you may have run into
a syquest rom revision problem, where it ignores attempts to turn off
reselection: if problems persist after getting the hardware checked out,
get the latest rom revision from syquest.  In particular, have them check
the heads and your carts.

>>  Have you talked to Syquest?
>
>Will tomorrow at MacWorld, hopefully.  Otherwise, they are approximately
>20 blocks away from my house, In Fremont, Calif.

	Good.  Let us know the result (for the other syquest owners out
there).

>Oh, I got my Amy used, so I don't have the diskette for HDTools.  Does anybody
>have a copy of HDTools for the 2091???  Considering that it only works
>with the 2091 (maybe others?), I doubt I would have any piracy intentions
>in mind :-)

	I assume you mean HDToolBox (there is no thing named HDTools).  It
works interchangably with the A590/A2091/A3000.

	BTW, due to an unexpected change in the WD part, you may need to turn
off reselection to handle multiple drives (as has been discussed here before).
I believe the ROMS that fix this are version 6.6.  The normal symptom is
a scsi-bus lockup (solid light) during copies between drives.  When turning
off reselection, you need to select your modified drive type without
reselection, rebuild all your partitions (write down where they were first!),
and then save changes to the drive.  You have to be careful, but you shouldn't
need to backup/restore (but do a backup first to avoid murphy...)

	Note that not all controllers have this problem, it depends on chip
revision.  People with one drive have no problems; it only affects multiple
drive setups (and then only under heavy multi-drive load).

-- 
Randell Jesup, Keeper of AmigaDos, Commodore Engineering.
{uunet|rutgers}!cbmvax!jesup, jesup@cbmvax.commodore.com  BIX: rjesup  
The compiler runs
Like a swift-flowing river
I wait in silence.  (From "The Zen of Programming")  ;-)