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From: nlane@well.sf.ca.us (Nathan D. Lane)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.xenix.sco
Subject: Re: Can't adress PC-Bus
Message-ID: <25409@well.sf.ca.us>
Date: 12 Jun 91 21:38:44 GMT
References: <674247@neabbs.UUCP> <11845@hub.ucsb.edu>
Organization: Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link, Sausalito, CA
Lines: 35

In article <11845@hub.ucsb.edu> 6600joef@ucsbuxa.ucsb.edu (Joe Foster) writes:
>In comp.unix.xenix.sco <chris@neabbs.UUCP> writes:
>
>>Who knows if it's possible to adress the PC-bus, when your
>>computer is running under SCO Unix V/386 version 3.2?
>
>Only the UNIX kernel may directly access I/O ports and physical memory (in
>case those cards are memory-mapped). Your friend will have to write drivers
>for each interface card. There are plenty of books and things on this
>subject, but writing device drivers is something like black magic. If these
>cards have a BIOS, it is unusable in UNIX. If the manufacturer of the cards
>does not want to divulge the low-level info needed to write a driver for it,
>your friend is out of luck.
>
>Good luck!
>
>Joe Foster
>6600joef@ucsbuxa.ucsb.edu


It is possible for a kernel device driver to access the ports in the pc
and I have found a program that will let it be done.  It is called
peek and I believe it is a kernel driver that will let you access ports.
It is available at svin02.info.win.tue.nl in /pub/sysvX86/peek.tar.Z.
I'm not sure if it will work with SCO or not.

p.s.  If anyone can ftp that address, could you mail me a copy of the
program?  (I can't ftp right now.)

Thanks in advance.

-Nathan Lane
Digital Technology Service
Santa Barbara, CA
(805) 683-3760