Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!umd5!vrdxhq!dgis!csed-1!roskos
From: roskos@csed-1.UUCP (Eric Roskos)
Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
Subject: Re: Minix compatibility rumors
Summary: generic winchester driver
Keywords: minix hardware compatibility
Message-ID: <255@csed-47.csed-1.UUCP>
Date: 21 Jan 88 03:23:00 GMT
References: <950@cod.NOSC.MIL>
Organization: IDA, Alexandria, VA
Lines: 24

I noticed that my generic winchester driver was not listed in this compat-
ibilty list; possibly because it was buried in a long discussion and change
list for Microsoft C, and also possibly because in order to get it compiled
in (if you don't already have the executable binary) you have to more or
less already have a working hard disk (which is why it was buried in the
MSC changes in my case; to write it I had to make all the MSC changes first).

It really does work, though; I am still using it with no problems with my
"MCT-HDC*" disk interface card, which has a controller that is apparently
radically different from the Western Digital-style controllers.  It uses
the BIOS rather than accessing the controller directly; this actually does
not have any visible performance penalty.  If you have my posted changes
and want to use it (but not the other changes), it is contained in the
file gn_wini.c (which I posted in its entirety), plus the routine "_diskio"
bracketed by the "ifdef GENERIC_FDISK" in klib88.asm, plus about 4 lines
of change bracketed by "#ifdef GENERIC_FDISK" in the kernel's main()
routine.  It should work with any disk controller at all, since there is
nothing anywhere in the code that is hardware-specific.

*The card you get if you order a PC or hard disk drive from JDR Microdevices;
 it actually seems to be some unnamed Taiwanese controller.
-- 
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Eric Roskos, IDA (...dgis!csed-1!roskos or csed-1!roskos@HC.DSPO.GOV)