Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!ll-xn!mit-eddie!bu-cs!buengc!wtm
From: wtm@buengc.BU.EDU (W. Thomas Meier)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.encore
Subject: Re: Need user impressions of Encore Multimax
Message-ID: <278@buengc.BU.EDU>
Date: 2 Mar 88 17:21:01 GMT
References: <690@hqda-ai.UUCP>
Followup-To: comp.sys.encore
Organization: Boston U. Engineering Dept.
Lines: 34
In-reply-to: merlin@hqda-ai.UUCP's message of 26 Feb 88 19:03:22 GMT



 I am a system manager on a few of the 7 Multimaxes here at B.U..  Most of
 our systems are DPC CPU systems, but I would recommend the APC Processors
 because of their greater speed.  

 We have had some problems with reliability with our systems, but Encore
 has been very "energetic" in bug fixing from both the software and hardware
 point of view.  We have been getting 12 to 16 days of uptime.  QA on
 hardware is fair, but getting better.  

 The average configuration here at B.U. Running Umax 4.2 is
 3 DPC cards (6 cpus)
 1 EMC card  (ethernet communications, etc.)
 1 SCC card  (system control card, can't do without)
 1 LDC-01    (disk controller card)
 2 CDC disks (about 400Meg each formatted)

 and a gaggle of Annex boxes for serial line to ethernet communications;
 the Multimax has no serial line ports except for the console and a diag
 port.

 If I can be presumptuous for a second, a recommended configuration
 based on our usage (especially with Ada), might be:

 3-5 APC cards (6 to 10 cpus)
 1 EMC card
 1 SCC card
 1 LDC-02      (is 2 physical ldc-01s on the same card for more through-put
                when adding to your first two disks)
 2 NEC disks   (about 600Meg each formatted)

 
 _W. Thomas Meier  -Boston University / Distributed Computing & Communications

 "... I wonder if Encore gives the U.S. Government discounts"