Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!sharkey!atanasoff!heins
From: heins@atanasoff.cs.iastate.edu (Leeland Heins)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: micro-code upgrade
Message-ID: <916@atanasoff.cs.iastate.edu>
Date: 29 Mar 89 05:15:24 GMT
References: <485@cs.wmich.edu>
Reply-To: heins@atanasoff.cs.iastate.edu (Leeland Heins)
Organization: Iowa State U. Computer Science Department, Ames, IA
Lines: 40

In article <485@cs.wmich.edu> dodgson@cs.wmich.edu (Harry Dodgson) writes:
>
>	First some system specs, then the question.
>We have a VAX 11/750, 4Meg memory, dectape on cpu, (2) RA81 drives,
>and a TU80 tape drive.  We run BSD 4.3 Unix -Generic-.
>The system currently sets the microcode rev level at 98.
>
>The DEC rep will be in this Tuesday to upgrade the microcode to
>level 103.  He doesn't know anything about Unix. I don't have

** opinion on :-) **  Does any DEC rep ever say anything but "buy VMS"?  :-)

>any idea of how to get this onto the drives either.  Does anyone
>know what I have to do to get the code from his tape onto the RA81s?

   If I'm not mistaken the microcode goes onto your TU58 boot tape that
goes into your 750's console, not onto the RA81.  The TU58 is the small
(and slllooowww) tape cartidge that makes a lot of noise when you turn
your 750 on from a cold start as it displays the messages on your
console device (usually a DECWriter III).  You should be able to use
'dd' to copy the files to the TU58...  on second thought, it might be
better to read the section in the BSD docs on "Installing and Operating
4.3BSD on the VAX" about making a console boot tape.  I've done this
before (over a year ago) on our old 730 which also uses a TU58 as its
console tape.  On second thought, if the 'tape' he is talking about is a
TU58 cartrige, you can use the console 'COPY' command to copy the new
files onto your boot tape (make sure to make a backup of it with COPY
first though!).


>-- 
>Harry Dodgson Jr.               Internet:  dodgson@cs.wmich.edu
>Western Michigan University			   (35.132.4.1)
>Computer Science Department        Voice:     (616) 387-5803
>Kalamazoo, MI  49008


					Lee Heins, EXNET Programmer
					Iowa State U. Extension
					..!hplabs!hp-lsd!atanasoff!heins