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TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................... 1.0
ABOUT THIS MANUAL .......................................... 2.0
Acknowledgements ........................................... 2.1
LIMITED WARRANTY ........................................... 3.0
ABOUT THE RamFAST/SCSI ..................................... 4.0
Features ................................................... 4.1
General Theory of Operation ................................ 4.2
INTRODUCTION AND QUICKSTART ................................ 5.0
CONVENTIONS USED IN THIS MANUAL ............................ 6.0
QUICKSTART GUIDE ........................................... 7.0
HARDWARE INSTALLATION ...................................... 8.0
Installing on a Sider Hard Drive ........................... 8.1
DETAILED INSTALLATION PROCEDURES ........................... 9.0
SYSTEM SETUP .............................................. 10.0
FORMAT HARD DRIVE ......................................... 11.0
MAKING THE HARD DRIVE BOOTABLE ............................ 12.0
INSTALLING THE RamFAST/SCSI SOFTWARE ...................... 13.0
IF PROBLEMS OCCUR ......................................... 14.0
RamFAST/SCSI UTILITIES .................................... 15.0
VOLUMES SCREEN ............................................ 15.1
ProDOS 8 VOLUMES .......................................... 16.0
Lookahead and Write Protect ............................... 16.1
Backup .................................................... 16.2
Restore ................................................... 16.3
Install ................................................... 16.4
ScsiUtils ................................................. 16.5
Format .................................................... 16.6
Add/Delete Partitions ..................................... 16.7
Resizing Partitions ....................................... 16.8
Partition ................................................. 16.9
ACTIVE VERSUS INACTIVE PARTITIONS ......................... 17.0
SPECIAL FEATURES AND UPGRADES ............................. 18.0
Keys Used During the Boot Process ......................... 18.1
Upgrading to 1Meg of Cache ................................ 18.2
TROUBLE SHOOTING .......................................... 19.0
All Computers ............................................. 19.1
//e Computers ............................................. 19.2
IIgs Computers ............................................ 19.3
IIgs with a TWGS and a RamFAST/SCSI Rev C ................. 19.4
Top Six Questions Received at Tech Support Central ........ 19.5
If All Else Fails... ...................................... 19.6
WARRANTY REGISTRATION ..................................... 20.0
RamFAST Manual Page 1
2.0 ABOUT THIS MANUAL
This is not an official manual from Sequential Systems. It does
however contain major excerpts from the Sequential Systems manual.
These use of these excerpts has been permitted by Mr. Joseph
Yandrofski, President of Sequential Systems. His e-mail on the subject
follows:
> Mr. Walters:
> This note is to confirm that you have the permission of
> myself as President of Sequential Systems, Inc. to publish
> and sell your owner's manual for our RamFast SCSI
> interface for Apple II.
> Joseph A. Yandrofski,
> President Sequential Systems, Inc.
> Voice: (303) 666-4549
> http://www.sequential.com
Despite the permissions given above Sequential Systems still retains
the copyright to those portions of the manual that are excerpted here
and are not in the public domain.
2.1 Acknowledgements
There were four people involved in directly generating this manual:
Howard Katz, Sue McKinnell, Joe Walters, and Gary Welsh. Jawaid Bazyar
was extremely valuable in providing explanations of areas we didn't
understand and text for areas he felt that the manual should address.
Finally, we wish to thank Joe Yandrofski for allowing us to bring this
manual to you. However, despite Joseph Yandrofski's statement above
that we could sell this manual, it is not for sale. It is free,
however, we wish to stress once again, the copyright remains with
Sequential Systems and Mr. Yandrofski so you must contact them if you
wish to use the material in this manual for your own purpose.
Disclaimer of warranty and limitation of liability.
Even though the authors have reviewed this documentation, they make no
warranty or representation, either express or implied, with respect t
it's quality, performance, or fitness for a particular purpose. As a
result, this information is distributed "as is" and you the user, are
assuming the entire risk as to its quality and performance.
In no event will the authors be liable for direct, indirect, special,
incidental, or consequential damages resulting from any defect in the
information presented here, even if advised of the possibility of such
damages, In particular, the authors shall have no liability for any
programs or date stored in or used with this product, including the
costs of recovering such programs or data.
Any errors, omissions, or suggestions for improvement should be sent
to: bird@mcs.net.
This version of the manual was finalized 3/17/97.
3.0 LIMITED WARRANTY
Sequential Systems warrants this product against defects in materials
and workmanship for two years from the time you, the original
consumer, purchase it. This warranty applies only should the product
fail to function properly under normal use.
RamFAST Manual Page 2
During the warranty period, Sequential Systems will repair (or, at its
option, replace), at no charge, components that prove to be defective,
provided the product is returned (shipping prepaid and properly
packed) to Sequential Systems.
Before returning any item you must first call (800) 999-1717 to obtain
an RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) number. This number must be
prominently marked on the outside of the shipping container and on a
letter enclosed inside that lists your name, address, and reason for
returning the item. Also, a copy of your purchase receipt or other
proof of original purchase and the serial number (Rev D cards
manufactured by Sequential Systems do *not* have a serial number so
this requirement is waived for such boards), must be provided when
requesting warranty service. Sequential Systems will consider an
on-file registration card in your name RamFAST/SCSI as proof of
purchase. (See, it *does* pay to send those registration cards in.)
This warranty does not apply if in the opinion of Sequential Systems,
the product has been damaged by accident, misuse, neglect, improper
packing or improper modifications.
This warranty is in lieu of all other express warranties, statements,
or representations, and unless stated herein, all such warranties,
statements, or representations, made by any other person or firm is
void.
In the event that this product shall prove defective in workmanship or
materials, your sole remedy shall be the repair or remedy as stated in
this warranty, and under no circumstances shall Sequential Systems be
liable for any loss or damage, direct, incidental, or consequential,
arising out of the use of, or inability to use, this product caused by
any defect in the product.
Sequential Systems
1200 Diamond Circle
Lafayette, CO 80025
Ph: (303) 666-4549 Fax: (303) 665-0933
4.0 ABOUT THE RamFAST/SCSI
Congratulations! You have just purchased the ultimate hard drive
controller for the Apple ][ line of computers. The RamFAST/SCSI is the
- only* DMA (Direct Memory Access) hard drive controller that supports
true 1:1 interleave. No other controller in the Apple ][ market can
make that claim. What this means is that you can expect unparalleled
speed and performance (2 to 13 times that of other controllers).
4.1 Features
- 1 Megabyte/second transfer rate
- 256K of on-board cache upgradable to 1Meg
- GS/OS driver included
- Configuration/Utility program included
- Built in RomDISK, no floppies to mess with
- Supports up to 12 drives/partitions at a time
- Access to all of them, even under ProDOS 8
- Compatible with the Apple //e and IIgs
- Supports the older SASI drives (Sider D2, D4, and D4T)
- Easy installation - just plug and go
- Limited two year warranty
4.2 General Theory of Operation
RamFAST Manual Page 3
The RamFAST/SCSI accelerates your hard drive performance by using an
on-board processor and state-of-the-art hardware caching techniques,
coupled with DMA to take the burden of disk I/O off of the Apple CPU.
All that is necessary is for code on the Apple to tell the
RamFAST/SCSI what data it wants and where it wants it put and the
RamFAST/SCSI does the rest. And since the RamFAST/SCSI keeps the most
recently accessed data in its on-board memory at all times, the data
are often available almost immediately.
Even when it is necessary to actually access the disk to get the data,
the RamFAST/SCSI gets the data as fast as physically possible. Since
the processor on the RamFAST/SCSI runs at 10Mhz, it has no problems
keeping up with an interleave of 1:1. This allows the RamFAST/SCSI to
read an entire track of the drive in one revolution. And what's more,
even when writing to the disk, the RamFAST/SCSI is able to keep up
with this 1:1 interleave.
5.0 INTRODUCTION AND QUICKSTART
If you are upgrading the ROM(s) on your RamFAST/SCSI from a version
previous to V3.0 you should have received an instruction sheet with
the ROM(s) with instructions on how to install the ROM chip. Just
follow the installation instructions on that sheet and you should be
all set. You should still browse through the manual to get yourself
familiar with the differences between V3.0 and the version that was
installed previously. One thing to be aware of if you are upgrading
from a previous version of the RamFAST/SCSI is that: Tape backups made
by versions previous to V3.0 are not compatible with the current
software in the RamFAST/SCSI.
6.0 CONVENTIONS USED IN THIS MANUAL
S*n* (where *n* can be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7), is used to refer to a
slot number in your computer.
D*n* is used to refer to which ProDOS 8 drive number is assigned to a
volume (or partition if you prefer that nomenclature). Together then,
S7,D2 refers to Slot 7, Drive 2. If you are still lost then you should
read the chapters in your computer's user's manual that refer to
ProDOS 8 and disk drives.
It is assumed that you will be using a mouse to interact with the
utility program that is built into the RamFAST ROM. If this is not the
case (i.e., //e users without a mouse and keyboard orientated users),
the following steps can be used to reproduce the actions of the mouse:
To execute commands that the mouse clicks at the top of the screen you
can hold down the Command key (Open-Apple) and the highlighted letter
in the command at the same time. For example, to execute the ScsiUtils
command (the letter "U" is highlighted), you would hold down the
Command key and U at the same time. (It makes no difference whether
you use upper or lower case U.)
When told to select something you can move the cursor bar with the
arrow keys and select the highlighted item you want by pressing
<RETURN> or <SPACE BAR>.
7.0 QUICKSTART GUIDE
If the following list makes no sense whatsoever then you should just
go on to the sections on Hardware Installation and System Setup and
follow the step-by-step instructions for getting the RamFAST/SCSI up
and running.
RamFAST Manual Page 4
- On IIgs machines, make sure that the control panel setting for the
slot that you intend to plug the RamFAST/SCSI into is set to "Your
Card."
- Turn off the power to your computer but do NOT unplug it from the
wall outlet.
- Remove the cover from the computer, lightly touch the metal case of
the power supply to discharge any static electricity present in your
body, and plug the RamFAST/SCSI into any available slot except slot 3.
(Periodically touch the power supply to discharge any static
electricity that might build up. You cannot be too safe on this
issue.)
- Connect the 25 pin connector to the back panel of your computer. See
the owner's manual for your particular Apple i.e., //e or IIgs.
- Using the appropriate cable, connect your Hard Drive (HD) to the
RamFAST/SCSI card.
- Turn on power and boot your machine.
- If necessary, format and partition the hard drive using the
RamFAST/SCSI Utilities program. It's especially important to do this
if your hard drive is formatted at an interleave other than 1:1. (See
Note)
- Install the operating system from floppy or restore your backup to
the hard drive. (See Note)
- Boot the hard drive, run (double click) the RamFAST.System program
(it's on the ROMDISK volume CVTech.ROM), and execute the Install
command to copy the RamFAST/SCSI System Files onto the hard drive.
- Disable the ROMDISK with the Options command. (The ROMDISK overrides
your second partition as long as it is enabled!)
- If you already have data on the drive, BACK IT UP BEFORE PROCEEDING!
NOTE: This step is not necessary if you are just upgrading from a
previous version of the RamFAST/SCSI.
8.0 HARDWARE INSTALLATION
This section covers the steps necessary to physically install the
RamFAST/SCSI into your computer. The only tool you should need is the
hex wrench that came with your computer so that you can tighten the
screws on the cable connector on the end of the short cable from the
RamFAST/SCSI to the back of your computer. Also, if the hard drive has
already been used with another controller - MAKE SURE YOU HAVE BACKED
UP ANY DATA ON THE DRIVE BEFORE YOU CONTINUE.
8.1 Installing on a Sider Hard Drive
NOTE: If you are *not* installing the RamFAST/SCSI with a Sider hard
drive you can ignore this section. If you are installing the
RamFAST/SCSI with a Sider hard drive you need to check the back and
bottom of the Sider hard drive for a plate or sticker that says
something like this: "This drive supplies terminator power to the bus.
Make sure you modify the controller board to NOT supply terminator
power." If you find such a warning you MUST remove the jumper that is
in the upper left hand corner of the RamFAST/SCSI Rev D (just above
where the cable connects, it is labeled, "JP1").
RamFAST Manual Page 5
9.0 DETAILED INSTALLATION PROCEDURES
- If you are installing a RamFAST/SCSI Rev C (full size board), you
should turn on DIP switch #1. If it is being installed into an Apple
//e you must *also* turn on DIP Switch #2.
- There is one bank of 8 DIP switches in a single package. The
switches are clearly marked as to what direction is on or off.
- These DIP switches do NOT exist in Rev D and later versions of the
RamFAST/SCSI.
- If more than one drive (or other SCSI devices, such as a tape drive)
is being installed make sure that they each have a unique SCSI ID. A
SCSI ID number is an "address" on the SCSI bus for the device; it has
no connection with the slot number that you install the RamFAST/SCSI
in.
Note: The SCSI ID of your boot HD must be the *highest* numbered SCSI
ID on the SCSI bus.
- The SCSI ID is set by either switches or straps on/in the SCSI
device. Consult the manual that came with your SCSI device for the
details concerning your device.
- Turn off the power to your computer and all of your peripherals. DO
NOT disconnect the power cable to the wall.
- Remove the cover from the computer. Lightly touch the metal case of
the power supply. This will discharge any static electricity your body
might contain. Such discharges can easily damage components on the
card. Repeat this lightly touching of the power supply's metal case
prior to touching any electronic device such as the RamFAST/SCSI.
Finally, *never, never* touch any part of the card's gold fingers that
plug into your computer.
- If there is another controller card for the drive installed, detach
its cable from the back of the computer and remove the old card from
the computer. (Don't forget to lightly touch the power supply case.)
- Install the RamFAST/SCSI in an available slot in the computer. Most
people install a hard drive controller in slot 7; however, it is
possible to install the RamFAST/SCSI in any open slot (except slot 3).
If you are installing the RamFAST/SCSI in a IIgs you need to make sure
that the setting in the control panel for the slot you selected is set
to "Your Card." If you don't know what the control panel is then you
need to read the chapters in your computer's user's manual that refer
to the Control Panel.
- Now attach the cable to the back of the computer. Remove the hex
shaped screws from the short ribbon cable coming from the RamFAST/SCSI
card, insert the cable in an available hole in the back of the
computer, and then screw the hex head screws back in from the outside
of the case to hold it in position. Check to make sure that the
connection to the RamFAST/SCSI has the cable installed so that the red
wire (it might be blue), is toward the bottom of the board (and
computer). Ribbon cables have one wire painted a different color to
designate pin 1. It is this colored wire that must be installed toward
the bottom of the board (towards the floor). Do NOT go by the
orientation of anything that may be written on the cable itself!
- Connect the SCSI cable to the RamFAST/SCSI connector on the back of
the computer and to the hard drive itself.
- Replace the cover onto the computer
RamFAST Manual Page 6
- It's now time to prepare the hard drive for use. Turn to the next
section (System Setup) for instructions on how to install an operating
system (ProDOS 8, GS/OS, etc.) onto the hard drive.
10.0 SYSTEM SETUP
If you bought your RamFAST/SCSI and hard drive as a package they
should be configured to work together from the start. If that is the
case your hard drive should boot right up after the hardware
installation is done. If this is the case you can skip the rest of
this discussion and start using your hard drive. Otherwise, continue
reading for information on how to get your system up and running.
If this is the first time you have used your computer with the
RamFAST/SCSI the utility program should auto-boot on its own. But, if
for some reason it does not, you can force it to come up by holding
down the "0" (zero) key when you turn on your computer. (Make sure
that you hold it down for a few seconds *AFTER* the RamFAST/SCSI
displays its "Searching the SCSI bus..." message appears or until the
utility program screen appears.)
Once you are in the utility program go ahead and click <<OK>>* if any
other message appears (Configuration Data Missing* is the most
likely).
11.0 FORMAT HARD DRIVE
If the hard drive has any data on it that you want to save you should
skip this step (at least for now) until you have backed up the HD.
(See the table of contents for the section titled, *Backup*).
Click on the command ScsiUtils at the top of the screen. If you have
only one drive attached then the screen will change to the SCSI
Utilities screen. If you have more than one device attached you will
first be presented with a list of Online SCSI Devices on the left
lower part of the screen; you should select the drive that you want to
work with from the list.
If, when you click on ScsiUtils, you are presented with a message
stating that "The RamFAST/SCSI did not find any SCSI devices..." then
you should turn everything off again and check to make sure that the
card and cables are installed correctly. If you still get the message
you should turn to the Trouble Shooting section and read about
possible causes/solutions for this message.
Once you make it to the SCSI Utilities screen, you should see your
partitions listed under the column labeled Partition Name and if the
entry for Interleave is 1:1 then it is not necessary to re-format the
HD. If you see your partitions, but the Interleave is something other
than 1:1 it is *strongly* recommended that you go ahead and re-format
the drive; running with an Interleave other than 1:1 will slow the
RamFAST/SCSI down a lot. If you don't see any partitions listed under
Partition Name you will have to format the HD in order to use it with
the RamFAST/SCSI.
To format the drive just click on Format.
If the drive you are formatting is a SASI drive (Sider) you then be
asked to specify which one it is. After that you will be presented
with a message telling you that Format will wipe out any data on the
drive! If you have data on the drive that is NOT backed up STOP NOW
and BACK IT UP! We are NOT responsible if you click <<OK>> but didn't
mean it.
RamFAST Manual Page 7
Formatting the drive can take anywhere from a few seconds to several
minutes (and up to 30 minutes for a Sider D2). After the formatting is
completed the RamFAST/SCSI will put a default set of partitions(s) on
the drive (it makes as many equal sized partitions as it can). If you
want to change the size and/or names of the partitions you should read
the section concerning the Partition command under RamFAST/SCSI
Utilities.
Once you are satisfied with the partitions you can click on Quit to
return to the Volumes screen where you should see your partitions
listed under GS/OS Volumes. It's now time to move on to the next
section and install the system software onto the drive.
12.0 MAKING THE HARD DRIVE BOOTABLE
If you are still looking at the SCSI Utilities screen go up and click
on Quit again. You should get a message with two choices: <<Select>>
and <<BOOT>>
If you received the HD pre-formatted from the seller you should be
able to select <<BOOT>>. If it boots up, great! If you get the message
"UNABLE TO LOAD PRODOS" or the system just hangs, then you need to
shut off the computer and turn it back on while holding down the "0"
key. This should take you back to the Volumes screen. Now just click
on Quit again and this time pick <<SELECT>>
If you just formatted the HD or you landed here because <<BOOT>>
didn't work then click on <<SELECT>>. On the left hand side of the
screen a cursor bar will appear. You need to make sure you have a
current system disk in your 3.5" or 5.25" drive and know what slot is
associated with that floppy drive. Move the cursor bar so that the
slot for the 3.5" or 5.25" drive with the disk in it is highlighted
and press <RETURN>. You should now be booting the floppy.
If you are using a IIgs you should now read up on the Installer if you
are not familiar with it and use it to install the current GS/OS
operating system on your first HD partition.
If you are using an enhanced //e you should use Copy ][ Plus (or any
file copying program you are familiar with) to put a copy of ProDOS 8
and whatever else you want on the HD. Keep in mind that ProDOS 8 loads
the first *.System file that it finds so the first one you copy on to
the HD should be some type of program launcher such as: ProSel,
Squirt, or any of the others that are available.
It's now time for the acid test... turn off the computer, turn it back
on, and it should boot your hard drive. If it doesn't, try going
through the installation again making sure to follow each step in
order. If the HD boots like it's supposed to you are almost done. The
only thing left is to go onto the next section and install the
RamFAST/SCSI System Software.
13.0 INSTALLING THE RamFAST/SCSI SOFTWARE
You should now be sitting at the GS/OS Finder screen or whatever you
use as a program launcher.
If you are using the GS/OS Finder you need to open (double-click) the
drive icon that is labeled CVTech.ROM. Inside you will find two files:
RamFAST.System and RamFAST.Driver. Double-click on RamFAST.System
(this is the Utility Program). You should see the Volumes screen.
RamFAST Manual Page 8
First, go up and click on Install. You will be asked to select the
volume to install the two files. Click on the first partition listed
under GS/OS Volumes. You should see a message at the top of the screen
informing you that we are copying the files onto the HD
NOTE: if you are installing onto a //e then only one file is copied.
Now go up and click on the Option command. Click on the Yes next to
RomDISK and it should change to No. Also, if you *do not* have a
TranswarpGS in your computer you should click on the Yes next to TWGS
and it will also change to No. Finally, go up and click on Quit. You
should return to whatever program you used to launch the utility
program (probably GS/OS Finder).
If you are using a IIgs do a Shutdown and reboot so that the
RamFAST/SCSI driver can be loaded. That's it!
14.0 IF PROBLEMS OCCUR
- If you are having problems and you have double-checked the
installation and you are installing on a //e, turn to the Trouble
Shooting section.
- If you are having problems and you have double-checked the
installation and you are installing on a IIgs, some other things you
should check are:
a) Are you SURE that the setting in the Control Panel for the
RamFAST/SCSI slot is set to "Your Card" and the boot slot is set to
boot the RamFAST/SCSI? Double check.
b) Desk Accessories - Try booting without ANY desk accessories and see
if the problems go away. Many desk accessories have the potential to
interfere with a DMA HD controller. See the table of contents for the
section titled, "Desk Accessories," for suggested methods for
temporally removing INITs and DAs.
- TranswarpGS If you are having problems and you have a TranswarpGS
in the system then pull it out. (See your TranswarpGS docs for the
removal procedure. In general it consists of turning off the power,
opening the top of your computer, touching the power supply to
discharge your body, and removing the card.)
If the problems go away you should turn to the Trouble Shooting
section to see if you TranswarpGS is one that needs an update or if
you need to disable DMA on the RamFAST/SCSI because of your memory
card.
- ZipGS - If you are having problems and you have a ZipGS then pull it
out. (See your ZipGS docs for the removal procedure. In general it
consists of turning off the power, opening the top of your computer,
touching the power supply to discharge your body, and removing the
card.)
If the problems go away you should turn to the Trouble Shooting
section to see if your ZipGS is one that needs to be upgraded.
- Lastly, can you boot a system floppy and access the HD? If so then
you probably haven't installed the operating system correctly.
- If after this you are still having problems you should turn to the
Trouble Shooting section for a more detailed examination of what could
be causing problems in your system.
RamFAST Manual Page 9
15.0 RamFAST/SCSI UTILITIES
The purpose of the RamFAST/SCSI Utilities program is to allow you to
setup and fine tune your HD and the RamFAST/SCSI. The program and the
GS/OS driver for the RamFAST/SCSI are stored on a RomDISK that is
stored in the RamFAST/SCSI. This RomDISK will show up as a volume
named CVTech.ROM on the GS/OS Finder desktop. Under ProDOS 8 it shows
up as D2 of the slot that the RamFAST/SCSI is installed in. So, if the
RamFAST/SCSI is installed in S7 of your computer then the RomDISK, if
enabled (see Options RomDISK 13.5.3), will show up as S7,D2 for use by
any ProDOS 8 program.
There are two screens associated with the RamFAST/SCSI Utilities. The
Volumes screen described in sections 13.1 through 13.6 and the
ScsiUtils described in sections 13.7 through 13.13.
15.1 Volumes Screen
The utilities program is broken up into two different sections. The
first is what we are going to call the Volumes screen. The second,
which we call the SCSI Utilities screen, will be covered in a later
section. Each screen has a command bar at the top of the screen that
can be clicked on with the mouse (or accessed via keyboard commands)
to execute commands.
16.0 ProDOS 8 VOLUMES
The RamFAST/SCSI allows you to have access to all of your partitions
even under ProDOS 8. We do this by "mapping" entries for any or all of
your volumes into the ProDOS 8 device table.
You can tell us exactly where to map each volume by clicking on its
name under the column labeled GS/OS Volumes. You should see a cursor
bar appear on the left side of the screen in the section labeled
ProDOS 8 Volumes (it may have already been highlighted). You can now
click on any slot/drive position in the ProDOS 8 display and the name
of the volume should move into that spot. To remove a volume from the
ProDOS 8 device table you can click on its name under GS/OS Volumes
and then click on the spot labeled <UnMap Volume>. If a volume is not
currently mapped into the ProDOS 8 table then the <UnMap Volume> is
what will be highlighted if that volume is selected from the list of
GS/OS Volumes.
The latest version of ProDOS 8, version 2 (or greater) also has the
ability to map extra volumes to free slots. Therefore, it is necessary
to choose which method you want to use to do the mapping (since if we
both do it ProDOS gets very confused). The way you map your devices
into the ProDOS 8 Volumes table in the Utility Program determines
who's responsible. If you map any volumes into a slot other than the
slot that the RamFAST/SCSI is installed in then the RamFAST/SCSI card
will do the mapping of volumes. If you ONLY map volumes into the slot
that the RamFAST/SCSI is installed in then ProDOS 8 will handle the
mapping of volumes (this is the default).
//e users: You must map all of your partitions into the ProDOS 8
Volumes table in order to have access to them e.g., the RamFAST will
NOT do it for you.
RamFAST Manual Page 10
Backup Restore Install Options ScsiUtils Quit Escape
RamFAST/SCSI Utilities Password:
Copyright 1992, C.V. Technologies
ROM Version V3.01e
Cache Installed 256K
===== VOLUMES ======================================================
GS/OS Volumes Lookahead WrProt
ProDOS 8 Volumes (* = RamFAST Slot) H1 Auto N
H2 Auto N
Pgms1 Auto N
Drive 1 Drive 2 Data Auto N
S7 *H1 H2
S6 Diskport Diskport
S5 Smartport
S4
S3 RAM3
S2
S1
<<~UnMap Volume~>>
16.1 Lookahead and Write Protect
There is a column labeled Lookahead next to the list of GS/OS volume
names. This is the largest amount of disk data that the RamFAST/SCSI
will read ahead on an operating system read call in anticipation of
having the data for the next call available immediately. Normally the
RamFAST/SCSI will adjust the value on the fly and you shouldn't need
to change it from Auto. ("Auto" does an automatic lookahead of 12K or
so. With older, slow drives, a person could try different settings to
optimize cache efficiency, but any drive made after 1990 or so works
best on the "Auto" setting.)
Some lookahead points to keep in mind:
- The available lookahead cache values do not change based on the
amount of cache available, i.e., 256K and 1Meg. However, when you have
more cache memory more of the hard drive can be cached at any one
time. The lookahead settings tell the card how much data to read ahead
for small requests. This is why ProDOS 8 *stuff* is so much faster on
a RamFAST than a High Speed SCSI card.
- You do not gain speed by having all your data in one partition. The
RamFAST cache is pretty smart and works a bit better when a large
drive is partitioned. There is a logical cache for each partition;
they all share the same physical memory, of course, but it works out
that a partitioned drive caches a bit better for the types of stuff we
care about caching (directories, volume bitmaps, etc) than a single
huge drive.
The last column in the display is labeled WrProt. The RamFAST/SCSI
allows you to write protect any and all volumes whenever you want.
This will prevent the operating system (programs) from writing to that
volume. Keep in mind though that this does NOT prevent the ability to
do a low level format or partition of the drive in the RamFAST/SCSI
Utility program. It also does not prevent doing a built-in
Backup/Restore to the hard drive/volume.
16.2 Backup
RamFAST Manual Page 11
The RamFAST/SCSI has the built-in ability to backup and restore your
hard drive to a SCSI tape drive or optionally a [removable] hard drive
such as the SyQuest hard drives. To allow the selection of removable
media and/or another HD as the destination of a Backup command you
will need to set the HD Backup option to Yes. This is done by clicking
on *Options* in the RamFAST menu and then clicking on HD Backup until
it reads, "Yes."
To begin the process just go up and click on Backup. You will be
prompted for what volume(s) you want to backup. Select as many as you
want from the right lower section of the screen under the GS/OS
heading (a second click on a volume deselects it). A running total of
the amount of space needed for the backup is displayed above the
"Volumes" line. Do NOT select more than your tape can hold! (A 60Mb
tape holds approximately 60,000K, a 155Mb tape holds approximately
155,000K, etc.)
When you have selected all of the volumes that you want backed up then
go up and click on Backup again. You will be asked to confirm that you
want to overwrite any data that may be on the tape (or the destination
hard drive if you have enabled that option). If everything's O.K. then
click on <<~OK~>>*.
Now, if you want, you can boot up a game or anything else you want.
The RamFAST/SCSI will continue to backup your HD in the background!
Keep in mind though that your hard drive partitions are
WRITE-PROTECTED until the backup completes. (So, there will be NO
updating of your high scores if your game partition is being backed
up. Tough luck pilgrim.)
Note: The RamFAST SCSI backup utilities work as outlined in this
manual, however, if you have a IIgs and a tape drive and need a file
oriented, backup utility that will give you much greater control of
the archival process then consider GSTape. Some of the many features
that GSTape offers beyond the basic RamFAST backup utility are
multiple backup sessions per tape, scripted backups, timed backups,
and of course full GS/OS desktop control for the selection of volumes,
directories and files for both backup and restore processes. GSTape
was also written with the help of the RamFAST designers so it is both
compatible with and uses the unique capabilities of the RamFAST
whenever possible.
GSTape is a great commercial program priced at $35 and is available
from:
County Line Technology
PO Box 462283
Garland, TX 75046
(214) 496-0268
CIS: [73537,2601]
GEnie: TGRAMS*
NOTE: By virtue of its name and nature, GSTape does NOT backup to
anything except SCSI tape devices while the RamFAST SCSI will back up
to any (removable) SCSI hard drive or SCSI tape connected to the
system.
ADDITIONAL NOTE: Tim seems to no longer be on GEnie. Also, calls to te
above number receive a disconnected phone announcement. One might
consider buying a SCSI Iomega Zip drive for backups. Painless to use.
16.3 Restore
16.3.1 Volume Restore
RamFAST Manual Page 12
The Restore command is the partner of Backup. You can select any
volume on a backup tape and have it restored to any volume listed
under GS/OS Volumes. To begin, go up and click on Restore. You will be
prompted to select the volume name on the tape you want to restore
from. After you select the volume from the tape you are prompted to
select the volume you want to OVERWRITE from those listed under GS/OS
volumes. You will be asked to confirm that you want to overwrite any
data that may be on the destination volume. If everything's O.K. then
click on <<~OK~>>.
16.3.2 Single File Restore
It is also possible (although it's painfully slow) to restore a single
file from a volume backed up to tape. Before starting this, if the
original volume is still being used under the same name as it was
backed up as, you need to change its name to something else. This is
because we are going to make the backed up volume come up on the
desktop just like any other volume and GS/OS refuses to see two
volumes with the same name on-line at the same time.
To begin you need to go up and click on ScsiUtils and select the tape
drive when you are asked to choose a SCSI device. When you are on the
Scsi Utilities screen you need to go over to the column labeled Active
and change the entry for the volume that contains the file to "Y". Now
go up and click on Quit. When you are back on the Volumes screen you
should see the backed up volume listed as one of those GS/OS Volumes.
Now you can click on Quit again and access the backed up volume just
like a (VERY SLOW) hard drive.
16.3.3 Options
Clicking on Options will cause the following menu to appear (the Yes's
and No's will vary according to your setup).
Options DMA Yes
Menu Transwarp Yes
AutoSave Yes
Mouse Yes
Password No
RomDISK No
HD Backup No
Short Timeout No
Each of these settings affects the way that the RamFAST/SCSI works in
your system. To change an option just click on the current setting
(Yes/No) next to the option you wish to change. Following is a
description of each option:
- DMA - Determines whether the RamFAST/SCSI should use DMA in your
system. If you have a non DMA-compatible memory card installed then
you should set this option to No.
- TranswarpGS - If you have a TranswarpGS installed then make sure
this option is set to Yes. If it is set to No and you have a Transwarp
the RamFAST/SCSI will not work properly.
- AutoSave - If set to Yes (the default) then the current
configuration will be saved to disk each time you quit from the
RamFAST/SCSI utility program. If you change this option to No you will
have to explicitly click on the Save command to update the saved
configuration data.
- Mouse - Set this option to No If the RamFAST/SCSI is installed in a
IIgs and you do want not to use the mouse. Default is Yes.
RamFAST Manual Page 13
- Password - If you don't want others to be able to change your
RamFAST/SCSI configuration you can require the user to enter a
password in order to access the RamFAST/SCSI utility program. Make
sure you are VERY careful when you set a password as it is CASE
SENSITIVE i.e., Fred and FrEd are two totally different passwords.
Finally, WRITE IT DOWN and keep it in a safe place.
To set the password click on "No" and you will be presented with an
inverse typing area. Type: "YourPassword" <Return>. The "No" area will
become "Yes" and the next time you enter the configuration menu you
will be prompted for the password. (See the screen associated with,
"RamFAST/SCSI Utilities" for location of the Password prompt.)
If after providing the password you no longer want to have a password
simply click on Password from the Options screen and it will become,
"No."
See the Trouble Shooting section if despite your best efforts your
forget your password.
- RomDISK - This setting should normally be No after you get your
system setup and running. When this setting is Yes your second drive
on the boot slot is named CVTech.ROM, overriding the normal partition
name for that slot and drive. See installation procedures for more
details.
- HD Backup - Normally the built-in Backup and Restore deal only with
tape drives. If you wish to backup to a (presumably removable) hard
drive you must set this option to Yes. You will be asked to choose a
source and destination device whenever you click on Backup or Restore
- Short Timeout - If you normally leave some of your SCSI drives
powered down (such as a tape drive or CD) you can set this option to
Yes to get rid of the 45 second delay at power-up while the
RamFAST/SCSI is waiting for those devices to appear. NOTE: If you set
this option to Yes you must power-up your HD before you turn on your
computer.
TranswarpGS and DMA note: The setting of the DMA option is ignored if
you have a Rev D (or later) RamFAST/SCSI card and you set the
TranswarpGS option to No. This is because the Rev D RamFAST/SCSI card
can DMA into any memory card, independent of its DMA capability,
provided you DO NOT have a TranswarpGS in the system.
16.4 Install
The Install command is used when you are first setting up the
RamFAST/SCSI. It is used to place a copy of RamFAST.System into the
Boot folder and RamFAST.Driver into Boot/System/Drivers folder. (Only
RamFAST.System is installed on a //e.) Click on install and you will
be prompted for the volume to install the files on. Just click on the
name under GS/OS Volumes. Neither file is installed if an error is
encountered while installing either. The most probable error is trying
to install on a non-boot volume i.e., Boot/System doesn't exist. If
you want both files on such a volume you must install GS/OS on that
volume. If all you want is RamFAST.System on that volume, simply copy
it from the boot volume to the desired non-boot volume(s).
16.5 ScsiUtils
The ScsiUtils screen allows you to Format and Partition your HD. It
also allows you to control whether a partition is visible to the
operating system (Active) or ignored (Inactive). For those of you with
very old HDs there is also a Headpark command. And lastly there is a
Rewind command for use with tape drives.
RamFAST Manual Page 14
When you click on ScsiUtils in the Volumes screen, and if you have
more than one SCSI device attached to the RamFAST/SCSI, you will be
prompted to select which one you want to work with from a list such as
the one below:
Online SCSI Devices
ID7
ID6 SyQuest SQ555
ID5 IOMEGA Zip 100
ID4 Sider SASI Tape Drive
ID3
ID2 Sony CD-ROM CDR35
ID1
ID0
NOTE: The IDx in the above is referring to the SCSI ID and has no
association with slots.
Once you have selected a device, and it is a HD, (if you have only one
it is selected for you automatically), the screen should change and
you should see a display of information about the device on the top
half of the screen and a list of all of the partitions on the drive
will appear on the bottom of the screen. This is the SCSI Utilities
screen.
RamFAST Manual Page 15
16.5.1 SCSI Utilities Screen
At the top of the screen is a display similar to the one below. The
major entry to take note of (for hard drives) is the value for
Interleave. If the interleave is not 1:1 you should definitely
consider reformatting the HD. Any interleave other than 1:1 will slow
the RamFAST/SCSI's performance down considerably (2:1 cuts it in half,
3:1 cuts it to a third, etc.). Some Sider hard drives are an exception
to this rule. If you have a Sider SASI hard drive the best interleave
it supports is 4:1.
Add Delete Format Partition Headpark Rewind Quit Escape
Device Name SyQuest SQ555 SCSI ID 6
Serial Number Interleave 1:1 Cylinders 1067
Device Size 43266K Sectors/Track 64
Space Available 320K Heads 2
Eject Disabled Yes Defect List Size 48
16.6 Format
The Format command performs a low-level format of the HD or tape. This
WILL erase any data that may be on the drive so make sure you have a
backup if you need anything that's on it!
After the format completes, a default set of partitions will be
created on the hard drive. If these are satisfactory you can just Quit
and continue on with whatever you please. Otherwise, read on and find
out how you can change the sizes and/or names of the partitions.
16.7 Add/Delete Partitions
The Add and Delete commands are a linked pair. They are used to add a
new partition to the list at the bottom of the screen or to delete the
currently selected partition. You can add up to a total of twelve (12)
partitions onto any single drive. If you wish to change the name just
select the partition that you wish to change and press the <DELETE>
key. The line will clear and you will be able to type in a new name;
after you finish with the name just press <RETURN>.
16.8 Resizing Partitions
There are two thermometers. One changes the partition size in 1Mb
increments/decrements and the other by 32K increments/decrements. To
change the size of a selected partition you can use the mouse to click
on one end or the other of the thermometer to decrease or increase its
size by the amount stated under that thermometer. The left side of a
thermometer decreases the size and the right side increases the size.
If you are not using the mouse you can adjust the size in 1Mb
increments by holding down the <Open-Apple> key and the left or right
arrow keys. You can adjust the size in 32K increments by holding down
the <Option> (or <Closed-Apple> on a //e) and the left or right arrow
keys. (Below is the bottom part of the screen. The top half is shown
in
the "SCSI Utilities Screen" above.)
Partition Name Volume Size Active
H1 32768 Y
H2 32768 Y
<<::::::::::::::::::::::::>> PGMS1 32768 Y
0 Adjust Size by +/- 1mb 32+mb DATA2 32768 Y
DATA 32768 Y
<< >> DATADATA 32768 Y
0 Adjust Size by +/- 32K 1024k NAUG.Files 32768 N
RamFAST Manual Page 16
ClipArt 32768 Y
Larrystuff 32768 N
Pics 32768 N
GamesNgunk 32768 N
FIX 56096 Y
16.9 Partition
The Partition command is used to write a new partition map to the
drive that corresponds to the list of partitions in the bottom half of
the screen. Any partitions less than or equal to 32Mb in size will
also have a blank ProDOS directory structure put on it. Partitions
larger than 32Mb will not be formatted by the RamFAST/SCSI. (There is
no space in the ROM for the necessary code to format HFS style).
For the IIgs, when GS/OS later sees the uninitialized partition it
will say that it does not recognize it and asks if you want to format
the partition using the HFS file system. Go ahead and format the
partition. The HFS FST (File System Translator) must be installed in
your: BOOT/SYSTEM/FSTS folder. If the HFS FST is not installed your
only choice will be ProDOS and 32MB. This will effectively "lose" that
portion of the partition greater than 32Mb.
The Format option referred you to this section if the number of
partitions and or their size was not to your liking. Consider the
IOMEGA 100Meg disk (which has slightly more than 96Meg available when
formatted):
- When formatted by the Format command it will end up with five
partitions, each 19+Meg in size.
- In order to change to three 32 meg partitions you need to delete two
of the partitions using the Delete command OR by decreasing the size
of a partition until it reaches 0. At that point it will disappear.
- Once the two partitions are gone you can increase two of the
remaining partitions to 32768K and the third to slightly less. At that
point click of Partition at the top of the screen and you are done.
16.10 Partition
The Partition command is used to write a new partition map to the
drive that corresponds to the list of partitions in the bottom half of
the screen. Any partitions less than or equal to 32Mb in size will
also have a blank ProDOS directory structure put on it. Partitions
larger than 32Mb will not be formatted by the RamFAST/SCSI. (There is
no space in the ROM for the necessary code to format HFS style).
For the IIgs, when GS/OS later sees the uninitialized partition it
will say that it does not recognize it and asks if you want to format
the partition using the HFS file system. Go ahead and format the
partition. The HFS FST (File System Translator) must be installed in
your: BOOT/SYSTEM/FSTS folder. If the HFS FST is not installed your
only choice will be ProDOS and 32MB. This will effectively "lose" that
portion of the partition greater than 32Mb.
16.11 Headpark
The Headpark command is not necessary on any drive manufactured in the
last few years. All drives manufactured today have an auto-headpark
feature built-in. If you do need to park your heads you can use this
command or create a .System file using the code fragment below to do
it for you. (If the code fragment below is meaningless to you then you
should consult with someone who understands 65816 assembly language.)
RamFAST Manual Page 17
jsr $c704 * Assumes card is in slot 7
db $08
dw ?parms
rts * Ignores errors
?parms db $05
db $86 *Assume SCSI ID is 6
dw ?hdprk
db $FF
dw $0000
dw $0000
?hdprk
db $1B,$00,$00,$00,$00,$00
db $00,$00,$00,$00,$00,$00
blkb $40,$00
16.12 Rewind
Rewind is used to rewind a tape in a tape drive that is not at the
beginning. This shouldn't normally be needed since the built-in Backup
and Restore commands rewind the tape before doing any processing.
17.0 ACTIVE VERSUS INACTIVE PARTITIONS
The last column in the display at the bottom of the screen is labeled
Active and has entries below it that say "Yes" or "No". This means
that you can selectively choose which partitions you want the system
to have access to at any given time. The main use of this feature is
by those people with multiple hard drives with a total of more than
twelve (12) partitions. This feature allows you to switch among the
partitions you need to have access to up to a maximum of twelve at a
time.
18.0 SPECIAL FEATURES AND UPGRADES
18.1 Keys Used During the Boot Process
One thing that has only been mentioned in passing up to now is that
the RamFAST/SCSI also allows you to change the way it behaves at power
up by holding down certain keys. It is also possible to use these keys
when you do an Open-Apple/Control/Reset, but this might seem better
suited to an octopus.
If you hold down a number key from "1" through "9" when you turn the
power on then the partition in the Logical Devices list corresponding
to the number held down is booted. For example: holding down the "2"
key will boot the second partition in the list; holding down the "6"
key will boot the sixth partition in the list; etc. This can be very
handy if you sometimes want to boot GS/OS and other times want to boot
ProSel or even ProDOS 8. One thing to be aware of is that the selected
partition becomes the default boot partition until another key is held
down or you turn off the power to the computer. You can make the
change permanent by running the Utility program and saving the current
configuration.
Also, if you hold down the "0" key at power up the utility program
will boot. This can be handy if you have lost or misplaced the copy of
the utility program that the Install command put on your hard drive.
Note that the above defeats the GS/OS convention that holding down the
"8" key while booting will boot into ProDOS 8. Holding down the "8"
key when the RamFAST/SCSI is installed will result in partition 8
being booted (if the partition is bootable).
RamFAST Manual Page 18
The following patch was posted on GEnie in 1994 by Mark Miller. It
will allow IIgs users to boot into ProDOS 8 by pressing the <CAPS
LOCK> key down, as opposed to holding the '8' key down. If the <CAPS
LOCK> key is up, the IIgs will boot the system start file (i.e., the
Finder in most cases).
Using ProSel-16 or some other block editor, make the following
modifications to the ProDOS boot file in the root directory (NOT P8 in
the System folder):
Offset Was Now
------ ------ ------
$42A: $00 $25
$42D: $FF $04
$430: $B8 $04
Lastly, if you hold down the space bar the RamFAST/SCSI will
"basically cease to exist." It will not put partitions in its device
list and will immediately boot through to the next slot. This is handy
if you (or, maybe your kids,) want to boot something on the 3.5" or
5.25" disks without having to worry about your hard drive. If you want
to do this with the hard drive powered down or disconnected you will
have to have the jumper (JP1, just above where the cable plugs onto
the card) installed or the RamFAST/SCSI will crash immediately into
the monitor. To get the partitions back after you have booted this way
you can turn the power off and back on or perform an
Open-Apple/Control/Reset while holding down a number key. This will
tell the RamFAST/SCSI to rebuild its partition table and boot the
selected partition.
18.2 Upgrading to 1Meg of Cache
The Rev D (and beyond) RamFAST/SCSI is upgradeable from 256K of cache
to 1Meg of cache. To do the upgrade yourself you will need to order:
Two (2) 1Meg X 4 DRAMs in a 300mil DIP package. The Toshiba part
number for these chips is "TC514400AP-10 or~-8." Your vendor should be
able to convert from this part number to whatever manufacturer's chips
they have in stock.
Once you obtain the new memory chips all you need to do is:
- Remove the cover from the computer, lightly touch the metal case of
the power supply to discharge any static electricity present in your
body.
- Pry the old memory chips (U19 and U20 in the upper right hand corner
of the board), out of their sockets with a small flathead
screwdriver.
- Put the new chips in the sockets - making sure that:
+ The notch on the one end of the chip points to the TOP of the board
(same as the old chips).
+ None of the pins are bent under or out of the socket.
Contact Sequential Systems if you are unable and/or unwilling to
perform this upgrade yourself for the procedure and pricing to have
Sequential Systems make the upgrade for you.
Also, contact Sequential Systems about upgrading an older RamFAST/SCSI
card.
19.0 TROUBLE SHOOTING
RamFAST Manual Page 19
The first thing to do if you are experiencing problems is to TURN
POWER OFF TO YOUR COMPUTER AND DRIVES and then make sure that:
- All of the cables are plugged in securely
- The RamFAST/SCSI is securely seated
At this point, turn power back ON and make sure power is present on
all of your drives and your computer.
If everything seems to be installed correctly, scan through the list
of problems below, read the descriptions, and follow the directions
for any that apply to your system. (Keep in mind that you must turn
off power BEFORE touching the RamFAST/SCSI card, removing/connecting
cables i.e., before any and all hardware modifications/checks that
require you to physically touch any hardware.)
Finally, if you receive an RamFAST error code when first turning on
your computer consult the following table:
RamFAST Fatal Memory Fault
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
$00 Unknown, probably means that the RamFAST is very confused
$01-08 DRAM memory test failure
$09 EPROM checksum failure
$0C Z180 processor crashed, indicates some hardware fault
$0D Error writing cache data to disk
$0E Termination power error
19.1 All Computers
19.1.1 Applied Engineering Software, Repairs, and Parts
Many of the following trouble shooting sections mention the need for a
modification and/or part for AE products. Unfortunately, AE went out
of business a number of years ago and since that time there has been
NO source of AE modifications or parts in the United States.
At the time of this update the situation is somewhat better because
there is now a source for some AE software, repairs, and parts. Please
contact, "ABC Direct, David Hardaway 214-306-5494, abcdirect@aol.com,"
to see if David can fill your needs.
19.1.2 Recently Modified/Updated Boot Partition
If you recently updated anything on your boot partition, e.g., the
System Software, go through the installation section and verify that
your RamFAST/SCSI is still properly set up.
19.1.3 Terminating Resistor Plugs
There can be only one (1) set of terminating resistors installed on
the SCSI bus. This usually takes the form of an external terminator
plug that is installed in the daisy-chain connector of the last drive
in the chain. Some drives are supplied with internal terminators. If
you know this to be the case with your drive you do not need (or want)
an external terminator. If you are not sure whether your drive has
internal terminators installed you can consult the documentation
supplied with it or contact the seller of the drive and ask.
Q: What are the symptoms of not having a terminator on the SCSI?
A: The drive does not appear when you go into "ScsiUtils" in the
Utility program.
Q: What are the symptoms of having two terminators on the SCSI
(internal to a drive and a plug)?
RamFAST Manual Page 20
A: Possibly no symptoms, possibly it won't work as above. Improper
termination can also cause unreliable access (works sometimes, doesn't
work other times).
Q: What can be (needs to be) done if I have N drives and each has an
internal terminator?
A: If the setup is working fine, you can leave it. But, the best thing
to do is to have all the internal terminators removed, and to use an
external terminator block.
19.1.4 Terminator Power
(Note: RamFAST/SCSI Rev C users should read DIP switch #1 when the
text mentions JP1. JP1 installed is the same as DIP switch #1 on.
Removing JP1 is the same as DIP switch #1 off.)
At *least* one device on the SCSI bus must supply terminator power. If
your drive(s) do not supply terminator power to the SCSI bus you must
make sure the jumper (JP1) on the upper-left corner of the
RamFAST/SCSI is installed. (JP1 is on the component side of the board
i.e., the *really bumpy* side.)
If you are not sure whether your drive supplies terminator power then
consult either your drive vendor or the supplied documentation. (It is
usually perfectly fine for the card and the drive(s) to jointly supply
terminator power so if in doubt, install the jumper unless the next
paragraph forbids it.)
If your drive (most notably Siders) has a sticker on the back saying
that the drive supplies terminator power and the SCSI controller card
must be modified to NOT supply terminator power - then make sure the
jumper is removed from JP1.
19.1.5 Cables
If you have checked all of your cables and they seem to be tightened
down correctly then it's time to think about the length of the cables.
Long cables (six feet or more) can cause problems at the speed that
the RamFAST/SCSI operates, especially when connecting multiple drives
to the RamFAST/SCSI. If you are having problems and you have a long
cable it is worth a try if you can (temporally) obtain a shorter one.
(Shortness is goodness.) The symptoms of too long a cable are Data
corruption, Apple "hangs," and all sorts of evil things.
19.1.6 Your Power Supply
If you have a number of cards installed in your computer and you still
have the "stock" power supply that came with your computer you may
experience problems with the RamFAST/SCSI: from random crashes to
total failure to function. This is especially a problem in an Apple
IIgs with an AE TransWarpGS, an AE P-C Transporter, and a
RamFAST/SCSI. This can also be a problem in an Apple //e if there are
a lot of peripherals installed.
If it sounds like this could be the case you should remove some of the
cards installed in your computer and see it that cures the problem. If
it does, you should definitely consider getting a heavy-duty power
supply before reinstalling everything in your computer.
19.1.7 CMS Hard Drives
There is a set of DIP Switches on the back of most CMS hard drives.
One of these controls how the drive is "talked to." You must turn on
the DIP Switch that makes the drive compatible with the Apple
McIntosh. If you are not sure how to do this you can consult the
RamFAST Manual Page 21
documentation supplied with the drive or contact the seller of the
drive.
19.1.8 Multiple Drives/Devices with Conflicting SCSI ID Numbers
If you have connected multiple devices to the RamFAST/SCSI you must be
sure that the SCSI ID numbers assigned to the devices do not overlap.
SCSI ID numbers range from 0 through 7 and no two devices on the same
SCSI bus can have the same ID number. Information on how to determine
and/or change the SCSI ID number of a device can be found in the
documentation that came with the device.
Note: The RamFAST does not take up a SCSI ID number, so you can have
up to 8 devices (instead of 7 which is the case on most SCSI
controllers).
19.1.9 AE Ramfactor
If you have a RamFactor installed in your computer and are having
problems, try removing the RamFactor and see if the problems go away.
Some RamFactors cause problems (especially in an Apple IIgs) just
being installed in the same computer as the RamFAST/SCSI. If the
RamFAST/SCSI works with the RamFactor out of the system and doesn't
work when it is in the system, there not anything that can be done
beyond removing the RamFactor because the RamFactor feeds power &/or
substantial noise into the IIGS bus, interfering with the RamFAST.
There are no ways to identify the "bad" RamFactors by serial number,
revision, etc. If they work, they work, if they don't, they don't.
19.2 //e Computers
While Sequential Systems has not extensively tested the Rev D RamFAST
with //e systems, reports from the field have said it works flawlessly
in a non-DMA mode. If the Rev D card does not work on your //e system
you may return the card within 30 days, depending on the policy of the
reseller you purchased the card from, for a full refund or based on
availability and your wishes Sequential Systems will replace it with a
modified Rev C board.
19.2.1 Your //e is unenhanced
The RamFAST/SCSI will NOT work in an unenhanced //e. You will have to
purchase an enhancement kit for your //e from a mail-order firm and
install it before the RamFAST/SCSI will work in your system.
19.2.2 Apple //e with a Number of Cards Installed
In an Apple //e it is also possible to see the same problems described
above for weak power supplies even if you have a heavy duty power
supply. This is a problem that is associated with the design of the
Apple //e and there is nothing (very little), that can be done about
it. If the RamFAST/SCSI works in your Apple //e with no (or few) cards
installed and doesn't work with all of them installed then, unless one
of the peripherals is mentioned below as causing specific problems, it
is possible that the RamFAST/SCSI may not be able to function in this
computer unless some of the cards are removed permanently.
There are a couple of potential problems/solutions with a RamFAST in a
//e.
- Power distribution. Supposedly, the +5 traces on the //e backplane
are pretty thin. Sometimes, soldering a heavier wire from +5 on the
power supply connector straight to the +5 pins on the back of the
motherboard can cure this. (This is the "very little" from above.)
- Noise. Not much can be done about this, the //e motherboard is
pretty noisy.
RamFAST Manual Page 22
- The HCT (high speed CMOS) parts are sometimes incapable of driving
the TTL bus buffers on the //e motherboard.
- The best overall solution is for //e people to locate a used RamFAST
Rev C card. (Call Sequential Systems for availability.)
19.2.3 Apple //e Accelerators
The 10Mhz RocketChip will not work in the same system as a
RamFAST/SCSI and there is nothing that Sequential Systems can do about
it.
Initially there were no accelerators for the Apple //e that were DMA
compatible. Now the 8MHz Zip Chip is *mostly* DMA compatible. A slight
modification to the Rev C board makes it compatible. Call Sequential
Systems if have a Rev C board that is not DMA compatible and you wish
to pursue this issue. The Rev D board cannot be modified in this
manner and thus is not DMA compatible with the Zip.
Some of the 8Mhz ZipChips have had problems in the same system as a
RamFAST/SCSI even when DMA is disabled. If you are having problems
with an 8Mhz ZipChip try replacing it with the original 65C02
processor and see if the problems go away. If they do then you need to
call Zip Technologies and get it replaced.
19.2.4 Apple //e 40 Column versus 80 Column
If you are installing the RamFAST/SCSI into an Apple //e it is
required that you have an 80 column card. The Utility program will not
function without it.
19.3 IIgs Computers
19.3.1 Apple IIgs Control Panel Settings
In an Apple IIgs you need to make sure that the control panel setting
for the slot that the RamFAST/SCSI is installed in is set to "Your
Card," and that the boot slot is set to "Scan" or to the slot that the
RamFAST/SCSI is installed in.
RamFAST Manual Page 23
19.3.2 Apple SCSI Drivers
Previously you were instructed to remove the Apple DMA SCSI drivers
unless you had an Apple High Speed DMA High Speed card installed in
your system. This is no longer true. Apple fixed the problem in System
5.0.4.
19.3.3 Can't Run ProDOS 8 Software from GS/OS
In the following the devices are shown as 5/6 where 5 is for GS/OS
5.04 and 6 is for GS/OS 6 and beyond i.e., 8/12 = 8 for 5.04 and 12
for 6 and beyond.
If you are having problems running ProDOS 8 software from GS/OS you
probably have more than 8/12 devices in the ProDOS device table. This
is a problem inherent in GS/OS. You cannot have more than 8/12 total
devices available under ProDOS if you are going to launch your
applications from GS/OS (Note: this is not a problem if the hard drive
boots ProDOS 8 directly). To see if this may be the problem, total up
all of your 3.5" drives, 5.25" drives, and any RamFAST/SCSI partitions
you have mapped into the ProDOS Block Device table. If the total is
greater than 7/11 you will have this problem (the /RAM3 RAMdisk gets
added in too). To fix this you need to unmap some of the partitions on
the RamFAST/SCSI or possibly turn off the slot for your 3.5" or 5.25"
drives if you are not using them.
19.3.4 Desk Accessories
If you suspect problems with one or more desk accessories and if you
have System 6.0 or later, then hold down either Shift key when
booting. You can release it when you see the phrase, "No Inits/DAs"
below the "Welcome to GS/OS" box. If this clears the problem then you
will have to remove Inits, CDAs, and NDAs one at a time and boot the
system, keeping this up until the problem disappears. Then you should
put back all but the offending Init/DA to make sure that it was the
only DA causing the problem. For //e and IIgs not using System 6.0 or
later, see the following note for a way to temporally remove INITs
and/or DAs.
Note: One approach to removing INITs or DAs is to create a folder
labeled, "SaveInit" or "SaveDa" in the appropriate folder and simply
copy one or more INITs or DAs to or from the save folder prior to
booting the machine again.
If you are using something older than System 6.0 then you cannot
disable the Inits/DAs as a quick check. Rather, you will need to
remove them one at a time... as detailed above.
Here are the names of a few of the known troublesome Inits/DAs: Mr.
Apple, Fancy Apple; Twilight; Carpet Bag; FastSpeed; Ram.Namer.
Also, if you must use a screen-blanker you should use the one from
ProSel or Phantasm. If you have another one and are having problems,
either remove or disable it.
19.3.5 Zip GSx Accelerator
Check the version number of your board. If it is V1.01 or earlier then
you need to contact Zip Technologies for a free (as this is written)
upgrade in order to function with the RamFAST/SCSI.
19.4 IIgs with a TWGS and a RamFAST/SCSI Rev C
19.4.1 AE TranswarpGS Accelerator
If you experience problems with the RamFAST/SCSI check to see if there
is a part labeled TWGS-2A installed on your TranswarpGS. (At the top
right-hand side of the TWGS there are two chips with stickers on them.
The top one should be TWGS-1A and the one below should be TWGS-2B. If
RamFAST Manual Page 24
this chip is labeled TWGS-2A you will need to contact Sequential
Systems to see if a replacement source has been identified for the
TWGS-2B). The RamFAST/SCSI will not function in your computer until
you get this replacement part.
If there already is a TWGS-2B part in your TranswarpGS then you should
replace the Transwarp with the original 65C816 processor and see if
the problems go away. If they do, contact Sequential Systems Technical
Support to see if a source for further modifications has been
identified.
19.4.2 AE TWGS Accelerator - RamFAST/SCSI Options
You must have the Option (in the Utility program) for TranswarpGS set
to "Yes." If you don't, you will have problems.
19.4.3 AE TWGS Control Panel - Appletalk/IRQ
The TranswarpGS's control panel Desk Accessory has a section labeled
"Configure" which in turn has the entry "AppleTalk/IRQ." Make sure it
is ON. If it is OFF, you will have problems.
19.4.4 AE GS-RAM
The GS-Ram Revision A, will not function with the RamFAST/SCSI under
any circumstances.
Disable the DMA option in the Utility program for GS-Ram Revisions B,
C, and D. Only Revision E (and "some" Revision D cards) and later are
completely DMA compatible. You will have to determine for yourself if
your Rev D card is or isn't compatible (some Rev D cards arrived from
AE with a "flyer" saying that they were DMA compatible and they were).
To determine the revision of the GS-Ram card you must remove it from
your computer and look at the supporting "leg" of the card (half-way
between the card-edge connector and the back end of the card). On the
front or back there will be a message that reads: "REV x" where "x"
can be A, B, C, D, or E.
19.4.5 AE GS-RAM Plus Rev A, CheckMate Memory, or RamPack 4GS
If you have any of these products installed in your computer you will
have to disable the DMA option in the Utility program in order to
avoid problems. To determine the revision of a GS-Ram Plus use the
same method outlined in the above AE GS-Ram problem description.
19.4.6 AE RamKeeper
If there are two (2) memory cards installed in the RamKeeper you will
have to disable DMA using the Utility program. You should not have any
problems if there is only one (1) memory card installed in the BACK
pocket of the RamKeeper and the memory card itself is DMA compatible.
19.5 Top Six Questions Received at Tech Support Central
David Letterman has his top ten, we have our top six ;-)
Q: I just installed my RamFAST SCSI card and attached my hard drive to
it. When I boot the computer, the second partition is missing!
A: All you have to do is run the program "RamFAST.System" on the
volume "CVTech.ROM" and use the Options menu to turn off the ROMDisk
option (the Options menu is detailed in section 13.5.3 of this
manual). Take this opportunity to verify the settings of the other
Options. When done, click on the 'Save' item to make the new settings
permanent.
Q: I just attached a CD-ROM drive to my SCSI chain, but when I try to
boot, the computer crashes or just hangs.
RamFAST Manual Page 25
A. Make sure that the SCSI ID of the CD-ROM drive (or any removable
type drive) is _lower_ than the SCSI ID of your hard drive. For
example, if your hard drive's SCSI ID is 5, your CD-ROM should be set
to SCSI ID 4 or less. If you use a SyQuest or other read-write
removable device in place of a hard drive, treat the SyQuest as your
hard drive.
Q: I just upgraded to a RamFAST, and when I go into the utility
program the only volume that is shown is "CVTech.IDX.A". No other
partitions appear.
A: Call Sequential Systems tech support for information on how to
correct this.
Q: When I try to boot to GS/OS directly from a 3.5" floppy disk on
power-up, the computer crashes about halfway through the boot process.
A: The RamFAST gets confused if you boot GS/OS off a floppy on
power-up. Simply do a warm-reboot (Control-Apple-RESET) after it
crashes and the computer will then boot properly.
Q: I just installed AppleWorks 4.0 (or another ProDOS-8 application)
on my hard drive, but when I try to run it I get an error "Please
Insert Volume: ????X".
A: Run the RamFAST utility program and ensure that any partitions that
contain ProDOS-8 applications are mapped into the ProDOS-8 Slot/Drive
Table. (See section 13.2.)
Q: I have a hard drive with three or more partitions, but only the
first two partitions show up as icons in the Finder. What happened to
the other partitions?
A: You need to install the RamFAST.Driver into the System/Drivers
folder of your hard drive. You can do this by using the 'Install'
feature of the RamFAST utility program (see section 13.6), or by
turning on the ROMDisk and copying the RamFAST.Driver file to the
System/Drivers folder manually. You must then shut down the computer
and restart it for the driver to load. The other partitions will show
up then.
19.6 If All Else Fails...
If you have read and tried everything in the Trouble Shooting section
and you are still having problems, then gather the following
information:
1. What kind of computer (//e, IIgs ROM 01, or IIgs ROM 03, etc.)
2. Serial number (see section 1, "Limited Warranty," for serial number
discussion) and ROM version of your RamFAST/SCSI (See section titled,
"Volumes Screen," to see where the ROM version is displayed.)
3. A list of the other cards, and their version, installed in your
computer
4. A list containing the complete details about the equipment attached
to the RamFAST/SCSI.
5. Your name, address, and daytime phone number.
RamFAST Manual Page 26
6. A description of the problem you are having, and if possible, a way
to reproduce it.
and send it to:
Sequential Systems
1200 Diamond Circle
Lafayette, CO 80026
Ph: (303) 666-4549
Fax: (303) 665-0933
For on-line technical assistance, contact:
www.sequential.com
jay@sequential.com
20.0 WARRANTY REGISTRATION
Be SURE to fill out the Warranty Registration card and send it in. It
is the only way that we can know that you are out there and can
contact you with news of upgrades, etc. If by chance you threw the
card away you can send us the information asked for in items 1 through
5 in the "If All Else Fails..." section.
RamFAST Manual Page 27