Date: Thu, 23 Jan 1997 11:41:01 -0600 (CST) From: Lars Jonas Olsson <jonas@mcs.net> To: chuckr@glue.umd.edu (Chuck Robey) Cc: jonas@mcs.net, hardware@freebsd.org Subject: Re: DX4-100 and sig-11's Message-ID: <199701231741.LAA20054@Jupiter.Mcs.Net> In-Reply-To: <Pine.OSF.3.95.970123121543.25612B-100000@maryann.eng.umd.edu> from "Chuck Robey" at Jan 23, 97 12:21:59 pm
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OK, I guess MemTest-86 isn't that great... I pulled one SIMM and it seems to work now. Jonas > > On Thu, 23 Jan 1997, Lars Jonas Olsson wrote: > > > I'm testing an older 486DX4-100 computer with FreeBSD. I've run85 > > cycles of memtest-86 on it with no problem, but FreeBSD dies when > > starting up (after npx probe). > > The system has a PVI-486SP3 motherboard, Award BIOS, 3 PCI slots, SiS > > 85C496 and 85X497 chipset and Intel DX4 A80486DX4100 SK051. The CPU > > has a "TOUCH H9512" (CPU made before Dec. 1995) sticker on it. Any > > ideas? The BIOS will let me choose write-thru or write-back for the > > caches but no disable. I've tried both options. > > Point 1: There is NO program whatsoever, under any operating system, > that does an even slightly reliable job of testing memory, > so disregard the memtest results. > Point 2: There IS a reliable memory test method, it involved using > a hardware based memory tester. Most vendors of memory > either have one or have access to one, so you have to ask > them to do your testing. > Point 3: Unix operating systems (as a class, not just FreeBSD) push > memory much harder than any dos program, and will easily > catch problems that are invisible to dos memory checkers. > Point 4: Altho they _do_ catch memory problems, Unix OSs are miserable > at telling you _where_ the problem is; see Point 2. > > The FreeBSD OS is solid, so if it's bombing, you have a hardware problem. > I'm not saying it's memory, perhaps something else is set up wrong. > > ----------------------------+----------------------------------------------- > Chuck Robey | Interests include any kind of voice or data > chuckr@eng.umd.edu | communications topic, C programming, and Unix. > 9120 Edmonston Ct #302 | > Greenbelt, MD 20770 | I run Journey2 and picnic, both FreeBSD > (301) 220-2114 | version 3.0 current -- and great FUN! > ----------------------------+----------------------------------------------- > >
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