Date: Mon, 1 Jun 1998 01:19:12 -0700 (PDT) From: Curt Sampson <cjs@portal.ca> To: Doug Rabson <dfr@nlsystems.com> Cc: Mike Smith <mike@smith.net.au>, hackers@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: AlphaBIOS documentation Message-ID: <Pine.NEB.3.96.980601011341.4124b-100000@ascetic.portal.ca> In-Reply-To: <Pine.BSF.3.95q.980601084158.330N-100000@herring.nlsystems.com>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
On Mon, 1 Jun 1998, Doug Rabson wrote: > > My point is, every time a new type of Alpha comes along, you have > > to write new PALcode and compile it in to the boot loader. This is > > not really all that different than having to write and compile in > > a new device driver every time a new device comes along. > > Thats true enough but we can always fall back to SRM console for those > cases. If you can fall back to SRM console, you don't need an ARC or AlphaBIOS boot loader, and thus don't need PALcode in the boot loader at all. One boot loader will work on all SRM systems. Note that the PALcode in Linux, though similar to OSF PALcode, is not the same as the OSF PALcode. > PALcode is at least small, self-contained and portable between operating > systems. Err...`sort of.' OSF PALcode is portable between Digital Unix and NetBSD (and presumably FreeBSD, at some point). VMS, NT and Linux all have their own PALcode. > Ideally, DEC would put OSF palcode into AlphaBIOS and make it > possible to switch to it using 'call_pal swppal'. Seems unlikely to me. The whole point of not having SRM console available is that you can't run DU, and are thus forced to by a more expensive machine (though with virtually identical hardware) to run it. cjs Curt Sampson cjs@portal.ca Info at http://www.portal.ca/ Internet Portal Services, Inc. Through infinite mist, software reverberates Vancouver, BC (604) 257-9400 In code possess'd of invisible folly. To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-hackers" in the body of the message
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?Pine.NEB.3.96.980601011341.4124b-100000>