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Date:      Mon, 01 Apr 96 09:54:47 -0800
From:      Cy Schubert - ITSD Open Systems Group <cschuber@uumail.gov.bc.ca>
To:        freebsd-hardware@freebsd.org
Subject:   Parity Errors 
Message-ID:  <199604011754.JAA21922@passer.osg.gov.bc.ca>

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I have a 486DX33 with 20MB of 70ns memory, 64K (unknown speed) cache, an Adaptec 
1542CF controller, an IDE controller, a Trident 8900D adapter, a SMC Elite 16 
Ethernet card, a parallel/serial card, and a serial card.  The motherboard is 
based on an Opti Chipset.  The memory and cache are configured for zero wait 
state operation.

Occasionally the system panics with a parity error.  Sometimes I'll get three in 
one day and other times I won't get an error for six weeks.  The errors usually 
occur during boot, during the mount of a CDROM, or when an NFS client mounts 
mounts a filesystem.

An interesting point is that these errors only occur under FreeBSD (2.0.5R and 
2.1.0R).  This machine has successfully run DOS, OS/2 2.x, Minix 1.5, Coherent 
4.x, and Linux (1.1, 1.2, and 1.3) without any parity errors.  The QA Plus 
diagnostic package, which I've used to find many parity errors before, e.g. when 
purchasing memory upgrades, did not complain about any problems.  Is it possible 
that FreeBSD is exercising the hardware in a manner it has never been used 
before or is this a known FreeBSD problem?  I can configure the machine for 
memory and/or cache read or write wait states independently.  Should I add a 
wait state and where, memory or cache, read or write?

Any help would be appreciated.


Regards,                       Phone:  (604)389-3827
Cy Schubert                    OV/VM:  BCSC02(CSCHUBER)
Open Systems Support          BITNET:  CSCHUBER@BCSC02.BITNET
ITSD                        Internet:  cschuber@uumail.gov.bc.ca
                                       cschuber@bcsc02.gov.bc.ca

		"Quit spooling around, JES do it."




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