RE: srm upgrade 6.7 -> 7.0

[Waibel Niki <niki waibel setila ch>]

are you using srm console, arc or alphabios?
i had srm v6.7.
i too tried to create a fat floppy with the firmware file first - but it
did not boot.
i dont think it would work if i had done a 
`format a: /s' (instead of `format a:')
but i am new to alpha too and so i dont know.

can anyone make this clear?

thanks, niki

BTW:
 Michal Jaegermann [michal@ellpspace.math.ualberta.ca]:
  your perl script is VERY nice - perl really rules!
  i will use it next time :)

BTW2:
 happy new year


>-----Original Message-----
>From: janina@afb.net [mailto:janina@afb.net]
>Sent: Friday, December 31, 1999 4:29 PM
>To: 'axp-list'
>Subject: Re: srm upgrade 6.7 -> 7.0
>
>
>Maybe I'm too new to the world of Alpha's, but I'm missing 
>something here.
>What's the difference in your method over simply creating a bootable
>DOS/Win floppy? If the point is to get thie update to boot, the latter
>method worked on my AS200 just fine.
>
>
>
>			Janina Sajka, Director
>			Information Systems Research & Development
>			American Foundation for the Blind (AFB)
>
>janina@afb.net
>
>On Fri, 31 Dec 1999, Waibel Niki wrote:
>
>> i just a want to inform the i upgraded the srm console on my good old
>> alphastation255 (ev45/233).
>> 
>> i thought that it could help me boot from the adaptec scsi controller
>> - but it did not.
>> 
>> anyway - because it was such a pain to get info about the 
>upgrade process
>> under srm / linux, i will explain it in this mail.
>> 
>> if someone has a better solution - pls mail!
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> (the info below is without warrenty - it worked on my machine)
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 1) get the latest firmware from
>> ftp://ftp.digital.com/pub/DEC/Alpha/firmware/index.html
>> (choose your machine on the left)
>> 
>> 2) download the firware file (in my case it was `as255_v8_1.exe')
>> 
>> 3) boot a linux
>> 
>> 4) format a floppy (`fdformat /dev/fd0H1440')
>>    *dont* put a filesystem onto it - you dont need it!
>> 
>> 5) put the firmware file onto the disk - starting with an 
>offset of 512
>> byte:
>>    `dd if=as255_v8_1.exe of=/dev/fd0 bs=512 seek=1'
>> 
>> the next step is somehow a hack.
>> maybe there is a better way to do it - pls inform me!
>> you need to boot from the disk (directly in the srm console)
>> - but currently there is no boot stuff on it.
>> 
>> 6) create an empty (hex) bootblock:
>>    `dd if=/dev/zero bs=512 count=1 | xxd boot_block_empty'
>> 
>> 7) determine the size of the firmware file
>>    `ls -la as255_v8_1.exe'
>>    divide that size by 512 (decimal) and calculate the hex 
>value of it.
>> 
>> 8) edit the file `boot_block_empty' you created in step 6.
>>    you have to jump to offset 1e0 (the line before the last line).
>>    the next is a bit complicated.
>>    you have to reverse the byte order of the hex value calculated in
>>    step 7 in a long int (8 byte - 64 bit) order.
>>    example:
>>     your value from step 7 was: a09 (= 0000 0000 0000 0a09)
>>     the value you have to enter is: 090a 0000 0000 0000
>>    hope everyone undersood...
>> 
>> 9) edit the next long int
>>    enter: 0100 0000 0000 0000
>>    this is the offset the file starts.
>> 
>> 10) make sure that the next long int (at offset 1f0) is:
>>     0000 0000 0000 0000
>>      this is a flag - dont know what it is used for.
>> 
>> 11) edit the last long int. this is a checksum.
>>     it is the addition of all long ints (8 bytes) before.
>>     pay attention on the REVERSE ORDER!!!
>>     in my example it is:
>>     0a0a 0000 0000 0000
>> 
>> 12) exit editor and write the bootblock back to disk:
>>     `xxd -r boot_block_empty | dd of=/dev/fd0H1440'
>> 
>> 13) halt linux -> go to the srm console and boot from the 
>created disk:
>>     `boot dva0'
>> 
>> 14) the machine/srm seems to reboot - the the update menu 
>should appear.
>> 
>> 
>
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