SCSI Q-Bus controller for DECsystem 5400 with DEC RZ57

[Daniel OConnell]

>I've been round & round & round with my vendor.  No luck getting the RZ57 on a
>controller and working.  The RZ57 works fine when I connect it to a DECsystem
>3100, so it's probably not a problem with the RZ57 (DEC-labelled Micropolis, I
>believe).

>The controller card they (Digital Basics) have been pushing is the CMD
>Technology CMD220/TM (dual disk/tape controller).  The second I put it in the
>5400, the green LED (all OK) and the red LED (not all OK) both light up and
>Ultrix does not see the controller when identifying controllers and devices at
>boot time.

>Right now I'm just about desperate enough to go with anything that works.  I've
>got the controller to be recognized by Ultrix 3.0 on a VAXstation 3200 (the
>controller shows up as an MSCP device), but any references to the disk just
>hang and sit there.  Maybe there's something that needs to be switched on the
>RZ57 to get it working with something other than DECsystem 3100.

>Anybody have any _WORKING_ solutions to this problem of attaching an RZ57 to a
>5400?  Lots of brownie points awarded for any working solutions.  I'll even
>give out brownie points for untested solutions.

>I'm running Ultrix 3.1C.

We have a DILOG SCSI controller in our 5400. We have 3 WREN V's and 1 WREN
7 working just fine. Our disks are differential SCSI, the RZ57 is probably
single-ended. The DILOG controller is supposed to be switch selectable
between differential and single-ended. We have never (intentionally) tried
the single-ended configuration. We did forget to spec a differential WREN
7 and the result was very useful :).

We don't recommend our local DILOG salesleaze or installation people. In
fact, we did the installation after the installation tech said," Ultrix,
Unix, only speak VMS", and gave up. Anyway, the hardware works.

E-mail me if you want more detailed info (like part numbers).

Dan O'Connell
geomagic at geo1s.mps.ohio-state.edu (Ultrix)
geomagic at kcgl1.eng.ohio-state.edu (VMS)
geomagic at you.must.be.joking       (Wylbur)