On Thu, 02 May 2002 16:23:09 +1000
Ron Stodden <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Charles A Edwards wrote:
> >
> > On Sun, 28 Apr 2002 22:09:23 +1000
> > Ron Stodden <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> >
> > > That is not the problem. Most BIOSs provide no ability to select
> > > beyond HDD0 .. HDD4, if that, for booting. Usually only HDD0 and
> > > HDD1, ie booting is limited to IDE0.
> >
> > Ron, while much of the above is true, where you are in error is that even that
>even though your add-on card is for ide devices it comes with its own bios and the
>system sees and addresses it as a scsi device.
> >
> > If in your system BIOS you set SCSI as first boot device,(it can be 2nd or 3rd if
>you wish to have floppy or cdrom as 1,2) then you can boot without problem from the
>first hd connected to the pci controller card.
> >
> > What you can not do is boot from multiple deices attached to the card,
> > but only from the first bootable device attached.
>
> Charles, your claim that a Promise add-on card is bootable as a SCSI
> device is true. Thankyou for this information.
>
> However, I disagree with you when you claim the Promise card to be a
> SCSI device - it just could not be, and that is confirmed by its
> non-appearance as a SCSI device in cdrecord -scanbus. SCSI
> controllers are themselves usually addressable directly as LUN 7 on a
> SCSI bus.
Once again I did not say that It was a SCSI, but that the main system BIOS 'sees and
address' it as if it were a SCSI controller which is different.
>
> Rather, I think Promise has worked a kloodge
It is not just Promise all PCI controller cards by all Mans and for all speeds operate
in this same manner.
It is the onboard bios for the card that sets the attached devices as IDE.
The OS then takes over and based on the Ident it receives the proper driver is used.
This is why with versions of Windows prior to XP you had to go through hoops to use an
ATA100 (PCI or Onboard).
Win98 had to be installed connected to a normal controller (33 or 66),
the ATA100 driver installed and Then the drive could be moved to the ATA100 controller.
With 2k you had to to F6 and install the driver at a specific point during
installation set-up.
In Mandrake 7.1 and 7.2, even though they used the same driver you could install
without problem if using a 100 pci card, but you would have to enter I/O address for
the onboard controller and still needed luck.
In 8.0 the reverse was true.
> What
> happens when there is also a real SCSI adaptor with a hard disk I do
> not know.
Would not work.
Unless the system BIOS is redone the limit when using PCI controllers is 2 with 8
attached devices.
If someone wanted/needed more than that they would have to go all SCSI.
>This SCSI bootability was not mentioned in the documentation that came
>with my Promise controller.
None of them seem to do so.
I had to check several Manu sites before I found that that entry from SIIG
>When there is a Promise
>chip on the motherboard I would expect the same behaviour. and I will
>confirm that on another machine I have and let you know.
A lot will depend on the age of the MOBO and BIOS.
Some you still need to select SCSI and some such as the ASUS A7V with mixed controller
(66 and 100) after setting yes to ATA100 controller in the BIOS you can select ATA100
in the boot menu.
But what does hold true in all cases is that you can differentiate between boot
devices connected to IDE0 and IDE1, but for IDE2 and 3, even though you may have up to
4 devices attached, only the first bootable devise found can be used to boot.
That is why I use cdrom, cdrw, zip, etc. on IDE0 and 1, and all hds on IDE2 and 3.
If I am running multiple OSes I of course have the bootloader installed on the Master
IDE2.
Charles
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