Chapter 4 Installing a Hard Drive If you bought a hard disk with the Phoenix Board and had us install it, it should boot when you turn your Amiga on. If you wish to install your own SCSI hard disk, you should follow the instructions given here. To make this manual clearer, all Phoenix and AmigaDOS programs, directories and files are referred to with bold-italics, and the command lines which use them (text typed in at the CLI) are in plain italics. Please ensure that your Amiga is OFF before plugging or unplugging the drive connectors. Do not move the drive while it is spinning (allow 20 seconds after power is removed). Please note: These instructions are for use with revision I (and later) of the SCSI EPROM and disk-based driver pbscsi.device. How Autobooting Works When your Amiga boots up, it looks through a list of devices which have made themselves available for booting, each of which has assigned itself a priority, and tries to boot from each in descending order of priority. The internal floppy drive has a higher priority than your hard disk, so if there's a disk there the Amiga will try to boot from it. If it's not a bootable floppy, the Amiga will try the hard disk next. If it cannot boot from your hard disk it will display the "hand" picture (under 1.3 and earlier) or animation (under 2.0), asking for a bootable floppy. Even when the Amiga boots from a floppy it still recognises your hard disk, which will be mounted and ready to use even though the startup sequence on the boot floppy makes no reference to it. If you wish the hard disk to be completely ignored while booting (to conserve memory or avoid viral attacks on it) you must hold down the left mouse button while your Amiga boots, releasing it only when you see the boot floppy request or CLI window. Installing a Hard Disk This section shows you how to configure a SCSI hard disk for autobooting with the Phoenix Board's controller. Although you should not experience problems, we cannot be responsible for difficulties caused by faulty or incompatible drives. In particular, some drives may behave in such a way while powering up that the Phoenix Board will lock up when first turned on; if this occurs a warm boot (Ctrl-A-A) is required. Commodore's HDToolBox program (intended for the A2091 and A590 controllers) is used to configure and partition the hard disk; you must use the copy in the SCSI drawer of the diskette, which is slightly different to the version distributed by Commodore. (1) Selecting a drive This controller requires an Embedded SCSI hard drive. This is the type most commonly found in Macintoshes and Amigas, and can be identified by the presence of a 50-pin dual-row header at the rear of the drive, with no pins missing. You should check the drive's SCSI address (or ID), which is determined by three DIP switches or links on the drive which together form a binary number from 0 to 7. This can be set to any value from 0-6, but 0 will give the fastest possible booting. You cannot use an ID of 7, which is reserved for the controller. Do not move any links on your drive apart from those controlling the address, such as those labelled SS, EP and WS on Quantum LPS drives. Consult the documentation for your drive, if it was not purchased from Phoenix Microtechnologies, for the location of the SCSI ID links or switches. (2) Connecting the Hard Disk If you purchased your hard drive and/or mounting kit from Phoenix Microtechnologies then you will have all necessary cables. If your hard drive is to be internally mounted, connect one end of the 50 way cable to the 50 pin header on the rear of the hard drive, and the other end to the 50 pin header (JP6) on the Phoenix Board. Please make sure pin 1 of the hard drive is connected to pin 1 of the JP6 header (Indicated on the board by a diagonal line across one corner). Pin 1 is indicated on the board and hard drive by a number "1" near the headers. Pin 1 of the cable is indicated by an arrow or a "1" on each of the plastic connectors, and by a coloured stripe along one edge of the ribbon itself. You may wish to show hard disk activity by mounting the tricoloured LED on the front of the case as per diagrams 2-7 & 2-8 and instructions later in this chapter. If the drive is external you should obtain from us a cable which will connect the 26-pin header (JP4) which is adjacent to the 50-pin header (JP6) to a 25-pin DB connector which can be mounted on the Amiga's case. This can be connected to your drive by means of a suitable 25 to 50 pin adapter, also available from us. Other external SCSI devices, such as scanners and tape drives, can also use this connection in a daisy-chain fashion. Connect the power cable to the drive and the board (connectors are polarized - they only go on one way without force). Details of fitting a Quantum LPS (1" high) drive internally in the original 1000 case are given later in this chapter. (3) Configuring the Hard Disk Boot from the supplied floppy disk, and wait until the hard drive has been accessed (its LED will flash for up to several seconds); press and hold down the left mouse button until the CLI screen appears. When booting is complete, open the SCSI drawer on the boot disk and run HDToolBox by double-clicking on its icon. HDToolBox will scan all SCSI addresses and display a window showing each connected hard disk. The rest of this section outlines how a single partition can be quickly set up on the hard disk: those wishing to explore HDToolBox's many capabilities are directed to HDToolBox.doc. In HDToolBox: - Click on "Change Drive Type", then "Define New Drive Type" and "Read Configuration from Drive" in subsequent screens. This should show a correct indication of the size of the hard drive (usually a little less than that quoted by the manufacturer). Click on "OK", which will return you to the previous screen. Click on the drive information line in the window and then "OK", which will return you to the main screen. - Click on "Partition Drive", which shows a bar-graph display split in two. Click on the right-hand side of this graph and select "Delete Partition". Drag the small triangle under the graph fully to the right to create an unbroken graph. Set the "Partition Device Name" to whatever you wish (DH0 is the conventional choice) and check that the "Bootable" flag is set to Yes. Click on "OK", which returns you to the main screen. Click on "Save Changes to Drive". Now reboot the Phoenix Board with the supplied diskette in DF0:. If a requester comes up stating that "DH0 is not a DOS disk" or similar, cancel it. Run QuickFormat (in the SCSI drawer), and click on the name of the partition you just created in the window which appears (ignore the window entitled "Console"). Another window will appear; enter the volume name you wish the partition to have (not to be confused with the device name you entered in HDToolBox) and click on "OK". When formatting is complete, reboot with your usual boot disk in DF0: and copy the necessary files to the hard disk. Before booting from the hard disk, check the startup-sequence for references to df0: - you should change these to sys:. Mapping out Bad Blocks If your hard disk has been used before or is more than a few months old it may have developed bad blocks (blocks with errors). In this case it is wise to follow this procedure in HDToolBox before partitioning the drive: - Select "Low-level Format Drive" and confirm the selection. The low-level format may take from a couple of seconds to several minutes, depending on the size and manufacturer of the drive. - Select "Verify Data on Drive" and confirm the selection. The drive will now check every block. If it finds a bad one a requester will appear; you should add it to the bad block list. If any bad blocks are found select Verify again, and make sure that any bad blocks found are marked as "already mapped out". Adding More SCSI Devices If you wish to add more SCSI drives or other SCSI devices (e.g. a tape backup unit or scanner) you will need to mount a DB25 (25-pin D-shape) connector on your Amiga, and connect it to the 26-pin header on the controller (please refer to page 22). Please contact us for the necessary hardware to do this. External devices each have two DB25 ports so that they can be connected in daisychain fashion. Make sure their IDs do not conflict with each other or the internal drive. The terminators (usually resistor packs) on SCSI devices NOT at the extreme ends of the bus should also be removed. Configuration of additional hard drives is similar to that of the first, but since HDToolBox will now display two or more drives in its window make sure that you operate on the right one by highlighting it in the drive list window. Compatibility A hard drive must cope with many variations in the Amiga environment, but the only factor which will affect you is the version(s) of AmigaDOS you wish to run: - AmigaDOS 1.2 does not support autobooting, so when the Kickstart switch is used to select it the Phoenix Board will not attempt to boot from the EPROM driver. You must set up a mountlist entry to mount partitions; the driver (devs:pbscsi.device) and L:FastFileSystem will both be read from the boot floppy. - AmigaDOS 1.3 and 2.0 will both boot from a hard drive configured as described above. The driver does behave a little differently in each case; for further information see SCSI_Revision_Notes.doc on the supplied diskette. Revision I of the EPROM will still boot from hard disks configured by scsi_auto, but the drive must be at SCSI address 0. A-Max Support The devs directory of the supplied diskette contains pbscsi.amhd, an A-Max driver for the Phoenix Board's SCSI controller. Copy it into your devs: directory and follow ReadySoft's instructions for its use. SCSI-Direct Support The SCSI driver supports Commodore's SCSI-Direct protocol, which enables software to directly send any SCSI command to a SCSI device. This facility is used mostly by tape backup software. For more details and example code, see the SCSI_Direct drawer on the supplied disk. Troubleshooting This section covers common problems you may experience installing or using the Phoenix Board's SCSI controller. (1) HDToolBox doesn't find hard disk This can occur for several reasons: - Drive not connected properly. Check the orientation of the data and power cables to the drive, and that they're seated securely. You should be able to hear the drive spin up when the Phoenix Board is turned on. - Driver not available. If you booted with the left mouse button held down to avoid autobooting, pbscsi.device must be in the devs directory of the boot disk. - Auto-configuration problem. Some memory boards, including early MAST Mini-Megs units, don't auto-configure correctly and thus prevent the SCSI controller from auto-configuring. Try again without any peripherals connected to the expansion port. The SideCar may also cause this problem. (2) Drive won't autoboot Assuming that you have configured your hard drive with HDToolBox, failure to autoboot could occur for the following reasons: - Using Kickstart 1.2 or earlier - Kickstart Swap Switch not installed correctly, or link L35 incorrect - Drive too slow to spin up on power-up. If the Phoenix Board hangs or ignores the hard drive on power-up, but autoboots when subsequently rebooted, your drive is too slow in spinning up. The Phoenix Board allows about 30 seconds for the drive to spin up; allowing any more time would make booting without a hard drive connected very slow. Although every effort has been made to cope with the vagaries of different drives while they power up, the driver may hang when cold-booting from your drive. (3) Partition can't be accessed after booting Run HDToolBox and check that you partitioned the drive correctly. (4) Phoenix Board crashes while autobooting This is most likely to occur if the RDB data stored on the hard disk by HDToolBox is corrupted in some way. Boot from the supplied diskette, holding down the left mouse button to avoid autobooting, and run HDToolBox to re-write the RDB data. (5) Drive from another controller won't boot on Phoenix Board The Phoenix Board's SCSI driver emulates Commodore's SCSI drivers as closely as possible; drives configured with other manufacturers' controllers may not boot correctly. Drives prepped with GVP's FaaastPrep, in particular, cause problems for Commodore and Phoenix Board drivers when autobooting. Jumper Settings The Phoenix Board links relating to the SCSI Port will already be set correctly when you receive it, but just for reference these are the correct settings: - L12, L14 in - L33,L37 out - L35 centre and right pins jumpered (if Kickstart Swap Switch not installed) - L31,L32 centre and lower pins jumpered General Notes This section gives you some tips on managing your hard drive and understanding its behaviour. You should write down the drive geometry parameters and partition start and end cylinders (shown by HDToolBox when "Advanced Options" is selected in the partitioning screen) so that you can re-create them if the RDB data is corrupted. The "Low-Level Format"/"Verify Data on Drive" procedure should remove the possibility of read/write errors in the immediate future, but as hard disks age they may develop more errors. If you see a read/write error requester when reading or writing to the hard disk it is probably caused by a corruption of the data on the disk (a soft error) rather than a fault in the magnetic surface of the disk (a hard error). A corrupted file may often be recovered with a file recovery program such as DiskSalv (public domain, on the supplied diskette) or QuarterBack Tools. If deleting the file or directory causing the problem does not help, you must format the partition again. You should always keep an up-to-date backup of your hard disk with a backup utility - we recommend Quarterback, which we use in-house and sell. While hard disks are much more rugged now than in days of yore (the 80s!), they are still more fragile than anything else in your Amiga. Treat your Amiga gently if it contains a hard drive - in particular, do not move it while the hard drive is spinning. If your Amiga is often moved, a warning sticker on the front panel may be appropriate! Although the fast file system used by your controller is very fast and efficient, you will find access to your hard disk slow and cumbersome if you place too many files in any one directory. You should take advantage of the Amiga's hierarchical (tree-like) file structure to create several levels of directories, rather than filling the root directory (top level) with all your files. Also, once you've deleted and created a lot of files on the hard disk it will become fragmented - that is, your files will occupy a lot of small areas on the disk rather than one large area, which slows down reading and writing. Programs like B.A.D. and QuarterBack Tools can solve this problem by re-organising your files. Back up your hard drive before using such programs, though. Your hard disk is supposed to make your life easier, not harder. If you run into any problems you can't solve, please contact us for help with the exact details of your problem. Enjoy! Fitting a Quantum LPS Hard Drive Internally WARNING: The SCSI hard disk drive unit is extremely delicate. Don't handle it roughly or drop it. Only remove it from its anti-static bag when you are ready to install it in your Amiga; do not touch the components on the underside of the drive or the connectors on the back, since they are susceptible to static electricity. The metalwork described here should be done well away from your Amiga and your hard disk drive to avoid stray fragments of metal shorting electronic components. Take the template (supplied) and cut along the lines (as per template). Fold along the line as shown on the template to create a right angle. Place the top section of the shielding from the A1000 upside down, with the front facing towards you. Place the side of the template marked 'front panel' towards the front panel. The hole marked on the template should line up with the hole in the shielding. The fold line should be pushed hard against the right angle bend in the shielding (at the front). The side marked 'line up with edge' should line up with the other right angle bend in the shielding. To check that the template is in the correct position, the 'top line' of the template that reads 'front panel' should line up with the section of the shielding that covers the 256K front memory expansion unit of the original Amiga 1000. The two areas of the template that are shaded need to be marked out with a scriber, and an 8.5mm (or larger) hole drilled in the four corners of the waste of the main hole for the hard disk drive. Now, using a nibbling tool (i.e. Tandy 64-823 approx $20) nibble out the waste material that is shown on the template by the shaded areas. Now file the new holes lightly, to remove any sharp edges, and make sure that the longest sides of the hard disk drive hole are very flat. Now remove any swarf, or foreign metal objects from the shielding, as if these get into your Amiga, it will cause endless problems. Secure the brackets to the hard disk drive by firstly removing the hard disk drive from its anti-static bag, and laying it upside down on top of the bag. The bracket is screwed on by four M3 screws that should be done up firmly but not over-tightened The brackets with the self adhesive tape should protrude from about half-way up the hard disk drive. When the hard disk is installed, the components on the underside of the hard disk should face the components that are on the Phoenix Board and the front of the hard disk (the bezel) (the panel with the hard disk active light on it) should face towards the front of the computer. Using methylated spirits, clean the areas on the RF Shield where the adhesive will stick to (to give better adhesion). Plug both of the cables (power and 50 way SCSI cable) ensuring that both are orientated correctly. The 50 way SCSI cable will have to be folded, so that it is flat, but will fit in to the SCSI port on the Phoenix Board. Ensure that the hole that you have cut is large enough for the hard disk before removing the backing on the adhesive. Remove the backing on the adhesive, feed the two cables through the top of the case and gently stick the hard disk in position, so that the bezel of the hard disk is almost touching the front of the hole. This should allow clearance at the back of the hard disk for the cables. Plug the power and SCSI cables on to the Phoenix Board, wrap the power cable from the power supply around the supporting post in the centre of the board (ie. so that the cable isn't under the hard disk drive) and re-assemble the Amiga. With the front panel off, ensure that the top half of the case does NOT touch the hard disk. The hard disk may lay on the 50 way SCSI cable, and this is OK, so long as there isn't much pressure between the hard disk drive and the Phoenix Board. When re-assembling the case, be careful not to catch any of the wires between the mounting posts and the threads on the lid. We suggest that you install the external SCSI extension cable (AP1001-HE) at this time, especially if you intend to plug in any other SCSI devices at a later date. Fitting the Phoenix Board Power and Hard Disk LEDs The following instructions are for Phoenix Boards with a serial number of #PHNX7A. Please read the doc file "Old-Boards" for fitting the tri-coloured LED on older model boards #PHNX6K and #PHNX6N. Fit the LED as follows: 1. Power unit off 2. Fit single wire to "LED 2" connector with the marked edge towards the bottom (bottom 2 pins). 3. Fit socket with double wires to "LED 1" connector with the marked edge to the top. Conditions are as follows: Power: LED Orange Hard Drive Active: LED Green Ambiguous Condition LED Red - Fault