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TRIGEM CW3S20C Operation Manual

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SX386MC
OPERATIONS
GUIDE

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Summary of Contents for TRIGEM CW3S20C

  • Page 1 SX386MC OPERATIONS GUIDE...
  • Page 2 SX386MC OPERATIONS GUIDE...
  • Page 3 GERMAN RFI DECLARATION FOR CLASS B SELF CERTIFICATION Hiermit wird bescheinigt, dass der TriGem SX386MC in Übereinstimmung mit den Bestimmungen der Vfg 1046/1984 funk-entstort ist. Der Deutschen Bundespost wurde das Inverkehrbringen dieses Gerätes angezeigt und die Berechtigung zur Überprüfung der Serie auf Einhaltung der Bestimmungen eingeräumt.

  • Page 4: Important Notice

    DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY TriGem Computer, Inc. makes no representations or warranties with respect to this manual, and shall not be held liable for technical or editorial omissions made herein; nor incidental or consequential damages resulting from the furnishing, performance, or use of this manual.
  • Page 5 TriGem is a registered trademark of TriGem Computer, Inc. AMI BIOS is a trademark of American Megatrends Inc. IBM, PC, PC/XT, PC/AT, MDA, Monochrome Display Adaptor, EGA, Enhanced Graphics Adaptor, VGA, and Video Graphics Array are trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation.

  • Page 6: Fcc Compliance Statement

    FCC COMPLIANCE STATEMENT This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
  • Page 7 The following instructions pertain to the risk of fire, electric shock or bodily injury. Please read all of these instructions carefully. Follow all of the instructions and warnings marked on this product or included in this manual. Do not use this computer on an unstable cart, stand or table. Slots and openings in the cabinet and the back have been provided for ventilation.
  • Page 8 Except as explained in Chapter 7, “Expanding Your System,” do not attempt to modify or service this product yourself. Opening or removing those covers that are marked “DO NOT REMOVE” may expose you to dangerous voltage points or other risks. Refer all servicing problems to qualified service personnel.
  • Page 9 Stop! If you ever have to remove the main system unit cover, observe the following precautions: The power supply cord must be unplugged before the main system unit cover is removed. (Separe le cordon d’alimentation et puis enleve le couvercle.) Once removed, the cover must be replaced and screwed in position before the power supply cord is plugged back in.
  • Page 10 Wichtige Sicherheitsvorschriften Unbedingt beachten! Allgemeine Sicherheit Die nachfolgenden Anweisungen betreffen die Gefahr von Verletzungen durch elektrische Spannung, Feuer und mechanische Einwirkung. Bitte lesen Sie diese Anweisungen sorgfältig. Beachten Sie alle Hinweise, die am Gerät selbst angebracht oder in den zugehörigen Handbüchem vermerkt sind. Stellen Sie das Gerät an einem sicheren, stabilen Arbeitsplatz auf.
  • Page 11 Auf das Netzanschlußkabel dürfen keine Gegenstände gestellt werden. Legen sie das Netzkabel so, daß niemand darauftreten oder darüber stolpem kann. Wenn Sie Verlängerungskabel benutzen, müßen Sie sicher sein, daß die gesamte Leistungsaufnahme nicht größer ist als das Verlängerungskabel zuläßt. Der gesamte Stromverbrauch aller angeschlossenen Geräte darf nicht mehr als 15 A betragen.
  • Page 12 ACHTUNG: Wenn Sie das Gerät öffnen mößen (Abnahme der verschraubten Haube), ist unbedingt folgendes zu beachten: Das Netzkabel muß aus der Steckdose gezogen werden und zwar bevor Sie das Gerät öffnen. Die Haube muss wieder monitert und verschraubt werden. Erst dann darf das Netzkabel wieder eingesteckt werden.

  • Page 13: Table Of Contents

    Contents Introduction ........1 How to Use This Manual .
  • Page 14 Using Your Computer Chapter 3 Changing the Operating Speed ......Special Keys on Your Keyboard Stopping a Command or Program .
  • Page 15 ........Wildcards Application Software Using Floppy Disks Chapter 5 Description .
  • Page 16 Expanding Your System Chapter 7 Connecting Peripherals ......7 - 1 Serial Ports ........Parallel Ports .
  • Page 17 Video Monitor Systems Appendix C Monitor System Resolution ......C-1 Video Controller Boards ......C-1 Monitor Types .

  • Page 18: Introduction

    Introduction Your TriGem computer is powerful, versatile, and easy to use. After setting up your system with the simple instructions in this manual, you’ll soon be using your favorite software programs. This computer is available in these configurations: The System provides one 1.2MB (megabyte) diskette drive and an optional 40MB (or 80MB) hard disk drive.

  • Page 19: How To Use This Manual

    How to Use This Manual This manual explains how to set up and care for your computer. It also describes how to use your computer. The instructions in this manual apply to your system, except where otherwise indicated. You probably don’t need to read everything in this book; see the following chapter summaries.

  • Page 20: Chapter 1 Setting Up Your System

    Chapter 1 Setting Up Your System Setting up your personal computer is easy. Just follow the nine steps in this chapter. When you finish setting up your computer, go on to Chapter 2 and follow the instructions there to run the Setup program. The Setup program updates the list of equipment installed in the computer and any time options are added or changed.

  • Page 21: Choosing A Location

    Besides this manual, you should have the following: The computer and power cord The Keyboard with attached cable MS-DOS diskettes GW-BASIC diskette MS-DOS User’s Guide GW-BASIC User’s Guide In addition to these items, you need a compatible monitor to use with the computer. Be sure to keep your packing materials.
  • Page 22 source of heat. High humidity also hinders operation, so select a cool, dry area. Avoid dust and smoke, which can damage disks and disk drives and cause you to lose valuable data. Appropriate power sources: To prevent static charges, connect all your equipment to three-prong, grounded outlets.

  • Page 23: Connecting A Monitor

    Connecting a Monitor The video display monitor is the device used by-the computer to communicate with you. Your software will use the screen to display information, such as prompts, text, graphics (charts and pictures), etc. Several types of monitor are available as options. A typical video display system provides a high resolution monochrome (green or amber screen) screen display.
  • Page 24 2. If necessary, connect the monitor cable to the monitor. (Some monitors come with permanently attatched cables.) 3. Connect the monitor cable to the video connector on the back of the computer, as shown below. If the plug has retaining screws, tighten them securely. Figure 1-2.

  • Page 25: Connecting A Printer, Mouse, Or Modem

    Connecting a Printer, Mouse, or Modem The computer has a parallel interface and two serial interfaces on the back panel, so you can easily connect a printer or other type of device with either type of interface. For example, you can use the parallel port to connect a parallel printer (most printers have a parallel interface).

  • Page 26: Using The Serial Interface

    Figure 1-3. Connecting the Printer 3. Connect the other end of the cable to the printer, as shown below. If the printer has retaining clips on each side of the printer port, squeeze the clips together to secure the cable. 4.

  • Page 27: Connecting The Power Cord

    Setting up-the serial port for a printer If you are using a serial printer but your software does not support a serial printer, you must do two things before you can print: o Set up the data transmission parameters for the serial port. 0 Tell the computer to redirect printer data from the parallel port to the serial port.
  • Page 28 Figure 1-5. AC Power Connections 2. Plug the other end of the power cord into a three-prong, grounded electrical outlet. Note The socket-c&let should be installed near the equipment and should be easily accessible. Die Verbindung zwischen Steckdose solite mölichst Kurz steckdose sollte frei zugäglich sein.

  • Page 29: Connecting The Keyboard

    Connecting the Keyboard Your keyboard has only one cable to connect. This simply plugs into the keyboard connector located at the bottom of the main system unit’s rear panel. This connector is designed to prevent insertion if the pins don’t line up, so it may be necessary to rotate the cable connector until it plugs in easily.

  • Page 30: Adjusting The Keyboard Angle

    Adjusting the Keyboard Angle You can change the angle of the keyboard by adjusting the legs on the bottom. Turn the keyboard over and lift each leg upward until it locks into place, as shown below. You lock the legs into a low or high position, or leave them flat. Figure 1-7.

  • Page 31: Turning On The Computer

    Turning On the Computer Before you turn on your computer, read the following safety rules to avoide accidentally damaging the computer or injuring yourself: Do not unplug cables from the computer when the power switch is on. Never turn off or reset your computer while a disk drive light is on.
  • Page 32 1. Turn on the monitor, printer, and any other peripheral devices connected to the computer. 2. To turn on the computer, press the power switch. The power indicator on the front panel lights up. After a few seconds, the computer starts to perform an internal self test. This is a series of checks the computer completes each time you turn it on to make sure everything is working correctly.
  • Page 33 388-BIOS (C) 1989 American Megatrends Inc. (C) 1989 TriGem Computer Inc. XXXX KB OK Press <ESC> to bypass MEMORY test SIZING CACHE MEMORY, 32KB FOUND TESTING CACHE MEMORY, 32KB OK CACHE TEST COMPLETED (C) American Megatrends Inc,. DVSX-6080-060290-KB The computer continually updates this display as it tests its memory.

  • Page 34: The Command Prompt

    The Command Prompt After the computer has loaded MS-DOS from the hard disk, you see the MS-DOS command prompt on the screen: The command prompt tells you that your computer is ready to receive instructions. It also identifies the current operating drive: A or C, for example.
  • Page 35 Follow these steps: 1. The C > prompt should be on the screen. If not, type C: and press Enter. 2. Type the following and press Enter: The screen displays this message: 3. Insert the MS-DOS diskette in drive A, as shown below. Hold the diskette with the label facing up and the read/write slot into the drive.
  • Page 36 4. Press any key. The DISKCOPY program copies the contents of the MS-DOS diskette to the computer’s memory, and then you see the following: If the diskette is not formatted, the DISKCOPY program formats it. Then the program begins copying the data from the computer’s memory to the formatted diskette.

  • Page 37: Resetting Your Computer

    prevent damaging the diskettes. Store the originals in a safe place and use the copies as they needed. Resetting Your Computer If your computer system should “lockup”, it may be necessary to reset the computer. Resetting the computer causes the CPU to clear its instruction set and the system memory.

  • Page 38: Chapter 2 The Cmos Setup Program

    Chapter 2 The CMOS Setup Program Introduction The Setup program keeps a record of the host computer’s system parameters (such as memory amounts, disk drives, video displays, and numeric coprocessors). Setup resides in the Read Only Memory Basic Input/Output System (ROM BIOS) so that it is available each time the host is turned on.

  • Page 39: Using Setup

    Note Note that you can bypass the memory test by pressing the < ESC > key. This option would be useful when the memory on the system is quite large. You should hit the <ESC> key when the following message appears on the screen.

  • Page 40: Entering Setup

    Use <Up “ > and <Down ” > keys to set the reverse video cursor on the option you want to select and use < Enter > to get into the option. This means that the SETUP program options have been set at the factory.
  • Page 41 If you hit <DEL> key, you will see a menu like as following. Set the reverse video cursor on the “RUN CMOS SETUP” using <Up “ > and < Down ” > and press <ENTER>. Then the screen will be replaced by the following. This screen is the SETUP MENU.

  • Page 42: Parameters

    < ‘ > < ’ > ....moves the selection bar < PgUp > < PgDn > ..scrolls allowable settings <...
  • Page 43 Hard Disk Drive Setup Drives c: and d: are the hard disk drives in the system. 46 drive types have been defined by AMI. If for some reason or other your particular drive is not one of the 46 pre-defined types, simply scroll down to type 47 and enter the following drive specifications: cylinders, heads, WPcom, LZone, and sectors.
  • Page 44 must be stored in normal RAM, but the integrity of the data must be maintained. The options you have are the following: 1. The BIOS to use 100 bytes at 30h:0 2. The BIOS to reduce the size of the base memory by 1KB. The default is 1.
  • Page 45 Video This parameter loads the program code from your video card into shadow RAM during system start up. BIOS + Video This option loads the BIOS and video code into shadow RAM. Ext. Memory If you use the extended memory on your system, select this option.
  • Page 46 0 Peripheral Setup When you scroll down to this parameter, the following message will be displayed on the right side of the Setup message. Peripheral Setup Serial 1: Enabled Serial 2: Enabled Parallel: Enabled FDC: Enabled HDC: Enabled Serial 1 If you’d like to the on board serial port 1 for COM 1, set this option “Enable”.

  • Page 47: Leaving The Setup Program

    l FDC Your system provide on board FDC and it supports two floppy disk drive to your system. If you use another FDC in your system using external Card, you should disable this option. The system has on bord IDE type HDC. If you’d like to another type of HDC (for example, SCSI, or ESDI etc.), disable this option and install your HDC Card to the expansion slot on the backplane board.

  • Page 48: Chapter 3 Using Your Computer

    Chapter 3 Using Your Computer This chapter covers the following basic procedure for using your computer: 00 Changing the operating speed 00 Using special keys on the keyboard Cl Stopping a command or program 00 Using disks and disk drives. Changing the Operating Speed Your computer can operate two speeds;...

  • Page 49: Special Keys On Your Keyboard

    Changing the operating speed may be performed with the TriGem Utility TGSS.COM. This program is located on the MS-DOS diskette supplied with the system. You can find the detailed description of TGSS.COM in your MS-DOS User’s Guide. Special Keys on your Keyboard Certain keys on your keyboard serve special functions when your computer is running programs.
  • Page 50 Purpose F1-F12 Perform special functions within application program (Some keys also function with MS-DOS. See your MS-DOS Reference Manual for more information.) Moves the cursor one table to the right in normal mode (and one tab the left in shift mode when using some application programs.) Ctrl Works with other key to perform special (control)
  • Page 51 SYS Req PrtSc Home, End, PgUp, PgDn et-1 The Num Lock, Scroll Lock, and Caps Lock keys work as toggles; press the key once to turn on a function and again to turn it off. When the function is enabled, the corresponding light on the top right comer of the keyboard is on.

  • Page 52: Stopping A Command Or Program

    Stopping a Command or Program You may sometimes need to stop a command or program while it is running. Many application programs provide a command you can use to stop or even cancel (undo) an operation. If you have entered an MS-DOS command that you want to stop, try one of the following commands: 0 Hold down the Ctrl key and press C 0 Hold down the Ctrl key and press Break...

  • Page 53: How Disks Store Data

    o Care for your diskettes and diskette drives 0 Insert and remove diskettes 0 Write-protect diskettes 0 Make backup copies of your diskettes 0 Use a single diskette drive 0 Use a hard disk drive How Disks Store Data The diskette you insert in your computer’s diskette drive is made of flexible plastic, coated with magnetic material.
  • Page 54 A disk is further divided b y sectors. To understand what a sector is, picture the spokes on a bicycle wheel radiating from the center of the wheel to the tire. The space between one spoke and the next is like a sector on a diskette. (See the figure below.) Each track on a 1.2MB diskette has 15 sectors, and each sector holds 512 bytes.

  • Page 55: Types Of Diskette Drives

    You computer has at least one 1.2MB diskette drive. With this drive, use 51/4+inch, double-sided, high-density, 96 TPI, 1.2MB diskettes. These diskettes contain 80 tracks per side, 15 sectors per track, and hold up to 1.2MB of information, which is approximately 500 pages of text.
  • Page 56 Note You must format new diskettes before you can use them with an operating system. Formatting erases all the data on a diskette and prepares it to receive new data, so be sure to format only new blank diskettes or diskettes that contain data you want to erase.

  • Page 57: Caring For Diskettes And Diskette Drives

    Because of these incompatibilities, you should indicate the density and diskette type when you label your diskettes. (Usually this information appears on the manufacturer’s label.) If you have any combination of the above drives (360KB, 1.2MB, 720KB, or l.44MB), y ou can copy files from one drive to another - using the COPY or XCOPY command - as long as the correct diskette type is in each drive.
  • Page 58 Keep diskettes away from magnetic fields. (Remember that diskettes store information magnetically.) There are many sources of magnetism in your home or office, such as electrical appliances, telephones, and loudspeakers. Do not place diskettes on top of your monitor or near an external disk drive.

  • Page 59: Inserting And Removing Diskettes

    0 Never turn off the computer when the hard disk drive light is on. This light indicates that the computer is copying data to or from the hard disk. If you interrupt this process, you can lose data. Cl Never attempt to open the hard disk drive. The disk itself is enclosed in a sealed container to protect it from dust.
  • Page 60 If a diskette is in the drive but the latch is up (horizontal) and you enter a command for that drive, the computer cannot tell there is a diskette in the drive and displays an error message such as: Close the latch and press R. To remove the diskette, turn the drive latch up until it is horizontal and the edge of the diskette pops out.

  • Page 61: Write-Protecting Diskettes

    To remove a 3’/2-inch diskette, press the release button to release it. When the edge pops out of the drive, pull out the diskette and store it properly. warning Never remove a diskette or turn off the computer while the drive indicator light is on.

  • Page 62: Making Backup Copies

    Some program diskettes, such as your MS-DOS diskettes, have no notch so they any permanently write-protected. This protects them from being accidentally erased or altered. On a 31/2inch diskette, the write-protect device is a small switch on the lower-right comer on the back, shown below. To write-protect a 3l/2-inch diskette, slide the switch toward the edge of the diskette until it clicks into position, exposing a hole in the comer.

  • Page 63: Using A Single Diskette Drive

    safe place away from your working copies. Backup your data diskettes regularly, whenever you revise them, to keep them up-todate, and store them away from your originals. Chapter 1 describes how to use DISKCOPY to copy your MS-DOS diskette. For more detailed information to make backups of other diskettes, refer to Chapter 4 “Using MS-DOS with your computer”.

  • Page 64: Using The Hard Disk Drive

    You can load the opeating system and application programs from the hard disk, create and store your data there, and use the diskette drive just for copying data to and from diskettes. Note If you only have one diskette drive and no hard disk, you need to use that drive to load the operating system as well as the application programs you are using.

  • Page 65: Preparing The Hard Disk For Moving

    Backing up hard disk Ales While the hard disk is very reliable, it is essential to back up your hard disk files to diskettes in case you lose some data accidentally. Make copies of all your system and application program diskettes before copying the programs to the hard disk. After you create data files on the hard disk, be sure to copy them to diskettes whenever you revise them to keep your backup diskettes up-todate.
  • Page 66 You see a message on the screen that tells you the disk drive’s read/write heads will remain locked until you reset the computer or turn the power off and on again. The computer locks the heads and disables the keyboard. You can now turn off the computer and prepare to move it to the new location.

  • Page 67: Chapter 4 Using Ms-Dos With Your Computer

    Chapter 4 Using MS-DOS With Your Computer Once you have your computer system “up-and-running,” you may begin to work with MS-DOS. Virtually all application software available for IBM PCiXT and PC/AT-compatible computer systems runs “under” MS-DOS. Therefore, in order to use these programs, you need to learn how to use MS-DOS.

  • Page 68: Inserting Diskettes

    Inserting Diskettes Your MS-DOS software package contains of the following items: a One MS-DOS Install Diskettes 0 One MS-DOS Select Diskette 0 Three MS-DOS Operating Diskettes Q One MS-DOS Shell Diskette 0 The MS-DOS User’s Guide & User’s Reference 0 The MS-DOS Shell User’s Guide Begin the installation procedure by placing the MS-DOS Install diskette in the A drive and turning your computer on.
  • Page 69 To insert a diskette into the drive: 0 Open the drive door 0 If you haven’t already done so, remove the protective cardboard insert from the drive. 0 Gently insert the diskette into the drive entry slot with its label facing up, and the write protect notch to the left. Cl When the diskette is all the way in, close the drive door by turning the door latch handle down.

  • Page 70: Starting Ms-Dos

    Starting MS-DOS To start MS-DOS 4.01 on a floppy disk-based system (that is, one without a hard disk drive), follow these steps given below. For a detailed description of how to start MS-DOS 4.01, consult the Getting Started section in your MS-DOS 4.01 User’s Guide.

  • Page 71: System Prompt

    Notice that the words “Command Prompt” are highlighted by a solid bar. This is a DOS Shell option that allows you to work directly with MS-DOS. Your computer system is now “running under DOS.” For now, press ENTER to run the Command Prompt option. System Prompt After you press the ENTER key to either accept the time shown or enter a new one, MS-DOS will show a new prompt...

  • Page 72: Cursor

    This is the system prompt. When it is displayed, it means that MS-DOS is waiting for you to tell it what to do. This is done by typing a DOS command, then pressing the ENTER key. Cursor Following the system prompt, you will see a blinking underline ( _ ) character.

  • Page 73: Case Sensitivity

    MS-DOS does not differentiate between upper and lower case letters in commands and filenames. This manual will show commands in upper case for clarity, but you may enter them either way. For example, both of these commands will generate a directory listing of a diskette: Function Keys As mentioned earlier, MS-DOS uses several of your keyboard’s function keys to provide you with shortcuts.

  • Page 74: Backspace Key

    The opposite of F2, deletes all characters from the buffer up to, but not including, the next character you type - F5 key Moves the current line you are typing into the buffer without ENTERing it - F6 key Places an “end-of-file” marker when you copy from the monitor to a disk file - ESC key Cancels the current command line without changing the buffer...
  • Page 75 The BACKSPACE key on your keyboard works just like a backspace key on a regular typewriter: it moves the cursor back one position. In addition, however, it erases the last character typed. Press the BACKSPACE key as many times as necessary to erase the typing mistake, then type out the command correctly.

  • Page 76: Default Drive

    Default Drive MS-DOS will only look at one disk drive at a time. Normally, this is the “default” drive. You can tell which disk drive is the current default drive by looking at the system prompt. For example: indicates that the “A” drive is currently the default drive. Unless you specify otherwise, MS-DOS will direct any disk activity to the “A”...

  • Page 77: Copying Your Ms-Dos Diskettes

    From the A. prompt command, try the command: The computer will respond: Press ENTER after you insert the diskette into the drive, then the system prompt will be: If you have a dual floppy disk drive system, the second, or “B” drive is now the system default drive, as indicated by the new system prompt.

  • Page 78: Copying On Single Drive Systems

    Write down the MS-DOS version number on each diskette labels. This will avoid confusion later if you upgrade your operating system to a new version. As you finish copying and checking each MS-DOS master diskette, peel the correct label off of the backing paper and place it on the upper left-hand side of the front face of the new diskette.
  • Page 79 The “SOURCE” diskette is the disk that you will be copying from. Insert the MS-DOS master diskette into the A drive. Press any key, such as the % SPACEBAR. The floppy disk drive will be activated, and your computer will display: The contents of the disk are being read into your computer’s memory.
  • Page 80 For now, type N. The system prompt will reappear. To compare the backup diskette with the original, you will use the DISKCOMP command. Enter the command at the system prompt: The computer will respond: Remove the backup diskette from the drive, and put it in its protective jacket.
  • Page 81 drive, and put it in its protective envelope. Take out the backup copy diskette, insert it into the disk drive, and press the SPACEBAR key. The computer will read the contents of the backup diskette, and compare them with the copy of the master diskette that it has stored in memory.

  • Page 82: Copying On Dual Drive Systems

    Copying on Dual Drive Systems To make backup copies of your MS-DOS diskettes on a dualdrive system, follow the instructions below: First, turn your computer on and boot up MS-DOS. Choose the Command Prompt option from the DOS shell menu. The system prompt will appear.
  • Page 83 Close bath drive doors. Press any key, such as the SPACEBAR. The A drive will be activated, and your computer will display: The contents of the disk are being read into your computer’s memory. After a few moments, the following message will appear: For now, type N.
  • Page 84 When the computer is finished comparing the diskettes, the drives will turn off, and the following message will appear: Type N to return to the system prompt. If there is a problem with the backup diskette or if you put the wrong diskette into the drive by mistake, the computer will respond: After you have confirmed that the backup diskette is a good...

  • Page 85: Files

    FILES In the same way that you can keep information grouped together in manila folders, MS-DOS organizes data into files. While you may store these folders in a cabinet, your computer stores these files on disks. Separating information into files allows you to work with that information more efficiently.

  • Page 86: Filenames And Extensions

    Needless to say, each file on a disk must be uniquely identifiable. To achieve this, MS-DOS requires that you name every file you create, as you create it. In order to be able to manipulate files easily, MS-DOS has certain rules that you must follow when naming files. As you will see, these rules leave you a great deal of freedom in your selection of filenames.
  • Page 87 (minus sign or hyphen) { and } (brackets) (underline character) The following are examples of allowable filenames: JANUARY CHAPTER.001 MEMO.APR MAYSALES.$ $$,SALES.OCT These filenames are valid because none of them are too long, and only legal characters have been used. The following are examples of illegal filenames, along with an explanation: 3RDQUARTER.SALES This is too long.
  • Page 88 can recognize program files. These are: (for COMMAND file) Cl C O M Cl E X E (for EXECUTABLE file) 0 B A T (for BATCH file) Program files should always have one of these three filename extensions. Data files should never use these reserved extensions.

  • Page 89: Disk Directories

    MS-DOS keeps track of the files stored on your disks by maintaining a “directory” on each disk. These directories are listings of the filenames and extensions, along with certain information about the files themselves, such as when the file was created or updated last. The DIR Command MS-DOS provides a simple command that allows you to look at the directory of any particular disk.

  • Page 90: File Searches

    The information presented by the DIR command is as follows: D The filename & extension Cl The file size (in bytes) Q The date the file was created or last updated Q The time the file was created or last updated 0 The number of files listed in the directory 0 The number of unused bytes of space remaining on the disk File Searches...

  • Page 91: Multiple Disk Drive Systems

    Multiple Disk Drive Systems The DIR command can be used to read the directories of other drives in your system, if any are installed. For instance, to read the directory of the B drive, when you are logged onto drive A, enter the command: The computer will display the directory of the diskette inserted in the B drive.

  • Page 92: Wildcards

    Wildcards Quite often, when dealing with disk files, you may find yourself looking through directories for a particular file or group of files. MS-DOS has a way to help you sort out those files you want without having to read through the entire directory listing. This is through the use of “wildcard”...

  • Page 93: Application Software

    Application Software that you know how to make backup copies of your diskettes and how to work with MS-DOS, you can proceed to use application software. Most software packages come with detailed instructions for their set-up and use. These instructions will often ask you to use the information in this chapter to find specific files in the disk directories, or back up the master diskettes provided with each package.

  • Page 94: Chapter 5 Using Floppy Disks

    Chapter 5 Using Floppy Disks Description Your computer works with a large electronic memory array called RAM. This stands for Random Access Memory. Your system’s RAM is actually an array of electronic circuits. As long as the computer is powered up, this circuit array will “remember”...

  • Page 95: How Floppy Disks Work

    How Floppy Disks Work Floppy disks, or diskettes, are made from a flexible plastic that is coated with a magnetic oxide. The floppy disk drive encodes this oxide with the data generated by the computer. After you turn your system off, unlike electronic RAM, the encoded oxide retains this data.

  • Page 96: Formatting Diskettes

    Formatting Diskettes When you get a new carton of diskettes, they are not yet ready to be used. First, they must be prepared to accept data. This is called “formatting” the diskette. MS-DOS uses the same formatting method regardless of the computer used.

  • Page 97: The Format Command

    When you type F (for Failure), the computer will automatically cancel the attempt and will display the following message. Remove the unformatted disk from the drive. The FORMAT Command MS-DOS provides an external command program called FORMAT.COM, that will format your blank diskettes. When running this program, there are options available that allow you to format several different types of diskette.
  • Page 98 Insert the new diskette to be formatted and press the ENTER key. The computer will display: The formatting process takes a minute or two. The computer will wait until the formatting process is complete, then display: Press ENTER if you don’t want to have a label of your disk. Then the screen will display the following message.

  • Page 99: Option Switches

    Option Switches To format 180K-byte sigle-sided, sigle-density diskettes in the computer’s high capacity disk drive, enter the FORMAT command using the 11 option switch: The computer will proceed to format the diskette. Upon completion, you will see this message: And the following screen will appear if you press ENTER. (If you want to have a volume label, type the characters and enter.) XXXXXXX bytes total disk space...
  • Page 100 The /4 option switch is used to format 360K-byte double-sided, double-density diskettes in the computer’s high capacity disk drive. To do this enter the command: The computer will proceed to format the diskette. Upon completion, you will see this message: Press ENTER not to have a label of your disk.
  • Page 101 Caution! 360K-byte diskettes formatted on 1.2M-byte high density, AT-style drives may not be reliable when used on some 360K-byte, XT-style drives. The 14 option switch is primarily intended to permit the use of less expensive diskettes with AT-compatible systems like this one. If you need to have diskettes that can be safely read from and written to by both styles of computer, you should format the lower capacity diskettes on the XT-compatible system...
  • Page 102 You normally boot the system up from the MS-DOS main system diskette. The DISKCOPY command copied these files when you created the backup copy of the master diskette. Sometimes, though, you may want to create a “boot disk” that doesn’t have all of the external DOS commands on it. For instance, you may want to make an “autoboot”...

  • Page 103: Copying Files

    XXXXXXX bytes total disk space XXXXXXX bytes available on disk XXX bytes in each allocation unit XXXXX allocation units available on disk Volume Serial Number is XXXX-XXXX F o r m a t a n o t h e r ( Y / N ) ? Enter N to return to the system prompt.
  • Page 104 For example, to copy the file “MAYSALES.RPT” from drive A to drive B, enter the command: When the copying process is done, the computer will display: You can also enter this command without the default drive letter, as: When no drive letter is specified for the source drive, MS-DOS assumes that you want to copy a file from the default drive.
  • Page 105 It is also possible to copy a file between two disks when neither one is the default drive. For instance: will copy the MAYSALES.RPT file from the hard disk onto a diskette in the B drive. This time, note that both source and target drive letters were used.

  • Page 106: Chapter 6 Using Your Hard Disk

    Chapter 6 Using your Hard Disk Depending on the model, your computer system can be expanded to included an optional hard disk drive. This chapter will give you a basic understanding of its operation and show you how to configure it. Information is also provided on how MS-DOS works with your hard disk drive.

  • Page 107: Care Of Hard Disk Drives

    permanently mounted inside the drive housing. Several hard disk platters are stacked vertically in the drive housing and sealed in a dustproof casing. Second, a hard disk holds much more information than a diskette. The “high-capacity” diskettes used in your computer can only hold a little over one million bytes.

  • Page 108: Preparing Your Hard Disk

    Preparing Your Hard Disk This section assumes that you have a hard disk drive system physically installed in your main system unit. If you haven’t installed your hard disk drive yet, see Chapter 7, “Expanding Your System,” for information how to do this. To begin, boot up your system using your MS-DOS as explained in Chapter 4, “Using MS-DOS.’...

  • Page 109: Changing Your Setup

    it means that MS-DOS can’t “find” the hard disk drive. This is either because the drive controller board has been incorrectly set up, or more likely, the hard disk drive has not yet been partitioned. If the computer correctly executed the C: command, but failed to display a directory, it probably means that the hard disk has been partitioned, but not yet formatted.
  • Page 110 Move the screen cursor bar down to the Hard Disk C parameter. Using the PgUp and PgDn keys, scroll through the options to disk type number matched with the hard disk you have. If you select the type number 17 for 41MB hard disk, it provides the following information under the right hand headings: This should match the information provided with your hard...
  • Page 111 Press Y. The computer will update the information in its configuration RAM, and will go through the start-up routine again. Make sure MS-DOS is installed on floppy disk or hard disk of your system, so the system will boot up in MS-DOS. Note Your system has an on board IDE type HDC and if you want to install the another type of HDD except IDE, you...

  • Page 112: Partitioning Your Hard Disk

    Partitioning Your Hard Disk After the DOS Shell screen appears, select the Command Prompt option. At this point your are ready to initialize your hard disk drive. To do this, enter the command: After loading the FDISK program, the computer will display information on the hard disk drive installed in the system, as follows: MS-DOS Version x.xx...
  • Page 113 Note If you only have one hard disk drive, option 5 will not be displayed. Press ENTER to choose the default selection, “Create a DOS Partition.” The FDISK menu will disappear, and be replaced Create DOS Partition Current fIxed disk Choose one of the following 1 Create Primary DOS Partition 2 Create Extended DOS Partition...

  • Page 114: Formatting Your Hard Disk

    To reserve the entire hard disk for MS-DOS, press the ENTER. FDISK now displays the following message: It is common to use FDISK to create an MS-DOS partition that takes up the entire hard disk drive and then make that partition bootable.
  • Page 115 If your hard disk needs to be formatted, begin by selecting the Command Prompt option from the DOS shell. Enter the following command: A > FORMAT C: /S/V The floppy disk drive indicator will come on for a few seconds, while the FORMAT command is into memory.

  • Page 116: Organizing Your Hard Disk

    The IS switch in the FORMAT command caused the active portions of MS-DOS to be loaded onto the system area of the hard disk. At this point you can boot the system from the hard disk. Organizing Your Hard Disk This section provides you with a sample directory structure for use with your hard disk.
  • Page 117 you are ready to begin. First, you will create several subdirectories. These will be used shortly to contain useful files. Begin by entering the command: The MD command is a short form of MKDIR. This internal DOS command creates a subdirectory under the directory you are currently in.
  • Page 118 Just as MS-DOS commands usually look at the “current” disk drive, they also look at the current directory. Since you can change the current, “1 ogged” disk drive, you would expect to be able to change the current, logged directory. You can, using the CD (CHDIR) command.
  • Page 119 You will see that you are back in the hard disk root directory. Now return to the DOS subdirectory by entering the command: Another way of moving through the directory tree quickly involves the use of a similar command: This command will take you directly to the root directory of the current disk drive.
  • Page 120 display the following message: Using the DIR command, run a directory to verify that you have copied the MS-DOS diskette. Remove the MS-DOS install diskette from drive A and replace it with the MS-DOS select diskette into the DOS4 subdirectory on the hard disk by entering the command. .

  • Page 121: Backing Up Your Hard Disk

    You have now completed organizing your hard disk and installing the MS-DOS files into subdirectories. As you can see, the files have been placed in subdirectories according to the type of activity you will doing when using them. As you add application programs to the hard disk, it is a good idea to create subdirectories to store them in, so as to keep different program groups separated.

  • Page 122: How Many Diskettes

    BACKUP command. When you back up your hard disk using BACKUP, the first thing to do is to format enough blank disks to hold the backed up files. Once you start the BACKUP routine, you won’t want to stop the program to format more diskettes. BACKUP takes time, even on a high speed computer.
  • Page 123 As you format these disks, prepare labels for them that identifies these diskettes as a hard disk backup archive. Also put the date on each label and number each diskette. This is very important, since the RESTORE command requires that you use the diskettes in the same order that was used during the BACKUP procedure.

  • Page 124: The Restore Command

    In the first example, the A:BACKUP command tells MS-DOS to search the A drive for the BACKUP.COM file. In the second, the C:/DOS4 statement will automatically direct MS-DOS to look in the C:\DOS4 subdirectory for the file. In both examples, the A: portion of the command tells MS- DOS that you want to start the backup routine with the root directory of the hard disk, and store the backup files on diskettes in drive A.
  • Page 125 enter: If a directory listing is displayed, even if there are no entries, it means that your hard disk system is ready to receive files. If the active routines of MS-DOS have been loaded on to the hard disk, you will see the COMMAND.COM file at the beginning of the directory listing.
  • Page 126 First, set the C drive directory to the root directory by entering the command: Now set the system default drive letter back to drive A by entering: The computer will respond by displaying: Make sure your MS-DOS install diskette is inserted into the A drive.

  • Page 127: Chapter 7 Expanding Your System

    Chapter 7 Expading Your System As you get more familiar with your computer system, you will probably want to add hardware to it. This can include additional disk drives, printers, modems, etc. This chapter addresses the installation of some of the most common devices. Connecting Peripherals Peripherals are devices that can be connected to your computer system to increase its ability to communicate and process...
  • Page 128 0 Modems 0 External disk drives Your computer is designed to communicate with peripherals by way of the connectors on the rear panel of the main system unit. The connectors are called “ports,” and allow information to be sent back and forth between the system CPU and a peripheral device.

  • Page 129: Serial Ports

    Note Your computer is referred to as a “16-bit” computer. This system can address over 16M-bytes of memory. In order to address this much RAM, the internal data communications in this computer use 16 parallel data lines. Serial Ports There are two basic kinds of general purpose I/O (Input/Output) port.

  • Page 130: Parallel Ports

    Unlike serial ports, parallel ports allow your computer to communicate one entire byte at a time. Eight wires are included in the cable to permit the transmission of each of the eight data bits simultaneously. Extra wires are included in the cable for control signals.

  • Page 131: Connecting External Disk Drives

    that will be installed inside your main system unit. These modems can communicate directly with the system CPU through your computer’s internal circuitry. The telephone line is plugged into a socket located on the rear panel of the modem. External modems connect to your computer’s RS-232C serial port.

  • Page 132: System Expansion & Upgrades

    System Expansion And Upgrades This section deals with the addition of expansion boards and products to your computer’s main system unit. Although most expansion products are provided with detailed instructions for their installation and use, it is recommended that you read through this section in order to familiarize yourself with some of the basic principles of expanding your computer.
  • Page 133 Stop! When you remove the main system unit cover, observe the following precautions: P The power supply cord must be unplugged before the main system unit cover is removed. (Separe le cordon d’alimentation et puis enleve le couvercle.) 0 Once removed, the cover must be replaced and screwed in position before the power supply cord is plugged back in.

  • Page 134: Opening And Closing The Cabinet

    Opening and Closing the Cabinet The procedure for opening the main system unit cabient is as follows: 0 Unplug the video monitor AC power and signal cables from their rear panel sockets. Set the monitor safely aside. Q Unplug the keyboard and set it aside. 0 Unscrew the screws on the rear panel of the unit and set them aside.
  • Page 135 Make sure all the system and expansion boards are properly seated in their connectors, and have had their mounting screws tightened down. Make sure all the internal cables have been properly connected and arranged neatly. Wires should not be pinched or caught between chassis parts or circuit boards. Carefully slide the cover back onto the main system unit, being careful not to damage the cables.

  • Page 136: Installing Circuit Boards

    Installing Circuit Boards Most of the expansion products you will be installing into your computer are circuit boards. Like the system boards installed at the factory, expansion boards are plugged into the main system unit’s mother board. There are expansion boards available for a wide variety of functions.
  • Page 137 jumpers on the system motherboard to match the new hardware arrangement. You will be able to do this without removing the system motherboard from the main system unit chassis, although you may need to unplug the disk drive ribbon cable from its connector to allow easy access to the jumpers. Figure 7-3.
  • Page 138 Disconnect any internal cables that may be in the way. As you do, make a note of their correct locations and orientations for later reattachment. Unscrew the retaining screw for the slot guard, and set it aside. Mount the expansion board into the slot by gently sliding the board into the slot.

  • Page 139: Disk Drive Compartments

    I N C O R R E C T ELECTRICAL RESTRICTIONS Figure 7-4. Installing the Option Card in an Expansion Slot Check the board’s alignment to make sure it is straight and level. If necessary, move the board slightly to align the hole in the top of the mounting bracket over the screw hole in the main system unit’s rear panel flange.
  • Page 140 documentation provided. Then, remove the main system unit cover as described above. Select the drive compartment where you will install the expansion device. Remove the blank front panel from the selected compartment by removing the mounting screws. Slide the expansion device into the compartment along the side rails of the drive cage until it is all the way in.

  • Page 141: Internal Hard Disk Drive

    If you are to mount the internal hard disk drive inside the main system unit case, follow the steps below: Remove the cover from the main system unit, as described above. Remove mounting plate by unscrewing the hold down screws. Attach the hard disk drive to the mounting plate by installing the four mounting screws through the bottom of the plate into the bottom of the drive frame.

  • Page 142: Appendix A Specifications

    Appendix A Specifications Computer System Operating Temperature Storage Temperature Operating Humidity Storage Humidity Compatibility Power Supply Keyboard System MotherBoard PCB Fabrication Firmware Operating System Support: MS-DOS Bus Interface Expansion Slots : 41” to 95°F (5” to 35°C) : -5” to 140°F (-15” to 60°C) : 20% to 80% (no condensation) : 10% to 90% (no condensation) : IBM PC/AT...

  • Page 143: Cpu Logic

    (with parity) Static RAM (CACHE Memory) Floppy Disk Drive Support: 2ea - 360K, 720K, 1.2M or I/O Ports Audio Support Real Time Clock CPU Logic Main Central Processor Math Coprocessor IC (optional) Specifications on Motherboard 80ns, 0 wait state access (35ns, 0 wait state access) 32KB 1.44M-byte...

  • Page 144: System Memory

    System Memory Memory Address Space Data Interface Cache Memory Memory Bank Configurations BANK 0 256K 256K 256K 256K 256K 256K 256K 256K 256K 256K BIOS ROM : 24 Address lines (16MB) : 16-bit memory access : 32KB (35ns) BANK2 BANK1 256K 256K 256K...

  • Page 145: System I/O

    System I/O DMA Channels: 8-bit operations - 4 channel 16-bit operations - 3 channel Programmable Timers: 3 Vectored Interrupt Levels: 15 System Timing System Clock Speed Clock Cycle Time I/O Address Map Hex Range 000-01 F 020-03F 040-05F 060.06F 070.07F 080-09F OAO-OBF OCO-ODF...
  • Page 146 Hex Range Device ZBO-2DF Alternate Enhanced Graphics Adapter GPIB (Adapter 0) Data Acquisition (Adapter 0) 2E2&2E3 2F82FF Serial Port 2 300-31 F Prototype Card PC Network (Low Address) 360-363 368368 PC Network (High Address) 378.37F Parallel Printer Port 1 380-38F SDLC, Bisynchronous 2 390-393 Cluster...

  • Page 147: Appendix B System Motherboard

    Appendix B System Mother Board Figure B-l. System Motherboard This appendix provides configuration and interface information for this board. You may skip this appendix if you are not installing expansion products that require changing the motherboard’s configuration jumper settings. Hardware Settings The system motherboard provides a set of headers to set the system configuration.
  • Page 148 them are already factory setting and you should not remove them. Note you have problems setting the system CPU configuration headers, contact your dealer for assistance. When you turn the system power on, the system CPU will compare these settings with the information stored in its configuration RAM as part of the diagnostic routines.

  • Page 149: Removing The Motherboard

    Removing The MotherBoard In order to change the settings defined by these jumpers, it will be necessary to remove the system motherboard from the chassis. To do this, follow these steps, referring to Chapter 7, “Expanding Your System,” where necessary: Unplug all of the cables from the rear panel of the main system unit.

  • Page 150: Connectors

    The Table B-l, lists the jumper settings Connectors The system motherboard is provided with a number of connectors for communication with other parts of the computer system. These connectors are discussed below. For pinout information on these connectors, see Appendix D, “Connector Pinouts.”...

  • Page 151: Keyboard Port

    Expansion Slots - 521 to 530 The system board contains five expansion slots for 16-bit AT boards. Keyboard Port - 52 The keyboard connector J2, is a 5-pin DIN connector for keyboards that are compatible with the IBM AT keyboard. Parallel Port - J11 Connector J 11 on the system board provides a standard Centronics 25-pin parallel interface.
  • Page 152 Power Connector - J12 The system board requires four DC voltage: + 12V, - 12V, +5V, and -5V. The power connector, J12 is 12spin connector, respectively, that supply power to the system board and to the five expansion slots. Speaker - J4 Connector J4 provides a speaker connection for audible tone generation.

  • Page 153: Appendix C Video Monitor Systems

    Appendix C Video Monitor Systems There are many video display systems available for use with your computer system. This appendix will provide a brief description of the most common video system types, and discuss their applications. Monitor System Resolution The main difference between video monitor system types is their screen resolution.
  • Page 154 controller resolution and color standards. Some of these are described below. - Hercules Graphics Compatible (HGC): HGC boards have become the video controller-of-choice for basic personal computer video display monitor systems. Providing dot resolutions up to 729 x 350, HGC boards display good quality text and graphics, while using shading to accommodate color software.
  • Page 155 standards is summarized below, along with their color and graphics features: HGC: maximum dot resolution: 720x350 maximum text display: 80 columns 25 lines colors: monochrome green or amber CGA: dot resolution: 640 x 200 maximum text display: 80 columns 25 lines colors: 2 of 16 colors (640 4 of 16 colors (320x200)

  • Page 156: Monitor Types

    Monitor Types There are many different types of video monitor available. Some of the major ones are described below. 0 Composite Video: With a 300 usually used with home computers. They are not recommended for use with your system. 0 TTL Monochrome: These monitors provide up to 1000~350 resolution, with either a green or amber colored screen.
  • Page 157 or higher resolution text, though they are limited in the number of colors that can be displayed at a given time. if you are going to be using software that requires color, but not high resolution graphics, you should use an RGB video display monitor, connected to a CGA video controller board.

  • Page 158: Appendix D Connector Pinouts

    Appendix D Connector Pinouts I/O Ports 0 RS-232C Serial port (9-pin subminiature “D” connector): Note All signals conform to EIA Standard RS-232C. Connector Pinouts...
  • Page 159 0 Centronics-compatible paralle printer port (25pin subminiature “D” connector): Note 1. All outputs are software generated All inputs are rea-time signals (not latched). 2. All signals are TTL compatible. 0 Keyboard Port (S-pin mini “DIN” connector) D-2 Connector Pinouts...
  • Page 160 0 IDE Port Connector Pinouts D-3...
  • Page 161 0 Power Supply Connector (12-pin post header) Pin # Figure D-l. Expansion Slot Connectors Connector Pinouts Signal Name Power Good Signal +5 Volts Volts -12 Volts Ground Ground Ground Ground -5 Volts +5 Volts +5 Volts +5 Volts...

  • Page 162: Expansion Slot Connectors

    Expansion Slot Connectors Your computer comes with industry standard IBM compatible expansion slots. There are five At-style (98 pin) expansion slot connectors mounted on your system mother board. The charts below show the pin numbering on the expansion slot connectors. 0 Expansion Slot Connector Pinouts: Connector Pinouts D-5...
  • Page 163 0 Expansion Slot Connector Pinouts (continued): D-6 Connector Pinouts...
  • Page 164 0 Expansion Slot Connector Pinouts (continued): Connector Pinouts D-7...

  • Page 165: Appendix E Advanced Rom Diagnostics

    Appendix E Advanced ROM Diagnostics Introduction In addition to the POST diagnostics which are performed during power-up, the ROM BIOS also has an advanced diagnostics program which can perform specialized tests on each of the following when instructed: Hard disk drive(s) Floppy diskette drive(s) Keyboard Video adapter board and monitor...

  • Page 166: Starting Advanced Rom Diagnostics

    Starting Advanced ROM Diagnostics To access the Advanced ROM BIOS Diagnostics, perform the following: Turn on the on/off switch at the front of the unit. When the system first starts and the memory tests have been completed, this message displays briefly for your decision (respond as indicated in the brackets): Press <DEL >...
  • Page 167 The following screen should appear: Figure E-l. Starting Advanced ROM Diagnostics The screen is divided into six (6) sections. From top to bottom, these are: The Signature Line. program, the copyright, the name of the company which designed the program, the date, and the time in military format.

  • Page 168: Advanced Rom Diagnostics Tests

    The Diagnostics Options Window. Options Line is the Diagnostics Options Window for that option, The test options available in each Diagnostics Options Window are addressed in the following pages under the appropriate diagnostics heading (Hard Disk, Floppy Disk, Keyboard, Video, and Miscellaneous). The configuration of the system in the Devices Present section of the screen.

  • Page 169: Hard Disk Diagnostics

    Diagnostics Hard Disk The following tests can be performed on your hard disk(s): 1) Hard Disk Format, 2) Auto Interleave, 3) Media Analysis, 4) Performance Test, 5) Seek Test, 6) Read/Verify Test, 7) Check Test Cylinder Test, 8) Force Bad Tracks. The following tests are valid only if the if disk being: tested is not a Interleave, 3) Media Analysis, and 4) Force Bad Tracks.
  • Page 170 This error message is generated by the Performance Test procedure which requires at least 128KB of RAM space. So, if your system board has less than 128KB of available RAM space, you cannot use this function. Controller Generated Error Messages The controller generated error messages encountered while performing any of the hard disk functions are displayed in a window with 2 lines:...
  • Page 171 Use the Hard Disk Format Test to 1) integrate a new hard disk to the system, or 2) reformat a used hard disk which has developed some bad patches as a result of aging or poor handling. After entering the Advanced ROM Diagnostic program, the following screen will appear.
  • Page 172 < ENTER Press boxes to appear. Figure E-2. Performing A Hard Disk Format Test: The box on the left contains a series of questions (fields) which must be answered before performing the Hard Disk Format Test. The answers are entered to the right of the question mark.
  • Page 173 After entering the appropriate response (if it hasn’t already been entered) the default value (1, if the drive was not entered during the CMOS Setup) for “Disk Drive Type” will appear to the right of the "?” following the “Disk Drive Type” field. The cursor blinks to the right of the “?,”...
  • Page 174 This is the number designation for a drive with T y p e certain identification parameters. This is the number of cylinders found in the c y i . specified drive type. This is the number of heads found in the Heads specified drive type.

  • Page 175: Interleave Factor

    Interleave Factor After pressing <ENTER > at the “Disk Drive type” field, the cursor will blink below either the default value or the previous value entered for the “Interleave (1-16)” field. The default value is the previous value determined by Auto Interleave. Type the desired value and press will <ENTER >...
  • Page 176 Mark Bad Tracks The default value is ‘N’ for ‘No’. If the hard disk being tested is not a SCSI device, check the unit for a manufacturer’s list of bad tracks. If this information is available, type ‘Y’ and press <...
  • Page 177 The Bad Track Edit Menu With the block cursor highlighting “Add an entry,” press < ENTER> . This will cause another box to appear below the Bad Track Edit Menu. This box asks you to enter the track number for the entry you wish to add. When the box first appears, either the default (0) value or the previous value entered will appear.
  • Page 178 The Enter New Track # and Head # box will appear with the current track # (Cyl.) value entered in the field to the right of “Enter New Track #.” Type in a new value (if desired) at the blinking cursor, and press < ENTER > . Enter a new value at “Enter New Head #.”...
  • Page 179 Start Cylinder Number See Figure E-2. Enter the cylinder number where you want the formatting to begin. The default value is ‘0’. End Cylinder Number See Figure E-Z. Enter the cylinder number where you want the formatting to end. The default value is the last cylinder in the drive. Start Head Number See Figure E-2.
  • Page 180 After you enter ‘Y’, the Activity box appears on the right side of the screen. “Format” is highlighted in the Activity box. In the Status portion of the Activity box, the specified cylinders, heads, and sectors are displayed sequentially as they are formatted.
  • Page 181 Auto Interleave Routine Note This test is not valid for a SCSI drive. Run the Auto Interleave Routine to optimize hard disk performance. This routine actually occurs in two separate steps. First, the BIOS will calculate the optimum interleave value through trial and error by measuring the transfer rate for four different interleave values.
  • Page 182 Figure E-6. The Auto Interleave Routine If you want to change a response to one or both of these fields before running the test, enter “N” at the “Proceed” field. This will return the cursor to the Disk Drive Type field unless the Disk Drive ID (C/D) h as not been previously entered at the CMOS Setup screen.
  • Page 183 Information Box. Entering “Y” causes the following information boxes to appear: 1) Auto Interleave Detection, 2) Bad Track List, and 3) Activity. In the Auto Interleave Detection box, the transfer rate is calculated for up to four (4) different interleave factors. These interlelave factors are 1-4. The Bad Track List box displays the status of the routine.
  • Page 184 Media Analysis Test The Media Analysis Test performs a series of tests to locate bad patches. Even though you may have a list of bad patches from the manufacturer, this will not list any new bad patches which may have developed as a result of aging or poor handling. This test locates all bad tracks on the hard disk and lists them in the Bad Track List box.
  • Page 185 Figure E-7. The Media Analysis Test To run the Media Analysis Test: At the Hard Disk Menu, highlight “Media Analysis.” < ENTER Press > . Fill in the appropriate response for each of the following fields in the Hard Disk Surface Analysis information box: Disk Drive (C/D) Disk Drive type...
  • Page 186 heading “Hard Disk Format Test.” When you have filled the first seven fields with an appropriate response, enter “Y” in the Proceed field. The following WARNING message will appear: The Bad Track List with all current entries, and the Activity box will also appear at this time.
  • Page 187 Note Before performing the Hard Disk optimize the Interleave factor. See Auto Interleave Routine earlier in this tab for instructions. The Performance Test determines the Data Transfer Rate and the Track to Track Seek time based on transfer size, seek count and data transferred.
  • Page 188 At the Hard Disk Menu, highlight “Performance Test.” < ENTER Press the following fields in the Hard Disk Performance Test information box: Each of these fields is described earlier in this tab under the heading “Hard Disk Format Test.” When you have filled the first two fields with an appropriate response, enter “Y”...

  • Page 189: Seek Test

    Seek Test The Seek Test determines the seek capability of the hard disk on the specified cylinder and head range. First, a sequential seek is performed, followed by a random seek. Any errors occurring during this test are displayed. To perform a Seek Test: At the Hard Disk Menu, highlight “Seek Test.”...
  • Page 190 Note Entering “N” in the Proceed field will cause the cursor to return to the Disk Drive Type field. Hard Disk Read/Verify Test This test performs sequential and random read and verify operations on the cylinder and head range specified in the Hard Disk Read/Verify Test Information box.
  • Page 191 Disk Drive (C/D) DlSK Drive Type Start cylinder number End cylinder number Start Head number End Head number Proceed (Y/N) Each of these fields are described earlier in this tab under the heading “Hard Disk Format Test.” When you have filled the first six fields with an appropriate response, enter “Y”...
  • Page 192 Figure E-10. Performing the Hard Disk Read/Verify Test Check Test Cylinder Test The last cylinder on the hard disk is the test cylinder. This cylinder should be tested if a C:Drive or D:Drive error occurs during the POST. A Read/Verify test is performed on all sectors in the test cylinder.
  • Page 193 the bar cursor. Then, press Hard Disk Test Cylinder Test box to appear on the left side of the screen. The box contains the following questions (fields) that must be answered with appropriate responses. These responses are addressed earlier in this tab under the heading “Hard Disk Format Test.”...
  • Page 194 Figure E-11. Performing the Check Test Cylinder Test E-30 Advanced ROM Diagnostics...
  • Page 195 Figure E-11. Performing the Check Test Cylinder Test E-30 Advanced ROM Diagnostics...

  • Page 196: Floppy Diagnostics

    Hard Disk Test Cylinder Test box to appear on the left side of the screen. The box contains the following questions (fields) that must be answered with appropriate responses. These responses are addressed earlier in this tab under the heading “Hard Disk Format Test.”...
  • Page 197 See Figure E-13. Warning! The Diskette Format Test, the Random Read/Write Test, and Sequential Readwrite Test are destructive operations. This means that the data on the diskette required to perform these tests will be destroyed. When performing these operations, be certain that the formatted diskettes required for these tests does not contain valuable information which cannot be recovered from the hard disk or from another diskette.

  • Page 198: Error Messages

    Error Messages Error messages can either be ROM Diagnostics generated, or controller generated. The error messages encountered while performing any of the diskette functions are displayed in a window with 2 lines: Line 1 Line 2 The actual error message could be any one of the following: ROM Diagnostics Generated Error Messages This error message is generated while running the “Disk...
  • Page 199 Diskette WRITE PROTECTED (Write protect error) MEDIA CHANGE error (Media type not found) BAD DMA error @MA overrun on operation) Record Not Found (Requested sector not found) BAD Address Mark (Address mark not found) Floppy Diskette Format Test This test determines the ability of the floppy disk controller to perform the low-level formatting function on a diskette.
  • Page 200 Warning! This test is a destructive operation. This means that the data on the diskette required to perform these tests will be destroyed. ‘When performing these operations, be certain that the formatted diskettes required for these tests do not contain valuable information which cannot be recovered from the hard disk or from another diskette.

  • Page 201: Drive Speed Test

    Entering “Y” at the “Proceed” field causes the Activity box to appear on the right side of the screen. “Format” is highlighted in the upper half of the box. This flashes while the test is in progress to indicate that this, function is being performed. In the lower half of this box, the status line displays the number of the cylinders, the number of the heads, and the number of the sectors in sequence as they are formatted.
  • Page 202 To perfom a Drive Speed Test: Highlight “Floppy” in the main menu by using the left and right arrow keys. Below this menu is another menu which lists all possible tests available for the Floppy drive. At this Floppy Disk Menu. “Diskette format” should be highlighted with the bar cursor.
  • Page 203 After inserting a formatted diskette in the drive, and pressing <ENTER>, the message box will contain the following message: At the bottom of the Activity box, the message “Wait for 2 minutes” will appear briefly as the test begins. The test will record a LOWER limit, and an UPPER limit during this time period.
  • Page 204 Warning! This test is a destructive operation. This means that the data on the diskette required to perform these tests will be destroyed. When performing these operations, be certain that the formatted diskettes required for these tests does not contain valuable information which cannot be recovered from the hard disk or from another diskette.
  • Page 205 Disk Menu, “Diskette format” should be highlighted with the bar cursor. Use the down arrow key to highlight “Random ReadWrite Test.” Press < ENTER > . That causes the Diskette format box to appear on the left side of the screen. The box contains the following questions (fields) that must be answered with appropriate responses.
  • Page 206 After inserting a formatted diskette in the drive, and pressing c ENTER > , the message box will contain the following message: In the upper portion of the activity box, “Read,” “Write,” and “Verify” will flash in sequence as these operations are performed.
  • Page 207 To perform the Sequential Read/Write Highlight “Floppy” in the main menu by using the left and right arrow keys. Below this menu is another menu which lists all possible tests available for the Floppy drive. At this Floppy Disk Menu, “Diskette format” should be highlighted with the bar cursor.
  • Page 208 Figure E-17. The Sequential Read/Write Test Note Entering “N” (the default) will return you to the Floppy Drive Menu. Entering “Y” causes two information boxes to appear: 1) a message box on the left side of the screen, and 2) the Activity box on the right side of the screen.

  • Page 209: Disk Change Line Test

    After inserting a formatted diskette in the drive, and pressing <ENTER>, the message box will contain the following message: In the upper portion of the Activity box, “Write,” and “Verify” will flash in sequence as these operations are performed. In the Status portion of the Activity box, the cylinder numbers, head numbers, and sector numbers will be read, written, and verified sequentially by sector number.
  • Page 210 Figure E-18. The Disk Change Line Test To perform the Disk Change Line Test: Highlight “Floppy” in the main menu by using the left and right arrow keys. Below this menu is another menu which lists all possible tests available for the Floppy drive. At this Floppy Disk Menu, “Diskette format”...
  • Page 211 given in the CMOS Setup screen. If the response entered by the user at the CMOS Setup screen was “A,” this field will automatically display “A.” If the response entered by the user at the CMOS Setup screen was “B,” this field will automatically display “B.”...

  • Page 212: Keyboard Diagnostics

    In the upper portion of the Activity box, “Verify” will be highlighted. In the Status portion of the Activity box, the cylinder number will display “0, ” the head number will display “0,” and the sector number will display “1.” When the test has been completed, press menu.

  • Page 213: Video Diagnostics

    Diagnostics Video The range of video tests available depends upon the type of display adapter card installed in the system. The following tests are available for both monochrome and color display adapters and monitors: Sync Test Adapter Test Attribute Test 80x25 Display Test Figure E-19.
  • Page 214 and color monitor: 40x25 Display Test 320x200 Graphics Test 640x200 Graphics Test Page Selection Test Color Test Test results for all diagnostics functions except the Sync Test are displayed on the screen. To perform any of these visual tests: Highlight “Video” in the main menu by using the left and right arrow keys.

  • Page 215: Miscellaneous Diagnostics

    Miscellaneous Diagnostics These include the following tests: 1) Printer Port Test, and 2) Serial Communication Port Test. Printer Adapter Test This test writes a pattern on the printer. The results are observed here. If the printer does not write, then the test has failed.
  • Page 216 Figure E-20. The Printer Adapter Test Serial Communication Adapter Test This test requires a special RS-232 Turn-Around Connector plugged into the port. It must be jumpered as follows: • TXD & RXD (2 & 3) shorted RTS & CTS (4 & 5) shorted DSR &...
  • Page 217 Figure E-20. The Printer Adapter Test Serial Communication Adapter Test This test requires a special RS-232 Turn-Around Connector plugged into the port. It must be jumpered as follows: TXD & RXD (2 & 3) shorted RTS & CT’S (4 & 5) shorted DSR &...
  • Page 218 Error - Time out! Error - Break Detected Error - Framing error Error - Parity error Error - Overrun error If a time out error occurs during the send and receive portions, this indicates a problem with the communication adapter controller.
  • Page 219 The message box in the middle of the screen displays: <ENTER > This test will run for about minutes. Press return to the main menu when the test is completed. Figure E-21. Serial Communication Adapter Test E-54 Advanced ROM Diagnostics...
  • Page 220 DOC.N0:10-030-00 Printed in Korea 1990 Jul...

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