Weird issue using multiple images with BlueSCSI/RASCSI

pfuentes69

pfuentes69

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Oct 27, 2021
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Hey,
I'm experiencing quite consistently an issue and I'd like to know to which extent is "normal".

Using the RASCSI with multiple images, I noticed that in both my LC475 and SE/30 sometimes the Mac fails to boot. Sometimes it doesn't find the boot drive, sometimes it tries to boot then it crashes and either displays the question-mark floppy or it enters in a cycle of starting to boot and crashing. When this happens I reset the Mac (using the keyboard or the programmers switch and the Mac boots properly). This happens maybe 1 of each 5 times I boot these machines, but in some cases I'll have this behaviour.

Yesterday I added a third image to the BlueSCSI I have in the PB145B and I started to have a weird behaviour too... when I turn on the machine, it doesn't find the boot drive, then I reset the machine and it will boot normally, and I can see the three drives in the desktop.

Has anyone experienced anything similar to this?
 
eric

eric

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pfuentes69 said:
Yesterday I added a third image to the BlueSCSI I have in the PB145B and I started to have a weird behaviour too... when I turn on the machine, it doesn't find the boot drive, then I reset the machine and it will boot normally, and I can see the three drives in the desktop.
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This sounds like a SCSI driver issue - mixing images with different drivers can have odd behaviors like this. Best to keep them all the same. You can use disk jockey to test and fix the images.

I run a chain with rascsi and bluescsi on it many times - put BlueSCSI at the end and enable termination, make sure everything else has termination off.
 
pfuentes69

pfuentes69

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3lectr1c said:
some sort of termination issue - try with the termination power jumper on/off. at least on the RaSCSI, not sure for the BlueSCSI. Seems like a different issue.
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Being the only device in the chain, I don't really think is anything related to termination.
 
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pfuentes69

pfuentes69

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Oct 27, 2021
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eric said:
This sounds like a SCSI driver issue - mixing images with different drivers can have odd behaviors like this. Best to keep them all the same. You can use disk jockey to test and fix the images.

I run a chain with rascsi and bluescsi on it many times - put BlueSCSI at the end and enable termination, make sure everything else has termination off.
Click to expand...
Maybe I didn't explain myself properly, as the other comment pointed also to termination...

This issue happens both when using the BlueSCSI OR the RASCSI... I said "AND" because it happens with both, but I didn't meant to say that it happens when using the two together.

It's like the Mac is scanning the bus trying to boot and suddenly sees multiple devices and it goes nuts... but after the reset it's like scanning the SCSI bus goes fine.
 
pfuentes69

pfuentes69

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3lectr1c said:
My PowerBook 145 had the same issues you were describing with my RaSCSI - at the time it has no devices connected to the internal SCSI bus, just the external RaSCSI. Flipping the termination power jumper off fixed it.
Click to expand...
Thanks. This is interesting.
Currently this weirdness in the 145B is happening with only the BlueSCSI internal. It fails on first boot and it works after restart (switch off and on relatively quickly).
 
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pfuentes69

pfuentes69

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YMK said:
How's your PRAM battery?
Click to expand...
So, here's the thing... The battery "seems" to work. The hour/date and other settings (e.g. the startup disk selection) are kept.

I could check the behaviour a bit more... first time it fails, then I reset and it works. If I shutdown and I restart a while after it works... But if I unplug the power and boot, it will fail again.

I don't think it's something related with powering down the BlueSCSI, because mine is set to power with the motor signal, so it actually boots a little after the chime, once the disk would start spinning.

So it's weird... it's clear that unplugging it makes it fail, but the battery is keeping the settings... and I also find it's weird to be related to the battery because replacing the battery is something I did recently, and I was using the BlueSCSI for a time with a totally dead battery that wasn't holding the settings.

I must say that I noticed (and reported) issues with multiple images in the BlueSCSI time ago. For example, in the LC475 it will not boot if I have more than three images in the SD. In the Classic II it will not boot if I have more than two images... I made a lot of tests and I could always reproduce the issue... could it be something related to the drivers? I don't know...

Anyone see any sense on this?

*****
For not mixing things, the behaviour with the RASCSI seems similar in terms of failing to boot sometimes, but I doubt it's something related to this behaviour with the PB145B and the BlueSCSI... it's not so consistent (only happens from time to time), and here I'm totally sure is unrelated to power or the battery... the RASCSI will start much after the chime and the floppy with the question mark can stand there for some time until the RASCSI service activates the images.
 
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