INTRO(4)

NAME
intro - introduction to pmax special files and hardware support

DESCRIPTION
This section describes the special files, related driver functions, and networking support available in the system. In this part of the manual, the SYNOPSIS section of each configurable device gives a sample specification for use in constructing a system description for the config(1) program. The DIAGNOSTICS section lists messages which may appear on the console and/or in the system error log /var/log/messages due to errors in device operation; see syslogd(8) for more information.

This section contains both devices which may be configured into the system and network related information. The networking support is introduced in netintro(4).

DEVICE SUPPORT
This section describes the hardware supported on the pmax (MIPS-based DECstation/DECsystem) platform. Software support for these devices comes in two forms. A hardware device may be supported with a character or block device driver, or it may be used within the networking subsystem and have a network interface driver. Block and character devices are accessed through files in the file system of a special type; see mknod(8). Network interfaces are indirectly accessed through the interprocess communication facilities provided by the system; see socket(2).

A hardware device is identified to the system at configuration time and the appropriate device or network interface driver is then compiled into the system. When the resultant system is booted, the autoconfiguration facilities in the system probe for the device and, if found, enable the software support for it. If a device does not respond at autoconfiguration time it is not accessible at any time afterwards. To enable a device which did not autoconfigure, the system must be rebooted.

The autoconfiguration system is described in pmax/pmax/autoconf(4). A list of the supported devices is given below.

SEE ALSO
config(1), pmax/pmax/autoconf(4)

SUPPORTED SYSTEMS
The following systems are supported:

DECstation 2100 and 3100
    also known as "pmax". The 2100 and 3100 differ only in CPU clock speed.
DECsystem 5100
    also known as "MIPSMATE".
DECstation 5000/200
    also known as "3MAX". The 5000/200 has a 25 MHz R3000 and is the first-generation TURBOchannel platform.
DECstation 5000/1xx
    also known as "3MIN" or "kmin". The 5000/1xx comes in 20 MHz, 25 MHz, and 33 MHz versions and is numbered appropriately. Two 12.5 MHz TURBOchannel slots are provided.
DECstation 5000/2x
    also known as "Personal DECstation" or "MAXINE". The 5000/xx comes in 20 MHz and 25 MHz variants. A baseboard 1024x786 framebuffer, and two 12.5 MHz TURBOchannel slots are provided.
DECstation 5000/240 and DECsystem 5900
    also known as "3MAXPLUS". These systems have a 40 MHz R3400 CPU and three 25 MHz TURBOchannel slots. The 5900 is an expanded-cabinet version of the 5000/240.

TURBOchannel systems (except the 5000/200) can be upgraded to an R4000 or R4400 CPU by upgrading the CPU daughterboard.

The Qbus-based DECsystem 5400 and 5500 are not supported.

The multi-processor XMI-bus DECsystem 5800 is not supported.

LIST OF DEVICES
The devices listed below are supported in this incarnation of the system. Devices are indicated by their functional interface. Not all supported devices are listed.

asc NCR 53c94-based SCSI interface, either on DECstation 5000-series baseboard or PMAZ-AA SCSI option card.
bba baseboard audio on 5000/xx systems.
dz  serial driver for DEC custom four-port serial device (dc7085 DZ-11 clone) on the baseboard of DECstation 2100/31000, 5100, and 5000/200 systems.
zsc serial driver for Zilog SCC asynchronous/synchronous devices on the baseboard of DECstation 5000-series systems (excluding 5000/200).
le  Ethernet driver for baseboard or TURBOchannel option cards.
ioasic
    Adaptor for the baseboard IO ASIC on second-generation TURBOchannel machines. An ioasic must be configured on a 5000/1xx, 5000/xx, and 5000/240 if support for baseboard devices or the TURBOchannel bus is desired.
wsdisplay
    Pseudo-device driver supporting glass-tty console emulation on DEC framebuffers, DEC mice, and LK-201 family keyboards.
sii DEC custom SCSI adaptor on DECstation 2100, 3100, 5100, and VAXstation 3100.
pm  DECstation 2100/3100 baseboard framebuffer
tc  Adaptor for the TURBOchannel I/O expansion bus. This must be included if any TURBOchannel option cards are supported, or for the baseboard Ethernet and SCSI devices on a 5000/200.
cfb PMAG-B TURBOchannel 1024x876 unaccelerated 2-D framebuffer.
sfb PMAGB-BA TURBOchannel 1280x1024 accelerated framebuffer.
mfb PMAG-AA TURBOchannel 1280x1024 mono/greyscale unaccelerated framebuffer.
tfb PMAG-JA and PMAG-RO TURBOchannel 1280x1024 unaccelerated framebuffer.
px  PMAG-C TURBOchannel 2-D accelerated graphics board.
pxg PMAG-D, E and F TURBOchannel 2-D/3-D accelerated graphics boards.

UNSUPPORTED DEVICES
The following devices are not supported, due to unavailability of either documentation or sample hardware:

LoFi DEC Western Research Labs audio card

The floppy-disk drive on the MAXINE baseboard is currently not supported.

HISTORY
This pmax intro appeared in NetBSD 1.2.