Bootstrap Diagnostic Tests

Appendix B describes how to test for problems with system memory and nonvolatile memory using the bootstrap program. This program can help you isolate or rule out hardware problems encountered when installing your Cisco server. A summary of the bootstrap diagnostic tests and command options is provided.

Bootstrap Diagnostic Tests

The system bootstrap diagnostics help initialize the processor hardware and boot the main operating system software. If you set the boot file switches in the configuration register (bits 3, 2, 1, and 0) to zero, you can start the server in stand-alone bootstrap mode. The bootstrap mode prompt is an angle bracket (>).

Once in bootstrap mode, type ? to see a list of available commands and options.


>?
$            Toggle cache state
B [filename] [TFTP Server IP address | TFTP Server Name]
             Load and execute system image from ROM or from TFTP server
C [address] Continue [optional address]
D /S M L V   Deposit value V of size S into location L with modifier M
E /S M L     Examine location L with size S with modifier M
G [address] Begin execution
H            Help for commands
I            Initialize
K            Displays Stack trace
L [filename] [TFTP Server IP address | TFTP Server Name]
             Load system image from ROM or from TFTP server, but do not
             begin execution
O            Show software configuration register option settings
P            Set break point
S            Single step next instruction
T function   Test device (? for help)
Deposit and Examine sizes may be B (byte), L (long) or S (short).
Modifiers may be R (register) or S (byte swap).

The following bootstrap commands are among the most useful:

The H command prints a summary of the bootstrap commands.
The I command causes the bootstrap program to re-initialize the hardware and clear the contents of memory.
The K command displays a stack trace of system software.
The B command with no argument boots the default software from ROM, assuming there are no jumpers in the boot field portion of the configuration register. You can include an argument, filename, to specify a file to be booted over the network using TFTP. You can also include a second argument, host, which is the Internet address or name of a particular server host.
The T command runs various diagnostic tests.

Type T ? to display a list of the diagnostic tests:


M   Memory test

By default, the memory test examines s memory. You can test nonvolatile memory by supplying starting and ending addresses, as described in Table B-1. Testing nonvolatile memory invalidates any configuration information it contains, therefore, you should save the configuration in a file on a host in your network before testing.

Memory Addresses

Test	512KB RAM	1M RAM	4M RAM
Main	Start: 000	Start: 000	Start: 000
Memory	End 7FFFF	End: FFFFF	End 3FFFFF
Interface	Start: 80000	Start: 100000	Start: 400000
Memory	End: FFFFF	End: 17FFFF	End: 47FFFF
Nonvolatile	Start: 2000000	Start: 2000000	Start: 2000000
Memory	End: 2003FFF	End: 2003FFF	End: 2003FFF

Running the Diagnostics

Follow these steps to run the system diagnostics:

Step 1: Turn off the unit and unplug it.

Step 2: Turn off the settings to clear the boot file number field (bits 3, 2, 1, and 0) of the processor configuration register. (Note jumper positions before changing.)

Step 3: Restart the system. Wait for the server to print the two-line banner message and the angle bracket (>) prompt.

Note If you start the server with the break disable (bit 08) turned off in the software configuration register, then you can press the break key on the console terminal to force the server into bootstrap mode. Type "c" to continue normal execution of the system software. However, the memory test will fail unless you reinitialize the system by typing "i" at the prompt.

Memory/Bus Diagnostic

To test memory, type "t m," then press the return key. Press the return key after each prompt displayed to use the default addresses and select the default tests.

The following is a sample of the Memory/Bus Diagnostic on the IGS processor card:


Memory/Bus diagnostic
Starting Address [0x1002]?
Ending Address [0x100000]?
Hex argument for variable tests [0xFFFF]?
Select Tests [all]?
Number of passes to run [2]? 1
Message Level (0=silence, 1=summary, 2=normal)[2]? 2
Testing addresses between 0x1002 and 0x100000
Begin pass 0, test 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 End pass
No errors during 1 passes

Running a single pass of the diagnostic takes about ten minutes. If the program encounters memory problems, it will display appropriate error messages on the console terminal. Be sure to reinitialize the processor before booting the system (type "i" at the prompt).

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