This chapter provides information for operating the VME/ISA Sync board once it has been installed and configured. This chapter contains these sections:
If you have not already configured the VME/ISA Sync board, go back to Chapter 2, “Configuring Software for the VME/ISA Sync Board” and perform the procedures described there.
Once the software for the VME/ISA Sync board has been completely configured, as described in Chapter 2, “Configuring Software for the VME/ISA Sync Board,” the board automatically starts up when your computer is booted. (The board is now ready to start an application such as SX.25 or IRIS SNA SERVER.)
The board stops operating once power to the computer is turned off.
The VME/ISA Sync board can be reset using either a hardware switch or a software command. A pause of about 12 seconds occurs after the reset while the board reinitializes its memory.
After the board is reset, it must then be downloaded and configured before it can operate. For more information, see Chapter 2, “Configuring Software for the VME/ISA Sync Board.”
 | Caution: Be sure all applications, such as SX.25 or IRIS SNA SERVER, have been stopped before resetting the board. |
The VME Sync board is reset with the three-position front panel toggle switch. Push the switch toward the label RESET and release it to perform a board reset.
The ISA Sync board is reset with the RST switch, which is on the board and inaccessible once the board is installed.
The utility vcom_rst resets the board. The location of vcom_rst is in the directory /opt/vcom/bin. The syntax for vcom_rst is
vcom_rst -b Boardnum
where:
| -b | designates the board number named by Boardnum. |
 | Note: If the board is reset without first stopping application processes, the board may hang. If this happens, try a hardware reset of the board. (See “Hardware Reset.”) If that doesn't work, your system must be rebooted to clear the error. |
You can determine board status by looking at the front panel LED lights or by issuing the vcom_stat command to retrieve a detailed display of error and configuration information.
The ISA Sync board front panel contains two LED lights that indicate board status. They are the green RUN and red HALT.
The VME Sync board front panel contains three LED lights that indicate board status. They are the green RUN, red HALT, and red SYSFAIL indicators. Board status can be determined through a combination of these LEDs being off, on, or dimmed. Table 3-1 shows the possible status conditions for the three LEDs.
Table 3-1. VME Sync Board LED Status Conditions
RUN | HALT | SYSFAIL | Status of Board |
|---|---|---|---|
OFF | OFF | OFF | The power to the board is off; the board CPU has received a stop instruction; or the CPU is in a cache loop |
OFF | OFF | ON | Board timeout |
OFF | ON | OFF | CPU HALT due to a bus fault, HALT command, or retry cycle |
OFF | ON | ON | Same as above condition, except the SYSFAIL LED was on when the HALT occurred or a “watchdog” timeout occurred |
ON | OFF | OFF | Normal operation |
ON | OFF | ON | Board power-on or reset; software has not turned off the SYSFAIL condition |
DIM | DIM | OFF | Board bus accesses alternating with VMEbus accesses |
DIM | DIM | ON | Same as above, but BRDFAIL bit of SRC not cleared |
ON | ON | ON | Not expected to occur |
The utility vcom_stat retrieves detailed information about the board software status. Its output is a grouping of status messages, which is listed by category and described in “vcom_stat Status Messages,” in Appendix A. The location of vcom_stat is in the directory /opt/vcom/bin and its syntax is
vcom_stat [ -e ] Boardnum
or
vcom_stat [ -p ] Boardnum
where:
| -e | displays error information | |
| -p | displays error, memory partition, and pooled network buffer (PNB) configuration information |
| Note: This command allows only one of the options to be used on the command line. |