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Date:      Fri, 30 Aug 1996 11:19:56 +0930 (CST)
From:      Michael Smith <msmith@atrad.adelaide.edu.au>
To:        achou@best.com (Amanda Chou)
Cc:        questions@FreeBSD.org, hackers@FreeBSD.org, hardware@FreeBSD.org
Subject:   Re: netboot.rom
Message-ID:  <199608300149.LAA21545@genesis.atrad.adelaide.edu.au>
In-Reply-To: <Pine.SGI.3.93.960829121611.7106A-100000@shellx.best.com> from "Amanda Chou" at Aug 29, 96 12:17:52 pm

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Amanda Chou stands accused of saying:
> 
> 
>   FreeBSD comes with source for building netboot.rom, which 
>   is a 16K rommable image. We can't seem to find any docs on
>   _what kind_ of PROM, EEPROM, or whatever we can use in the
>   various cards. Ideally we'd like to use el-cheapo no-name
>   NE2000 cards for development, but also want to know for 
>   other supported cards (e.g. 3c509). We have called 3Com and
>   other manufacturers, as well as some additional companies,
>   and have been unable to encounter anyone with sufficient clue
>   to answer. (We know they're in there, but they're well-hidden.)

Netboot ROMs are almost always EPROMs.  In the case of a 16K netboot
image, you want a 16K EPROM; one with a part number which maps
well to '27128'.

>   A company we were referred to, LanWorks Technologies, who we
>   were referred to by 3Com, said that they know, but aren't about
>   to tell. (They saw us as some sort of threat to their business
>   of writing software for these things.)

*LAUGH*

>   Alternatively, does anyone know of inexpensive PROM-based 
>   ISA boot cards, which (ideally) hold more than 16K, and could
>   be used instead of a LAN-card based boot prom?

... nothing as cheap as a $30 NE2000.

> Amanda

-- 
]] Mike Smith, Software Engineer        msmith@atrad.adelaide.edu.au    [[
]] Genesis Software                     genesis@atrad.adelaide.edu.au   [[
]] High-speed data acquisition and      (GSM mobile) 0411-222-496       [[
]] realtime instrument control          (ph/fax)  +61-8-267-3039        [[
]] Collector of old Unix hardware.      "Where are your PEZ?" The Tick  [[



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