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PC Probe (tm) Advanced Testing Program for PC, XT, AT, PS/2 HELP INFORMATION Copyright (C) 1991 by Landmark Research International Corporation 703 Grand Central Street Clearwater, FL 34616 Phone 1 813 443 1331 FAX 1 813 443 6603 All rights reserved. 1 INTRODUCTION TO PC PROBE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 1.1 CONGRATULATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 1.1.1 We Want To Hear From You . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 1.2 MAJOR FEATURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 1.3 WHAT PC PROBE DOES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 1.3.1 System Information Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 1.3.2 Diagnostic Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 1.3.3 Performance Benchmark Tests . . . . . . . . . . . 20 1.3.4 Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 1.3.5 Pictures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 1.4 WHY YOU NEED PC PROBE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 2 OPERATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 2.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 2.2 INSTALL AND RUN PC PROBE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 2.2.1 Read PCPROBE.DOC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 2.2.2 Safety for Existing System Configuration . . . . . 26 2.3 REMOTE OPERATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 2.4 HOW TO EXIT FROM PC PROBE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 2.5 HOW TO USE THE MENU SYSTEM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 2.5.1 Mouse or Keyboard Control . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 2.5.2 Important Keys - <F1>, <ESC>, <ENTER>/<SPACE>, Alt 32 2.5.3 Making Menu Selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 2.5.4 Using Dialogue Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 2.5.4.1 List and Text Display Fields . . . . . . . . 39 2.5.4.2 Text Entry Fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 2.5.5 Return to Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 2.6 PASSWORD PROTECTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 2.7 MAIN MENU STRUCTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 3 CONFIGURE MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 3.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 3.2 CHANGE COLORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 3.3 PASSWORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 3.4 RESULTS LOG LOCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 3.4.1 Results to Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 3.4.2 Results to File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 4 PICTURE MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 4.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 4.2 LOAD IMAGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 4.2.1 Proper Monitor and Graphics Adapter . . . . . . . 52 4.2.2 Proper Image File Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 4.2.3 Pictures Come with PC Probe . . . . . . . . . . . 54 4.3 CREATE YOUR OWN PICTURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 4.4 WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH PICTURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 4.5 IF YOU DON'T WANT TO CREATE YOUR OWN . . . . . . . . . 58 5 INFO MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 5.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 5.2 SYSTEM INFO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 5.2.1 DOS Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 5.2.2 CPU Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 5.2.3 FPU Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 5.2.4 Video Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 5.2.5 Base (DOS) Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 5.2.6 Extended Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 5.2.7 EMS Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 5.2.8 ROM Areas Used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 5.2.9 Video BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 5.2.10 Display Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 5.2.11 Hard Disk BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 5.2.12 IRQ Assignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 5.2.13 DMA Channel Assignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 5.2.14 I/O Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 5.2.15 CMOS RAM Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 5.2.16 Mouse Presence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 5.2.17 Keyboard Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 5.3 VIEW, PRINT, CLEAR RESULTS LOG . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 5.4 ABOUT PC PROBE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 5.5 HELP ON PC PROBE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 6 BENCHMARK MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 6.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 6.2 PROCESSOR BENCHMARK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 6.3 VIDEO BENCHMARK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 6.4 EXTENDED VIDEO BENCHMARK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 6.5 LANDMARK SYSTEM SPEED TEST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 6.5.1 CPU Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 6.5.2 CPU Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 6.5.3 FPU Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 6.5.4 Video Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 6.5.5 CPU Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 6.5.6 FPU Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 6.5.7 Video Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 6.5.8 Custom Versions Available . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 6.6 HARD DRIVE BENCHMARK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 6.6.1 Hard Disk Access Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 6.6.2 Hard Disk Data Transfer Rate . . . . . . . . . . . 92 6.6.2.1 Data Verify Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 6.6.2.2 Data Throughput Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 6.6.2.3 Verify Versus Throughput . . . . . . . . . 99 7 DIAGNOSTIC MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 7.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 7.1.1 KickStart a Dead Computer . . . . . . . . . . . 101 7.1.2 Results Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 7.1.3 Test Pause . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 7.1.4 Halting a Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 7.1.5 Test Looping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 7.1.6 No Stop on Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 7.1.7 Batch Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 7.1.8 Remote Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 7.2 TEST MODE OPTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 7.2.1 Select Test Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 7.2.2 Execute Tagged Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 7.2.3 Clear All Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 7.3 SYSTEM BOARD TESTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 7.3.1 Real Time Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 7.3.2 CMOS RAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 7.3.3 Central Processor (CPU) . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 7.3.4 Numeric Co-Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 7.3.5 Speaker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 7.3.6 Memory Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 7.3.6.1 Data Line Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 7.3.6.2 March Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 7.3.6.3 Quick Parity Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 7.3.6.4 Long Parity Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 7.3.6.5 GalRow Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 7.3.6.6 Refresh Toggle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113 7.3.6.7 Refresh Bandwidth . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 7.3.6.8 Refresh Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 7.3.6.9 Extended Memory Test . . . . . . . . . . . 115 7.3.6.10 Expanded Memory Test . . . . . . . . . . . 117 7.3.7 Keyboard Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 7.3.8 Interrupts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 7.3.8.1 Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 7.3.8.2 IRQ0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 7.3.8.3 IRQ4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 7.3.8.4 IRQ6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 7.3.9 DMA Registers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 7.4 I/O CARD TESTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 7.4.1 Parallel Port Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 7.4.2 Serial Port Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 7.4.2.1 Data Line Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127 7.4.2.2 Asynch I/O Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 7.4.4 Video Board/Monitor Tests . . . . . . . . . . . 128 7.4.4.1 Display Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 7.4.4.2 Video Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 7.4.5 Joystick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 7.4.6 Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 7.5 DRIVE TESTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131 7.5.1 Floppy Controller and Drive Tests . . . . . . . 131 7.5.1.1 Head Cleaning and Alignment . . . . . . . . 133 7.5.1.2 Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 7.5.1.3 Write . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 7.5.1.4 Read . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 7.5.1.5 Seek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 7.5.1.6 Write/Read . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 7.5.2 Hard Drive Tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 7.5.2.1 Seek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 7.5.2.2 Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 7.5.2.3 Write . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 7.5.2.4 Read . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 7.5.2.5 Surface Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141 7.5.2.6 Compare Track 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141 7.5.2.7 Compare Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 8 UTILITIES MENU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 8.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 8.2 LOW-LEVEL FORMAT THE HARD DRIVE . . . . . . . . . . . 144 8.2.1 Background Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 8.2.1.1 Track and Sector Construction . . . . . . . 145 8.2.1.2 Headers Help Find Tracks and Sectors . . . 146 8.2.1.3 Error Detection and Correction . . . . . . 146 8.2.1.4 Sector Interleave . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 8.2.1.5 Bad Spots on Disk . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 8.2.1.6 When Low-Level Format is Needed . . . . . . 149 8.2.1.7 DOS (High-Level) Format . . . . . . . . . . 149 8.2.2 Performing the Low-Level Format . . . . . . . . 150 8.2.2.1 Track Limit Imposed by BIOS . . . . . . . . 152 8.2.2.2 Selection of Interleave Factor . . . . . . 152 8.3 DETERMINE HARD DRIVE INTERLEAVE . . . . . . . . . . . 153 8.4 PARK HARD DRIVE IN LANDING ZONE . . . . . . . . . . . 156 8.5 RUN USER PROGRAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 8.6 BAD RAM CHIP LOCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 8.6.1 End User Versus Technician . . . . . . . . . . . 159 8.6.2 Typical Memory Chips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 8.6.3 Configuring the Memory Map . . . . . . . . . . . 160 8.6.4 Enter the Failing Address . . . . . . . . . . . 162 8.6.5 Exit from the Bad RAM Locator . . . . . . . . . 163 8.7 CMOS SETUP: DISPLAY AND EDIT CMOS RAM . . . . . . . 163 8.7.1 What is CMOS RAM? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164 8.7.2 Built-in Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 8.7.3 Drive Types in CMOS RAM . . . . . . . . . . . . 166 8.7.4 Hard Drive Types Available . . . . . . . . . . . 168 9 TROUBLESHOOTING HINTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 9.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 9.2 BIOS ERRORS DURING BOOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 9.2.1 BIOS Manufacturers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 9.3 DIAGNOSTIC TEST ERRORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 10 ACCESSORIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 10.1 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 10.2 LOOPBACK PLUGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 TABLE 1. SUMMARY OF MENU KEYS AND USES . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 TABLE 2. STANDARD XT/AT MEMORY MAP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 TABLE 3. DECIMAL-HEXADECIMAL-BINARY CONVERSION . . . . . . . . 63 TABLE 4. STANDARD XT/AT I/O ADDRESS USAGE . . . . . . . . . . 71 TABLE 5. HARD DRIVE MANUFACTURERS AND PARAMETERS . . . . . . 171 TABLE 6. BIOS ERRORS DETECTED DURING BOOT . . . . . . . . . 185 TABLE 7. BIOS Manufacturers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 TABLE 8. DIAGNOSTIC TEST ERROR CODES AND MEANINGS . . . . . 188 TABLE 9. LOOPBACK PLUG INTERCONNECTIONS . . . . . . . . . . 197 1 INTRODUCTION TO PC PROBE 1.1 CONGRATULATIONS PC Probe (tm) is a full-featured, advanced testing program for your IBM-compatible personal computer. We named it PC Probe because it actually delves into normally inaccessible areas of the computer and, via state-of-the-art software techniques it probes for answers about your computer configuration and operation. We developed it expressly for you after years of PC maintenance and marketing experience taught us what you need. This help text will fully describe PC Probe and how to use it. We believe PC Probe is the finest product of its type, and that it is the best overall value for your investment. We are thankful to have you as our customer and we congratulate you on your purchase of PC Probe. 1.1.1 We Want to Hear From You We welcome your comments and suggestions for improvements in the product and documentation. Please feel free to send your recommendations to our marketing department at the address given in the beginning of this text. And be sure to mail us your Owner Registration Card. We want your feedback. 1.2 MAJOR FEATURES PC Probe has the following major features: o Full-Featured PC testing program o Runs on PC, XT, AT, 386, 486 o Runs under DOS 2.0 and higher o Includes the famous Landmark System Speed Test o Easy to use menu system makes testing automatic o Pull-down menus use keyboard or mouse o Displays color, mono Hercules, MDA, CGA, EGA, VGA o Can be run from remote PC to save service calls o Three major test types give complete truth about system o Diagnostics can loop, log to printer/disk o Benchmarks show CPU, Math, Video, Hard Disk Speed o System Information fully describes system components o Tests and displays all standard system items o CPU, math, clock, interrupts, direct memory access o Serial/parallel I/O, drive types, memory types o Time, date, CMOS RAM o Keyboard, mouse, joystick o Utilities give powerful capability o Low-level disk format allows bad track mapping o Display VGA graphic images of circuit under test o Setup program displays and edits CMOS RAM o Run your own custom test programs from menu o Password protects against accidental destructive actions 1.3 WHAT PC PROBE DOES PC Probe allows you to test and perform special functions on your system as follows: 1.3.1 System Information Tests PC Probe tests the computer to discover all it can about what is inside the system. It then displays the information for your review. This data tells you what kind of microprocessor or numeric co-processor are installed, how much memory you have, and many other interesting items. If you are a technical user, you will find the data helpful when it is time to reconfigure the system. If you are a novice, you will find it to be informative and educational. 1.3.2 Diagnostic Tests PC Probe will run detailed tests on all the major components of a standard system. When a faulty system component causes an error, PC Probe will notify you on the display, and will log the test results to a printer or disk file for later review. Thus, PC Probe will help you identify and correct the cause of system failures. If you are a normal end user, you can notify a technician of the results, and thereby save time on your repair bill. If you are a technician, you can run the tests in loops while you try to isolate and correct the problem. 1.3.3 Performance Benchmark Tests PC Probe contains Landmark's latest version of the de facto world standard for PC performance testing, the Landmark System Speed Test, plus more. The test shows you graphically on the screen exactly how fast your computer is performing, relative to the world's leading computer standard: the IBM AT. You will see CPU, math chip, and video type and speed in a dynamic test that updates the screen several times per second. If you are a performance buff, you can use the test to show the effect of multitasking or running other tasks in the background. Otherwise, you can use the test to show off the performance of your system in your office, or in a computer showroom. 1.3.4 Utilities PC Probe also contains important capabilities that save you money on alternative software and provide more information about your system. The low-level formatter can initialize new hard drives and system Setup will let you edit the contents of CMOS RAM in your AT compatible. You can even run your choice of external programs under the PC Probe menu system. 1.3.5 Pictures PC Probe is the first broadly available educational test program because it can display annotated images of parts of the computer system under test. Images are in the popular 16-color PCX file format and can be displayed on EGA and VGA systems. PC Probe comes with a set of images that can be replaced by OEMs to pertain to any particular computer system. 1.4 WHY YOU NEED PC PROBE Use of PC Probe is essential after any system component has been repaired, installed, replaced, or shipped inside a computer system. It helps you to ensure that the computer is functional, that it has been restored to its original configuration without missing compo- nents, and that it is performing up to your exacting standards. PC Probe thereby provides the ideal combination of low cost, accurate results, simple operation, and ease of use. It can keep you in charge of your system, and can save unnecessary service calls over the life of the computer. You should run PC Probe o After installing or removing a component of the computer o When system errors are suspected or occur o On a quarterly basis in normal office environments o Monthly or weekly in an industrial or vibrating environment o After transporting or setting up a computer 2 OPERATION 2.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter presents information you need to install, run, and operate PC Probe and use it to test and maintain your computer system. You do not need special knowledge or skill to perform the testing functions of PC Probe. However, if you are not a qualified technician, you should not attempt to repair your computer, even if you think you know the cause of the problem. You should use PC Probe to test, and refer repairs to the technician. If you attempt to repair the electronics or mechanics inside a computer under warranty, you might void the warranty. If you then have system problems, you may have to pay for out-of-warranty re- pairs. Therefore, if the system is under warranty, we recommend that you use PC Probe to test the system, but NOT to adjust it. Rather, send an in-warranty system back to a factory-authorized repair facility. 2.2 INSTALL AND RUN PC PROBE Switch power on to your computer and boot DOS 2.0 or above off the normal boot drive. You cannot bootstrap an operating system from the PC Probe Program diskette. You cannot run PC Probe under any operating system but MS-DOS 2.0 or above, or a true clone of MS-DOS. 2.2.1 Read PCPROBE.DOC Before running PC Probe, you should read the contents of the file PCPROBE.COM on the program diskette. That file explains new fea- tures that were put in the program since the manual was written, and it delineates any other changes that were made to the program or manual. Since some of the information will be important to your understanding and use of the product, we encourage you to read it. To do that, insert the program diskette into drive A: and enter the following command (type the command and press the enter key): A:PCPROBE.COM 2.2.2 Safety for Existing System Configuration Many diagnostic programs require you to remove all drivers and resident programs before running the test, and many require you to reboot the system after the diagnostics have finished running. This is done to reduce the amount of work in creating the diagnostics to handle the system environment "safely", but it causes extra work for the user. However, some of the tests affect the configuration of circuitry that PC Probe has no way of knowing is in use. For example you can run a test on a serial port that is set up to run with a special non-mouse serial port driver installed in memory. You must exercise normal caution in running programs on I/O devices that are already set up for some other function. PC Probe can disrupt a high-resolution text video mode, and will not return to that mode after it finishes execution. It is recommended that you set your system for normal 80 column x 25 line text mode before running PC Probe. You can usually do this with one of the following DOS commands: MODE CO80 Set color mode MODE MONO Set monochrome mode 2.3 REMOTE OPERATION You may configure PC Probe for remote operation by entering the following command line to start the program: PCPROBE /R Remote operation means you may run PC Probe from another (remote) computer that is connected to your system via a serial interface (COM port). In order for someone to run PC Probe on your computer from a remote system, the actual PC Probe program must be on your computer's disk, not on the remote computer's disk. Furthermore, both computers must be running and communicating with each other via a remote communication program such as PC Anywhere, Carbon Copy, Blast, CoSession, or NetRemote. There may be others on the market that your dealer can recommend. The /R parameter on the command line causes PC Probe to disable keyboard, video, and serial port tests so that you cannot run them except by starting PC Probe without the /R option. The reason is that you can neither press keys nor see the local display from a remote computer; the serial port is needed for communicating with the remote computer and testing it will destroy the communication link. 2.4 HOW TO EXIT FROM PC PROBE To exit from PC Probe, bring up the Exit menu by pressing X from the main menu or Alt-X from any other menu. This Exit menu allows you to either exit to DOS or reboot the system. If you exit to DOS, you may then run another program in the normal way allowed by DOS. If you reboot, then the computer will perform a warm boot and com- pletely reload the operating system and drivers. Sometimes a reboot can be desirable, especially if you have removed resident programs and drivers in order to allow PC Probe to test all of expanded and extended memory. 2.5 HOW TO USE THE MENU SYSTEM The pull-down menu system is similar to IBM's SAA (System Applica- tion Architecture) menu system. However, you are not required to press the Alt key to make a main menu selection when no menus but the main menu are on the screen. The display shows menu selections at or near the top, and helping information across the bottom line of the screen. The main menu is shown across the top of the screen. Subordinate menus (submenus) are displayed beneath main menu items that you select. 2.5.1 Mouse or Keyboard Control PC Probe's menu system allows you to use the mouse or keyboard keys to select and execute items (also known as functions) shown in the submenus. Once you select a function, it becomes activated to allow you to make further selections or data entries, or it starts execut- ing. All main menu functions will cause submenus to drop down under the selected menu item; some menu selections will cause a dialogue box to appear. You may select functions from the submenu or dialogue box. All menu functions are executed upon selection. Dialogue box functions are executed when you press enter or spacebar while the <OK> function is highlighted, or when you double-click the left mouse button on the desired item. You can cancel a dialogue box by pressing <ESC> or <ENTER> when the <CANCEL> function is highlighted (press Tab to move the highlight to the cancel word). You may mix the use of the mouse and keyboard in any way that is convenient to you. Before using a mouse, your mouse driver must be already loaded in accordance with the mouse manufacturer's instructions. To use a mouse position the diamond-shaped mouse pointer onto a menu item, and press or click the left mouse button, then release it. You do not need to hold the button down to "drag" or "pull" a menu down. 2.5.2 Important Keys - <F1>, <ESC>, <ENTER>/<SPACE>, Alt You may press <F1> at any time to cause PC Probe to display help information that you can scroll or page through using the cursor arrows and page up / down keys, or a mouse. Press <ENTER> or <SPACE> to execute any highlighted function or menu item. You may also press the left mouse button while the mouse cursor is overlaying the desired selection. Press <ESC> to back up or cancel a selection. This is the same as executing the <Cancel> function when it is shown on the display. You may also press the right mouse button to simulate pressing <ESC>. The main exception to this is the keyboard test; you may escape from it only by pressing Ctrl-<ESC>. Press Alt in conjunction with any of the main menu keys to abandon the current menu and invoke the corresponding function. This will work even when you are several levels deep in some menu. For exam- ple, press Alt-X to invoke the Exit menu. The following table lists the popular keys and their uses. TABLE 1. SUMMARY OF MENU KEYS AND USES KEY MEANING <F1> Display Help. <ESC> Back up to previous menu till main menu is reached; cancel the current dialogue box; stop running the current test or batch of tests if <ENTER> or Space the current test is interruptable. Execute the highlighted function unless on a text entry field; if in a text entry field, Insert space inserts a space above the cursor. For text entry only: toggle between character Delete insert and overtype mode. For text entry only: delete the character above Backspace the cursor. For text entry only: delete the character to Home, End the left of the cursor. For text entry only: move the cursor to the be- Tab, Shift-Tab ginning or end of the line, respectively. For dialogue box only: move the selection high- Left, right light to the next or previous field. cursor arrows Move cursor or menu highlight bar to left or right; this will drop down the adjacent menu if Up, down cursor at the next level below main menu. arrows Move cursor or menu highlight bar up or down. Pg Up, Down Scroll through text or list fields a screen at a Shift-Print time. Screen Print the current screen on the printer (same as Highlighted DOS). Character Press the corresponding key to invoke a menu se- Alt + main menu lection. key Invokes the corresponding main menu selection Left Mouse But- from any other menu (when not in a dialogue ton box). Right Mouse Same as pressing <ENTER> (selects and executes an Button item). Same as pressing <ESC> (Cancels, or backs up to previous menu). 2.5.3 Making Menu Selections There are two ways to use the keyboard for menu selections: cursor control using the highlight bar, or key select using the highlighted character of the menu item. With the cursor control method, you press cursor control (arrow) keys to move the menu highlight bar between menu selections. When the desired item is highlighted, press <ENTER> or spacebar to select that item. With the menu key select method you may press the key for the high- lighted letter in the desired menu item for the lowest level of menu on the screen (the menu box in which the highlight bar is dis- played). When you press the key, the corresponding item is immedi- ately selected and executed. These versatile methods of selecting menu items give you both an easy approach for novices, and a more terse approach for expert users. 2.5.4 Using Dialogue Boxes A dialogue box allows you to enter information, such as a file name, in a text entry field, or to select parameter items from several different fields of information; parameter items affect the way the dialogue box functions. For example, a dialogue box to allow you to type in a file name into a text entry field, select a file name from a list field showing the files in the currently selected directory, select a directory from a list field showing directories in the current directory, select an OK field to select the file, and select a CANCEL field to cancel the operation and return to the main menu. The current field will be highlighted. To select a different field, click the left mouse button anywhere in the field. To use the keyboard, press the Tab key to highlight the next field in a forward direction, or Shift-Tab to highlight and select the next field in a reverse direction. 2.5.4.1 List and Text Display Fields A list field displays a list of items from which you may choose a single item using the mouse or keyboard. A text display field displays text but does not allow you to select it. The amount of information in the text or list can be so long that the field cannot show all of it at the same time, but you can scroll the list or text up and down in the field and move the highlighted selection bar up and down in the list. An example is the Run User Program selection in the Configure menu. To scroll the highlight bar up and down in the list, or the text or list up and down in the field of selections, use cursor and page keys, or click the left mouse button anywhere in the shaded area at the right or bottom margin of the list field. Clicking on the arrows scrolls one line at a time, while clicking in the shaded area scrolls one page at a time. Alternatively, you may press the key for the first character in a selection name to jump immediately in the list to the first or next name that begins with that character. For example, if the selection bar is on the file name "myprog.exe", you can press "p" to jump to the first file starting with p, and press "s" to jump to the first name starting with s; while on the last file starting with p, press- ing p again will jump to the first file starting with p. In the file list dialogue box, the current directory and wildcard file specification are shown at the top. By entering a different file specification, you can change the list of files displayed. For example, *.COM will show all the file names with .COM extension. You can press the Tab key repeatedly to move the highlight from one field to another. When the Drives/Dirs field is active, you can select any available drive, such a drive A: (cursor down until [-A-] is highlighted, then <ENTER>), or the parent directory in the current drive (..). The Dirs box will show any subdirectories available. Once you have selected a drive or directory, the File List will show all the files in the selected directory of the selected drive, as enabled by the file specification at the top of the dialogue box. 2.5.4.2 Text Entry Fields While entering information in a text entry field, you have normal editing capability. You may press backspace to erase the character to the left of the cursor, Delete to erase the character above the cursor, arrow keys to move the cursor, Insert key to toggle between typeover and character insert mode, and Home and End keys to move the cursor to the beginning and end of the line. Naturally, you will press <ENTER> to accept the entry. 2.5.5 Return to Menus Once PC Probe has finished executing a function that you have selected, in most cases it displays the menu that was on the screen immediately prior to execution. It leaves the same menu item highlighted. This allows you to select and execute the same func- tion repeatedly with a minimum of keystrokes and mouse activity. 2.6 PASSWORD PROTECTION PC Probe allows you to run tests and perform other operations that can disrupt the configuration of your system or destroy data on your disk drives. Most diagnostic test programs offer no protection against such destructive activities other than multiple levels of querying the operator as to whether it is okay to do it. PC Probe does offer protection in the form of a password entry. Before allowing you to run a destructive test or disruptive configu- ration activity, it requires you to enter the correct password. You must enter it exactly as it was originally stored, in the correct upper/lower case letter form. The Configure menu allows you to change the password from the default of PCPROBE to any other password you like. If you forget the password, you will never be able to execute those secure func- tions. That is another reason you should always keep a backup diskette handy with the original version of the program on it. If you don't want an unskilled user to run PC Probe and risk damag- ing data or changing the configuration on your computer, you should change the password. If you are a technician permanently installing PC Probe on a user's computer, you may want to change the password so that only you can run the destructive tests. 2.7 MAIN MENU STRUCTURE PC Probe performs the following major functions, and menu items are there to support them: Info Displays System Information, help, test log results Benchmarks Runs benchmark performance tests for system comparison Diagnostics Enable test mode, select and run diagnostic tests Configure Lets you configure the program (color or mono dis- play, etc.) Utilities Runs special programs (setup, format, user program, etc.) Pictures Displays computer images from 16-color PCX files Exit Quit the program and return to the operating system The chapters to come discuss all the items in the submenus invoked when you select any of the above main menu items. However, they do not describe each and every dialogue box or selection because those are self-evident when you are running the program. The topics will explain the significance of the selections and how they apply to your testing or usage situations. 3 CONFIGURE MENU 3.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter describes the Configure menu functions that allow you to change the configuration of PC Probe. Whenever you change a configuration item, PC Probe stores the new configuration on the disk inside the PC Probe program itself. As a result, the next time you run PC Probe it uses the most recent configuration you set up. 3.2 CHANGE COLORS By default, PC Probe displays menus, test results, and dialogue boxes in monochrome mode. However, if you are using a color system, you may use the Change Colors function to enable one of many color sets. Each set provides a different mix of colors to the menu system to reduce eyestrain and make PC Probe more pleasing and enjoyable to use. You may experiment with these colors, and we encourage you to do so. 3.3 PASSWORD This selection displays a text entry dialogue box and allows you to change the current password of up to 8 characters. When you change it and press <ENTER>, PC Probe encrypts the password and stores it inside the program itself on the disk. The password is case-sensi- tive. That is, upper case letters are stored as upper case letters, and lower case letters are stored as lower case letters. A user must know and enter the correct password, with each letter in the correct case, before PC Probe will execute its protected func- tions. The protected functions are those that can destroy data on the disks, or alter the configuration of the system. For example, low-level disk format, disk write and format tests, and hard disk data revitalization are protected functions. The default password is PCPROBE. If you change it, you must remem- ber it in order to execute password-protected functions. If you forget it, you will not be able to execute those functions, and you must load and run the original PC Probe program (that has the original default password PCPROBE intact) to be able to execute them. 3.4 RESULTS LOG LOCATION PC Probe contains an internal test results log that retains the results of the most recently executed system information, benchmark, or diagnostic test function. If you executed a single test, it contains a single test result. If you executed a batch of tests, it contains results of each test in the batch. Each time you execute a new test, whether system information, benchmark, or diagnostic, PC Probe adds the results to the end of the log until available DOS memory has been used up. By default, the results log data are sent only to the display. You may use the Results Log Location function to select a disk file or the printer as the destination. If you select printer or file, then every time PC Probe executes a function that sends data to the internal log, it also sends the results to the printer or file, appending the current results to whatever is already there. 3.4.1 Results to Printer The printer is assumed to be a standard 80-column character or line printer such as a daisy wheel, dot matrix, or laser printer. PC Probe does not send any special codes to the printer in order to set it up. PC Probe will not print properly on a Postscript printer. PC Probe prints only on device LPT1:, just as the standard DOS PRINT command prints on LPT1:. If you want it to print to another device, such as a serial port, you must use the DOS MODE command (see DOS manuals) to redirect LPT1: to that device. If you run a test on the parallel or serial port to which the printer is attached, then it is possible that PC Probe will not be able to print test results, nor will any other DOS program. To remedy this, you must reboot the system. For this reason, we recommend that you not test the device (printer or disk) used to record test results. 3.4.2 Results to File When you select a file as the destination for the results log, PC Probe displays a dialogue screen that allows you to enter a new file or select an existing file. The dialogue box does not allow you to erase an existing file. However, if PC Probe is configured to send test results to a file, you may clear the contents of the file using the Clear Results Log function in the Info menu. If you enter a new file name, then PC Probe will log all results to that file if log-to-file is enabled. 4 PICTURE MENU 4.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter describes the Pictures menu selection and how to use it to display EGA and VGA images on your computer. It also suggests some ways to create informative and educational images of your own to display. 4.2 LOAD IMAGE This menu selection allows you to display prestored images on your computer screen. 4.2.1 Proper Monitor and Graphics Adapter Your system must be using an IBM-compatible enhanced color or monochrome monitor and EGA (enhanced graphics adapter), or an analog monitor with VGA (video graphics array) adapter in order for this feature to work. If you are using a digital color monitor with CGA (color graphics adapter) or digital monochrome monitor with and IBM-compatible MDA (monochrome display adapter) or HGC (Hercules graphics controller), you will not be able to display the images. 4.2.2 Proper Image File Format The menu selection displays a dialogue screen that allows you to select an image file for display (see the Operation chapter for details on how to use the dialogue screen). The pictures must be in files ending with the extension ".PCX". PCX files are compressed image files in Z-Soft's PC Paintbrush 16-color EGA or VGA format. If you try to display images in any other format, an image with more colors, or an image that is larger than the screen, the display will show an error message rather than the image. Maximum image size is 640 columns x 350 rows of pixels for EGA systems, and 640 x 480 for VGA systems. 4.2.3 Pictures Come with PC Probe Several images of parts of a typical computer are provided with PC Probe. If you have a custom version of PC Probe, it may come with a complete set of drawings and pictures that relate to your computer. If no PCX image files appear in the list box, then they are not in the current directory and you must use the mouse or press Tab or Shift-Tab to enable the directory list field and select the proper directory. 4.3 CREATE YOUR OWN PICTURES It is possible, and can be fun, to create your own pictures for display with PC Probe. Some typical methods are: 1. Draw them with a paint program such as Pictor (Paul Mace Soft- ware), PC Paintbrush (Z-Soft), Tempra (Mathematica), or Deluxe Paint II (Electronic Arts). 2. Scan them with a hand or page scanner such as from Microtek, PC Complete, or DataCopy. 3. Capture them from an image displayed on the screen by another program. Some capture programs are HiJaak (Inset Systems), TGLGRAB (TerraVision), Cap (Paul Mace Software), or Pizzaz. 4. Digitize them with an image capture or video frame grabber card with video camera attached. Typical frame capture boards are Via and SuperVia from Jovian Logic, and others from Computer Eyes, Willow, U.S. Video, Everex, and Truevision. 5. Since scanned or video captured images can contain thousands of colors and PC Probe will only allow you to display images of 16 colors, you will need to reduce the number of colors in those images to just 16. Good software packages that do that are PHIPS profes- sional high resolution image processing software from TerraVision, and Image Tools from MicroTex. 6. Most but not all paint and image capture programs will save images in PCX file format. However, not all of them do, and for those you will need to use file conversion software to convert the image file to PCX format. Excellent programs for this are TGL Plus (TerraVision) and HiJaak (Inset Systems). 4.4 WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH PICTURES PC Probe's ability to display pictures can be educational and infor- mative for yourself and others. As people work to become more computer literate, they often need training tools that help them to visualize concepts. This is especially difficult with computers because so much of the system is hidden under its cover. There is no limit to the number of images PC Probe can display. Computer manufacturers can create them and install them on a custom- er diskette to ship with PC Probe in a bundle with their systems. Corporate micro managers can create them for distribution throughout the corporation, and include specialized instructions for handling failures. The pictures can even be used to show users how to set jumpers and switches and perform other system configuration tasks. With a paint or draw program, you can draw a block diagram or anno- tate a captured video image with descriptive text. For example, if you want to show the memory layout on a computer motherboard, you can capture the image with a video capture system, color-reduce it, then put descriptive wording on it with the paint program to show the location of parity and data bits as well as bank layout. 4.5 IF YOU DON'T WANT TO CREATE YOUR OWN It may be inconvenient or impossible for you to create your own pictures. If you want professional assistance, recommendations, or a complete image development project done, contact Landmark. 5 INFO MENU 5.1 INTRODUCTION The purpose of the Info menu is to give you information about your computer, the PC Probe program, and the results of tests you have run. This chapter describes the Info menu selections and explains how to use them. 5.2 SYSTEM INFO System Info shows several screen pages of information about the computer. The minimum information you can display is given below. You may use page and cursor keys or the mouse to scroll the data. 5.2.2 DOS Version This item shows the version of MS-DOS, PC-DOS, or compatible DOS being run on the system: 2.0, 2.1, 2.11, 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.0, etc. 5.2.3 CPU Type This item shows the type of central processing unit installed: V20, V30, 8088, 80188, 8086, 80186, 80286, 80386 SX, 80386 DX, 80486 SX or 80486 DX. The CPU is the major "brain" of the computer. It consists of a single relatively large chip. Where possible, this item will also identify the chip manufacturer. 5.2.4 FPU Type This item shows the type of math chip installed: 8087, 80287, or 80387. Where possible, this item will identify the specific manu- facturer of the chip. FPU means floating point unit and refers to the scientific and engineering types of calculations the chip is able to perform. It is also referred to as NPU (numeric processor unit) or numeric co-processor. 5.2.5 Video Type This item shows the type of video adapter installed, including Hercules, Monochrome Display Adapter (IBM MDA or compatible), Color Graphics Adapter (IBM CGA or compatible), Enhanced Graphics Adapter (IBM EGA or compatible), or Video Graphics Array adapter (IBM VGA or compatible). Where possible, this item will show the name of the chip manufacturer if the video card is a SuperVGA. 5.2.6 Base (DOS) Memory This item shows the amount of Random Access Memory (RAM) installed and the amount being used in the lower 640K of address space. Base memory is that area of memory where DOS, drivers, buffers, resident programs, and application programs reside in a normal system. Early PCs had 64K, but this is not enough to run modern applications, and PC Probe with DOS cannot run in that little. Modern systems should have a full 640K, although some can run with 256K or 512K. The following tables show the hexadecimal address ranges for the lower 1M of DOS memory and the decimal to hexadecimal translation. TABLE 2. STANDARD XT/AT MEMORY MAP ADDRESS PURPOSE 00000-9FFF0 640K Base RAM A0000-AFFF0 64K EGA/VGA Graphics RAM Memory B0000-B7FF0 32K MDA Text Memory B8000-BFFF0 32K CGA Text Memory C0000-DFFF0 128K Adaptor Memory E0000-EFFF0 64K System Board ROM F0000-FFFF0 64K System Board BIOS C0000-C7FFF 32K EGA/VGA BIOS C8000-CBFFF 16K Disk Controller BIOS CC000-CFFFF 16K Network BIOS D0000-EFFFF 128K EMS Memory TABLE 3. DECIMAL-HEXADECIMAL-BINARY CONVERSION DEC HEX BIN DEC HEX BIN DEC HEX BIN DEC HEX BIN 0 0 0000 4 4 0100 8 8 1000 12 C 1100 1 1 0001 5 5 0101 9 9 1001 13 D 1101 2 2 0010 6 6 0110 10 A 1010 14 E 1110 3 3 0011 7 7 0111 11 B 1011 15 F 1111 5.2.7 Extended Memory This item shows the amount of memory installed and the amount being used from 1M (one megabyte) up to 16M (286-based systems) or 4G (gigabytes) in 386 systems. Extended memory does not exist in 8088 or 8086 systems (PC, XT, and compatibles). 5.2.8 EMS Memory This item shows the amount of expanded memory installed in the system. EMS means Expanded Memory Specification; the specification was originally developed and agreed to by Lotus, Intel, and Micro- soft. Sometimes it is referred to as LIM EMS memory. EMS memory requires a special software driver to be loaded when DOS boots. In order for application programs to use the EMS memory, the driver must conform properly to the LIM EMS specification. There are two versions of EMS driver: 3.2 and 4.0. Version 3.2 allows up to 8 MB of memory to be in the system in addition to the normal base and extended memory. Version 4.0 allows 32 MB of expanded memory. Application programs see 16K (kilobyte) segments of the memory in a certain 64K contiguous block of addresses in the lower 1 MB of address space. The block of addresses used is called a "page frame", and usually resides at address E0000h (a 64K area between the 640K and 1M limits reserved for EMS memory), although it can reside at other addresses. The driver's responsibility is to switch memory control circuitry electronically or via software so that the page frame can act as a window through which application programs can read and write data to the entire range of expanded memory. The driver can use more than one page frame. The EMS system information shows which page frames are in use, as well as the version number of the EMS driver. 5.2.9 ROM Areas Used This item shows the Read Only Memory (ROM) installed in the system. ROM is used to hold data that doesn't disappear when you shut power off to the computer. System BIOS (see next topic) is in ROM, as well as video BIOS for EGA and VGA graphics cards, network adapter BIOS, and some hard disk controller BIOS. PC Probe identifies ROM areas by attempting to write to it, then read back what was written. ROM contents will remain the same, while RAM contents will be changed. Being able to see what ROM is installed is an advantage for you if you ever have to identify unused space that you can make available to other adapter cards. 5.2.10 Video BIOS This item shows the starting address, size, and if possible the manufacturer of the software in video adapter BIOS ROM. Usually only EGA, VGA, and 8514A video adapters will have their own BIOS. CGA and MDA are built into the system BIOS. EGA and VGA video BIOS usually occupies 16K to 24K starting at address C0000h. 5.2.11 Display Memory This item tells how much RAM is available to hold information being displayed on the system monitor or screen. This memory is on the video adapter itself. Depending on the adapter, the display memory can occupy up to 128K starting at A0000h and ranging through C0000h minus 1. 5.2.12 Hard Disk BIOS This item shows the starting address and size of BIOS for special hard disk controllers. The hard disk BIOS for standard systems is part of the system BIOS, but for ESDI (Enhanced Small Device Inter- face), SCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface), and certain other controllers, the BIOS is on the disk controller adapter card: it normally occupies 16K starting at address C8000h. 5.2.13 IRQ Assignments This item shows the standard Interrupt ReQuest (IRQ) assignments in the system, the ones that are actually wired to the interrupt priority recognition circuitry. There are up to 16 IRQ signals in an AT and 8 in a PC. IRQs can be issued by various circuits in the system to alert the microprocessor that some event needs to be handled. Two are reserved for the system board timer and keyboard controller. Others are reserved for disk, and other I/O control- lers. Several IRQ lines are not wired to any circuit, but are available at the expansion slot connectors for add-in cards. Any add-in card plugged into an expansion slot can thus be wired up to one of the available lines. There is no way for PC Probe to test the assign- ment of such non-standard IRQs, so this item identifies them as being "available" even though they might be in use by a non-standard I/O controller card. 5.2.14 DMA Channel Assignments There are 4 Direct Memory Access (DMA) channels in a PC or XT, and 8 in an AT. The DMA controller transfers data between memory and I/O device controllers without intervention by the CPU. It thereby relieves the CPU of managing slow and tedious byte-for-byte data transfers so it can get real processing done. Some of the DMA channels are preassigned, and others are available. This item shows the standard assignments, and identifies the others as available because there is no empirical way of determining what add-on cards will use them. DMA channels are in this way similar to IRQs. 5.2.15 I/O Addresses The processor has available 1024 Input/Output addresses that func- tion like memory addresses, but are connected to I/O device control- lers. Some I/O address connections are predetermined, but many are available. This item shows only those I/O addresses that are reserved for serial (COM1, 2) and parallel (LPT1, 2, 3) ports, and specifically indicates whether they are in use. As with IRQ and DMA signals, PC Probe cannot determine which I/O addresses are used by non-standard circuits; it therefore displays no information for them. The following table shows standard I/O address usage. TABLE 4. STANDARD XT/AT I/O ADDRESS USAGE ADDRESS PURPOSE 000-01Fh DMA Controller 1 020-03Fh Interrupt Controller 1, Master 040-05Fh Timer 1 060-07Fh CMOS RTC, NMI control 080-09Fh DMA Page Register, MFG Port 0A0-0BFh Interrupt Controller 2, Slave 0C0-0DFh DMA Controller 2 0F0h Clear Numeric Co-processor Busy 0F1h Reset Numeric Co-processor 0F8-0FFh Numeric Co-processor 1F0-1F8h Primary Fixed Disk 200-207h Game I/O 20C-20Dh Reserved 21Fh Reserved 278-27Fh Secondary Parallel Port: LPT2 280-287h KickStart 2 or 3 2B0-2Dfh Alternate EGA 2F8-2FFh Serial Port 2 300-31fh Prototype Card 360-363h PC Network Low 364-367h Reserved 368-36Bh PC Network High 378-37Fh Primary Parallel Port: LPT1 3B0-3BFh MDA Adaptor 3C0-3CFh Enhanced Graphics Adaptor 3D0-3DFh CGA Adaptor 3F0-3F7h Diskette Controller 3F8-3FFh Primary Serial Port: COM1 5.2.16 CMOS RAM Contents The CMOS RAM is a battery-backed RAM that retains its contents even with power off. It holds important system configuration data that is needed in AT compatibles when the computer boots. PC Probe shows you the contents: date, time, number and types of floppy drives, number and types of hard drives. You cannot edit the information from this screen, but you can edit it from the Setup function of the Utilities menu. Setup also allows you to edit the amount of base memory, amount of extended memory, and video type (CGA, monochrome, EGA/VGA). 5.2.17 Mouse Presence This item shows whether a mouse driver is installed and how many mouse buttons it supports. 5.2.18 Keyboard Type This item shows the presence and type of keyboard attached to the system: 84-key original AT type, or the enhanced 101-key type. 5.3 VIEW, PRINT, CLEAR RESULTS LOG These menu items allow you to display, print, or clear the contents of the results log. The Configure menu allows you to set the desti- nation of the log as being the display, the printer, or a file. If the results log is being sent to the display or printer, then you will view, print, or clear the internal log. If it is being sent to a file, then you will view, print, or clear the log that is in the file. Clearing the log will not delete or erase the file, but will only clear its contents to zero. Naturally, you may also view or print the file from the DOS prompt (outside of PC Probe) using DOS with TYPE, PRINT, or COPY to printer commands. You can also use any DOS editor to view, update, or print results log files See the chapter on the Configure menu for information on how to set up the results log. The internal results log contains the results of all tests you have run in the current PC Probe session. Contents can be system info, benchmarks, and diagnostics. When you exit from PC Probe and return to DOS, the internal log is cleared. If you have already set up the log to go to the printer, then each test's results will be printed as the test completes execution; as a result, you will not need to execute the Print Results Log function. PC Probe expects the printed output to go to LPT1. If you want to print on a serial printer, then you must have used the DOS MODE command (see DOS documentation on the use of that command) to route the data intended for LPT1 to the serial printer. PC Probe expects the printer to be able to accept standard unformatted ASCII (Ameri- can Standard Code for Information Interchange) text. It will not print properly on a Postscript-type printer that requires special formatting of the data. It will print properly on standard dot matrix, daisy wheel, line, and laser printers. 5.4 ABOUT PC PROBE This item displays the release date and copyright information about PC Probe. 5.5 HELP ON PC PROBE This item loads a help file and displays the first page of text in the file. You may use the cursor and page keys or the mouse to scroll through the text. Remember that you may click the left mouse button while the diamond-shaped cursor is in the shaded area of the right margin of the display to scroll a page at a time, or on the arrows in that margin to scroll a line at a time. The help file is named PCPROBE.dat. PC Probe will display an error message if the file is not in the current directory. The help file displays full information on how to operate the program and the functions of menu selections. It is a streamlined version of the PC Probe owner's manual. 6 BENCHMARK MENU 6.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter describes the selections in the Benchmark menu and how to use them. The benchmark selections show how fast the major elements of the system perform. They are given in four categories: processor, video, system speed test, hard disk. The processor and video tests give the same speed data as those used in the Landmark System Speed Test. The complete system speed test is included to give a graphical representation of speed. 6.2 PROCESSOR BENCHMARK This test checks the actual performance of the CPU in terms of the original AT's performance. The rating is in MHz and effectively states "This computer is fast as an xx MHz IBM AT", where xx is the speed of an equivalent AT. For more information, see the topic on the Landmark System Speed Test. 6.3 VIDEO BENCHMARK This test checks the rate of text data transfer in characters per millisecond from the CPU to the display memory in normal text mode. This is the maximum data transfer rate to the video circuit, and thus the maximum display rate of the video subsystem. Most other benchmark tests show how fast BIOS allows data to be transferred. This test bypasses BIOS since really display-intensive applications (such as CAD packages, Windows, etc.) also bypass BIOS because it slows down video speed. 6.4 EXTENDED VIDEO BENCHMARK This test executes the VIDSPEED.EXE program if it is in the current directory of the current drive. Vidspeed is a comprehensive bench- mark test that measures both CPU-to-main memory transfer rate, and CPU-to-display memory transfer rate in all video modes, both text and graphics, of your video adapter. The program is "aware" of most modern super VGA adapters, as well as CGA, EGA, Hercules, and mono- chrome adapters. NEVER TYPE WHILE VIDSPEED IS RUNNING!! The keyboard handler takes away time and can skew your results. If you run VIDSPEED repeatedly in the same environment, you should get exactly the same results each time. However, some resident programs can slow your machine down, as well as some device drivers. As far as we know, Vidspeed is more thorough than any other PC video benchmark in the world. It completely ignores the effect of video BIOS, and it writes directly to display memory. Some other video benchmarks test only performance through BIOS, and yield meaningless results, as most modern graphics application programs (such as Windows) do not use BIOS because of the limitations it imposes on system performance. This test does not send results to the results log, but it does display its results on the screen. The video test results are in the following format: 659 Bytes per millisecond 28.65KHz 59.94Hz 640x480x16 (VGA) Meanings of the results are as follows: 659 Speed at which CPU writes to video card display memory 28.65KHz Horizontal scan frequency for monitor 59.94Hz Vertical scan frequency for monitor 640 Width of display in pixels (screen dots) 480 Height of display in pixels 16 Number of colors simultaneously displayable (VGA) The video card standard of the display mode The following list show typical result taken from a modern system: a 25MHz 80386 AMI Mark II AT-Compatible Motherboard with Diamond SpeedSTAR VGA card (based on Tseng ET4000 Super VGA chip): 9913.19 Bytes per millisecond in Normal Ram 6736 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 40x25 (text) 6692 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 80x25 (text) 6692 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 80x50 (text) 6696 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 320x200x4 (CGA) 6642 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 640x200x2 (CGA) 6649 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 640x200x16 (EGA) 6643 Bytes per ms 24.51KHz 70.12Hz 640x350x16 (EGA) 6649 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 320x200x16 (EGA) 6806 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 320x200x256 (VGA/MCGA) 6646 Bytes per ms 28.75KHz 59.96Hz 640x480x16 (VGA) 6646 Bytes per ms 28.75KHz 59.96Hz 640x480x2 (VGA/MCGA) 6612 Bytes per ms 35.89KHz 59.86Hz 800x600x2 (S-VGA) 6612 Bytes per ms 35.89KHz 59.86Hz 800x600x16 (S-VGA) 6807 Bytes per ms 28.02KHz 70.12Hz 640x400x256 (S-VGA) 6807 Bytes per ms 28.75KHz 59.96Hz 640x480x256 (S-VGA) 6804 Bytes per ms 35.89KHz 59.86Hz 800x600x256 (S-VGA) 6153 Bytes per ms 33.36KHz 86.98Hz 1024x768x2 (S-VGA) 6153 Bytes per ms 33.36KHz 86.97Hz 1024x768x16 (S-VGA) 6646 Bytes per ms 28.77KHz 60.00Hz 360x480x256 (VGA) 6289 Bytes per ms 33.36KHz 86.97Hz 1024x768x256 (S-VGA) 6.5 LANDMARK SYSTEM SPEED TEST The Landmark System Speed Test is the complete system speed test that has gained world fame at computer trade shows and dealerships. It shows the type and speed of the central processing unit (CPU), floating point unit or math chip (FPU), video adapter controller chip, and system clock. The graphical representation of the CPU, FPU, and video speed is a set of horizontal bars across the screen. The length of the bars relative to the width of the screen allows you to see at a glance from across the room the relative performance of the system. The color of the screen shows the type of Intel-compatible CPU chip controlling the system: red = 80486; blue = 80386; green = 80286; and gold = 8088 or 8086. Press <ESC> to terminate the test, <F9> to recalculate system clock and video speed, <F10> to disable the beeper, and <F1> for help. You may control the display with the mouse or the up and down cursor control keys. <F1> (help) gives a full explanation of the test. The display shows information described in the following paragraphs. 6.5.1 CPU Type This tells the model and maker of CPU Chip: NEC V20 or V30; Intel 8088, 8086, 80188, 80186, 80286, 80386, 80386 SX, 80486, and 80486 SX. 6.5.2 CPU Clock This shows the actual frequency in megaHertz of the clock pulses applied to the CPU to make it run. The clock speed is calculated at the beginning of the test. You may recalculate it by pressing <F9>. If your computer can operate in low-speed mode or high-speed turbo mode, you should press <F9> after changing modes while the system speed test is running. 6.5.3 FPU Type This tells the model and maker of FPU math chip. Models are 8087, 80287, or 80387. Chip makers are Intel, IIT, or Cyrix. The test does not detect nor check the performance of the Weitek family of math chips. 6.5.4 Video Type The type of video adapter and the video chip maker if the adapter is a superVGA. 6.5.5 CPU Speed This speed bar shows the clock speed at which a standard IBM AT would have to run in order to have the same CPU performance as this system. The test does reflect the effect of cache memory in the system. The scaling of the bar is different for each major CPU type. You may press <F3> or <F4> to change the scaling (and the color) of the bar further. The operation of the speed bar is dynamic because the test is run in a continuous loop. You will see the bar shorten if background tasks start operation in a network server or multitasking system because the speed test doesn't get the full attention of the CPU. The pitch of the beeper indicates the relative performance. For example an XT will be low-pitched, while a 386 will be much higher. 6.5.6 FPU Speed This speed bar shows the clock speed at which the floating point math chip (FPU) in a standard IBM AT would have to run in order to have the same FPU performance as this system. The scaling of the bar is different for each major FPU type. You may press <F5> or <F6> to change the scaling (and the color) of the bar further. The operation of the FPU speed bar is dynamic because the test is run in a continuous loop. You will see the bar shorten if back- ground tasks start operation in a network server or multitasking system because the speed test doesn't get the full attention of the CPU. 6.5.7 Video Speed This speed bar shows the actual speed at which the CPU can send text to the display memory in characters-per-millisecond (cpm). IBM- standard CGA, EGA, and VGA systems will usually show 600 to 800 cpm. Later model VGAs with higher performance VGA systems will show 1000 to 3000. Modern ultra-high performance systems can show 6000 to 7500. Video Speed is computed once when the test starts because it is time-consuming and therefore cannot be shown dynamically as CPU and FPU are. Press <F9> to recalculate it. You may use this test to determine the efficiency of the combination of video adapter and motherboard in your computer. A low reading can mean you have a slow video adapter, slow motherboard bus speed, slow CPU, or a combination of those. If you have a slow bus or CPU, it does not make economic sense to put an ultra high-speed video adapter in the computer. Conversely, it does not make sense to put a slow video adapter in a high-performance computer. The adapter alone can slow down every display operation, making your computer seem to be sluggish when it is not. 6.5.8 Custom Versions Available OEMs and resellers may order customized versions of the Landmark System Speed Test separately. The special version will contain the OEM or reseller name and phone number or other desired information in the text box in the upper right quadrant of the test screen. It therefore is an ideal promotional product for dealer showrooms or trade shows, and an ideal benchmark test to bundle with computer systems being sold. 6.6 HARD DRIVE BENCHMARK 6.6.1 Hard Disk Access Time This portion of the test shows both the average and the track-to- track access times in milliseconds (ms) of the hard disk. Access time is the time required to move the read/write heads from one track to another. The fastest time is for moving the heads from one track to the next. Average access time is the average of a large number of random track-to-track movements. Access time is important when considering the performance of a drive because it usually takes many times longer to position the heads than to read data from a track under the heads. XT drives typically had access times of 65 to 100 ms, AT drives 25 to 40 ms, high- performance drives 14 to 20 ms, and drives with large-cache control- lers 1 to 5 ms. 6.6.2 Hard Disk Data Transfer Rate This portion of the test shows two types of data transfer rates, both of which are measured by reading data from the disk subsystem, but not by writing. The tests perform a read of 50 randomly selected tracks, and calcu- late the average data transfer rate, ignoring seek time. 6.6.2.1 Data Verify Rate The verify rate indicates how fast the system can transfer data from the hard disk to its controller. The controller performs the opera- tion only to read the data and calculate data validation information to verify that the data on the track does not contain errors. Thus, the controller reads data from the disk and does not need to save it in a track buffer or send it to the computer's main memory. Verify rate is affected by the disk's sector interleave factor, rotation speed, and data integrity. The effect of rotation speed is obvious, but interleave factor and data integrity may need more explanation. Interleave factor is the sequence in which sectors around the track are numbered and read. Modern fast systems use 1-to-1 interleave in which the sectors are numbered in sequence; this allows the system to read a track in one revolution of the disk. Older, slower systems use 1-to-3 interleave in which every third sector is num- bered next in sequence; this allows the system to read a complete track in 3 revolutions. You can use the Utilities menu to determine the interleave factor of your drive if it is the MFM or RLL type. If your interleave is wrong for your system, it can cause reduced performance. You can use the Utilities menu in some versions of PC Probe (or OnTrack's DOS Utils, available from Landmark) to change the interleave with the revitalize hard drive data function. The 1-to-3 and other slow interleave factors are required because the controller cannot store more than one sector (512 bytes) of data, and must pass it to the computer's memory before reading the next sector. 1-to-1 interleave is allowed if the controller can store an entire track of data and time-share the reading of sectors at high speed with writing of stored sectors to the computer's memory. If the data on the disk is weak or erroneous, a special "error correction code" (ECC) number stored at the end of each sector on the disk allows the controller to correct errors in the sector after reading it. Error correction occurs in the background so that your hard disk can be causing errors without your knowing it. However, error correction takes time. If the controller detects and corrects a lot of errors during the verify rate test, the verify rate results can be less than if there were no errors, depending on your control- ler design. 6.6.2.2 Data Throughput Rate The throughput rate indicates how fast the controller can read data from the hard disk and write it into the computer's main memory. Aside from the factors also affecting verify rate, the architecture and implementation of your computer's data transfer path between the disk controller and the CPU (central processing unit) determine throughput rate. The IBM AT design, for example, makes all input/output data trans- fers to controller cards in expansion slots occur slower than data transfers between areas of memory on the motherboard. This allowed controllers to use slower memory and buffer circuitry so they would not be too expensive to build. The method of slowing down the transfers is to make the CPU wait 1 or 2 clock pulse before being allowed to move the data from the controller to main memory. Each clock pulse spent waiting is known as a wait state, and the original IBM AT design imposes 2 wait states on all I/O data transfers forces the I/O clock rate to be no more than 8 megaHertz. More modern computer designs, even those based on the original AT architecture, can allow data transfers to proceed at 0 or 1 wait states, and at higher speeds of 10, 12, 14, or 16 MHz. Some may be even faster than that. Such designs also require especially fast controller cards for disk, video, and other peripherals, making the systems expensive as well as fast. If your system contains such high-speed capabilities, they will dramatically affect the throughput test results, in a positive way. Another method of increasing throughput is caching, or the use of memory to cache or store frequently used data. There are two kinds: cook on the controller card, and cache in main memory, but they have effectively the same result. Once data is read from the disk, it is stored in the cache. The next time the computer reads the same area of the disk, the data is already in the cache, so the computer retrieves it from there rather than the disk. Since the test reads 50 tracks at random, and a minimum of 8.5 Kilobytes of data is stored on each track, the total amount of data read by the test is 425K. It is unlikely the cache contains all of those tracks when the test starts, but it is likely to contain some of them. Caching will give a somewhat variable result each time you run the test unless you have a huge cache of several Megabytes. By running the test repeatedly, you will fill more and more of a large cache until test results stabilize. That is about the best throughput rate you will see on your system. MFM (modified frequency modulation) drives (the most popular and least expensive) have 17 sectors of 512 bytes each per track, or 8.5K. Some RLL (run-length limited) drives contain 26 sectors, or 13K. Many ESDI (enhanced small device interface) and SCSI (small computer systems interface) drives contain 35 to 76 sectors per track, or 17.5K to 38K. The higher-capacity-per-track drives not only take longer to test, but also require a larger cache to be able to hold all the data read during the throughput test to give the fastest results. 6.6.2.3 Verify Versus Throughput It is important to note that most hard disk data transfer rate benchmark tests show only verify rate because it is not different each time you run it. However, it also does not take into the consideration caching or basic data path architecture of the system. As a consequence, it shows only performance of the disk subsystem, and not the overall system throughput. To have a more realistic view, you need PC Probe's throughput test as well as the verify test. 7 DIAGNOSTIC MENU 7.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter describes all the diagnostic tests that prove your system is working correctly. It also explains how to set up PC Probe to run a batch of tests once or for a given amount of time to "burn in" or stress test the computer. If a test fails and you are a technician, refer to the Troubleshooting Hints chapter for remedi- al suggestions. 7.1.1 KickStart a Dead Computer If your computer is "dead" and you cannot get it to run diagnostics, then you need more help than PC Probe can provide. If you are a technician, we strongly recommend that you acquire one of Landmark's power-on diagnostic test cards in the KickStart family. The Kick- Start cards contain LED displays that show you the status of system power and what causes the computer to fail to boot, plus many other advanced features to allow you to get your system up and running fast. Contact Landmark for more information and immediate atten- tion. 7.1.2 Results Log You may configure PC Probe to create a log of errors that occur during testing, and you may turn the logging on or off. All errors will be sent to the display, but logging to other devices is dis- abled by default. You may also enable them to be sent to the printer attached to LPT1, or to a file. Refer to the Configure menu for more information on the results log. 7.1.3 Test Pause Some of the diagnostic test submenus provide you with an "All Tests" selection. When you elect to run all tests in a menu, PC Probe will allow you to make the testing process pause after each test so you can see the results, or run straight through the tests. In either case, you may see the accumulated tests results in the results log, as described in both the Configure menu and the Info menu chapters. 7.1.4 Halting a Test To halt a test, press <ESC>. In general you cannot halt a test in progress, but you can halt a series of tests after the currently executing test is finished. The reason for not halting a test in progress is that the computer software or hardware state would be in an inappropriate state for continuing use of the menu system, and reboot would be required. 7.1.5 Test Looping You may configure PC Probe to run one or more tests in a repeated loop in one of two ways: for a given length of time, or for one pass. If you select a length of time, then the testing will contin- ue until the time elapses unless the time is over while a test is in progress. The test in progress will run to completion before ending a time loop. If you select a single pass, then the testing will stop after the last test in the pass finishes execution. 7.1.6 No Stop on Failure while you are running a batch of tests, a running test that encoun- ters an error will log the error and continue to completion. 7.1.7 Batch Testing Normally, you will run one test at a time, or all tests in sequence. However, you may select individual tests to run in a batch. You would perform batch testing if you wanted to check out a suspected set of failures, or if you wanted to stress-test (or "burn-in") the computer after a repair job or before shipment to a customer of yours. 7.1.8 Remote Testing If you want to enable remote testing, you must start the program with the command PCPROBE /R as described in the Operation chapter. This will disable the keyboard tests, any display adjustment tests, and serial port tests. The reason for disabling these items is that they cannot be tested from a remote computer; also, the serial port cannot be tested while it is being used as a communication channel into the computer under test. 7.2 TEST MODE OPTIONS This set of selections allows you to run tests one at a time or as a batch of tests. 7.2.1 Select Test Mode This selection allows you to select single, batch, or timed batch mode. Single test mode means a test will execute immediately when you select it. Batch and timed batch mode mean PC Probe will tag a diagnostic test when you select it, and place a check mark adjacent to the test name. Batch mode affects the diagnostic tests only, and it does not control benchmarks, SysInfo, utilities, or user pro- grams. Plain batch mode will execute one pass of all the tagged tests. Timed batch mode will execute tagged tests in multiple passes for the amount of time you have entered, up to 100 hours. You must select single test mode in order to leave batch mode; that will also clear all test tags. 7.2.2 Execute Tagged Tests This selection actually begins execution of all the tests you have tagged; the tests run in menu order, rather than the order in which you tagged them. It only operates in batch mode or timed batch mode, as described in the preceding topic. After execution of each test PC Probe will log the results. When the batch has finished, you may then view and/or print the results via the Info menu. You may prematurely terminate the batch by pressing <ESC>. 7.2.3 Clear All Tags This selection will clear all tags from tests you have tagged, and it only works in a batch mode. It leaves PC Probe in the same batch mode, however, and does not revert it to single test mode. 7.3 SYSTEM BOARD TESTS These diagnostics check the circuitry typically found on the system board, sometimes referred to as the motherboard. Test failures are displayed on the screen. If enabled they are sent to the printer or a disk file. 7.3.1 Real Time Clock Tests the ability of the Real Time Clock to hold and increment time and date accurately. 7.3.2 CMOS RAM Tests the ability of the CMOS RAM to be written and read accurately. 7.3.3 Central Processor (CPU) This test checks the internal circuitry of the CPU chip, including registers, execution of the instruction set, and some communication with external circuits. It works with 8088, 8086, 80188, 80186, 80286, 80386,80386 SX, 80486, 80486 SX, and truly compatible processors. 7.3.4 Numeric Co-Processor Tests all of the floating point number translation, arithmetic, and transcendental function instructions, as well as register transfer and data path integrity. Works with 8087, 80287, 80387, and all truly compatible math chips, including the circuitry built into the 80486 processor that contains an integrated math chip. 7.3.5 Speaker Tests the ability of the 8253/4 timer (and in XTs, the 8255 program- mable peripheral interface) circuitry controlling the system beeper to function properly and accurately. You will hear a short series of beeps if it is functioning properly. If you do not hear the beeps, the speaker may be disconnected. 7.3.6 Memory Tests The RAM tests check the proper functioning of the memory chips, address circuitry, and the data path into and out of memory. The Data Line, March, Long/Quick Parity, and GalRow tests are run only on base memory (RAM in the lower 640K). For these tests, PC Probe moves data from the area to be tested to a safe place in memory, runs the test, then restores the data to its original loca- tion. PC Probe can and does relocate drivers, resident programs, DOS, and itself as needed to test all of base memory. If a RAM test fails and you want to identify the failing chip, you may run the Bad RAM Locator program from the Utilities menu. The nature of the failure is automatically fed to the locator to speed up the location process. We recommend that only qualified techni- cians attempt to remove RAM chips and replace them. Refer to the Utilities chapter for more information on the Locator. 7.3.6.1 Data Line Test This test checks the integrity of the data path into and out of memory by writing and reading ones, then zeros. 7.3.6.2 March Test This test writes, then reads a pattern of 00000001, with the 1 moving to the left on successive writes, then repeats the process with 11111110, moving the 0 to the left on successive writes. This test checks the ability of memory cells not to affect nor be affect- ed by the status of adjacent cells. 7.3.6.3 Quick Parity Test This test checks the ability of the parity generation circuitry to generate a correct parity bit. A parity bit exists for every byte in memory to ensure that an even number of 1's is stored in every address. If one of the data bits is stored incorrectly, then when the value is read, the parity checking circuit will find incorrect parity, and will generate an error. 7.3.6.4 Long Parity Test This test checks the ability of the parity generation circuitry to create a correct parity bit for every combination of ones and zeros in memory. 7.3.6.5 GalRow Tests The GalRow tests are exhaustive tests that verify the integrity of the memory addressing circuitry throughout the lower 640K. Based on modern computer science testing algorithms, they perform the most thorough and comprehensive diagnostic checkout of combined memory circuitry available in any popular diagnostic product. They write a unique data pattern an address then read it to ensure its value has not changed after each write of another unique pattern to each other address. Faulty address decode circuitry can cause apparent memory failures that don't exist, but galrow tests will catch the bad address decoders. You especially need to run galrow tests if you detect failures with the other memory tests, or you want to run exhaustive tests of address decode and memory circuits for burn-in or quality assurance verification. 7.3.6.6 Refresh Toggle This test verifies that the memory refresh circuitry is generating the signals necessary to prevent the motherboard's dynamic random access memory (DRAM) from losing (or forgetting) its contents. The DRAM is used in the computer's base memory, extended memory, and expanded memory. DRAM will lose their contents if they aren't read every few microseconds. The refresh circuitry performs a simulated read between normal memory reads in order to keep the data alive and "refreshed". If the refresh circuitry fails or operates marginally, data "dropout" (occasional missing bits) or complete memory loss can occur. The refresh toggle test verifies that refresh signals are occurring. 7.3.6.7 Refresh Bandwidth This test programs the refresh controller to its 5.3% bandwidth limits according to IBM technical reference manual specifications, and verifies that memory loss does not occur at those limits (be- tween 14.32436974 and 15.92773109 microseconds). This guarantees that incrementing the refresh address every 15 microseconds, and executing 5 clock cycles will refresh the entire memory. 7.3.6.8 Refresh Rate This test measures the actual time between leading edges of memory refresh pulses. 7.3.6.9 Extended Memory Test Extended memory is the range of linear memory that resides above the first megabyte of address space in the computer. There is no extended memory in a PC or XT because their 20-bit address bus cannot access above 1M (megabyte). An AT or compatible can access up to 16M of total memory via its 24-bit address bus, 15M of which can be extended memory, mounted either on the motherboard or on one or more cards plugged into the computer's expansion slots. 80386 and 80486-based AT compatibles can address up to 4G (gigabytes), but require a specially modified bus with 8 additional address lines. The extended memory test checks all available (unused as determined via an Interrupt 15 query) extended memory, but is not as exhaustive as the base memory tests. It writes then reads a data pattern to each location in extended memory, then verifies that the data written is the same as the data read. It makes not attempt to save any data already in memory that is unused. The test is well-behaved and does not interfere with 80286 protected mode operation, nor 80386 Virtual 86 mode operation. Any extended memory used by drivers, resident programs, or other tasks, will not be tested. To test it, you must exit from PC Probe, remove the programs that use expanded memory, then re-run PC Probe. Possibly, you will be required to edit CONFIG.SYS, AUTOEXEC.BAT, or other batch files, and reboot the system before being able to test all memory. 7.3.6.10 Expanded Memory Test Expanded memory was invented to "expand" the amount of memory acces- sible by the IBM PC and XT computers, even though they can address only 1M (megabyte). See the discussion on extended memory tests in this chapter for additional information. Special switching circuit- ry on expanded memory cards allows the PC's 8088 processor to access four 16K "pages" at a time of up to 8M or 32M of expanded memory through a 64K "page frame" (like a window) in the lower 1M of address space. The page frame normally resides in the unused address area above 640K, but some expanded memory implementations can use several page frames located in any unused area above the lower 256K. An Expanded Memory Specification (EMS) defining the mechanism for all this was developed by Lotus, Intel, and Microsoft. The specifi- cation is often referred to as LIM EMS. The switching of the expanded memory circuitry and its interface to programs is accom- plished by an Expanded Memory Manager (EMM) driver that is loaded at boot time. 80286, 80386, and 80486 systems can emulate the switch- ing circuitry using protected or Virtual 86 modes of operation, using normal extended memory. Thus, one can have extended memory in such a computer, with part of it devoted to EMS emulation. The expanded memory test checks the entire range of available (unused as determined via an Interrupt 67 query) expanded memory, including the driver and the EMS memory control circuitry. It writes and reads a data pattern into each address and verifies that the patterns are the same. The test uses the EMM driver, and cannot check expanded memory without it. It works with EMM drivers that are compatible with EMS version 3.2 and 4.0. The test is well- behaved and does not interfere with 80286 protected mode operation, nor 80386 Virtual 86 mode operation. Any expanded memory used by drivers, resident programs, or other tasks, will not be tested. To test it, you must exit from PC Probe, remove the programs that use expanded memory, then re-run PC Probe. Possibly, you will be required to edit CONFIG.SYS, AUTOEXEC.BAT, or other batch files, and reboot the system before being able to test all memory. 7.3.7 Keyboard Tests You may select either the 101-key enhanced AT-style keyboard, or the original 84-key AT-compatible keyboard. These tests display a keyboard map, then allow you to press each key on the keyboard and receive verification on the display that you pressed that key and none other. You must press each key in se- quence as the display shows you. The test verifies that the correct key code was generated by the keyboard for each key you pressed. You may press Ctrl-<ESC> to abort the test. The mouse does not work during the test. This test is disabled during remote operation because the remote user cannot press the keys on the local keyboard. 7.3.8 Interrupts These tests check the 8259A Programmable Interrupt Controller(s) and associated circuitry. Various circuits send interrupt signals to a controller which prioritizes them and interrupts the CPU with a request to pay attention to an I/O device or other circuit. The XT uses only one 8259A, while the AT uses two. 7.3.8.1 Controller Tests the ability of the 8259 programmable interrupt controller to recognize interrupts and prioritize them properly, and the ability of the system to issue and recognize the non-maskable interrupt. A normal XT contains 8 IRQ (interrupt request) signal lines, while an AT contains 16. Most of them are not used. You may execute the System Info test in the Info menu to see a list of the IRQs used by standard system components. Aside from the standard IRQs, PC Probe has no way of knowing whether special controller cards are installed that can issue IRQ signals, nor how to get them to do it. The other tests in this set do check the standard ones. 7.3.8.2 IRQ0 This test checks the proper functioning of the XT's 8253 or the AT's 8254 timer, and its ability to issue interrupts properly. 7.3.8.3 IRQ4 This test checks the ability of 8250 or 16450 serial port COM1 to issue interrupts. You must plug a serial port loopback plug onto the COM1 connector at the rear of the computer before executing the test. See the Accessories chapter for more information on loopback plugs. 7.3.8.4 IRQ6 This test checks the ability of the 8272 floppy drive controller chip and associated circuitry to issue an interrupt as a result of a controller recalibrate command. The floppy drive door must be closed for the interrupt to be generated and detected. A floppy diskette does not have to be in some 5.25-inch drives, but it does need to be in all 3.5-inch drives. 7.3.9 DMA Registers This test checks the proper functioning of the 8237A Direct Memory Access controller registers and related data path. PC Probe cannot test all DMA channel control signals because DMA Requests signals can only be issued by special I/O controller cards, and PC Probe has no way of knowing whether such cards are in the system nor how to get them to issue the request. The only standard I/O device that uses DMA in an AT-style computer is the floppy controller, which is tested elsewhere. This test does check internal operations of the DMA controller chips. However, because of the difference in system designs, it does not test memory-to-memory DMA transfers. 7.4 I/O CARD TESTS This category of tests checks out circuitry that is normally con- tained on add-in I/O cards that plug into the computer's expansion card slots. Because of the high level of circuit integration into powerful computer chips, many modern computers have the circuitry included on the motherboard. Where possible, PC Probe automatically detects the presence of a controller for an I/O device and will not allow you to run the corresponding test if the controller is not installed. 7.4.1 Parallel Port Tests These tests verify the ability of the parallel ports to control a printer properly. The tests send various patterns of signals out the port in order to test it, so you should disconnect the printer cable from the port before running the test. Part of the test requires you to plug a loopback plug onto the parallel port connec- tor at the rear of the computer. The plug is included with some versions of PC Probe. Refer to the Accessories chapter for more information. These tests are capable of testing Parallel Ports LPT1, LPT2, and LPT3 (If present!) with both an external and internal test. 7.4.2 Serial Port Tests These tests check the internal functionality of the 8250, 16450, 16550, or 16550A serial port controller chips, as well as the integrity of the drivers and connections to external serial devices. Some of the tests requires you to plug a loopback plug onto the parallel port connector at the rear of the computer. The plug is included with some versions of PC Probe. Refer to the Accessories chapter for more information. The tests save the state of the serial port before testing and restore it afterward to keep from interfering with any mouse driver that expects the port circuitry to be in a given state. Therefore, you do not have to disconnect the mouse from the port before running the test. However, the test signals can interfere with operation of another device (such as printer or modem) connected to the serial port. Therefore, we recommend disconnecting any devices (aside from a mouse) attached to the port before running a test. Once you have selected the test to run, the display allows you to pick a communication port such as COM 1 or COM 2, based on what is installed in your computer. The tests are disabled for remote operation because the COM port must be used to communicate with the remote computer. 7.4.2.1 Data Line Test This tests the serial port controller chip circuitry, and interface from the CPU to it. 7.4.2.2 Asynch I/O Test This tests integrity of drivers and external connections; it re- quires the serial port loopback plug. 7.4.3 Video Board/Monitor Tests These tests allow you to check functionality of both the video adapter and the monitor. They operate with either monochrome or color system using popular monochrome, Hercules, color graphics (CGA), enhanced graphics (EGA), and video graphics array (VGA) adapters, as well as monochrome and color analog, digital, and multiple scan frequency monitors. 7.4.3.1 Display Memory This test writes, then reads at least the 16K display memory area on standard video adapters, and verifies that memory works properly. 7.4.3.2 Video Mode This selection allows you to select any video mode that your video system can display, then to test all character generation, character attributes, foreground / background color generation and purity, dot and line matrix drawing isotropy and linearity (equality of spacing, distance, and straightness), and graphics drawing capability. You can use this test to verify that your monitor is properly adjusted, for image size and position, color purity for the color guns, presence of all pixels, and pincushion (tendency of the picture to bow at the edges). You can also use it to verify that monitors have the ability to display properly in all video modes with a given video adapter. For example, some video adapters do not properly compensate for monitor characteristics, causing some images to be displayed off center. Because of PC Probe's ability to detect all popular super VGA adapt- ers and exercise all of their character and graphics modes, this is one of the most comprehensive video exercise tests available in any test program. 7.4.4 Joystick This test verifies that the joystick and its controller circuitry function properly. It requests you to move the joystick in the different major directions and to press the joystick key. 7.4.5 Mouse This test verifies that the mouse and the installed mouse driver work properly. It requests you to move the mouse till the mouse cursor is at the top, bottom, left, and right of the screen, then to press the mouse buttons. The test will not be performed if no mouse driver is installed. 7.5 DRIVE TESTS This category of tests checks out the hard and floppy drives. Future versions of the program may also test optical drives, CD (compact disk) ROMs, tape backup units, and so on. PC Probe dis- plays the current track number while running tests that cause the heads to seek in and out. 7.5.1 Floppy Controller and Drive Tests These tests verify that the floppy controller and drive function properly. You are required to put a freshly formatted floppy dis- kette (a "scratch" diskette that does not contain data you care to retrieve) into the drive. The scratch diskette must be fully formatted so that it will not cause errors from an attempt to read, write, or seek to an unformatted area of the diskette. If PC Probe detects that you are using a low density diskette in a high density drive, it will perform low density operations. If it cannot detect the density of the diskette, and you are testing in a high density drive, it will assume you are working with a high density diskette. If you use a low (double) density 5.25-inch diskette (360K) in a high density drive, you are risking significant errors because such diskettes are not intended for use in those drives. To avoid confusion, we recommend that you acquire and label both high and low density scratch diskettes for use in testing floppy drives, and keep them with your diagnostic test accessories such as the manual, loopback plugs, and so on. The tests destroy data on the diskette. You cannot run the destruc- tive tests unless you enter the correct password. Refer to the Configure chapter for more information on passwords. 7.5.1.1 Head Cleaning and Alignment It is important to realize that floppy subsystem errors can also be caused by dirty heads and misaligned internal drive mechanisms. PC Probe can test the drive for functionality, but not for proper alignment and noise interference. For this reason, we recommend that you purchase Landmark's AlignIt floppy drive maintenance kit, if not included with PC Probe. AlignIt contains a patented floppy drive alignment test diskette that is highly accurate (to near- laboratory standards), dry-lubricated head cleaning diskettes, and professional quality test software. Refer to the Utilities chapter for more information. 7.5.1.2 Format This test formats 8 randomly selected tracks and verifies each track to ensure it was formatted properly. Optionally, you may elect to format the entire diskette. This is not a DOS format operation because it does not write a file allocation table onto the diskette. Therefore, you cannot format a diskette with this test and then use it to hold DOS files. You must reformat it under DOS in order to store DOS files on it. 7.5.1.3 Write This test writes a data pattern to 8 randomly selected tracks on the diskette and verifies that it did not cause any write errors. 7.5.1.4 Read This test reads 8 randomly selected tracks and verifies each track to ensure it was formatted properly. Optionally, you may elect to read the entire diskette. In this case, the test begins at track 0 and proceeds inward to the last track. The tracks must have been previously formatted, either under DOS or using the Format all tracks menu selection. The test does not affect any data on the diskette. 7.5.1.5 Seek This test commands the heads to seek to 8 randomly selected tracks on the diskette and verifies that it reached the proper track each time. 7.5.1.6 Write/Read This test writes and then reads each track on the diskette, begin- ning with track 0 and progressing inward to the last track. At each track the test compares the data read with that written, verifying they are the same. 7.5.2 Hard Drive Tests Most of the hard drive tests destroy data on the drive; the read and seek tests do not. You cannot run the destructive tests unless you enter the correct password. Refer to the Configure chapter for more information on passwords. Even if you know the password, DO NOT RUN THE TESTS UNLESS YOU INTEND TO DESTROY ALL DATA ON THE DRIVE! The tests are ideal to run on a brand-new MFM (modified frequency modulation) or RLL (run-length limited) hard drive or on one that has given catastrophic data errors, forcing you to reformat it. After running the destructive format, write, or compare tests, use the Utilities menu to perform a comprehensive and proper low-level format, if you are using an MFM or RLL hard drive. If you are using any other kind of hard drive (such as SCSI, or ESDI), consult the drive or controller manufacturer for the best kind of low-level format to use. We have tried and can strongly recommend OnTrack's Disk Manager, available from Landmark. 7.5.2.1 Seek This test commands the heads to seek to 30 randomly selected tracks on the disk and verifies that it reached the proper track each time. 7.5.2.2 Format This test is only guaranteed to work properly on MFM and RLL hard drives and other drives that can be formatted with normal BIOS Interrupt 13 calls, and contain accurate parameters as pointed by the CMOS RAM into the BIOS disk parameter table. In particular, it will not work if the disk controller BIOS performs sector transla- tion to compensate for the inability of BIOS or DOS to handle large drives or more than 1024 cylinders. DO NOT PERFORM THIS TEST UNLESS YOU INTEND TO DESTROY DATA ON THE DRIVE AND REFORMAT IT. The test performs low-level format of your choice on either 30 randomly selected tracks, or all tracks, destroying any data on the tracks. Meanwhile, it verifies that the controller detects no formatting errors. By running the random format test in timed batch mode for some hours, you can theoretically eventually format all tracks. 7.5.2.3 Write This test writes a data pattern on 30 randomly selected tracks, destroying any data already on each track. Meanwhile, it verifies that the controller has not detected a write error. The test works on any kind of drive that has been low-level formatted. By running the random test in timed batch mode for some hours, you can theoret- ically eventually test all tracks. DO NOT PERFORM THIS TEST UNLESS YOU INTEND TO DESTROY DATA ON THE DRIVE AND REFORMAT IT. 7.5.2.4 Read This test reads data from all heads on your choice of 30 randomly selected tracks or all tracks. It does not affect any data already on the tracks. Meanwhile, it verifies that the controller has not detected a read error. The test works on any kind of drive that has been low-level formatted. It is perfectly safe to run on any DOS formatted drive. You can run this test repeatedly in timed batch mode for some hours to do a thorough test of the data areas on the drive. If the test detects errors and it is an MFM or RLL drive we recommend you perform the data revitalization function described in the Utilities menu to refresh the information on the drive and reduce the chance of errors. 7.5.2.5 Surface Analysis This test performs the same function as the read test except that it reads the entire drive rather than a few tracks. It does not affect data on the drive. However, it sequentially reads from track 0 toward the inner tracks. It will display any errors it finds. You may run it in batch mode for some hours to do a thorough test. If errors occur on an MFM or RLL drive, you should execute the data revitalization function in the Utilities menu. If you have a different type of drive, we recommend using OnTrack's DOS Utils, available from Landmark. 7.5.2.6 Compare Track 0 This test writes data onto track 0, destroying whatever is there, then reads it back and compares it with what was written. If the data are the same, the test passes. This is a quick test to verify functionality of the drive and controller write/read capability. It is an important test because track 0 is where the partition table is stored, and if that goes bad, the drive will be useless for DOS operations. DO NOT PERFORM THIS TEST UNLESS YOU INTEND TO DESTROY DATA ON THE DRIVE AND REFORMAT IT. 7.5.2.7 Compare Drive This test writes and then reads each track on the diskette, begin- ning with track 0 and progressing inward to the last track. At each track the test compares the data read with that written, verifying they are the same. DO NOT PERFORM THIS TEST UNLESS YOU INTEND TO DESTROY DATA ON THE DRIVE AND REFORMAT IT. The whole drive test takes much longer than the track 0 test. It is very comprehensive. It verifies that the system can correctly write and read data with each head on the entire track of every track on the drive. You can run the test in batch mode for some hours thor- oughly to exercise the drive and test the entire disk surface. 8 UTILITIES MENU 8.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter describes the Utilities menu selections and explains how to use them. The purpose of the Utilities menu is to provide additional mixed capabilities that may not be found in normal test software. You can use the utilities to perform a variety of useful functions on your computer, such as setting up CMOS RAM, low-level formatting hard drives, and revitalizing the data on your hard drives. These will let you fine-tune your system for optimum performance and data integrity. They can save you hundreds of dollars in wasted time and purchase of other utility programs Because the utilities can change the configuration of the computer, you must enter the correct password before executing any of them, including user programs. 8.2 LOW-LEVEL FORMAT THE HARD DRIVE A hard disk must be formatted before you can write data on it using DOS or any other operating system. There are two types of formats that can be written to a hard disk: low-level and DOS. They are both described here to give you a fairly rounded picture of their relationship to each other and your use of the system. 8.2.1 Background Information 8.2.1.1 Track and Sector Construction The low-level format writes track and sector headers and at least seventeen 512-byte sectors of data in a unique and specific organi- zation around every track on every recordable surface of the drive. Each track header contains the track number, the head number, a good/bad track flag, and cyclic redundance check (CRC) error-check- ing information. Each sector header contains track, head, and sector numbers, good/bad sector flag, and CRC information. Each sector follows its sector header and contains 512 bytes of data as well as either CRC or Error Correction Code (ECC) information. 8.2.1.2 Headers Help Find Tracks and Sectors The disk controller commands the drive to perform a seek operation that positions the read/write head directly over a specific track. The controller then reads the track header to determine whether it on the right track. When the system or controller BIOS commands the controller to read or write data in a particular sector, the con- troller must read the individual sector headers to find the correct sector, and then it reads the data following that header. 8.2.1.3 Error Detection and Correction While receiving the sector data, the controller calculates a CRC or ECC value and compares it with the corresponding value stored at the end of the sector. If the CRC values don't match, the controller sends BIOS a "hard" error message. If the ECC values don't match, the controller will correct up to 12 bits of error in the sector's data, then send BIOS a "soft" error message. In either case, the computer program that requested the data will receive the data. A hard error means the data is unreliable and the drive should be rewritten, reformatted, or revitalized. A soft error means the data is reliable, but it is deteriorating on the disk surface, and the data should be rewritten or revitalized. 8.2.1.4 Sector Interleave Because of the time it takes for some controllers to send sector data to the computer's main memory, the controller will miss the sector immediately following the current sector, wasting an entire revolution of the disk to read that next sector. By formatting the drive so that every-other or every-third sector header has the next sector number in sequence, the disk will not have to make a full revolution to read each sector. Instead, it can read a sector, process it while skipping one or two, then read the next. This is known as sector interleaving. 1-to-1 means sectors are numbered sequentially (okay for fast controllers and systems), 1-to- 2 means every other, and 1-to-3 means every third sector is numbered sequentially. 1-to-3 interleaved sectors requires 3 revolutions of the disk to read an entire track. 8.2.1.5 Bad Spots on Disk Some of the tracks may have bad spots on them that can prevent them from reliably storing data. The low-level format process will mark these tracks as bad by writing special information into the track header. Most drives come with a bad track table on paper glued to the top of the drive. The table is usually stored inside the drive in a data structure that the format program can read. 8.2.1.6 When Low-Level Format is Needed Normally, you must perform a low-level format on a brand-new MFM or RLL drive because they are not formatted at the factory. Some other types of drives come from the factory pre-formatted. If you are not sure what kind of drive you have, consult the manufacturer. Also refer to the hard drive characteristics table in this chapter. 8.2.1.7 DOS (High-Level) Format The DOS format process requires two steps; you do them after low- level formatting the drive. The first requires you to run the DOS FDISK program to subdivide the drive into partitions and write partition information onto track 0 of the drive. DOS can treat each partition as separate logical DOS drive (like drive C:, D:, and E:, all on one physical disk), and there are other uses. The second requires you to run the DOS FORMAT program to write file allocation tables and other file structure information onto the disk. This is the heart of DOS: a disk operating system that relies on a file structure for proper operation and handling of program and data files on the disk. 8.2.2 Performing the Low-Level Format If the drive already has DOS files on it, and there is nothing wrong with the drive, YOU DO NOT NEED TO LOW-LEVEL FORMAT IT! In fact, DO NOT FORMAT OR PARTITION YOUR DRIVE UNLESS YOU WANT TO DESTROY ANY DATA ALREADY ON THE DRIVE! You may use the low-level format function to perform low-level format on an MFM (Modified Frequency Modulation) or RLL (Run-Length Limited) hard drive, the most popular types available. The function will not work on ESDI, SCSI, or other types of drives that require special formatting considerations. The format process will not allow you to display or enter bad track information. It will mark any track as bad if the controller detects an error while verifying the information written to that track. It will not mark any other tracks as bad, even if listed on the manufacturer's bad track table listing glued to the top of the drive. 8.2.2.1 Track Limit Imposed by BIOS The format function will not format past the maximum number of tracks allowed by BIOS. The original AT BIOS handles no more than 1024 cylinders, as do some other AT clone BIOSes. Some system and hard disk controller BIOSes will handle more than that. If your drive has more than 1024 cylinders, you need to contact the BIOS (either system or disk controller) manufacturer to find out how many cylinders it supports. Most MFM and RLL drives have 1024 or fewer cylinders. 8.2.2.2 Selection of Interleave Factor The format function allows you to select any possible sector inter- leave factor for the drive. Normally, you should choose a factor of 1-to-1 for fast systems (12 MHz 80286 or 80386, with track-buffering controller), 1-to-2 for mid-speed systems, and 1-to-3 for very slow or archaic systems (original AT with single-sector buffer on the disk controller). The proper interleave will give maximum data transfer rate to your system. The incorrect interleave will slow it down. Use the Determine Hard Drive Interleave function to find the optimum interleave factor. If you want to perform low-level format of a high-capacity ESDI or SCSI drive, we strongly recommend OnTrack's Disk Manager and DOS Utils, available from Landmark. 8.3 DETERMINE HARD DRIVE INTERLEAVE You can use this menu function to test the interleave factor of your drive, provided it is an MFM or RLL drive. It will tell you both the current interleave factor, and the optimum interleave for the drive. Interleave factor is the sequence in which sectors around the track are numbered and read. Modern fast systems use 1-to-1 interleave, in which the sectors are numbered in sequence; this allows the system to read a track in one revolution of the disk. Older, slower systems use 1-to-3 interleave in which every third sector is numbered next in sequence; this allows the system to read a complete track in 3 revolutions. The 1-to-3 and other slow interleave factors are required because the controller cannot store more than one sector (512 bytes) of data, and must pass it to the computer's memory before reading the next sector. 1-to-1 interleave is allowed if the controller can store an entire track of data and time-share the reading of disk sectors at high speed with writing to the computer's memory of stored sector data already read. If the interleave is wrong for your system, it can cause reduced performance. Some modern computers and hard disk controllers are very fast, but hard drives inside them use the 1-to-3 interleave, thereby imposing unnecessary drag on disk data transfer throughput. You can use Low-Level Format function or the Revitalize Hard Drive Data function, you can reformat the drives to change the interleave to a more optimum setting, such as 1-to-2 or 1-to-1. If you have a drive other than MFM or RLL type, we recommend the use of OnTrack's DOS Utils, available from Landmark, to determine optimum and current interleave factors, and non-destructively reformat the drive to change the interleave. 8.4 PARK HARD DRIVE IN LANDING ZONE This selection positions the head assembly for the selected physical drive inward until it rests above the innermost track, known as the head landing zone. You would want to park the heads if you intend to move the computer. The reason is: if you bump or jar the computer, the heads on some hard drives can crash into the surface of the disk and damage it so that it cannot store or read data at that spot. Hard drive heads are never allowed to contact the disk surface. When the disk is spinning, they are pressed toward the surface of the disk, but they ride on a cushion of air. The landing zone is not used to store data, and so it is safer to the system if the heads accidentally contact the disk there rather than in the data area. The last thing to do before switching the computer's power off is to park the heads on all drives. Some modern drives have built-in mechanisms to lock the heads off the disk with power off. Park them to be sure. 8.5 RUN USER PROGRAM This selection presents you with a dialogue box that allows you to select or enter a program of your own. It is a handy feature because you do not have to leave the PC Probe environment to select and execute programs using the mouse or PC Probe's consistent dialogue box interface. By default, only programs with the .EXE extension are listed. You may use the Tab key to select the file specification field at the top of the dialogue box, and enter .COM or .BAT to list and enable execution of those types of programs. 8.6 BAD RAM CHIP LOCATION This selection invokes a utility program that displays a typical map of memory that can be located on the motherboard or an add-in memory card. The purpose of the memory map is to allow you to identify the location of the bad memory chip that caused the PC Probe memory test to fail. The process to go through is this: 1. Configure the map to match your system's memory layout. 2. Enter a failing memory address or let PC Probe supply it auto- matically. 3. See the darkened area of the map indicating the location of the bad memory chip. 4. Replace the bad chip with a good one. 8.6.1 End User Versus Technician Typical end users will not care about this feature, except perhaps for its educational value. However, technicians and experienced computer buffs can save considerable time and expense by finding bad memory chips and replacing them. If you are not a qualified technician, we recommend that you do not undertake the replacement of any components inside your system. To do so may void your computer warranty, and it could result in acci- dental damage to the computer that costs much more than the educa- tional value of the experience. 8.6.2 Typical Memory Chips Most systems come with memory chips in dual in-line packages (DIPS) or single in-line memory modules (SIMMs) that are plugged into sockets on the motherboard rather than soldered in. Since no unsol- dering is required, and since memory DIPs and SIMMs are readily obtainable at computer parts stores like Radio Shack, PC Probe's memory map can make memory repairs fairly simple. 8.6.3 Configuring the Memory Map The Bad RAM Locator allows you to change the configuration of the memory map so that it resembles the memory layout of your system. You may select the amount of memory installed, the placement of data and parity bit chips, the bank organization and page interleave factor, and the data path size (8, 16, or 32 bits). 2-way page interleave refers to a memory access method whereby odd addresses are located in one bank, and even addresses in another. 4-way interleave schemes are less popular, but still occur. Inter- leaving like this allows sequential memory accesses to occur fast, even though the system is using slow memory. Page interleaved architectures sometimes require separation of the two halves of a 16-bit bank of memory, thereby affecting location of a bad RAM chip. You may also select a menu item that saves the configuration in a file named RAM.CNF. It is a good idea to do this after configuring the map so you won't have to go through the process later. You may rename the file to another name of your choice (using the DOS RENAME command) and thereby create multiple RAM maps for other memory cards. The active file must be named RAM.CNF. 8.6.4 Enter the Failing Address After setting up the map, select the menu item that allows you to find the bad chip. You may enter the address in hexadecimal format along with the failing bit, or you may allow PC Probe's memory test to provide it. Hexadecimal is a base-16 number system that computer technicians and engineers are used to. You might enter such a number to find what bad chip could have caused the error. Refer to the glossary for more information. If you allow PC Probe to provide it, PC Probe must have just fin- ished running the memory test. In either case, you will see a darkened area on the map. That area represents the relative loca- tion of the bad chip. 8.6.5 Exit from the Bad RAM Locator To exit, press <ESC>, or select the menu exit function and press enter. PC Probe's menu will then appear on the screen. 8.7 CMOS SETUP: DISPLAY AND EDIT CMOS RAM This is Landmark's standard system Setup program that you can invoke under the Utilities menu. It allows you to change any of the values in an IBM AT-standard CMOS configuration RAM, such as drive types, amount of memory installed, type of video adapter, and the current time and date. It is a good idea when you execute Setup to print the screen (e.g., press Shift-PrtSc keys) so you will have a permanent written record on hand of what the CMOS RAM contains. That way, if you accidental- ly change a parameter in the RAM and forget what it was, you will have a reference from which to set it to the original value. Setup does not save results in PC Probe's result log because it is an external program. 8.7.1 What is CMOS RAM? CMOS RAM is a small amount of memory (normally less than 100 bytes) that is embedded in the real-time clock chip on the motherboard. CMOS is a type of integrated circuit technology that consumes a very small amount of power, so it can be kept alive by a battery that is also built into the chip or attached to the motherboard. The purpose of the battery and CMOS RAM is to save system configuration information when system power is switched off. Setup is most typically used to change date and time because the real time clock in most systems is inaccurate and can gain or lose several hours per month. Some systems, such as those containing modern controlling chip sets from Chips and Technologies, Opti, Headlands, and Gemini, can store more information in CMOS RAM than the original AT can. This allows manufacturers to set up the systems for optimum use of the chipsets, but the information is normally of no use to the end user. Because of the variety of such offerings in the market, Landmark's Setup program assumes only the standard IBM AT-compatible BIOS is in- stalled in the system. 8.7.2 Built-in Setup Some system BIOS manufacturers (such as Landmark, Quadtel, AMI, Phoenix, and Award) provide a Setup program built into the system BIOS. In such a case, you can invoke the program at boot time, change any parameters, and reboot the system afterward. Some ver- sions offer user-customizable features such as hard drive types not stored in BIOS and optional shadow RAM (use of high-speed RAM on some motherboards to store program code from slow BIOS ROMs). By contrast, Landmark's Setup program does not allow you to enter a customizable drive type. However, it also does not require you to reboot the system after changing the contents of CMOS RAM. 8.7.3 Drive Types in CMOS RAM The typical AT-compatible system BIOS contains a table of up to 4 floppy drive types and 47 hard drive types. The CMOS RAM contains identifiers to indicate which types of drives are installed in the system (normally up to two hard drives and two floppy drives per system). If you change the drive type identifiers in CMOS RAM to a type that is not the same as the type of drive installed, then the system will not be able to use that drive properly. In fact, it is possible for you to select floppy and hard drive types that are completely different from those installed. If you do this, you will most likely not be able to boot the computer at all, from either floppy or hard disk. Your only hope will be to have a technician discon- nect the CMOS RAM battery and discharge the CMOS RAM. Therefore, we recommend you leave drive types alone unless you are technically qualified and really know what you are doing. A major exception to incorrect hard drive types is the case in which your system contains a disk controller with its own BIOS. Such a BIOS, as on an ESDI or SCSI controller, replaces the normal system BIOS at boot time. It typically will not use the CMOS RAM hard drive type information and instead will use its own. For example, an Adaptec ESDI controller will allow you to set CMOS RAM to hard drive type 1 for a 380-megabyte ESDI hard drive, even though type 1 is for a much smaller capacity drive. By contrast, Landmark's Setup program does not allow you to enter a customizable drive type, nor does it require you to reboot the system after changing the contents of CMOS RAM. 8.7.4 Hard Drive Types Available A hard drive type identifies to BIOS how many cylinders, sectors per track, and heads a drive has, as well as the track at which write current must be reduced to prevent interfering with adjacent bits, and the write precompensation track at which data needs to be skewed to prevent it from being spread out too widely on inner tracks. There are many types of hard drives available. One of the most annoying problems people have with hard drives is trying to figure out the drive type of a given hard drive. Manufacturers almost never label the IBM type on the drive. Actually, they shouldn't be faulted too heavily for this because the drives are used in many non-IBM-compatible systems. Furthermore, some have no corresponding type in the drive table for IBM-standard BIOS, and some BIOSes (such as the original AT BIOS) cannot support drives with more than 1024 cylinders. If the BIOS doesn't support a given type of drive, then the drive controller, drive manufacturer, or a third party company (such as OnTrack) must provide a special driver that is loaded at boot time to provide the support. Some BIOSes allow you to enter a custom drive type through a built-in setup program, but you must know the drive parameters before you can do it properly. To help alleviate the mystery of drive types, the following table and the PC Probe User's manual list a great many of the drive manufacturers along with their drive characteristics. If you are unsure of your drive's type, look it up in the list, find the same characteristics for one of the drive types in the Setup program, then enter the corresponding type for your drive. If everything for a given Setup type matches your drive except that the drive's number of cylinders is greater than those for the Setup type, you can use that type anyway without fear of losing data when you write it. For example if the drive contains 500 cylinders and otherwise matches the setup type 46 which shows only 400 cylinders (and no other Setup type matches as well), then you may use type 46 as your drive type. TABLE 5. HARD DRIVE MANUFACTURERS AND PARAMETERS NOTE: CAP=MB Capacity; RW=Reduced Write Cyl #; WP=Write Precomp Cyl MANUFACTURER MODEL CAP HD CYL RW WP Ampex PYXIS13 10 4 320 132 0 Ampex PYXIS20 15 6 320 132 0 Ampex PYXIS27 22 8 320 132 0 Atasi ATASI3033 28 5 645 999 320 Atasi ATASI3046 39 7 645 999 323 Atasi ATASI3051 44 7 704 999 352 Cogito COGITO912 10 4 306 128 128 Computer Mem CMI3426 21 4 615 616 919 Computer Mem CMI5206 5 2 306 999 214 Computer Mem CMI5412 10 4 306 999 128 Computer Mem CMI5616 13 6 256 999 214 Computer Mem CMI5619 15 6 306 999 128 Computer Mem CMI6213 10 2 640 999 999 Computer Mem CMI6426 21 4 640 999 999 Computer Mem CMI6426s 21 4 614 999 999 Computer Mem CMI6640 33 6 640 999 999 Connor CP3100 100 8 740 - - Connor CP340 40 4 752 - - Control Data WREN1 - - - - - Control Data WREN2 - - - - - Control Data WREN3 - - - - - Disctron DSCTRN519 19 6 306 128 128 Disctron DSCTRN526 21 8 306 128 128 Fuji Electric FK301 10 4 306 - - Fuji Electric FK302-13 10 2 615 - - Fuji Electric FK302-26 21 4 615 - - Fujitsu FUJIT2230 5 2 320 128 128 Fujitsu FUJIT2226 30 6 615 - - Fujitsu FUJIT2227 40 8 615 - - Fujitsu FUJIT2233 10 4 320 128 128 Fujitsu FUJIT2234 16 6 320 128 128 Fujitsu FUJIT2235 21 8 320 128 128 Fujitsu FUJIT2241 26 4 754 999 300 Fujitsu FUJIT2242 46 7 754 999 300 Fujitsu FUJIT2243T 68 7 1186 - - Fujitsu FUJIT2243A 72 11 754 999 300 Fujitsu FUJIT2243R 111 7 1186 - - Fujitsu H2225DR 32 4 615 - - Fujitsu H2226AD 32 6 615 - - Fujitsu H2226D 32 6 615 - - Fujitsu H2226DR 50 6 615 - - Fujitsu H2226SA 32 6 615 - - Fujitsu H2227D 44 8 615 - - Fujitsu H2227DR 67 8 615 - - Honeywell/Bull BULLD530 23 3 987 999 400 Honeywell/Bull BULLD550 40 5 987 999 400 Honeywell/Bull BULLD570 60 7 987 999 400 Honeywell/Bull BULLD585 77 7 1166 1166 400 IBM IBM1430 31 5 300 - - IBM IBM665-30 21 4 615 300 615 IBM IBM665-38 30 5 733 300 732 IBM IBMWD12 10 4 306 296 296 IBM IBMWD25 21 8 306 296 296 Internat'l Mem INI5006 5 2 306 128 128 Internat'l Mem INI5012 10 4 306 128 128 Internat'l Mem INI5018 15 6 306 999 214 Lapine Tech LT200 21 4 612 - - Lapine Tech LT300 33 4 616 - - Maxtor MXTR1065 56 7 918 999 400 Maxtor MXTR1085 71 8 1024 999 400 Maxtor MXTR1105 88 11 918 999 400 Maxtor MXTR1140 120 15 918 999 999 Maxtor MXTR1140E 150 15 1141 999 999 Maxtor MXTR2085 74 7 1224 1224 1224 Maxtor MXTR2140 120 11 1224 1224 1224 Maxtor MXTR2190 160 15 1224 1224 1224 Maxtor MXTR4380E 318 15 1224 - - Maxtor MXTR4380S 338 15 1224 - - MicroScience MCSI612 10 4 306 999 128 MicroScience MCSI725 21 4 615 999 300 MicroScience MCSIHH1050 44 5 1024 - - MicroScience MCSIHH1060 70 5 1024 - - MicroScience MCSIHH825 21 4 612 - - Microc. Mem MMI106 5 2 306 - - Microc. Mem MMI112 10 4 306 - - Microc. Mem MMI125 21 8 306 - - Micropolis MICRP1302 22 3 830 999 400 Micropolis MICRP1303 36 5 830 999 400 Micropolis MICRP1304 43 6 830 999 400 Micropolis MICRP1323 35 4 1024 1024 1024 Micropolis MICRP1323A 44 5 1024 1024 1024 Micropolis MICRP1324 53 6 1024 1024 1024 Micropolis MICRP1324A 62 7 1024 1024 1024 Micropolis MICRP1325 71 8 1024 1024 400 Micropolis MICRP1333A 44 5 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1334 53 6 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1335 71 8 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1353 79 4 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1353A 99 5 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1354 119 6 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1355 159 8 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1354A 139 7 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1373 77 4 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1373A 96 5 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1374 115 6 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1374A 134 7 1024 - - Micropolis MICRP1375 154 8 1024 - - MiniScribe MINI2012 10 4 306 128 128 MiniScribe MINI3006 5 2 306 999 128 MiniScribe MINI3012 10 2 612 256 256 MiniScribe MINI3053 45 5 1024 - - MiniScribe MINI3212 10 2 612 256 256 MiniScribe MINI3412 10 4 306 128 128 MiniScribe MINI3425 21 4 615 256 256 MiniScribe MINI3650 43 6 809 - - MiniScribe MINI4020 15 4 480 128 128 MiniScribe MINI6032 27 3 1024 1024 500 MiniScribe MINI6053 44 5 1024 1024 500 MiniScribe MINI6074 62 7 1024 1024 500 MiniScribe MINI6085 71 8 1024 1024 500 MiniScribe MINI8212 10 2 615 999 300 MiniScribe MINI8425 21 4 615 999 300 NEC NEC5126 21 4 615 615 128 NEC NEC5146 44 8 615 615 128 Quantum Q520 18 4 512 256 256 Quantum Q530 27 6 512 256 256 Quantum Q540 36 8 512 256 256 Rodime RO201 6 2 320 132 0 Rodime RO201E 11 2 640 132 0 Rodime RO202 11 4 320 132 0 Rodime RO202E 22 4 640 132 0 Rodime RO203 16 6 320 132 0 Rodime RO203E 33 6 640 132 0 Rodime RO204 22 8 320 132 0 Rodime RO204E 44 8 640 132 0 Rodime RO252 10 4 306 80 80 Rodime RO351 5 2 306 80 80 Rodime RO352 10 4 306 80 80 Seagate ST125 21 4 615 - - Seagate ST125N 21 4 407 - - Seagate ST138 32 6 615 - - Seagate ST138N 32 4 615 - - Seagate ST138R 32 4 615 - - Seagate ST157N 48 6 615 - - Seagate ST157R 49 6 615 - - Seagate ST212 10 4 306 128 128 Seagate ST213 10 2 615 615 300 Seagate ST225 21 4 615 999 300 Seagate ST225N 21 4 615 - - Seagate ST238 32 4 615 - - Seagate ST251 44 6 820 - - Seagate ST251-1 43 4 818 - - Seagate ST251N 43 6 820 - - Seagate ST277N 65 6 818 - - Seagate ST277R 65 6 820 - - Seagate ST296N 85 6 818 - - Seagate ST4026 21 4 615 999 400 Seagate ST4038 32 5 733 999 400 Seagate ST4051 43 5 978 999 400 Seagate ST4053 44 5 1024 - - Seagate ST406 5 2 306 128 128 Seagate ST4096 85 9 1024 - - Seagate ST412 10 4 306 128 128 Seagate ST4144R 122 9 1024 - - Seagate ST419 15 6 306 128 128 Seagate ST4192E 169 8 1147 - - Seagate ST4192N 168 8 1147 - - Seagate ST425 21 8 306 128 128 Seagate ST506 5 4 153 128 128 Shugart SA612 10 4 310 128 128 Shugart SA712 11 4 320 128 128 Tandon TM2085 71 8 1024 - - Tandon TM2128 119 8 1024 - - Tandon TM252 10 4 306 128 128 Tandon TM262 21 4 615 999 300 Tandon TM270 159 8 1024 - - Tandon TM3085 71 8 1024 - - Tandon TM362 21 4 615 999 300 Tandon TM362R 20 2 780 - - Tandon TM364 41 4 782 - - Tandon TM501 5 2 306 128 128 Tandon TM502 10 4 306 128 128 Tandon TM503 15 6 306 128 128 Tandon TM702AT - 4 615 615 615 Tandon TM703 30 5 695 999 256 Tandon TM703AT 30 5 733 733 733 Tulin TL226 22 4 640 999 300 Tulin TL240 33 6 640 999 300 Vertex/Priam V130 25 3 897 999 400 Vertex/Priam V150 42 5 987 999 400 Vertex/Priam V170 60 7 987 999 400 Vertex/Priam V185 71 7 1166 1166 400 9 TROUBLESHOOTING HINTS 9.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter is designed to aid you in the analysis, troubleshooting and repair of failures in PC, XT, AT, or compatible motherboards. The PC Probe diagnostics assume you are testing a standard IBM computer. This chapter is intended only for qualified computer technicians and engineers. If you are a typical business user of PC Probe, we urge you not to attempt any system repair because to do so could void your warranty and cost you heavily in terms of wasted time and accidental damage to your system. Please refer all such activities to your dealer or repair center. 9.2 BIOS ERRORS DURING BOOT The ROM BIOS built onto the motherboard of the computer runs its built-in POST (Power On Self Test) when you turn on the computer. Most BIOSes will beep to alert you that it is running properly or not, and usually displays error messages. The following table gives typical meanings of the beeps. However, you should check with your BIOS documentation to be sure. TABLE 6. BIOS ERRORS DETECTED DURING BOOT BEEPER MEANING One beep POST is okay and no error was detected. POST detected a configuration error, or a change Two beeps since the last time you ran Setup. Configuration information is kept inside a memory circuit (CMOS RAM) on the motherboard. If the battery power to that circuit is lost, so is the configuration in- formation. You must run Setup again. One long and Faulty video configuration error (no video card two short or a faulty card installed), or a faulty ROM on a beeps peripheral controller card (address range C0000 through FFFF). One long and A faulty peripheral controller card such as VGA. a series of Usually, the display will show a message describ- short beeps ing the problem. Check the setup of peripheral controllers. 9.2.1 BIOS Manufacturers Your BIOS might behave strangely and not give the indicated error alerts. The following table lists commercial manufacturers of IBM- compatible BIOSes. If your computer manufacturer cannot supply sufficient BIOS information, contact the BIOS manufacturer directly. TABLE 7. BIOS MANUFACTURERS COMPANY PHONE COMPANY PHONE Landmark (813) 443-1331 Award (408) 370-7979 AMI (404) 263-8181 Phoenix (617) 551-4000 Quadtel (714) 754-4422 9.3 DIAGNOSTIC TEST ERRORS Each PC Probe diagnostic test will either pass, or display an error code to identify the fact that the test failed and the nature of the failure. The following table shows test failure codes; the manual lists probable causes and likely remedial action. You may use PC Probe to test system components in any order. However, the tests are given here in their order of importance to the proper operation of the motherboard and the entire computer. In general, motherboard tests take less than a minute, the major exception being the galrow memory tests which are exhaustive and time consuming. If any test appears halted or frozen, the system board data/address bus may be intermittent. The table refers to components you should replace. These are stan- dard XT or AT circuit parts. The PC Probe User's Manual contains a cross reference between the components and modern VLSI motherboard chip sets, as well as a block diagram of the XT and AT to help orient you as to the uses of the major components. TABLE 8. DIAGNOSTIC TEST ERROR CODES AND MEANINGS CODE NATURE OF ERROR CPU TESTS 01h CPU register test failed. 02h CPU Protected mode x286 failed. 03h CPU Protected mode x386 failed. 04h CPU Protected mode x486 failed. NUMERIC CO-PROCESSOR 01h Numeric Co-processor test failed. RAM TESTS 01h Ram Data Compare Error. 02h Ram Even Parity Error 03h Ram Odd Parity Error 04h Address Conflict Error 8253 (XT) OR 8254 (AT) TIMER 01h 8253/4 Timer Controller Failed. 02h 8253/4 Channel 1(0) Failure. 03h 8253/4 Channel 2(1) Failure. 04h 8253/4 Channel 3(2) Failure. SPEAKER 01h Speaker Circuit Error. 8237A DMA CONTROLLER 01h 8237A Controller Failed. 02h Page register failed. 8259A PROGRAMMABLE INTERRUPT CONTROLLER 01h Interrupt mask register incorrect. 02h Unexpected ISR bit set. 03h Can't clear ISR bit. 04h Unknown fatal failure. 05h No interrupt occurred. 06h Can't disable parity circuit. 07h NMI not received. 08h Unexpected NMI received 09h Interrupt pending bit not cleared. 0Ah Wrong interrupt source set. 0Bh Wrong priority level set. 0Ch Interrupt pending bit not set after reset. 0Dh Can't disable IRQ w/ par/serial port data. Can't disable IRQ with par/serial port comm. KEYBOARD 01h Keyboard Communications Error 02h Keyboard Error PRINTER PORT 01h Data compare error, LPT1, Comm Port 02h Data compare error, LPT1, Status Port 03h Data compare error, LPT1, Control Port 04h Data compare error, LPT1, Data Port 05h Wrong Interrupt, LPT1 SERIAL PORT 01h Framing Error 02h Overrun Error 03h Parity Error 04h Data Error 05h TX timeout Error 06h RX timeout Error 07h Wrong Interrupt VIDEO TESTS - check base registers at 3xh. 0xh are mono (3B0h); 1xh are color (3D0h); EGA is also tested at 3C0h 01h 6845 Registers Failed 02h On board Latches/Registers failed 03h Video Memory Error 04h Extended Registers (EGA/VGA) failed FLOPPY DRIVE 01h Read Failure 02h Write Failure 03h Format Failure 04h Seek Failure 05h FDC Setup Failure 06h Not 2 Sided Diskette 07h Write Protected diskette 08h Busy not being set in MSR 09h RQM not being set in MSR 0Ah Failed floppy disk restore 0Bh Data I/O is 1, no output to FDC 0Ch Data I/O is 0, no input to FDC 0Dh Timeout on FDC interrupt HARD DRIVE 01h Read Failure 02h Write Failure 03h Format failure 04h Compare Failure 05h Drive(s) not present 06h Not 17 sector (DOS) Drive. 07h Request for information not successful 08h Interleave Error CMOS REAL TIME CLOCK 01h System not initialized, Checksum error 02h RTC RAM R/W Failure 03h RTC Error/Failure 10 ACCESSORIES 10.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter describes the various options and accessories (such as loopback plugs) that you can receive with PC Probe. It is possible that your version of PC Probe will not contain all those items described here. However, they are still available from Landmark or your Landmark dealer as separately purchased items. If you have doubts or questions about them, contact Landmark directly. 10.2 LOOPBACK PLUGS Serial and parallel port loopback plugs are connectors with internal wiring that connects output pins to input pins, thereby "looping" the outputs back to the inputs. When connected to a serial port, for example, any data sent out is received back in, thus verifying the integrity of the computer's data path, signal driver circuitry, and connectors. Loopback plugs won't work properly if protection devices are in- stalled on parallel port or serial ports. The following table shows which loopback plug pins are interconnect- ed. They are provided for your reference only. If you are not a technician, or you do not have the tools or parts required to create and test the plugs, we recommend you use loopback plugs only from Landmark, where quality is guaranteed. Call Landmark if you need to order loopback plugs. The Ethernet loopback plug is actually a standard 50-Ohm Ethernet terminator, consisting of a BNC connector with a molded resistive terminator end on it instead of the coaxial cable. Because they are so simple, no wiring table or diagram is needed to describe them. If you have an Ethernet card installed in your computer, the network supervisor in your organization most likely has terminators avail- able for you to use with the Ethernet tests. TABLE 9. LOOPBACK PLUG INTERCONNECTIONS 25-PIN FEMALE SERIAL PIN PIN SIGNAL NAME Transmit Data 2 3 Receive Data Request to Send 4 5 Clear to Send Data Set Ready 6 8 Carrier Detect Data Set Ready 6 20 Data Terminal Ready Carrier Detect 8 22 Ring Indicator 9-PIN FEMALE SERIAL PIN PIN SIGNAL NAME Transmit Data 3 2 Receive Data Request to Send 7 8 Clear to Send Data Set Ready 6 1 Carrier Detect Data Set Ready 6 4 Data Terminal Ready Carrier Detect 1 9 Ring Indicator