Re: TOP Network Interface Port of a Sun Ultra 30


Don!

First of all, thank you as always for your kind and fast help!

I have, and will make note of if I wind up using, your suggestions on
what to mv (S to s, K to k, hostname to Hostname, etc.).

Hmm ... not using two cables to watch both at once?

Well, I just didn't think of that! I didn't know you wanted to see
both at the same time! :-O :-)

O.K. Time to look for a QFE card on eBay then. Or another
single one -- but the QFE will leave your other slots free.

Or look for a system card on eBay.

O.K. So we can consider hme0 to be dead. I would still
probably go for a new system board -- or an Ultra-60 to replace the
Ultra-30. The difference seems to be two CPUs for the 60 vs one for the
30.

Don, thank you for your advice.

I had "skimmed" your most recent posting before I left for work, this
morning. And, I was intending to contact you to ask you a question.

And then, at work today, I got another unbelievable and big reason to
ask you something else!

First, the question I was going to ask this morning.

I just purchased an ESP-16 MI 16-Port Serial Hub. This is to give me
up to 16 serial connections again, for the Linux computer.

This connects to the LAN. What I had was a PCI card in my Linux
computer, and it had a SCSI cable to a board (mounted on my wall, near the
computer) that had the 16 DB25 serial connectors.

But, this device connects to an Ethernet port. (More flexible. And,
there are drivers for Solaris and Linux, so I would actually be able to
have the Sun support these serial connections! I have other limitations
on the Sun that makes it not as possible to support the DEVICES I have on
the Linux, but the serial connections themselves will be drivable from the
Solaris as well as the Linux!)

This leads to my question.

I was told that it would connect to one of the free computer ports on
my D-Link router. And, if I wasn't needing to get other pieces of
hardware at this same moment, that is what I'd do, the only thing that
would even enter my mind to consider.

(I trust the network addresses are such that they wouldn't be
broadcast over the Internet! :-O The man I spoke to said they wouldn't.)

However, since I need (or needed, as of this morning) to get at least
a new Ethernet serial card, if not a new motherboard, would there be a
significant speed difference if I were to connect this to a network card
directly inside the Sun, as opposed to the D-Link router, where the data
must leave the Sun and go through another port?

I was thinking that if I chose to try a new Ethernet card, I'd get
one that had at least 2, and I would wind up with at least THREE network
ports on the Sun computer. One port would go to the router, which has
been my "normal" setup. One would be available for the Linux. And, one
could be used for me to plug in this ESP Serial Hub I just ordered, this
afternoon.

Would there be a significant speed difference?

The 7 terminals I had "hard coded" to 19200 baud. Two of the other
devices were 2400, and 1 was 1200. Not fast.

I have a cable modem. As far as traffic on the network, it varies,
too. The "normal" things happening that are occurring (normally) 24 hours
a day, whether I'm at the system or not is, once every five minutes, the
Sun checks to see if we have any RoadRunner email, and transfer it here,
if we do. And, I have a couple of Network Time Protocol systems available
on the Internet, and thusly, the time on my Linux system is normally kept
set perfectly that way. (The Sun's NTP uses the Linux system to keep it's
time set.)

In other words, not much.

When I'm on the system, various web pages (including radar,
especially this time of year, the time of frequent thunderstorms and
hurricanes, living in Florida), sometimes classical music via the
Internet, about a half hour every weekday morning I listen to John
MacArthur (gty.org) while eating breakfast, etc.

The bottom line is this: if there were going to be a speed
difference, since I am (or was, see below) about to look into purchasing
something "new" and therefore have a couple/few options I would not
otherwise have, I would look for SPECIFICALLY a particular product.

Now, I'll mention what occurred at work today! :-O

Today, a co-worker gave me a Sun Ultra 5! :-O (I don't know what to
say, except I said thank you multiple times!) :-O

(He heard me indicating things I was having to work through because
of our recent lightning strike and he said he had it, and there is no one
who wants a computer this slow these days!) :-)

This Ultra 5 is one of several Suns he picked up from a NASA auction
for a very low price. He put Solaris 9 on it, and it works. He says the
speed is 333 MHz. (My Ultra 30 is 248 MHz.) It has a 9G hard drive.

It has only one network port. And, it is a much thinner cabinet,
sitting flat like on a desk rather than on the floor. (This actually, is
a minor problem for me, just because of the way my desk and computer area
is arranged. I don't really have room on my desk for it. But, don't take
that minor annoyance as a sign that I won't gratefully use it if you agree
it's good to!) :-D

It has 3 PCI bus slots available.

It has one network port.

The only Ethernet port on my current Sun that is working is on a PCI
card!

Would I be able to take the PCI card from the Ultra 30 and put it in
one of these PCI slots? If so, that would allow it to have two network
ports!

But make a DB-25 connector with pin 2 jumpered to pin 3 for a
quick test for the VT-??? series terminals. That way you aren't
depending on anything else --just the ability for the keyboard to send
out a character, and the display to receive and show it.

I will do that. In fact, I MIGHT have a loopback connector...

Thank you! :-)

Barry
--
Barry L. Bond | http://home.cfl.rr.com/os9barry/
Software Engineer, ITT Corporation | (My personal home web page, last
bbondATcfl.rr.com | updated February 17, 2005)
.

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