X-MASS, a mass-storage expansion for all CPC.

[CraigsBar]

Teeheehee, I'd love report bugs, but for that I need to get it working lol.

[Ast]

SyX : Doesn't work on my Cpc Plus


-I installed the Rom in rom 2.
-Rom 1 is fw 3.xx not the latest
-Rom 7 is only AmsDos, no parados installed.

|d  & |format work but when i do the cat command, my Cpc freeze !
have you any idea ?

[Token]

|d  & |format work but when i do the cat command, my Cpc freeze !
have you any idea ?

I had the same problem, only |format and |d worked. (ùFormat ..)
I removed fw 3.15 ROM and then everything worked.
French CPC6128 old logo.

After I entered a folder, made a reset, it didn't come back to the root.

[Token]

(|a and also |d worked)

After some games I copied and played, it doesn't work anymore. I did the X-MEM install again, all passed.

[CraigsBar]

OK as suggested by @SyX I have tested my CPR and roms in WinAPE


Here it works fine.


So the issue is with my hardware....


I have tested the XMEM and XMASS on 2 plus machines, an Old School CPC 6128 and a JustCPC 128k


All of these reflect the same issues, I do not believe that the 4 CPC's I've checked against are all faulty in the same way, so this leaves the XMASS and XMEM.


Since @TotO has already offered to take a look at the XMASS I might just send them both back to him with the current roms installed so he can take a proper look at the problems, If that is OK??


Craig

[netmercer]

Hi,

I had the same problem, only |format and |d worked. (ùFormat ..)
I removed fw 3.15 ROM and then everything worked.
French CPC6128 old logo.

use either original Amstrad Firmware (CPC6128) or FW 3.16 (RAM Disk disabled)

After I entered a folder, made a reset, it didn't come back to the root.

this function is intended

(|a and also |d worked)
After some games I copied and played, it doesn't work anymore. I did the X-MEM install again, all passed.

if the loaded program overwrites RAM or variables of ACMEDOS then crazy things could happen (same as for AMSDOS)
In this case you have to make a cold boot (switch the CPC off and on )

Kind regards

[Token]

Hi, thank you for your help.

>use either original Amstrad Firmware (CPC6128) or FW 3.16 (RAM Disk disabled)

I did disabled RAM disk.
For 3.16 I tried, but I think I choosed the wrong version.
FW316FR16.ROM This one made a mess, maybe I had to chose FR32. 

>this function is intended
Yes, I though so 
Nice to know it's normal.


>if the loaded program overwrites RAM or variables of ACMEDOS then crazy things could happen (same as for AMSDOS)
In this case you have to make a cold boot (switch the CPC off and on)

Ok. I cleaned and reinstalled everything like it was before ACMEDOS. 
I can't make it work anymore.

[SyX]

OK, i need to return to my samba-cave, but even if i am not posting directly in the forum, i am going to receive every bug report and try to fix them.

Because that you should try to be the most specific you can about the conditions and configurations that provoke that error, and if you can replicate the problem in WinApe (the only emulator supporting the board), that it would help a lot in the task of tracing those pesky bugs.

[Audronic]

@SyX

SORRY, Apologies, ETC


I Had a Faulty Spare Dom That i used for testing 


The original DOM is able to |MD, |CAT I will do further testing.


Good luck with your Studies


Thanks   Ray

[Audronic]

I Had a Faulty Spare DOM 

Refer to Reply 667 -


Ray

[Audronic]

I had a Faulty Spare DOM. 

Refer to Reply 667 -

Ray

[CraigsBar]

@SyX

SORRY, Apologies, ETC


I Had a Faulty Spare Dom That i used for testing 


The original DOM is able to |MD, CAT I will do further testing.


Good luck with your Studies


Thanks   Ray

So with your known faulty DOM you cannot cat, save files, etc?? Interesting

[Audronic]

I haver spent all day trying to work this out ??


The DOM #2

The reason for setting up BonnyDOS is because AcmeDOS thinks the DOM #2 is Unwell ??

1) ImpDOS prototype    Works with the DOM #2 (First Format of the DOM)
    The DOM was first formatted By ImpDOS. It worked with Impdos (Beta Version 0.16) All Commands work.

2) BonnyDOS     Works with the DOM #2 (Formats etc Works)  BDos reports 3999 Blocks 124 Meg approx

3) Symbos        Does Not  work with the DOM #2
    Then Tried with Symbos  Unable to format the DOM
    Using Both Versions of the Formatter.

4) AcmeDOS     Does Not  work with the DOM #2
    I then tried it with AcmeDOS and it would not work (|Format said OK) Both 0.6B and 0.61B
    |CAT and |Md and others won't work.

   I have a second DOM which works with AcmeDOS (Still to do more testing)
   This DOM has only been Formatted with AcmeDOS.

Mildly confused.

Refer to Reply 667 -

   Ray

[Ast]

@Audronic : i sent you a pm.

[Joseman]

Hi

@SyX , very very good news, acmedos works with the symbiface 2.

I just connected a 2gb HDD to the symbi, used the |format command of acmedos and in less than one second a 122mb partition was created. Well not exactly a partition, on windows the hdd stays without format and partition, only symbos and acmedos see this kind of format without partitions!

Then i just run Symbos, configure to use the new hdd, copy with symcommander all the symbos files, save the ini, copy some games

reset the cpc

and then:



only unsquadron didn't work, it's a custom loader made by me but uses 128k's to load the levels... and as i see acmedos uses the second bank for some system variables...

other than that (and the 128mb partition on a 2gb hdd ) all works as expected!!

P.S.: until the HDD motor is fully rotating the platters acmedos keeps displaying "not harddisk found", when the hdd is ready, with the last reset acmedos will recognize the drive. Perhaps a ready command timeout?

[Audronic]

@SyX


Testing of Acmedos Version 0.6.1B.
I am Pleased to inform you That (With a GOOD DOM) the i am unable to Fault the ROM.
I found a 2 Gig DOM in a box and it performed Perfectly. as a 128 Meg DOM


A polite request, would it be possible to allow  larger DOMs to be formatted to say 1 Gig or some other value, Multiples of 128 Meg Or ??
DOMs seem to come in 128 Meg, 256 Meg, 1 Gig, 2 Gig.


The Support Software is excellent, (Probably needs an update to handle |D drive (Flasher Program)).
Sorry for the FALSE reports previously (Excrement Happens).


Thanks for all your GOOD Work


Ray

[Audronic]

@TotO


Just some info :-
I have tried BDOS version 1.72 with the X-Mass and a 2 Gig DOM and it work well
Formats out to 2 Gig OK.
Others may like to try BDOS

Ray

[TotO]

Sure, I have already tested some 512MB or 2GB DOM succefully (PQI, DeLock, ...). And 8GB/16GB unsuccefully (chinerd cards).
Most are expensive or use poor quality flash memory (like found on USB pen or micro-SD card). So, I don't keep them for the X-MASS design.
Actually, all the X-MASS are 128MB SLC Solid State Drive. It was the best price/capacity compromise without sacrificing the quality.

AcmeDOS was first made to support this stock expansion. CPC (64K) and AMSDOS friendly. Reliable for everybody using it.
The FAT16 file system was chosen to allow users to access the same content using it from SymbOS, BASIC and PC interface.
BonyDOS is a nice piece of software, but it is compatible with nothing and not AMSDOS friendly. So, strange to use.

To support largest capacities, it is first required to extend the file system to FAT32, else clusters will waste too much the capacity.
To support more partitions, it is first required to have good tools to allow to manage files from different drives.

So, actually I'm more preoccupied that softwares will support the existing hardware. 

[TotO]

only unsquadron didn't work, it's a custom loader made by me but uses 128k's to load the levels... and as i see acmedos uses the second bank for some system variables...

SyX will confirm, but AcmeDOS only use the system RAM to work with all 64K CPC without wasting user RAM, nor using RAM expansions.

[Joseman]

If you do a soft reset, the DIRectory is remembered by acmedos, this drives me to think that the second bank expansion is used in some form...

[robcfg]

If ram isn't cleared by the soft reset why couldn't that be stored in the first bank?

[Joseman]

Good point

Then there are 2 scenarios:

-acmedos REALLY uses the second bank on the soft reset altought only for this information

-acmedos detects if a 64k's stock machine is used and then don't use the second bank...

anyway only @SyX can answer these questions!

[Audronic]

To support largest capacities, it is first required to extend the file system to FAT32, else clusters will waste too much the capacity.

To support more partitions, it is first required to have good tools to allow to manage files from different drives.

Hi Tot0


I was thinking of only 1 (one) Partition.
What is the point at which the clusters become to large and will waste capacity ??


Thanks    Ray

[pelrun]

-acmedos REALLY uses the second bank on the soft reset altought only for this information
-acmedos detects if a 64k's stock machine is used and then don't use the second bank...

It's neither. A soft reset leaves all the ram intact. Only what's explicitly overwritten by ROM initialisation routines (from firmware, Basic, any other installed ROMs) is corrupted; that leaves several sections in the first 64K untouched - to this day I still remember there's a tiny block after &BE80 that's usually good for this. There's absolutely no need to use other banks.


The problem is currently Acmedos doesn't do any validation to detect whether the address it's reading the saved directory pointer from is still valid. If there's a byte to spare then it's quite trivial to add a checksum byte, that'll fix the problem (ok, you'll get a crash roughly 1 in 256 times, but that's still pretty reasonable.)

[TotO]

What is the point at which the clusters become to large and will waste capacity ??

Depending the type of files commonly used. With 128MB, each cluster is 2K using FAT16.
So, we are already wasting storage size for files under that. (but acceptable)

I remember my 1GB PC harddrive recovering around 300MB after formating it from FAT16 to FAT32 !