SwapBox Classic X2 PCMCIA card reader?

[student]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.fic (More info?)

I'm interested in switching from dialup ISP to local/share wireless access,
so I set about to see if my 503+ would support a PCMCIA wireless access
card.

After a little shopping around, I bought a SCM SwapBox Classic X2
dual PCMCIA card reader, which comes with an ISA adapter card and 2 scsi
cables.

However, I can't get the machine to boot with the PCMCIA reader
installed and,
now that I have removed it, all my operating systems are screwed up
in various ways.

1. Win2000 doesn't boot.

2.. Win98SE boots but won't let me run my video card at more that
16 colors

3.. Fedora Linux boots but thinks I have removed my sound card

4. Gentoo Linux boots but XFree86 can't find the video card

All told, not a great day.

Anyway, is anyone here using a PCMCIA card reader with the 503+?

Does anyone know of a mainboard/PCMCIA reader combo that does work?

TIA for any help.

Bill

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.fic (More info?)

I believe I found some information on your SwapBox Classic X2. It seems that
there are two versions of it: the SBD-D2 is non-Plug and play, and the SBD-D2P
is Plug and Play. Any idea which one you have? Does it have any sort of
configuration jumpers?

http://www.scmmicro.com/security/general-isa.html

From the way you describe your problems, it sounds like the IRQ assignments for
the devices have gotten messed up. To recover from this, go to BIOS -->
PCI/PnP Configuration --> Reset Configuration Data (or Clear ESCD) --> Yes.
Reboot. This will force your BIOS to redetect all your PCI and ISA PnP cards
from scratch, and hopefully get you out of the pickle you are in.

By the way, what do you have the "Plug and Play OS" in the BIOS set to? It
should be set to "No".

Once you manage to get out of this mess, then we will see about installing this
ISA card.

--Alex


student wrote:

> I'm interested in switching from dialup ISP to local/share wireless access,
> so I set about to see if my 503+ would support a PCMCIA wireless access
> card.
>
> After a little shopping around, I bought a SCM SwapBox Classic X2
> dual PCMCIA card reader, which comes with an ISA adapter card and 2 scsi
> cables.
>
> However, I can't get the machine to boot with the PCMCIA reader
> installed and,
> now that I have removed it, all my operating systems are screwed up
> in various ways.
>
> 1. Win2000 doesn't boot.
>
> 2.. Win98SE boots but won't let me run my video card at more that
> 16 colors
>
> 3.. Fedora Linux boots but thinks I have removed my sound card
>
> 4. Gentoo Linux boots but XFree86 can't find the video card
>
> All told, not a great day.
>
> Anyway, is anyone here using a PCMCIA card reader with the 503+?
>
> Does anyone know of a mainboard/PCMCIA reader combo that does work?
>
> TIA for any help.
>
> Bill

 

[student]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.fic (More info?)

Alex Zorrilla wrote:
> I believe I found some information on your SwapBox Classic X2. It seems that
> there are two versions of it: the SBD-D2 is non-Plug and play, and the SBD-D2P
> is Plug and Play. Any idea which one you have? Does it have any sort of
> configuration jumpers?
>
> http://www.scmmicro.com/security/general-isa.html
>
> From the way you describe your problems, it sounds like the IRQ assignments for
> the devices have gotten messed up. To recover from this, go to BIOS -->
> PCI/PnP Configuration --> Reset Configuration Data (or Clear ESCD) --> Yes.
> Reboot. This will force your BIOS to redetect all your PCI and ISA PnP cards
> from scratch, and hopefully get you out of the pickle you are in.
>
> By the way, what do you have the "Plug and Play OS" in the BIOS set to? It
> should be set to "No".
>
> Once you manage to get out of this mess, then we will see about installing this
> ISA card.
>
> --Alex
>
>
> student wrote:
>
>
>>I'm interested in switching from dialup ISP to local/share wireless access,
>>so I set about to see if my 503+ would support a PCMCIA wireless access
>>card.
>>
>>After a little shopping around, I bought a SCM SwapBox Classic X2
>>dual PCMCIA card reader, which comes with an ISA adapter card and 2 scsi
>>cables.
>>
>>However, I can't get the machine to boot with the PCMCIA reader
>>installed and,
>>now that I have removed it, all my operating systems are screwed up
>>in various ways.
>>
>> 1. Win2000 doesn't boot.
>>
>> 2.. Win98SE boots but won't let me run my video card at more that
>>16 colors
>>
>> 3.. Fedora Linux boots but thinks I have removed my sound card
>>
>> 4. Gentoo Linux boots but XFree86 can't find the video card
>>
>> All told, not a great day.
>>
>> Anyway, is anyone here using a PCMCIA card reader with the 503+?
>>
>> Does anyone know of a mainboard/PCMCIA reader combo that does work?
>>
>> TIA for any help.
>
>> Bill
>
>

Hello Alex,

Thank you for coming to my rescue!

I was completely ignorant of the existence of the Reset Configuration
option. It had been
set to 'Disabled' so I reset it to 'Enabled', rebooted, and -- presto!
-- old Humpty is back
together and the future looks bright again. What a difference a day
makes.

(I was aware of the 'Plug-and-Pray OS' Option and have always kept it
set to 'No'.)

I don't have any documentation on either the card reader or the ISA
adapter card.

The reader has on it a sticker that says

SCM Microsystems INC.
SwapBox Classic X2

and some embossed lettering that says

DRV2AR11

It has two SCSI connectors but no jumpers of any kind.

The ISO adapter card has only some embossed lettering that says

ISAX1R20

It also has two SCSI connectors but no jumpers of any kind.

What do you think I should do at this point? Now that I have Reset
Configuration
enabled in the BIOS, maybe it could be as simple as reinstalling the
SwapBox?

Thanks again.

Bill

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.fic (More info?)

Hi, Bill.

The "Reset Configuration Data" goes back to Disabled once you reboot. What it does
is to give you a way to "rescue" your computer whenever you need to.

I would probably go ahead and try reinstalling the Swapbox and boot into Win98SE. If
you have the same problem, take a look at the Device Manager and look for any
conflicts. This may give you a clue on how to proceed. You may also try removing
all the other PCI and ISA cards and add them back, one at a time.

Let me know what you find out.

--Alex


student wrote:

> Alex Zorrilla wrote:
> > I believe I found some information on your SwapBox Classic X2. It seems that
> > there are two versions of it: the SBD-D2 is non-Plug and play, and the SBD-D2P
> > is Plug and Play. Any idea which one you have? Does it have any sort of
> > configuration jumpers?
> >
> > http://www.scmmicro.com/security/general-isa.html
> >
> > From the way you describe your problems, it sounds like the IRQ assignments for
> > the devices have gotten messed up. To recover from this, go to BIOS -->
> > PCI/PnP Configuration --> Reset Configuration Data (or Clear ESCD) --> Yes.
> > Reboot. This will force your BIOS to redetect all your PCI and ISA PnP cards
> > from scratch, and hopefully get you out of the pickle you are in.
> >
> > By the way, what do you have the "Plug and Play OS" in the BIOS set to? It
> > should be set to "No".
> >
> > Once you manage to get out of this mess, then we will see about installing this
> > ISA card.
> >
> > --Alex
> >
> >
> > student wrote:
> >
> >
> >>I'm interested in switching from dialup ISP to local/share wireless access,
> >>so I set about to see if my 503+ would support a PCMCIA wireless access
> >>card.
> >>
> >>After a little shopping around, I bought a SCM SwapBox Classic X2
> >>dual PCMCIA card reader, which comes with an ISA adapter card and 2 scsi
> >>cables.
> >>
> >>However, I can't get the machine to boot with the PCMCIA reader
> >>installed and,
> >>now that I have removed it, all my operating systems are screwed up
> >>in various ways.
> >>
> >> 1. Win2000 doesn't boot.
> >>
> >> 2.. Win98SE boots but won't let me run my video card at more that
> >>16 colors
> >>
> >> 3.. Fedora Linux boots but thinks I have removed my sound card
> >>
> >> 4. Gentoo Linux boots but XFree86 can't find the video card
> >>
> >> All told, not a great day.
> >>
> >> Anyway, is anyone here using a PCMCIA card reader with the 503+?
> >>
> >> Does anyone know of a mainboard/PCMCIA reader combo that does work?
> >>
> >> TIA for any help.
> >
> >> Bill
> >
> >
>
> Hello Alex,
>
> Thank you for coming to my rescue!
>
> I was completely ignorant of the existence of the Reset Configuration
> option. It had been
> set to 'Disabled' so I reset it to 'Enabled', rebooted, and -- presto!
> -- old Humpty is back
> together and the future looks bright again. What a difference a day
> makes.
>
> (I was aware of the 'Plug-and-Pray OS' Option and have always kept it
> set to 'No'.)
>
> I don't have any documentation on either the card reader or the ISA
> adapter card.
>
> The reader has on it a sticker that says
>
> SCM Microsystems INC.
> SwapBox Classic X2
>
> and some embossed lettering that says
>
> DRV2AR11
>
> It has two SCSI connectors but no jumpers of any kind.
>
> The ISO adapter card has only some embossed lettering that says
>
> ISAX1R20
>
> It also has two SCSI connectors but no jumpers of any kind.
>
> What do you think I should do at this point? Now that I have Reset
> Configuration
> enabled in the BIOS, maybe it could be as simple as reinstalling the
> SwapBox?
>
> Thanks again.
>
> Bill

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.fic (More info?)

Alex Zorrilla wrote:
> Hi, Bill.
>
> The "Reset Configuration Data" goes back to Disabled once you reboot. What it does
> is to give you a way to "rescue" your computer whenever you need to.
>
> I would probably go ahead and try reinstalling the Swapbox and boot into Win98SE. If
> you have the same problem, take a look at the Device Manager and look for any
> conflicts. This may give you a clue on how to proceed. You may also try removing
> all the other PCI and ISA cards and add them back, one at a time.
>
> Let me know what you find out.
>
> --Alex
>
>

Ok, will do. I'll take another crack at it tomorrow morning.

[I did try it this morning with this layoput (counting from the top
slot down):

PCI#1. Symbios 53c819 scsi card
PCI#2. ES5371 sound card
PCI#3. Promise Ultra100

ISA#1. (empty)
ISA#2. SwapBox ISA adapter

At first, the machine wouldn't POST, but at one point I happened to
press reset instead of ctrl+alt+del and then it POSTed! However, Win98se
would still only boot in Safe Mode and Win2000 not at all; Gentoo Linux
booted ok and the video card worked fine, but I couldn't use my modem.]

Bill

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.fic (More info?)

Hi, Bill.

Aaaargh! Now I remember why I hated ISA cards! It sounds like all your operating systems
are reacting differently to the SwapBox. It could be that yours is not Plug and Play, or
maybe Plug and Play is not working correctly.

Try this. Go into the PNP/PCI Configuration section of the BIOS. Set "Resources
Controlled By" to Manual. You will see a whole bunch of new settings come up. Set IRQ 10
to "Legacy ISA", and leave all the others as "PCI/ISA PnP". What this does is to prevent
all your PCI/AGP cards from using IRQ 10. It also prevents any ISA Plug and Play cards
from using this interrupt. Hopefully, once you boot into an operating system, the SwapBox
will see that this resource is available and grab it.

By the way, I am just guessing with IRQ 10. I remember seeing somewhere yesterday that the
SwapBox likes to use IRQ 10 or 14. I believe it was in some old Tru64 manual page on
HP/Compaq's website somwhere.

I searched the web for an "ES5371" sound card and could not find anything. Could it be an
ES1371, a Creative Sound Blaster PCI 64/128 or Ensoniq AudioPCI (same cards, basically)?

You could not use your modem in Gentoo? I do not see your modem listed. Is it an external
modem connected to one of the COM ports?

By the way, I will probably not be checking this newsgroup over the extended 4th of July
weekend. If you want to get a hold of me, try e-mailing me directly (as a copy to the
newsgroup post). I cannot guarantee I will answer, but there is at least a better chance
of it.

--Alex


reader wrote:

> Alex Zorrilla wrote:
> > Hi, Bill.
> >
> > The "Reset Configuration Data" goes back to Disabled once you reboot. What it does
> > is to give you a way to "rescue" your computer whenever you need to.
> >
> > I would probably go ahead and try reinstalling the Swapbox and boot into Win98SE. If
> > you have the same problem, take a look at the Device Manager and look for any
> > conflicts. This may give you a clue on how to proceed. You may also try removing
> > all the other PCI and ISA cards and add them back, one at a time.
> >
> > Let me know what you find out.
> >
> > --Alex
> >
> >
>
> Ok, will do. I'll take another crack at it tomorrow morning.
>
> [I did try it this morning with this layoput (counting from the top
> slot down):
>
> PCI#1. Symbios 53c819 scsi card
> PCI#2. ES5371 sound card
> PCI#3. Promise Ultra100
>
> ISA#1. (empty)
> ISA#2. SwapBox ISA adapter
>
> At first, the machine wouldn't POST, but at one point I happened to
> press reset instead of ctrl+alt+del and then it POSTed! However, Win98se
> would still only boot in Safe Mode and Win2000 not at all; Gentoo Linux
> booted ok and the video card worked fine, but I couldn't use my modem.]
>
> Bill

 

[student]

Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.fic (More info?)

Alex Zorrilla wrote:
> Hi, Bill.
>
> Aaaargh! Now I remember why I hated ISA cards! It sounds like all your operating systems
> are reacting differently to the SwapBox. It could be that yours is not Plug and Play, or
> maybe Plug and Play is not working correctly.
>
> Try this. Go into the PNP/PCI Configuration section of the BIOS. Set "Resources
> Controlled By" to Manual. You will see a whole bunch of new settings come up. Set IRQ 10
> to "Legacy ISA", and leave all the others as "PCI/ISA PnP". What this does is to prevent
> all your PCI/AGP cards from using IRQ 10. It also prevents any ISA Plug and Play cards
> from using this interrupt. Hopefully, once you boot into an operating system, the SwapBox
> will see that this resource is available and grab it.
>
> By the way, I am just guessing with IRQ 10. I remember seeing somewhere yesterday that the
> SwapBox likes to use IRQ 10 or 14. I believe it was in some old Tru64 manual page on
> HP/Compaq's website somwhere.
>
> I searched the web for an "ES5371" sound card and could not find anything. Could it be an
> ES1371, a Creative Sound Blaster PCI 64/128 or Ensoniq AudioPCI (same cards, basically)?
>
> You could not use your modem in Gentoo? I do not see your modem listed. Is it an external
> modem connected to one of the COM ports?
>
> By the way, I will probably not be checking this newsgroup over the extended 4th of July
> weekend. If you want to get a hold of me, try e-mailing me directly (as a copy to the
> newsgroup post). I cannot guarantee I will answer, but there is at least a better chance
> of it.
>
> --Alex
>
>

Hi Alex,

Hey, it'll keep. Thanks for the great help and have a nice holiday
weekend!!!

(You're right, it's an Ensoniq ES1371, and I forgot to mention there
was an external modem on COM2.)

Bill