Squirrel SCSI slowdowns, oh the heavist ever...

[Legerdemain]

This is so strange. I've just installed my old Squirrel SCSI adapter and a 2xSCSI CD-Rom in my A1200. Problem is that while transfering data the system runs at such low speeds even an A500 at 7mHz would run faster...

I haven't yet tried out to disable my 060...  but before, while running with a Blizzard 1230 this problem never occured. Something has gone wrong, and whatever it is (I will probably find the source of the problem in just a couple of minutes) I haven't got the slightest what to do about it...   not that it really is that big of a deal, since this is just a temporarily solution until my Mirage arrives along with an ordinary CD-Rom...  but annoying it is, still.

[amiga1260]

The Squirrel does not use DMA. This SCSI controller use the CPU to shift data and so your Amiga is very slow.

[Legerdemain]

Hm, but I find it utterly strange that this problem didn't occur before I put in my 060-board...?

[Rassilon]

I've never owned a squirel, but IIRC there was a patch for 060 boards. It may have been becuase of the slowdown you mention.

In fact it is mentioned on this page Blizzard FAQ  Although the bad news is that the patch link is no longer valid!  :-(

You could try the squirrel patches on Aminet  
Aminet

Regards

Rassilon

[Rob72]

There is a patch available on HiSofts' FTP site:

ftp.hisoft.co.uk/pub/amiga/squirrel/sqs060.lha

That should sort your problems out...also download the latest dms file installer while you are at it. Install that, then replace the files with the later 060 compatible files after...

Good Luck.

[Abou27]

I read in an old Amiga Format the other day that the Squirrel wasn't compatible with the Blizzard 060 board.  Presumably, the patches people have mentioned will help.  I have no slowdown with my 2x SCSI CD on Squirrel with Blizzard 1230-IV.

[Legerdemain]

Now I'm done for. Tried updating using them patches. Nothing works at all now. It just hangs. It all thanks to the squirrelscsi.device.

Here is the deal:

1. I forgot to back up my original squirrelscsi.device while updating.

2. A friend of mine managed to drop a can of cider on the disks that were lying on the table, just an hour ago. No drivers to re-install I have.

3. Looked up if I could find the original disk on the net (apparently I have some kind of cheap Squirrel SCSI, the interface is entirely black with no logo and the disk are entitled "Power CD Rom Disk 1" and "Power CD Rom Disk 2" with a picture of some man holding a lightning in his left hand.

4. Now I am completely without a CD-Rom.

4. Joy.

5. Joy.

6. Joy.

7. Joy.

8. Joy.

9. Joy.

10. Joy.

[Rob72]

Don't get too despondant.

First, your Squirrel interface is the Classic Squirrel, as manufactured by HiSoft, just rebadged by Power Computing.

The drivers will work on any Classic Squirrel device, original branded or not.

Did you install the Classic Squirrel update? The last dms file is on the FTP site, named sqs_dsk.dms. The other .dms file is for use with the Surf Squirrel only (it will have a 9pin serial port on the back of the Squirrel)

What version of Workbench are you using?
What version of SquirrelSCSI do you have in your C: directory.
What version of squirrelscsi.device is in your DEVS: directory?
Have you modified your CD0: mountfile in DEVS:DosDrivers/ (or SYS:Storage/DosDrivers/ )?

If you are using WB3.1...use DMS to write the sqs_dsk.dms file to a blank floppy disk, and install from the newly created floppy.

If you are using WB3.5/3.9...use the installer on the new floppy, but you have to modify your S:Startup-sequence, and place the line C:SquirrelSCSI BEFORE C:Setpatch QUIET line. Check your S:user-startup file afterwards, because as i remember, the installer places the C:SquirrelSCSI command there...remove this, because you don't want the resident driver starting twice. During the installation, make sure that the dosdriver gets put into storage/dosdrivers first...if you don't get that option during installation, copy it from DEVS:dosdrivers to storage/dosdrivers after installation, making sure that no CD0 mountfile is in DEVS:dosdrivers.

Reboot your system...and fingers crossed...you should be up and running. I installed the same drivers earlier this week, so i know that they work okay...didn't need the 68060 patched files though...

Let me know how you get on...

Rob.

[Legerdemain]

Well, I am back online with the CD again. Installed it all from the latest SquirrelSCSI disk and it worked fine.

Though, it worked fine in the meaning "working". Still everything runs in slowmotion. The 060-version does not work... at startup the screen turns grey and after 30 seconds or so it all crasches. The "new" version from '97 crasches instantly.

The installdisk I downloaded was version 1.12. Previously I had 1.10. Not sitting by the computer so I can't look up the versionnumbers of the files at the moment, though.

Oh, well, just some more weeks and I'll be using a regular IDE/atapi CD-Rom through the SCSI Kit IV...  I won't be bothering about this very issue anymore. Everything I needed to install from CD I have installed by now (it took about 4 hours to install Wasted Dreams, some 500mb I think it was... I mean, even at 2x speed it shouldn't take more than an hour...  not with SFS, not with SquirrelSCSI... not at all...).

Thanks for all of your help, though!