Messages

16

Firmware / Re: swapping flash chips, ordering spares

« on: September 07, 2020, 01:50:36 pm »

Before my RMA of the blackbird planar I wanted to change the flash chips too and searched the web a lot. Here are my findings (without any guarantees ;-)

Flash Socket Type is: G6179T011-003H (2 x 8 pin layout)

Flash chip types are

1. BMC Firmware ROM (J7500 on the planar): MX25L25635FMI-10G
   Data Sheet: https://media.digikey.com/pdf/Data%20Sheets/Macronix/MX25L25635F.pdf
   2,7 - 3,6 Volts !!!!
   256 MB
   16-SOIC

2. Boot Flash ROM/PNOR Flash ROM (J7501): MT25QL512ABB8ESF-0SIT (on my chip I can read: 7RAI5 RWI87 258 => FBGA Code RW187 is the same chip!)
   Datasheet: https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/micron-technology-inc/MT25QL512ABB8ESF-0SIT-TR/557-1987-1-ND/9673968
   512 MB
   2,7 - 3,6 V -> 3 V is safe
   16-SOIC

=> you can order the chips here (eg.)
   https://www.digikey.de

HIH

PS: See the attached pic of my (RMA'ed) planar

17

Applications and Porting / Re: Wine patch to support PPC64

« on: August 30, 2020, 05:54:49 pm »

Fascinating!

Can somebody explain how it will be possible to execute Windows binaries via Wine on a ppc64le architecture (which has a different CPU instruction set than x86)? QEMU?

I thought Wine is "just" offering the Windows API as a wrapper around kernel/Linux calls...

18

Applications and Porting / Re: Raspberry Pie

« on: August 20, 2020, 03:30:23 pm »

Could you please add links to the "emulator system" and "retro pie application" that you mention (it is not clear to me at least even though I use Raspberries too)

19

GPU Compute / Accelerators / Re: Radeon Pro vs regular Radeon cards - worth the price premium for POWER users?

« on: June 15, 2020, 10:47:52 am »

The german computer magazine "ct" (www.ct.de) did test the Blender raytracing performance with different graphics cards including a Radeon RX 5700 XT und Radeon Pro W5700 in ct 01/2020 pages 100 - 101.

One finding was (my personal translation):

During the test AMD's Radeon Pro W5700 showed incorrect lighting and streaking artifacts using the pro driver 19Q4 - with the standard driver and an RX 5700 or a Radeon VII (Vega) this was not the case.

IMHO this is just a "spotlight" test and may be caused by a bug in the pro driver but it shows that the standard driver and the cheaper RX 5700 (XT) are working quite well...

20

Operating Systems and Porting / Re: Wine developer starts merging Timothy's sets of patches for ppc64le

« on: May 14, 2020, 10:34:45 am »

Great news :-)

What I still do not understand is how Windows binaries for Intel x86 CPU instructions sets will execute with Wine on ppc64le which has another CPU instruction set.
I thought that Wine mainly adds the Windows API as compatibility layer to Linux...

Does somebody know this and could explain it here? THX :-)

21

User Zone / Re: Configure Xorg for AST2500 max resolution of 1920x1200 on Ubuntu Server 19.10

« on: May 05, 2020, 06:33:45 am »

Is there possibly a risk of "overclocking"? Any documentation available that says wrong modelines do not destroy the AST2500?

22

General CPU Discussion / Re: CPU Performance DD2.2 vs DD2.3 (v2)

« on: May 05, 2020, 06:31:33 am »

AFIKR `cat /proc/cpuinfo` also shows the stepping ("revision: 2.3" for the "v2" CPU)

Since the stepping is specific to the chip (Nimbus in this case), I think it would make sense to add your findings to the Steppings secton of the POWER9 page; if we start to get too-much Nimbus-specific information, it can always be split off into a separate page.

As an aside, the CP9M## is not actually a part number, it is (as far as I can tell) just a SKU for Raptor to manage their inventory; according to ClassicHasClass you can see the actual part number in lshw. We are actually missing the parts number for the CP9M31 SKU in the decoder table on the Sforza page, if you could add what yours is that would be excellent.

23

User Zone / Re: Configure Xorg for AST2500 max resolution of 1920x1200 on Ubuntu Server 19.10

« on: April 26, 2020, 02:55:13 pm »

# 1920x1200 59.88 Hz (CVT 2.30MA) hsync: 74.56 kHz; pclk: 193.25 MHz
    Modeline       "1920x1200"  193.25  1920 2056 2256 2592  1200 1203 1209 1245 -hsync +vsync

I would be happy if somebody could confirm that these settings are working - I will add them then to the according Raptor wiki page.

It worked until yesterday update (but I think that the Fedora 31 updated just the kernel, not the Xorg?!).

Do you have similar experience?

My Blackbird planar is dead since February (RMA is done but the new planar is still at USPS in the USA due to Corona transportation bottlenecks so I cannot say anything.

I hope your planar is not dead too ;-)

24

Mod Zone / Re: Convert GPU PCI-E X16 to X8

« on: April 20, 2020, 06:17:45 am »

> I wish that the future revision of Blackbird would swap position of X8 with X16 slot.

Yes, this IMHO one of most urging limitations (only two PCIe slots and too narrow for x16 dual slot GPU cards if you want to use the x8 slot too).

My workaround would be (I still have no 2-slot GPU) an PCIe extension raiser adapter (50 EUR / 60 USD) which is eg. supported in my Fractal design define R6 case:

https://www.fractal-design.com/products/accessories/flex-vrc-25/black/

In the how-to video you can see how the GPU is mounted in another place (turned by 90 degrees).

This could also improve the cooling situation.

25

User Zone / Re: petitboot error: PHB#0005[0:5]: PHB Freeze/Fence detected !

« on: April 07, 2020, 10:49:30 am »

Happy me - I got an email today that my RMA has been accepted and a replacement mainboard incl. the (working) CPU I have sent in are on its way back to me via USPS.

It took only three weeks to handle the RMA at Raptor (which is quite acceptable with respect to the required efforts to test a mainboard and the Corona/COVID19 slowdown at the moment).

I can't await to reassemble my system and run the usual tests again (incl. the fixed issue of RStudio Server for ppc64le in a docker container that I want to retest ASAP: https://forums.raptorcs.com/index.php/topic,37.0.html)

26

User Zone / Re: petitboot error: PHB#0005[0:5]: PHB Freeze/Fence detected !

« on: March 22, 2020, 06:39:08 pm »

The support department wrote me this email on March 9, 2020:

X,

Please send the defective items back immediately. You have the RMA number, that is all the
clearance you need.

Thanks!

- The Raptor Computing Systems Support Team

27

User Zone / Re: petitboot error: PHB#0005[0:5]: PHB Freeze/Fence detected !

« on: March 22, 2020, 03:27:50 pm »

Thanks!

Has the motherboard arrived at RaptorCS yet? Did you get feedback what was defective and why?
I'm curious how long it will take until Raptor can ship again.

The shipment arrived at RaptorCS on March 16, 2020 and they have not yet sent me any question or other feed-back so far
but during the shipment RaptorCS asked me if I already have sent my package back to them for RMA
(so they are tracking RMAs).

My DHL delivery experience (see tracking info below) is good (9 days are good enough for the price of about 80 Euros,
but it looks like RaptorCS took 5 days to pick-up the shipment from the PO box):

Mo, 16.03.2020 16:44 -- The shipment has been successfully delivered
We, 11.03.2020 08:12 -- The shipment is ready for pick-up by the recipient. The recipient has been informed.
Mo, 09.03.2020 16:37 -- The shipment has cleared customs in the destination country/destination area.
Tu, 03.03.2020 06:13  IPZ Frankfurt The shipment will be transported to the destination country/destination area and, from there, handed over to the delivery organization (USPS!)
Mo, 02.03.2020 11:50 -- The shipment has been posted by the sender at the retail outlet

BTW: I forgot to put 4 proforma invoice copies into the outer plastic bag of package but it seems to not having delayed anything...

28

User Zone / Re: petitboot error: PHB#0005[0:5]: PHB Freeze/Fence detected !

« on: March 21, 2020, 07:14:47 am »

Another update regarding the duty/tax reimbursement (funding) due to my RMA:

6. Duty/tax reimbursement (refunding) is another process where you have to fill two forms:
    Form 0223 "Antrag auf Erstattung"
    Form 0235 "Zusatzblatt zum Antrag auf Erstattung"
    I have asked the responsible customs officer via phone if she wants to see the defect hardware before I send it back and she said "not required" - but this may differ in your case.

TLDR: Reimbursement worked without problems - the customs officer didn't want to see the hardware before reimbursement (as promised during a  phone call)

After having shipped the defective hardware back to RaptorCS USA (incl. customs procedures as described in a prev. post)
I have applied via the filled forms to reimburse my duty/taxes partially for the hardware that I have sent back.

16 days later (today) I received a letter from the customs office with the calculation of the reimbursement: They pay back 336 of the totally paid 356 Euros
(I have kept some hardware like the screw drawer). My personal calculation of the reimbursement was 339 Euros but the 3 Euros difference are due to currency conversion differences.

Customs did not ask to see the hardware (which I can't since I have already sent it back).

29

User Zone / Re: petitboot error: PHB#0005[0:5]: PHB Freeze/Fence detected !

« on: March 08, 2020, 03:24:33 pm »

The NVIDA Geforce GTX 1050 Ti (by MSI) requires a PCIe 16x slot (by form factor) and a supplementary 6-pin PCIe power connector

30

User Zone / Re: Installation of Ubuntu Server 19.10 on NVMe device fails (could not stat device)

« on: March 08, 2020, 08:42:35 am »

Here is the bug report:

> Ubuntu Server 19.10 installer uses wrong NVMe path for Samsung 970 EVO Plus M.2 SSD (could not stat device - failed to find device at path)

https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1866535