This page describes the ViewStation's hard disk drive and
describes its use.
Hard Disk Drive Storage Devices
The HDS ViewStation supports PCMCIA hard disk drives. Two sizes are
supported, 20 MB and 40 MB.
These hard disk drives can be used
for storing the ViewStation's server code and other ViewStation files,
such as window managers, local clients, fonts, etc. In the factory
configuration, the hard disk drives come with the HDSware software
loaded. The entire HDSware distribution does not quite fit on the 20 MB
disk. On the 20 MB disk, the /utils and /contrib directories are not
loaded (since these contain utility programs that run on the host, this
is a reasonable omission).
You can load your own files onto the hard disk drive with the
Flash command, described below.
If you have a hard disk installed, you must use the hard disk
for booting - you cannot use an HDS FlashPROM card. The PCMCIA hard
disk (with a PLCC bootprom installed on the main board) replaces the
FlashPROM card.
Adding a PCMCIA Hard Disk Drive
If you are adding a PCMCIA device (such as a disk drive) to an
existing ViewStation, the procedure is simple. Follow these steps:
1. Check the bootprom version, it must be version 2.4 or
greater, to recognize the PCMCIA device.
2. Install the PCMCIA adapter card. Open the ViewStation base
and use the long connector on the right rear edge of the circuit board.
Make sure the card is correctly seated and that the pins are correctly
aligned.
3. Remove the coverings for the backpanel openings
for the PCMCIA and/or Audio connectors.
If you already have a PCMCIA adapter card, you may have to
install the PCMCIA device itself. It simply plugs into a socket on the
adapter card. Be careful with this installation. The pins are small and
tightly spaced so be sure to insert the device carefully.
Boot the ViewStation from the network, using Monitor Mode. You
should load HDSware version 2.2 or higher.
Hard Disk Configuration Files
Be sure to use the
config.fx.dsk and clients.config.dsk files or make the appropriate
changes to your own config.fx and clients.config entries for the files
you are putting on the device. These modified files should be part of
your new flash file system.
Use the fdisk command to format the hard disk.
Use the flash files command to load your files onto the disk.
At this point, your files are loaded and your configuration
files specify the correct paths so your own ViewStation (or other
ViewStations) can find them. All you have to do is turn on the
ViewStation.
Booting from a Hard Disk
This page discusses booting the ViewStation with a hard disk drive,
either as an internal boot or as a network boot system.
Hard Disk Commands
This page discusses hard disk commands,
fdisk and flash files.
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© 1996 by HDS Network Systems
Inc.