Baslinux mailing list

[baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org]

On Wed, 12 Dec 2007, baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org wrote:

> http://keesan.freeshell.org/bl/2.4.31/bzprosis.431
> http://keesan.freeshell.org/bl/2.4.31/confprosis.431
>
> A 2.4.31 kernel with built-in support for my Promise Ultra ATA100 TX2 PCI
> controller card and also the onboard SIS controller of a 2.4GHz computer
> given to us that appears to have some problem with the onboard controller,
> producing transfer speeds of 3.2-3.5MB/sec.  You can hear the hard drives
> clicking away while you are waiting for a small file to load in DOS. This
> SIS and another controller with the same problem are both marked ATA133.
>
> To get the full speed, loadlin requires adding ide2=ata100 (if this is the
> third IDE controller - disabling onboard controllers in BIOS may change
> the numbering so watch dmesg).  The default is 33MHz.  Another site
> suggested idebus=100 rather than ide=ata100.  I have not tested speeds
> with and without these additions to loadlin line.

I experimented and ide2=ata100 appears to have no effect.
idedma=66 or 100 slows the drive down by making it run in PIO mode.

Syschk, Spinrite, and hdparm give very different transfer speeds.

For onboard Sis controller, 2.5GB and 60GB drives:
Syschk:  11.9 and 12.4MB/sec
Spinrite 3.5 and 3.2MB  (larger faster drive tests slower)
hdparm:  1.91 and 1.83 MB (" ")

hdparm with SIS5513 kernel:  9.2MB and 46MB

For add-in Promise controller:
Syschk:  22MB and 33MB  (2-3X as fast)
Spinrite:  10M and 55M (burst 15 and 61)
hdparm with Promise kernel:  8.23M and 46M

Conclusion:  if you have a fast onboard controller, it runs slower in 
linux than an ordinary controller unless you compile your kernel for it. 
Spinrite is probably not accurate here (with speeds of 55MB/sec), but the 
add-in controller is probably at least twice as fast in DOS (22 or 33MB 
instead of 12MB).  There is very little speed difference between onboard 
and add-in fast controllers in linux (the slower drive runs a bit faster 
with the add-in controller).  If using this computer primarily for linux I 
am better off with the onboard controller (and it saves an IRQ).  For DOS 
the add-in card is probably better.

Ubuntu had the appropriate kernel for the add-in card.

I then tested another computer, with standard kernel, with one slower 
drive on primary master and one faster drive on primary slave:

Syschk    6.9 and 9.5MB  (master and slave)
(primary master controller runs slower even with drives reversed here so I 
run linux off the slave drive)
Spinrite  3.9 and 9.3 MB  (much better than the Sis controller)
hdparm : 4MB and 5MB (10% as fast as with the ATA133 controllers)

This board supposedly has an ATA100 controller, for which I will attempt 
to compile the module or kernel.  It is using Uniform MultiPlatform E-IDE 
driver. Can I determine the controller other than by looking on the board 
or looking up the model online?

ide0 and ide1 use irq 14 and 15.

Sindi