Need help for setup RTL8029

[Hanzu]

Card is Kingston CF/4GB brand new taken out of the box yesterday, but I changed to other card reader and it made backup more reliable. Same error still came few times, but I got plenty of working backups done.

Card reader FUJITECH 7355970201291 performed much more reliable than MediaLounge P/N: CR2013, both tested with 2 different cables.

The thing that puzzles me now is that OS 4.1 Classic install refuses to Full Format anything. Progress bar just stays at 0% with no progress after minutes of waiting. So I have to Quick Format CF-cards that are out of the box FAT16 formatted. So is this normal for OS 4.1 and is it reliable to use CF-card that is not full formatted for Amiga format?

[Spectre660]

I use quick format most of the time. Full format only if I have a probelm with quick format. I use SDcards and if I have a problem I reformat them on a PC using SDformatter This also works with CF cards.
https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_3/

[Hanzu]

It seems that Amiga filesystems write something like RDB that normal Windows full format cannot erase. Is SDformatter also destroying everything to make Amiga see that drive as empty again.

I ask this because I have installed OS 4.1 Classic now 5 times and I still do not have working copy of it because failed installs make drives so tricky I need to diconnect them to be able to boot anything.

When I use boot partiton of SFS\00 or SFS\02 that is smaller than 4GB and make no other partitions, the first boot after install end. Is a Software Failure 8000 0008 or something similar. Also this faulty install prevents OS 4.1 CD fails to boot, so I could try again or inspect what is wrong in filesystems. Same results with CSPPC SCSI+SCSItoSATA-adater+SATA-SSD and native IDE port+CF cards of size 2GB-4GB. With the difference that SSD gives yellow+black Recoverable Alerts isnstead of Software Failures.

When I use boot partion of FFS that is smaller than 4GB and make no other partitions, the first boot after install worked, but like I said earlier, I had to reset and after that OS 4.1 install only booted to error box of "Not a DOS disk"

Is it possible to install SFS\00 or SFS\02 as the only bootable volume in a drive, if yes, then what am I doing wrong? I have now tried to install to so many drives.

[Spectre660]

SDformatter should erase everything from the CF card.
Have a look at this to see if you are missing a step in the harddrive setup .
http://blog.hyperion-entertainment.biz/?p=210

[danbeaver]

It is obvious that you have 2 problems: Booting from a CF card and Setting of your networking/Ethernet connection.

I have never run setup on a CF card, but commonly boot from one to copy my SYS: partition for backup. My A4000T has the IDE interface ending in a slot-style CF card reader. I did setup around a dozen times to a HDD and then copied to the CF card later. Due to recovery issues, even with backups, I use FFS on my boot partition, and then install the different file systems as add-ons. The rest of the partitions vary from SFS/02 to PFS-Aio. Have you tried setting up OS 4.1 on a real HDD to remove the chance that a particular CF card variety sux?

When you have a stable setup, then the NIC card problem can be addressed.

[Hanzu]

SDformatter should erase everything from the CF card.
Have a look at this to see if you are missing a step in the harddrive setup .
http://blog.hyperion-entertainment.biz/?p=210

Thank you for the link! I was totally missing adding filesystem to RDB. Now I get it, but still I can only make FFS\07 bootable. If make partition with bootable SFS\00 or SFS\02 system will not boot after first post-install reboot. No errors, just grey screen and some sort of looping reset. It is not SCSI problem since it also hapens with IDE+CF. I still can't get it how some people get SFS\00 or SFS\02 to work as bootable partition.

It is obvious that you have 2 problems: Booting from a CF card and Setting of your networking/Ethernet connection.

I have never run setup on a CF card, but commonly boot from one to copy my SYS: partition for backup. My A4000T has the IDE interface ending in a slot-style CF card reader. I did setup around a dozen times to a HDD and then copied to the CF card later. Due to recovery issues, even with backups, I use FFS on my boot partition, and then install the different file systems as add-ons. The rest of the partitions vary from SFS/02 to PFS-Aio. Have you tried setting up OS 4.1 on a real HDD to remove the chance that a particular CF card variety sux?

When you have a stable setup, then the NIC card problem can be addressed.

I have same issues with SCSI+SATA SSD so I highly doubt it is CF problem. Anyway I think I have stable install now and also found out that network cable did not reach the very end of the RJ45 connector, because of slightly offset in the card metal support rack. After pushing RJ45 with power and then booting, network wizard finally found the internet connection via DHCP.

[Neil_P]

I cannot use USB to boot from a suitable USB Ethernet piece of hardware as the Classic A1200 does not have any currently available hardware to be able to use USB with OS4.1.2, which is an awful situation to be in, so I am reliant on the Mediator to allow the PCI NIC to be recognised and mount under OS4.1.2, which it currently it is not doing, so I am in the same difficulty, as I know my RTL8029AS PCI NIC works under OS3.9, so why is it not opening correctly?

I have an A1200 in a tower with a Voodoo 3 3000 in the top slot of my Mediator SX - converted to a TX (6 slots), then the NIC situated in either the 2nd slot, as recommended, or in the bottom slot where I usually have it in my OS3.9 setup.

I have removed all the other PCI cards, so there is just my Blizzard 060/PPC 240MHz/SCSI (unused), and the FastATA MkIV in the tower, with my HyperCOM 3+ not enabled, just connected to my Clockport, as I believe it is possible to get it to work, but I need the PCI NIC working before I move onto trying to get that to work.

I get the error: Could not open "rtl8029.device", unit 0 (Device/unit failed to open).

I have tried to setup the card using the Internet Wizard, but after it goes through the automatic attempt to detect the card the GUI then locks up at about 45%, and then I have to do a reset as I can't get it to close, and the GUI stays constantly busy (mouse), this is extremely frustrating.

I also find that the HDD 1st partition which is formatted to DOS/7 FFS, has successfully installed OS4.1.2 and is about 2GB in size is not recognised from a switch off/cold boot, but if I put the install floppy disk and boot from that with the CD, I can after the CD has loaded some of the initial stage setting up, and got to the Red/Blue/Purple screen flashes that I can remove the floppy disk, and CD, and the HDD is recognised and boots, so what's going on there?

[danbeaver]

Wow, lots of questions in your post. The Subway USB is automatically recognized by OS4.1's own USB stack as well as Poseidon's. A NIC dongle will work there. Your RTL8029 is supported, but is it seen by Ranger as present? Have you tested it to make sure it works (a PC works well here)? If it is functional, it may fail if the actual cable connection is faulty. DHCP works well if your router supports it, but a manual connection my be helpful to look at.

As an aside, my setup is dual boot and my OS3.9 setup does not recognize DOS/07; I found that DOS/03 works best for my boot partitions. Once booted I can get most of the file systems recognized in both OS's with the exception being the JXFS.

[Neil_P]

Wow, lots of questions in your post. The Subway USB is automatically recognized by OS4.1's own USB stack as well as Poseidon's.

I didn't really ask a question about the Subway, but thanks for that information! I was only commenting that there is currently NO USB solution being manufactured / sold commercially for use with OS4.1 on an A1200, whether in a Mediator or just on the clockport, or on any other interface on the Amiga such as the PCMCIA port. Those who were able to get a Subway, when they were being sold can maybe feel lucky in that regard, but I didn't think it was worth their cost anyway, just so you've got USB on an A1200. I found the Spider much cheaper, and overall much more suited to a tower setup, as I'd already used the clockport for a HyperCOM 3+, and didn't want to have to take that out to fit the Subway, and seeing as I'd already got the Spider why would I.

Your RTL8029 is supported, but is it seen by Ranger as present? Have you tested it to make sure it works (a PC works well here)? If it is functional, it may fail if the actual cable connection is faulty. DHCP works well if your router supports it, but a manual connection my be helpful to look at.

Long story short, I worked out that I needed to create a file called 'unit0' in a directory called 'RTL8029.device' in ENV-ARCHIVE, and enter the VENDORID and the DEVICEID as the parameters I got from Ranger. Why all this mess when a script could have been written to extract this info, and insert it into a file called 'unit0' during installation I don't know.

As an aside, my setup is dual boot and my OS3.9 setup does not recognize DOS/07; I found that DOS/03 works best for my boot partitions. Once booted I can get most of the file systems recognized in both OS's with the exception being the JXFS.

OK, you've got me interested now, how did you create a DOS/3 partition - what are the parameters, which filesystem,and what options (Cache/International, etc.) make up DOS/3 partition?

I too cannot get the DOS/7 OS4.1.2 boot partition to be recognised from 'cold', so I end up using the OS4.1 Classic floppy disk & CD to part-boot the system to the red/blue/purple reset, and then I take them out of their drives, and let the HDD be recognised from that point and it boots from then on, but I have to have the floppy disk, and CD to hand each time I boot from 'cold', which is a real mess.