X-Surf internet connection

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Hotblack
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 10, 2016 8:22 pm

X-Surf internet connection

Post by Hotblack »

Trying to get my A4000 online. I have an old X-Surf Zorro board that worked fine under OS3.9 even though after a redicolous complicated setup. I thought that OS4.1 would have offered some 2016 easiness, but it seems like it is just as impossible as before. I use wizard and manage to load the X-Surf.device, and by that I can right click and search for OS updates, and I get the info that there is an update available, so something is right, but as soon as I start to download I get an unconditional system freeze. Same goes with trying a´ny browser included as standard in OS4.1. Google is found, but as soon as I search (receive any data i presume) I get that freeze again. So pinging out seems to be fine, but as soon as receiving anything, OS freezes up.

I have tried to connect directly to my router, and notice that only the yellow network light is active and never the green. When connecting to a Netgear WiFi extender or secondary router, the Amiga is not listed as connected at all.

Here is my A4000 setup:

A4000D, Max onboardRAM, Cyberstorm PPC 233Mhz, 256MB RAM, A4000 FastATA, SDD discs, X-Surf2
100Mbit fiber Internet connection (Ownit) no login, just plug right into the routher (for all other devices if not using WiFi

Any help here is highly appreciated, since there seems not to be any manuals at all for OS4 anywhere.

BR/Hotblack
duga
Posts: 56
Joined: Wed May 27, 2015 7:11 am

Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by duga »

Hotblack wrote:
I have tried to connect directly to my router, and notice that only the yellow network light is active and never the green. When connecting to a Netgear WiFi extender or secondary router, the Amiga is not listed as connected at all.

BR/Hotblack
Yellow LED usually means 10 Mbit (instead of 100 or 1000 Mbit) which is as expected.

I'm pretty sure the documentation for Roadshow is somewhere on your OS 4.1 FE CD or already on your SYS: partition.
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thomasrapp
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Joined: Sat Jun 18, 2011 11:22 pm

Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by thomasrapp »

X-Surf is a 10 mBit NIC, so yellow light is ok.

xsurf.device does not work reliably on OS4. There is a file called xsurfpatch.lha somewhere out there on the net. It patches ariadneii.device to become an x-surf driver. It was made for MorphOS, but should also work on OS4. At least it does for me and my X-Surf 1.
Hotblack
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Joined: Sat Sep 10, 2016 8:22 pm

Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by Hotblack »

Thanks both of you.

I will roam the CD and see what i can find, and also see if I can get hold of that Adrianne device.

One small comment though regrding connectivity lights. The green light will never ever be on? If I connect any other device "PC" I get the green light instantly, and I remember getting that when connecting the A4000 before under OS3.9

I will get back on progress.

Cheers
Hotblack
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Sep 10, 2016 8:22 pm

Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by Hotblack »

Hi again.

Couldn't find readable documentation. Just a bunch of complicated text files, that really does not help me, as a no programmer or AOS developer. Poor material to say the least.

But I eventually found a thread about device drivers, and got mine updated to the latest one created after Timberwolf got released to a usable level. So after installing the I'm on the net, and that is great and half way there.

It is slow like h_ll but a learned about Roadshow. Unfortunately it is also extremely fiddly to get in place as I understand it. Has anyone of you managed to get it working?

Lastly, I would like to try Timberwolf, but the only lha there is to find is on OS4 Depot and that is not including all the catalogs needed and mentioned in the install instructions like S, Libs, Fonts and so on. Also there is this illusive random.device that should be in Storage/Devs/ but it is not in OS4.1 (not on the CD either). As i seen on pictures it in shown as an eight ball icon, but even when "show all" it is just not the even without icon.

Again, very thankful for input from you that when before me and I will follow in you footsteps :)

Thanks for everything so far.

Hotblack
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tonyw
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Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by tonyw »

It is slow like h_ll but a learned about Roadshow. Unfortunately it is also extremely fiddly to get in place as I understand it. Has anyone of you managed to get it working?
Are you saying Roadshow is slow? It probably is on a 233 MHz CPU, but that's the best you'll get running on Classic hardware with a 10 Mb NIC.
Lastly, I would like to try Timberwolf, but the only lha there is to find is on OS4 Depot and that is not including all the catalogs needed and mentioned in the install instructions like S, Libs, Fonts and so on.
The version of Timberwolf on OS4Depot is complete. You have to unpack it somewhere and run the included installer, which will fill in all the libs and SObjs for you. But it's a big program, written for fast Linux boxen and ported to AmigaOS, so don't expect a speedy result. You'll be better off with IBrowse.
Also there is this illusive random.device that should be in Storage/Devs/ but it is not in OS4.1 (not on the CD either). As i seen on pictures it in shown as an eight ball icon, but even when "show all" it is just not the even without icon.
Dunno about the Classic ISO. I haven't downloaded it so I don't know whether the Random device is there or not - perhaps DarrenHD can answer that one. It should be in Devs/DOSDrivers and is merely an 89-byte ASCII script that references L:Random-handler. If it's not there, you could make up an ASCII file with these contents:

Handler = L:Random-Handler
Priority = 5
StackSize = 4096
GlobVec = -1
Startup = 0

That's all it is. Paste that into a file and save it as Devs/DOSDrivers/Random (you can copy and rename the icon from any of the others in that drawer).
cheers
tony
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nbache
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Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by nbache »

tonyw wrote:Dunno about the Classic ISO. I haven't downloaded it so I don't know whether the Random device is there or not
On the 4.1 FE Classic ISO it is there in Devs/DOSDrivers. On the original 4.1 Classic ISO (4.1 update 2), it is in Storage/DOSDrivers and needs to be moved to Devs/DOSDrivers to be activated.

In both cases it comes with the 8-ball icon.

Best regards,

Niels
Gregor
Posts: 103
Joined: Thu Sep 08, 2011 10:44 am

Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by Gregor »

thomasrapp wrote:...
xsurf.device does not work reliably on OS4. There is a file called xsurfpatch.lha somewhere out there on the net. It patches ariadneii.device to become an x-surf driver. It was made for MorphOS, but should also work on OS4. At least it does for me and my X-Surf 1.
That information is not anymore up-to-date... Individual Computers made a fixed version of the xsurf.device already in 2013, and it works also with 4.1 (this is mentioned also in the faq file of 4.1). It is downloadable from their site. So, no need to use the patched ariadne.device anymore.

I have used this new xsurf.device since it's release with X-Surf 2c and OS 4.1.6 without any issues.

Regards,

Gregor
Hotblack
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Joined: Sat Sep 10, 2016 8:22 pm

Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by Hotblack »

First of all. Thanks everyone for helping me out. Great support and community spririt.

You all have valid and helpful points. I learn everyday, like I think I saw that I'm most likely already running the Roadshow stack. Didnt know :) And yes it is even okay that it is not effecting any speed at my end. Most likely the bottle neck here is the card itself and not the stack. You are right, and secondly, if I wanted to surf with speed, I can use whatever platform I got. This is after all just for fun and to find out where the outer limit is for my A4000.

Then when it comes to the x-surf.device, I'm happy to hear that I do not have to fiddle with that no more, and that the 1.4 version should do it, and it seems to.

Timberwolf is a bit tricky to get onborad though since I cannot load it via the A4000. I always get a corrupred file when I download it via the only browser I have (OW or whatever its called). I cannot mail it even though i have a somewhat okay working Easy mail (to big of a file), so tonigth I will burn it to CD and get it in that way. Lets see if i get all folders that way.

Still I cannot find the random.device on the AOS4.1 FE DVD. It's for sure not on the specified folder, but will continue to search for it in all folders after getting Timberwolf in.

Once again, thanks :)

BR/Linus
duga
Posts: 56
Joined: Wed May 27, 2015 7:11 am

Re: X-Surf internet connection

Post by duga »

I suggest you forget Timberwolf and use Odyssey instead.
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