Have USBCtrl to work without a GUI

[astrofra]

As a new Sam's user (Sam460cr, AmigaOS4.1FE), I discovered what seems to be a long standing issue : the USB (mouse & keyboard) doesn't always work, at the end of the startup, when the Workbench shows up.
A common workaround seems to be the USBCtrl command, that allows the user to restart the USB stack (or so it seems) :

Code: Select all

USBCtrl RESTART FORCE

However, I experienced one little inconvenience with USBCtrl : even with the option "RESTART FORCE", the command opens a GUI dialog that requires the mouse to confirm.
That's the paradox here : I need the mouse to restart the USB stack & re-enable the mouse



1. is this the correct behavior ? Is USBCtrl RESTART FORCE supposed to open a dialog window ?
2. if this is the correct behavior, may I suggest an additionnal option, like "NODIALOG" or "QUIET", that restarts the USB Stack without asking the user to interact with any of the input devices.

[djrikki]

Thought it was just me with this dodgy behaviour, glad to know I am in good company. Yes a fix or a workaround (preferably the former) would be great news.

[salass00]

That's the paradox here : I need the mouse to restart the USB stack & re-enable the mouse

You can simulate a mouse via keyboard by holding down either amiga key. With an amiga key held down the cursor keys will move the mouse pointer and left and right alt keys will work the same as left and right mouse buttons. This is a really old feature of AmigaOS.

[astrofra]

Hehe, the Amiga is all about creativity and, yes, that includes the workarounds we have to find when we stumble on a bug.
The (recurring) issue here is : "the Sam doesn't mount the USB devices when it is switched on", so I'm unsure the keyboard would help
Thanks anyway.

[nbache]

The (recurring) issue here is : "the Sam doesn't mount the USB devices when it is switched on", so I'm unsure the keyboard would help

If your keyboard didn't work, how did you enter the USBCtrl command in the first place?

BTW, there's also the left Amiga+B/V shortcut to acknowledge rsp. decline a two-button requester; I forget which is which, but WBHelp will tell you.

Best regards,

Niels

[thomasrapp]

I forget which is which

It's the obvious: the left key (v) is for the left button and the right key (b) is for the right button.

[astrofra]

how did you enter the USBCtrl command in the first place?

Hi

It this scenario (== the machine is switched on, boots, and the workbench appears with no keyboard/mouse), UBSCtrl is invoked from the startup-sequence.
Supposedly, this is a workaround to an issue that occurs on the Sam440 and Sam460 (according to the reports of several users)

[nbache]

UBSCtrl is invoked from the startup-sequence.

Ah, I see. The standard S-S just issues a USBCtrl START, which shouldn't produce such a requester (I think). Having the RESTART as a workaround for that situation with no working USB is probably useless, as you also observe.

My experience is that if it happens, I have to shut down the Sam (440ep or 460ex) completely - power off, wait, power on - to make it work again.

But it happens quite rarely on mine, so I could be wrong.

Best regards,

Niels

[astrofra]

Ok
Is there any standard procedure to "close/reject" a feature request, then, if you think the request is not relevant ?

Edit :
I confirm that "USBCtrl restart" is a valid workaround to my USB problem :

1. first boot, the USB mouse works properly. I reboot using the shell cmd : reboot fast
2. second boot, the USB mouse still works. I reboot once again.
3. third boot, the USB mouse is disabled, the cursor won't move. Using Synergy (that starts automatically on my Sam), I'm still able to control the machine and do a "USBCtrl Restart". The dialog box mentionned above appears, and after I clicked on "Yes" my USB mouse is back.

[nbache]

Ok
Is there any standard procedure to "close/reject" a feature request, then, if you think the request is not relevant ?

Don't worry about that, it's not that formal here.

Also, I'm not a "judge" who can reject your proposal.

3. third boot, the USB mouse is disabled, the cursor won't move. Using Synergy (that starts automatically on my Sam), I'm still able to control the machine and do a "USBCtrl Restart". The dialog box mentionned above appears, and after I clicked on "Yes" my USB mouse is back.

Ah, Synergy, useful trick. Never tried that.

But if that works, in principle it could also be useful (for people without Synergy or extra computers, for instance) to be able to tell USBCtrl RESTART to force the restart, avoiding the need for manual feedback.

Although that would require having a USBCtrl RESTART in your startup to be executed at every boot - I'm not sure if that is a good idea?

Best regards,

Niels