========================================================================== The checksum's (found through sum -r) of the files that you have received (other than this README) are as follows: 20758 1 patchSG0000466 64466 374 patchSG0000466.eoe1_sw 29768 3 patchSG0000466.idb ========================================================================== - 1 - 1. Patch_SG0000466_Release_Note This release note describes patch SG0000466 to IRIX 5.2, 5.3, and 6.0.1 and all variations of these releases. 1.1 Supported_Hardware_Platforms All platforms. 1.2 Bugs_Fixed_by_Patch_SG0000466 This patch installs new firmware in certain models of disk drives, to reduce the chance of stiction (heads sticking to the media) occurring. The firmware is downloaded during the exitop phase of the patch install, and takes about 15 seconds per affected drive. A message is displayed as each drive has firmware downloaded, but the IRIX 5.3 inst will normally hide these messages, and even at increased verbosity only shows the message after the operation completes. The firmware is only downloaded once per drive, and then never again. For systems with large numbers of the affected drives, it could take up to an hour for the exitop phase to run. It is extremely important that power not be turned off on either the disk drive or the system during the firmware download process. Additionally, for drives susceptible to this problem, the drives will be issued a "cleaning cycle" command when the system is shutdown, in order to initiate a sequence to further reduce the incidence of stiction. This will slow system shutdown somewhat, typically by less than 45 seconds for desktop systems, but up to several minutes, for systems with tens or hundreds of the affected disk drives. On each system boot, all drives are scanned to see if new drives have been installed that require a firmware download. If so, a warning message is printed, but no new firmware is loaded automatically. To actually download new firmware after the patch is installed, shut the system down, boot it up to single user mode, and give the command: /sbin/diskpatch -D This patch also adds an additional entry to the root crontab, that runs a sequence similar to system shutdown twice a week, at 2:45 AM, on Sunday and Thursday mornings. This may cause problems at sites that require fast or continuous access to all disks (without delays) during the night. Commands issued to the affected disk drives during the cleaning cycle will be delayed for the duration of the cycle (up to several minutes). - 2 - Sites where this is a problem may wish to comment out this command sequence. If so, it is recommended that the command sequence be run manually at least once a week, and preferably twice a week, unless the system is shut down, and the drives powered off at least once a week. The command that should be used to run the cycle manually is: /sbin/diskpatch -FH30 -S11 The crontab entry may be removed via the use of the crontab command. See the crontab man page for more information Note: a version of the program is available for systems running versions of IRIX 4.0.5. It is not part of this patch. Contact your SGI Support provider if you need this version. The 4.0.5 version can not be used on disk drives that are otherwise in use, and therefore can never be used on the system drive, and must be used in single user mode for other disk drives. 1.3 Subsystems_Included_in_Patch_SG0000466 This patch release includes these subsystems: o patchSG0000466.eoe1_sw.unix 1.4 Installation_Instructions Because you want to install only the patches for problems you have encountered, patch software is not installed by default. After reading the descriptions of the bugs fixed in this patch (see Section 1.3), determine the patches that meet your specific needs. If, after reading Sections 1.1 and 1.2 of these release notes, you are unsure whether your hardware and software meet the requirements for installing a particular patch, run inst. Patch software is installed like any other Silicon Graphics software product. Follow these steps to select a patch for installation: 1. At the Inst>prompt, type - 3 - install patchSGxxxxxxx where xxxxxxx is the patch number. 2. Select the desired patches for installation. 3. Initiate the installation sequence. Type Inst> go 4. You may find that two patches have been marked as incompatible. If this occurs, you must deselect one of the patches. Inst> keep patchSGxxxxxxx where xxxxxxx is the patch number. 5. After completing the installation process, exit the inst program by typing Inst> quit To remove a patch, use the versions remove command as you would for any other software subsystem. The removal process reinstates the original version of software unless you have specifically removed the patch history from your system. versions remove patchSGxxxxxxx where xxxxxxx is the patch number. To keep a patch but increase your disk space, use the versions removehist command to remove the patch history. versions removehist patchSGxxxxxxx where xxxxxxx is the patch number.