SUMMARY Addition: Can a Sparcstation SLC have more than 16 Mbytes?

From: dan@BBN.COM
Date: Thu Jan 02 1992 - 09:14:39 CST


I got one response after I sent my previous summary of the answers to
this question, which said that it *was* possible to boost the total
RAM of an SLC, by replacing the 1-Mbyte SIMMs with 2-Mbyte SIMMs. I
did not post it immediately since it contradicted all other
respondents, but discussed it in more detail. Herewith (a bit late)
the relevant messages from our exchanges.

  From: Wilson N G <noel@essex.ac.uk>
  Date: Mon, 16 Dec 91 09:56:09 GMT
  Message-Id: <8100.9112160956@sersun0.essex.ac.uk>
  To: dan@BBN.COM
  Subject: Re: Can a Sparcstation SLC have more than 16 Mbytes?
  
  Sorry, it's a month or two since I looked at an SLC - I remembered 8 slots.
  You must already have the 1M x 36 SIMMs and therefore need the 2M x 36 ones
  each of which gives you 8Mb, hence 32Mb in total. Micron's # is MT24D236.

I asked whether noel had tried it:

  From: Wilson N G <noel@essex.ac.uk>
  Date: Tue, 17 Dec 91 09:49:59 GMT
  Message-Id: <12722.9112170949@sersun0.essex.ac.uk>
  To: dan@BBN.COM
  Subject: Re: Can a Sparcstation SLC have more than 16 Mbytes?
  
  No, I must admit that I haven't. I am certainly inclined to believe that it
  would work, however, since as I understand it the proms determine simm sizes
  by trial and error (put a pattern in consecutive addresses and search for it
  at higher addresses; when it reappears, you've just wrapped). See if anyone
  will sell you the SIMMs on a trial basis; they would have a vested interest
  in finding out for themselves, since they could sell quite a few to people
  in your position of being faced with a machine change if they don't work.
  I'm not sure if Micron sell direct or not; they would be worth ringing since
  they might be cooperative, or at least would give you names of distributors.
  Let me know how you get on.

Unfortunately I don't have the time to try something no one else has
attempted (particularly since our particular SLC is heavily used
virtually 24 hours/day). But if anyone else would like to try it, I
would be very interested in the results. If anyone else knows for
certain that this won't work (and why), that would be interesting
information as well.

        Dan Franklin
        dfranklin@bbn.com



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