[rescue] VAXstation questions

[Dave McGuire]

On Tuesday, May 13, 2003, at 02:48 PM, Curtis H. Wilbar Jr. wrote:
> Well, it may be all for nothing.... the poor little thing doesn't seem
> live anymore....
>
> The power supply spins the fan, but no activity on the 25 pin serial 
> port
> ....  It has been sitting for a minute or more now with no activity on
> the console.
>
> <sigh>.... any ideas, or is this thing probably toast ?

   Well, if it's a VAXstation-2000 as opposed to a MicroVAX-2000 
(they're almost identical) then it'll try to come up on the framebuffer 
& keyboard.  There's a jumper on the CPU board which tells it to come 
up with a serial console, but it's been probably 12 years since I've 
been inside one so I don't recall offhand exactly where it is.

> Seems I'm good at getting toasted stuff....

   Don't give up yet.  These machines, unlike PeeCees, are damn near 
indestructible.  Seriously.  I've literally gotten MicroVAX-3100s out 
of *mud puddles* at a surplus yard and had them work just fine.

> Won 10 "untested" slot 1 procs on ebay.... all 10 bad... way overpaid.
> Trying to work something out with the seller, as it is clear I paid
> working proc prices for a lot that turned up all dead (this is not a
> seller who generally sells untested parts)... I'm hoping we can work
> something out, as I bought the stuff to resell to help make a mortgage
> payment (currently unemployed)... and now not only am I out that 
> potential
> profit, I'm out almost $400.... ARG !

   On eBay, it seems "untested" means "bad". :-(  But then, with x86 
processors, you're probably getting a more useful product than if they 
were functional.

         -Dave

--
Dave McGuire                "They live deeply, these vagabonds."
St. Petersburg, FL                            -Goro