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I've been working with IBM on a problem with a ThinkPad 760L and IBM
PCMCIA adapter connecting to our AS/400 - connection is via Unshielded
Twisted Pair cabling with baluns and a twinax hub. Connection would be
very intermittent - maybe one attempt out of 15 would work. Same
ThinkPad was taken to another site that had REAL boat anchor strength
twinax cable (the kind mom used to make back in the 70's !) and it
connected flawlessly every time.
With the past concerns & questions re Twinax connections using CA/400 I
thought I would post this APAR from IBM re CA/400 for Win95/NT (any
version) with Netsoft Router, UTP cabling/baluns and Twinax Hubs.
Note - the Status is CLOSED and code PRS means Permanent Restriction.
Item SA66465
APAR Identifier ...... SA66465 Last Changed..97/08/12
CA400WINOPT-COMM-NETSOFT-TDLC-RC=000000FD UNPREDICTABLE RESULTS
WITH TWINAX HUBS AND UTP
Symptom ...... UR UNPRED Status ........... CLOSED PRS
Severity ................... 3 Date Closed ......... 97/08/12
Component .......... 5763XD100 Duplicate of ........
Reported Release ......... 312 Fixed Release ............
Component Name 5763 CA400 WIN Special Notice
Current Target Date ..97/08/20 Flags
SCP ...................
Platform ............
Status Detail: APARCLOSURE - APAR is being closed.
ERROR DESCRIPTION:
If using:
A. Client Access for Windows 95/NT Client (V3R1M0, V3R1M1
and V3R1M2) -and-
B. Running on Windows 95 PC -and-
C. Using the NetSoft Router, Twinax link type and the VxD adap
adapter handlers (PDLWATV.VXD and VDNSWQ.VXD) -and-
D. With hardware connectivity to AS/400 via Unshielded Twisted
Pair (specifically, Unshielded Twisted Pair cabling with
baluns and some type of twinax patch panel or hub)
Unpredictable results may occur. This problem occurs on all PC
adapters, but is most prevalent on PCI bus types.
When making this connection, the Netsoft Router's Event
Event Log viewer may report one or more of the following
messages:
TWINAX-16 (any return code), or
RT000B return code 1C
The Twinax Adapter Handler pop up box may display 'Open
Twinax station failed and one of the following return codes:
000000FB or
000000FC or
000000FD.
LOCAL FIX:
Bypass the hub using real twinax cable.
PROBLEM SUMMARY:
If using:
A. Client Access for Windows 95 (V3R1M0, V3R1M1 or V3R1M2)
-and-
B. Running on Windows 95 PC
-and-
C. Using the NetSoft Router, Twinax link type and the VxD
adapter handlers (PDLWATV.VXD and VDNSWQ.VXD)
-and-
D. With hardware connectivity to AS/400 via Unshielded Twisted
Pair (specifically, Unshielded Twisted Pair cabling with
baluns and some type of twinax patch panel or hub)
Unpredictable results may occur. This problem occurs on all PC
Twianx adapters, but is most prevalent on PCI bus types.
When making this connection, the Netsoft Router's Event
Event Log viewer may report one or more of the following
messages:
TWINAX-16 (any return code), or
RT000B return code 1C
The Twinax Adapter Handler pop up box may display 'Open
Twinax station failed' and one of the following return codes:
000000FB or
000000FC or
000000FD.
PROBLEM CONCLUSION:
Per II10307, the return codes indicate a polling or address
checking problem. Client Access was written to the original
Twinax specification and is working as designed.
Since the connection will depend heavily on the hardware being
used, Client Access cannot guarantee that it will work on all
hardware (especially hardware that changes the definition of
Polling and Address Checking). Newer twinax hardware (patch
panels etc.) change the polling and address checking.
The current Adapter Handlers for using in Windows 95 will not be
changed to support these various definitions. But, Client
Access is working on replacing these adapter handlers in future
releases with a newer adapter handler that should be more
tolerant of the different hardware specifications.
Until that newer version is released, a version of the current
VxD adapter handler will be made available that turns off
address checking and waits longer for Polls. Using this version
of the VxD adapter handler could result in Workstation Address
conflicts. In addition, this version of the VxD Adaptor handler
still may not resolve the problem. This version is available
"AS-IS" and may not be serviced nor updated. Obtain this VxD
from the following internet FTP site: ftp.software.ibm.com in
directory
/as400/products/clientaccess/win32/v3r1m2/files/twinax
The files are PDLWATWV.VXD and README.TXT.
Local Fix Options:
1. Use VxD adapter which turns off address checking
2. Use real Twinax cabling.
3. Wait for future Mod level of CA/400 for Windows 95/NT
client which will include support for UTP/Hubs
CIRCUMVENTION:
Use real Twinax cabling and no Hubs.
--
... Neil Palmer AS/400~~~~~
... NxTrend Technology -Canada ____________ ___ ~
... Markham, Ontario, Canada |OOOOOOOOOO| ________ o|__||=
... Phone: (905) 731-9000 x238 |__________|_|______|_|______)
... url:http://www.NxTrend.com oo oo oo oo OOOo=o\
... mailto:NPalmer@NxTrend.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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