[vox-tech] Demo machine motherboard doesn't like > 64 Gig drives

[vox-tech@lists.lugod.org]

  There is another interesting bug in the BIOS on the demo machine
motherboard BIOS.  It appears to lock solid if you attempt to 
configure a drive over 64Gig in size.  I think the problem 
is when it goes to calculate the size for display purposes
the BIOS program crashes.  If you auto-detect a large drive 
it attempts to display the values it found on a second screen,
but the application locks solid.  When you manually enter drive 
fields it calculates the size from the geometry as you enter it, 
as soon as it gets too big the program locks up.

  Fortunately you can set the drive to "auto" and at boot time
the drive is detected, but this chunk of the BIOS program doesn't
lock up so the machine can continue to boot.

  Interestingly if you don't allow the BIOS to detect the drive
at all, the motherboard will refuse to do and kind of DMA transfers
with the drive... so "hdparm -d 1" results in a few bus resets.

    TTFN,
      Mike

ps:
  Yes talking about IDE, and it is related to my hard drive problems 
of April 1, and the cheap hard drives at Fry's from last week.  :)

pps:
  the machine only has one DIMM slot occupied.  the SCSI drive is
a full height 3.5" drive, there mounting space available for one
half height 3.5", and two half height(*) 5.25" drives.

*: I'm not totally sure it's called "half height", whatever current
   standard 5.25" stuff comes in nowerdays.