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hardware:systems:mikasa

AlphaServer 1000 (Mikasa)

AlphaServer 1000
Codename Mikasa, Mikasa-Primo
CPU 21064, 21064A (4/xxx); 21164, 21164A (5/xxx)
Processors 1
Core logic 21071/21072 (APECS) on 4/xxx, 21171 (CIA) on 5/xxx
Memory 16 MiB to 1 GiB, SIMMs in banks of five (4/266)
Buses 33 MHz PCI, EISA
Firmware SRM (last V5.4-101 on 4/xxx, V5.4-104 on 5/xxx), ARC; AlphaBIOS on 5/xxx
Kernel option CONFIG_ALPHA_MIKASA
Linux Supported (21164A models); others Linux 6.9 and earlier

The AlphaServer 1000 is a single-processor PCI/EISA server that Digital sold from November 1994, first with 21064 and 21064A CPUs (4/xxx models) and later with 21164 and 21164A CPUs (5/xxx models). 1) 2)

Specifications

The CPU is on a daughtercard, so the same enclosure was sold with 21064 and 21064A CPUs as the 4/200, 4/233 3), and 4/266 models 4) and later with 21164 and 21164A CPUs as the 5/xxx models. The 5/xxx models are Mikasa-Primo, also called Mikasa-Pinnacle, and use CIA core logic rather than the APECS of the 4/xxx models. 5) 6)

Except where noted, the following describes the 4/266 model. 7)

  • 266 MHz 21064A on an upgradable CPU daughtercard, with 8 KiB of serial ROM for power-up code
  • 2 MiB of direct-mapped, ECC protected level 2 cache on the daughtercard
  • 21071/21072 (APECS) core logic on EV4 models, 21171 (CIA) on the EV5 models
  • 128-bit ECC protected memory bus
  • 20 SIMM sockets in four banks of five (four data plus one for ECC), taking 16, 32, 64, 128, and 256 MiB modules, 16 MiB to 1 GiB total; all modules in a bank must be the same capacity, and bank 0 must be populated. Banks of different sizes can be mixed, with the larger SIMMs in bank 0 8), and third-party ECC SIMMs work in sets of five 9)
  • Three 33 MHz PCI slots 10)
  • Eight 8.33 MHz EISA/ISA slots, all bus master capable 11)
  • Onboard Cirrus SVGA controller 12), reported to be a Cirrus 5424 13)
  • Onboard NCR 53C810 Fast SCSI-2 controller with an external connector 14)
  • PCI-to-EISA bridge, Xbus for the real-time clock, NVRAM, FlashROM, and operator control panel
  • 1 MiB of FlashROM for firmware and diagnostics, 8 KiB of NVRAM for configuration
  • Bidirectional parallel port, two serial ports, floppy disk controller, keyboard and mouse interface, PC-style speaker
  • Wide-ready dual SCSI backplane and one internal BA350 StorageWorks shelf for up to seven 3.5-inch devices, plus 3.5-inch floppy, 5.25-inch CD-ROM, and an optional 5.25-inch tape bay
  • Optional redundant power supply
  • The onboard Cirrus VGA can be disabled by a jumper at the top left of the motherboard, not on the CPU daughtercard, and through the EISA Configuration Utility, in order to use another card. 15) 16)

Firmware

Use the final SRM version, V5.4-104 on the 5/xxx models (see final SRM versions and Updating firmware).

Linux

Current kernels support only the Mikasa-Primo models with EV56 (21164A) CPUs (CONFIG_ALPHA_MIKASA, or a generic kernel), which boot from SRM with aboot. The AlphaServer 1000 accepts EV56 CPU daughtercards, and the AlphaServer 1000A uses the same daughtercards; 17) the 5/333 and 5/400 models of both have a 21164A. 18) Linux 6.9 was the last version to support the 4/xxx models and the 5/300, which has a 300 MHz EV5 (21164); Linux 6.10 removed support for processors older than the EV56 (21164A), along with the EV4 machine vector mikasa_mv. 19) 20) 21)

  • Boot the Mikasa from the SRM console. 22)
  • The AlphaServer 1000 and 1000A (Noritake) deliver interrupts quite differently, so a kernel built for one platform does not run on the other. 23)
  • The onboard NCR 53C810 SCSI controller uses the sym53c8xx driver. 24) The cirrusfb framebuffer driver supports Zorro boards and PCI Cirrus chips from the GD5430 on, not the onboard GD5424. 25) 26)
  • For a serial console, see Using SRM.

Known issues

  • Weight: the pedestal system weighs 36 kg (80 lb) without disks and with one power supply, and up to 42 kg (93 lb) fully configured with two power supplies. 27)

History

The 4/200 arrived in November 1994. 28) Rackmount (RM) and cabinet (CAB) versions were announced at the same time, with the same CPU, memory, power supply, and I/O as the pedestal system but a different chassis with two PCI slots, seven EISA bus master slots, and one interleaved PCI/EISA slot. 29) The 4/233 was announced on 24 April 1995. 30) The 4/266 in turn replaced the 4/233 and raised the memory ceiling to 1 GiB. 31)

Documentation


2) "AlphaServer 1000 4/200 System", Customer Update, biz.digital.articles, 3 Nov 1994
5) "Re: kernel for mikasa", Jay Estabrook, axp-list, 19 Jan 1998
8) "SUMMARY: Mixing SIMMs of different densities on AlphaServer 1000", Phil Farrell, alpha-osf-managers, 23 Jul 1996
9) "SUMMARY: PC memory in Alpha 1000", Pulak Rakshit, alpha-osf-managers, 23 Jun 1997
17) "Re: which AlphaServers can I use", Jay Estabrook, axp-list, 30 Apr 1997
22) "Re: AlphaServer 1000 5/xxx isntall", Jay Estabrook, axp-list, 29 Jul 1999
28) "AlphaServer 1000 4/200 System", Customer Update, biz.digital.articles, 3 Nov 1994
29) "AlphaServer 1000 4/200 RM and CAB Systems", Customer Update, biz.digital.articles, 3 Nov 1994
30) "Press/Digital Speeds Up AlphaServer 1000 System", Digital Press and Analysts News, biz.digital.announce, 4 May 1995
31) "AlphaServer 1000 4/266 System", Customer Update, biz.digital.articles, 20 Oct 1995
hardware/systems/mikasa.txt · Last modified: by 127.0.0.1