Hi, newbie here, getting confused with non-ibm compatible hardware.
I've just purchased a headless sun sparc 10 running redhat. Unfortunatly, networking has not been configured on this box, I've been told I need to establish a serial connection between the sun box and my windows laptop, from here I can configure networking and then proceed to add it to my LAN.
I've done some reading around and have found out that the DB25 port on the back of the sparc contains both serial A and B ports. (please stop me if this all goes wrong).
My laptop doesn't have a DB9 serial port but it does have a DB25 printer port. To my brain, it would seem logical to buy a male DB25 --> male DB25 cable and connect the two that way, however, the world doesn't always follow my brains logic, especially after reading this. (http://www.justlinux.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=104770&highlight=sparc+null+modem)
My question thefore is this, what hardware do I need to connect my laptop and new sun sparc station? Do I need to buy a null modem converter, a usb --> DB9 etc...
Thanks in advance, The Others
Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379
07-30-2003, 09:56 PM
Though you have a DB25 connector on your parallel port, it's not the same as a DB25 serial port. They're wired differently, and would be incompatible no matter what you did.
If you're laptop doesn't have a serial port, you're going to be out of luck. What I would recommend is trying to find a 13W3 -> SVGA monitor adapter, so you can use a regular monitor with a Sun machine. Or, you could buy a Sun monitor, but unless you can get one locally, S&H would cost more than what you'll pay for the thing.
Basically, unless you have a machine that does have a serial port, you''ll need some type of monitor for the system.
The Others
07-31-2003, 12:30 PM
Thanks for your help, I was worried you might say that.
Should I go ahead and buy a USB to DB9 adapter? This, I guess, would then require a DB9 --> DB25 cable?
Thanks again, I'd be pretty lost without some one pointing me in the right direction.
Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379
07-31-2003, 10:21 PM
I'm not really sure if that adapter would even help. If you have some type of software that allows you to use your USB port like a serial port, you may be in luck. Otherwise, I don't think that you'll be able to do anything using a USB -> serial converter.
I would look to see if you could find a PCMCIA serial card like this model (http://www.pc-card.com/product.cfm?productid=179). I think you'd be needing an RS-232 serial connection, but I'm not sure, as I'm not that familiar with serial I/O connections.
If you had this card, I'm pretty sure you could make this thing go with your laptop. I just didn't think about it earlier...
<edit> That is just one card I found from this list (http://www.pc-card.com/list.cfm?category=prodz_403). Hopefully one should work in your situation.
The Others
08-01-2003, 09:25 AM
Hi, thanks again,
This sure is turning into a can of worms, not what I had hoped for at all, I think next time I'll ask the supplier to enable DHCP...
Until then though, I'm going to give a usb - serial port device a go (unless advised otherwise before I make an order). The windows software that comes with them emulates a com port, is this what I want?
Then, hopefully, with a cable and some fiddling in hyperterm (after much reading) I'll have it going. I'm even quite looking forward to it, windows hasn't graced my laptop for some time now, it just sits, waiting.
Thanks,
Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379
08-01-2003, 10:14 PM
If the adapter's software can emulate a COM port, then you should be okay. But, personally I would look into the PCMCIA solution for your laptop. I haven't priced them, though, so maybe a USB adapter might be cheaper than the PCMCIA adapter. But, I would think that the PCMCIA card would be more versatile, as it might have better support under Linux or other non-Windows operating systems.
But, if Windows is all you're going to use it with, I'd say go for it if you know it'll work.
The Others
08-02-2003, 07:13 AM
Hi, again, thanks for your help,
I looked at the PCMCIA serial card links you gave and considered them, however, I decided this was only a temporary solution, once I can serial in I hope to get the ethernet port working on it. Therfore, I thought I'd go with the cheaper, if not so good option.
With the laptop end of the connection sorted I trekked to my nearest PC store (which was a long way through trafic on a very hot day :( ), to be greated with blank stares when I described my problem They suggested www.maplin.co.uk
With this connector and the abve cable, will I finally be free to enjoy my Sun?
[/quick edit]
The Others
08-02-2003, 11:14 AM
Here's another I found,
http://store3.yimg.com/I/xrite_1748_2317569.jpg
http://store.xrite.com/serialcablekit2.html
To my eyes it looks similar to the one above, however, it costs an amazing $70! So I think I'll be going with the maplin.co.uk one.
What caught my eye about this was:
for models DTP22, XRC-DS, XRC-DSM, XRC-DSX, XRC-DSMX, XRC-MO, XRC-M/M, or XRC-M/W on Macintosh®, Windows®, PC and Sun Sparc® computers
That sounds like what I need, but not at that price, I can't see how the maplin one can be any different. I'll wait for a second opinion though before I splash the cash; I'm a student, so I'm always against spending.
Cheers,
RWiggum
08-02-2003, 11:51 AM
You're not going to have any success with cable adapters on your laptop's 25-pin parallel port. The adapters you've shown are for converting 25-pin serial connections to 9-pin serial connections. You're confusing 25-pin parallel with 25-pin serial. The communication protocols are completely different, as well as the controlling hardware working behind the ports. Even if you find a way to physically connect the parallel port on your laptop to the serial port on your Sparc, it's not going to work.
Your cheapest solution is the 13W3 -> VGA adapter that Alex mentioned earlier. Check out eBay:
Just be sure to get the genders correct. There are adapters that enable you to use a 13W3 monitor on a PC, but you want one that allows use of a PC monitor on a Sparc. Hook up a PC monitor, configure your Sparc, then you can connect via ethernet after that, and you don't ever have to bother with serial.
The Others
08-02-2003, 02:52 PM
Originally posted by RWiggum
You're not going to have any success with cable adapters on your laptop's 25-pin parallel port. The adapters you've shown are for converting 25-pin serial connections to 9-pin serial connections. You're confusing 25-pin parallel with 25-pin serial. The communication protocols are completely different, as well as the controlling hardware working behind the ports. Even if you find a way to physically connect the parallel port on your laptop to the serial port on your Sparc, it's not going to work.
Thanks, but don't worry, I'm not getting confused. If you read above, I plan to connect a DB9 --> DB25 with a cable, both ports on both PC's being serial. Sure, my laptop doesn't have a serial port at the moment, but that is why I'm buying a USB --> serial adapter, with com port emulating software.
;)
garskoci
08-02-2003, 03:34 PM
This is worth a read.
http://www.obsolyte.com/sunFAQ/serial/
The Others
08-02-2003, 03:54 PM
Fantastic! Thanks a lot, I'm sure that will be very helpful. The only irrelevant details were the ones concerning the sun OS, as I will be using RH, apart from that though it was great.
I was on the obsolyte page earlier actually, looking at bits and pieces, as luck would have it, I missed the most helpful part! Thanks for pointing it out.
I managed to bodge together a free cable today with some stuff I scavenged long and hard for, it might work, if not I'll follow the null modem wiring instructions on obsolyte. The problem is I can't remember if the donar cable I used was a null modem to start with. All I need is a gender changer, which I'll have to buy somewhere, on sunday, the no-shops-open-day, and it'll all fit together.
I would buy a monitor adapter and keyboad and mouse, but it's much cheaper (if a little harder) to use a serial terminal, especially as I only plan to do it once.
thanks again y'all.
Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379
08-02-2003, 09:08 PM
Originally posted by The Others
Fantastic! Thanks a lot, I'm sure that will be very helpful. The only irrelevant details were the ones concerning the sun OS, as I will be using RH, apart from that though it was great.
Red Hat isn't supported on Sparc machines anymore. Your best bet would be to run Debian. Your hardware support will be great on it, as the last version of Red Hat for Sparc was version 6.2. Debian, on the other hand, releases a version for Sparc every time they release a new version.
But, your idea with the USB serial adapter and a null modem cable is a good idea. The first link you showed would work just fine, as it seemed to be a proper null modem cable. You'll just have to make sure you get a DB9-> DB25 setup.
If you already have a serial cable, you can just buy a null modem adapter. They look like those gender changers you showed above, but you can get them in DB9->DB25 configurations. I wouldn't imagine they'd cost more than $10 US online...
The Others
08-02-2003, 09:54 PM
Originally posted by Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379
Red Hat isn't supported on Sparc machines anymore. Your best bet would be to run Debian. Your hardware support will be great on it, as the last version of Red Hat for Sparc was version 6.2. Debian, on the other hand, releases a version for Sparc every time they release a new version.
This is all I know about the system, a similar one to the product I purchased:
I guess it was, therfore, running Red Hat version 6.2. I'll be able to tell you if I ever get the thing running ;)
So yeah, I need a gender changer and a null modem adapter to fiddle with some of the cables. If I want to use my laptop to do the connection I'll need a usb converter, hopefully though I'll be able to borrow a desktop machine quickly (I'll have to be very quick though).
Anyway, thanks y'all, I'm off to bed now, I've been locked in a pub too long and the thought of sun serial networking is making me feel ill. Tommorrow I shall make some orders and be happy!
Until next time I need help (don't worry, i'll post to this thread again ;) ), peace out and be happy,
T.O )(
The Others
04-14-2004, 12:31 PM
Long time no post.
I forgot about the sun under my bed. Bored today, I hacksawed up a cable and got the beast working.
I'm following some tips from here: http://www.justlinux.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=104770
and redhat is presently booting. Fingers crossed :)
edit: reached the redhat 6.2 login prompt with no major problems. Unfortunatly I don't know the username/pass needed. I've sent an email to the guy who installed redhat. Ho hum...
The Others
04-14-2004, 07:16 PM
I've now logged into redhat 6.2
I tried doing an instal of debian but the machine refused to boot from the floppy. This was no surprise, and is something I'll follow up later if I can't get redhat working.
Inside redhat I ran ifup eth0 and pump - this got me net access.
I then determined, using rpm -qa | grep ftp, that I had no FTP server and tried to get one off rpmfind.net using lynx. This is where I failed. Lynx worked great and I was searching around without a problem; looking for proftpd. Thing is though, I couldn't find it for my sparc. Looking round proftp.org also gave no results. I can find RPMs for the i386 architecture, but no mine.
I also plan to install a ssh or telnet server. Security is not an issue, as it will only be serving my housemates, i just want to be able to use the box without bothering with a null modem connection.
Can anyone help me out? I just need a someone to point me in the right direction. Many thanks, again, :)
EnigmaOne
04-14-2004, 07:42 PM
There *is* a Linux distro specifically for the SPARC architecture. I downloaded it for the SPARC 10 workstation I had last year, but then forgot about it after the drives in the Sun disintegrated.
I pitched the whole thing, including the 90 lb monitor, into the trash bin...in total agreement with my wife's observation that we don't have room for things like that. (That, and not all Sun/Sony 13W3 input-equipped monitors can be made to work from standard HD15 outputs.)
You might want to check out the AuroraLinux project at either of these locations:
ftp://kickstart.linux.ncsu.edu/pub/aurora/build-1.0/en/iso/MD5SUMS
ftp://kickstart.linux.ncsu.edu/pub/aurora/build-1.0/en/iso/aurora-1.0-sparc-disc1.iso
ftp://kickstart.linux.ncsu.edu/pub/aurora/build-1.0/en/iso/aurora-1.0-sparc-disc2.iso
ftp://kickstart.linux.ncsu.edu/pub/aurora/build-1.0/en/iso/aurora-1.0-sparc-disc3.iso
ftp://kickstart.linux.ncsu.edu/pub/aurora/build-1.0/en/iso/aurora-1.0-sparc-disc4.iso
ftp://kickstart.linux.ncsu.edu/pub/aurora/build-1.0/en/iso/aurora-1.0-sparc-disc5.iso
I'm going to give another floppy disk a go (if I can find one of those antiques) and hopefully get Debian working. Of course, I'll check out this new development at the same time. Thanks again,
EnigmaOne
04-14-2004, 07:54 PM
No reading there.
Just 5 .isos and the message digest.
If you want to read about the project, this is the place to do it:
http://www.auroralinux.org/
(which I should have mentioned before).
It's my understanding that you won't be able to make the Debian offerings fly on the SPARC, unless they've done something radical in the past year. Aurora and one other project (the name of which escapes me now) were the only ones that would not be a waste of your time.
The Others
04-15-2004, 07:36 AM
I looked into aurora linux but it wants to be installed from a TFTP server on my network - this is something I don't have. I was pleased by debian because the boot floppy should cause the machine to access the net and download the rewuired packages straight from them. This has the added bonus of only downloading the few components I want, not the whole lot onto my LAN.
I'm a little annoyed by redhat 6.2, I know it's ancient, but, I expected there to be a FTP server installed on it. I thought I was just going to have to uncomment one line somewhere and it would work. This server isn't going to be on the internet, or face a lot of use and abuse, so I don't need a bleeding edge distro. I just want something that works - as easily as possible.
Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379
04-15-2004, 03:43 PM
Does the unit have a CD-ROM drive?
I installed Debian Woody from a 7 disc CD set ony my SS5. It runs great! That was 2 years ago, and I haven't reinstalled since-- only done upgrades. :cool:
The Others
04-15-2004, 07:44 PM
Originally posted by Alex Cavnar, aka alc6379
Does the unit have a CD-ROM drive?
Unfortunatly, no. I'm running a floppy only system.
I hoped to boot from the floppy and download only the components I need, (ftp server), but, I was without success.
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