[SunHELP] NVRAM weirdness

[s at avoidant.org]

Hichael Morton wrote:

> You will have to discuss this with Sun Microsystems and their Sun
> Education division since they are the ones handing out this information.
> 
> By the way, the SunEd instructor said that this will not fry your NVRAM!


I've unfortunately done it, though, and I can tell you it killed the
ram. OK, perhaps it wasn't technically "fried", as there was no oil
involved, but that chip would no longer boot a SPARC. A quote from the
NVRAM FAQ on replacing the chip:

---
Turn off the machine. Remove the old NVRAM chip after noting the
orientation. Insert the new NVRAM chip. Be sure to insert it in the
correct orientation, as installing it in the wrong orientation and
powering on the machine will generally destroy the chip. Power up the
machine and bring it to the "ok" prompt. At the "ok" prompt execute the
following
---

Also, from Sun
(http://docs.sun.com/htmlcoll/coll.690.1/iso-8859-1/SS2FIELDSVC/fsm.chapter4.html):

---
8. Insert the new boot PROM in the socket.

To do this, match the pin 1 indicator on the boot PROM with the
indicator on the socket. Holding the boot PROM at the edges, carefully
align the pins and insert the boot PROM in the socket. Note that
inserting the chip backwards will damage the chip.
---

I won't be taking it up with SunEd, but you might want to let them know
they're disseminating false information. Did someone pay for your class?
How would they (or you) feel about the instructors doing that?

It will damage the chip. Really.


---sambo