[rescue] sun3 memory tester?

[BSD Bob the old greybeard BSD freak]

> since I have salvaged a 4MB memory card from 
> another sun3/160 for my 3/160, the systems is 
> now a bit unstable. 
> Although all 12MB seem to be tested at startup, 
> no error was found yet, but I once had a panic 
> that seemed to point to memory error, and some 
> memory straining applications (like compiling gcc) 
> fail consistently with strange error messages.
> 
> So, does anyone know of a proper solution to 
> test the system's memory and actually find 
> possible errors?

If you bring it up in diagnostic mode, you can see it roll
a bunch of ram tests by, and that may help to isolate any
chip problems.  Diags go out serial A.

GCC will run out of memory quite easily.  12mb is
pushing it a bit in my hands.  VAX folks are complaining
about recent GCC bloat on their machines, too.  On a small
AIX1 box, I had to restart gcc and TeX compilations about
half a dozen times to get it to complete.  I am assuming it
was memory related.  The native compiler ran fine. GCC is
a bloat hog.

SunOS 4.1.1U1 is your friend.

GCC 1.4.2 or 2.5.8 are also your friend.  Hey, its old hardware
and the early compilers run fine for most things.  Why do you
really need GCC3.x on a Sun 3?

If the system is unstable, and you have been swapping cards,
carefully check the card vme connectors.  It is not uncommon
for corroded connections to make ram funky to play with.

The old connectors sometimes oxidize a bit or get dirty and
corroded (seat/unseat 5 times slowly to clean the contacts).
Make sure the cards are fully seated.

One should be careful and never slam the cards into the seat.
The pins are known to get bent (bad karma and hard to fix well).
(Been there, done that, etc., the hard way, cussing wildly.)
If the pins bend not too much, a needlenose plier will fix them.
If they get really creamed, you may break the pin trying to get
it straightened out... thus begetting harm of the nightmarish
kind.  (:+{{...

That is all I can think off offhand....

Good Luck.

Bob