Did I brick my CFFA3000?
Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 7:42 am
I have two CFFA3000 cards - bought at different times (one directly from Dreher.net and one from eBay when the runs weren't in production). I've had installing them in my Apple IIs in my "to do" project list for some time, and over the holidays I finally had some time to get them installed. I have an Apple IIe and a IIGS. I started with the IIGS, and plugged the cards in. Since this is a new experience for me, both cards came up perfectly on startup and after I worked out the slot configuration, etc. I was able to use both cards. The older one of the two had Firmware 3.0 and the newer one has Firmware 3.0.2 on it.
I started with the older card and managed to import two 5 1/4" disks into it and worked great. Then I started to import a bunch of copy protected disks and failed pretty much on every one. Not realizing that this was a copy protection issue, I thought I had messed something up with the slot configuration and when through all settings in the CFFA3000 and Control Panel in the IIGS to no avail. Then I went to Google and found a couple of postings about Firmware upgrades.
I downloaded first the 3.1 firmware, put it on a CF Card and booted the old card. It immediately came up saying that it found new firmware and was installing it, telling me to wait 20 seconds. I did. Then I rebooted. Now there is no sign of my card at all in the IIGS.
I swapped it for the newer card, and that shows right up. Hmmm.....
So I tried to roll back to an older firmware, and put those images on the CF card. Since the card isn't being seen at all by the computer, I tried using the dip switch settings to force the firmware update. I had mixed results with this - initially there was no sign of any success. Finally I re-read the documentation and worked out how to read the red led flashes to determine the results of the firmware update. My first check told me that my CF Card had lost its MBR (I'm running Linux on my main computer rig, so it wasn't too hard to put that right there). On a 2nd attempt, it gave me a 2/7 flash sequence which according to the documentation meant that the firmware successfully updated.
But here's the strange thing... After doing this, I have no sign of a working card anymore. Yes, it has correctly updated the firmware. But when I boot, I get nothing on the card. No sign of life at all. If I hold down M on boot, no menu. No beep noise signifying that the computer found the card as I have with the working one. Its like the firmware update has bricked the card.
Maybe I'm missing something - maybe the firmware update has reset my card back to some setting that requires me to do something special to re-enable its settings? But without any access to a menu to this card, I'm not sure how to proceed.
If someone could give me some guidance here, it would be most appreciated.
Thanks
Myles
I started with the older card and managed to import two 5 1/4" disks into it and worked great. Then I started to import a bunch of copy protected disks and failed pretty much on every one. Not realizing that this was a copy protection issue, I thought I had messed something up with the slot configuration and when through all settings in the CFFA3000 and Control Panel in the IIGS to no avail. Then I went to Google and found a couple of postings about Firmware upgrades.
I downloaded first the 3.1 firmware, put it on a CF Card and booted the old card. It immediately came up saying that it found new firmware and was installing it, telling me to wait 20 seconds. I did. Then I rebooted. Now there is no sign of my card at all in the IIGS.
I swapped it for the newer card, and that shows right up. Hmmm.....
So I tried to roll back to an older firmware, and put those images on the CF card. Since the card isn't being seen at all by the computer, I tried using the dip switch settings to force the firmware update. I had mixed results with this - initially there was no sign of any success. Finally I re-read the documentation and worked out how to read the red led flashes to determine the results of the firmware update. My first check told me that my CF Card had lost its MBR (I'm running Linux on my main computer rig, so it wasn't too hard to put that right there). On a 2nd attempt, it gave me a 2/7 flash sequence which according to the documentation meant that the firmware successfully updated.
But here's the strange thing... After doing this, I have no sign of a working card anymore. Yes, it has correctly updated the firmware. But when I boot, I get nothing on the card. No sign of life at all. If I hold down M on boot, no menu. No beep noise signifying that the computer found the card as I have with the working one. Its like the firmware update has bricked the card.
Maybe I'm missing something - maybe the firmware update has reset my card back to some setting that requires me to do something special to re-enable its settings? But without any access to a menu to this card, I'm not sure how to proceed.
If someone could give me some guidance here, it would be most appreciated.
Thanks
Myles