Re: Kernel uses only half of Mac IIci memory with built-in video
On Sat, 20 Mar 2021, Michael Schmitz wrote:
> Hi Finn,
>
> Am 19.03.21 um 12:49 schrieb Finn Thain:
> > AIUI, Penguin needs a large physically contiguous region, so it used
> > the largest pysical RAM chunk (which was bank B). But that alone
> > doesn't really justify the weird sort order.
>
> If Penguin then loads the kernel in that same chunk, there really is no
> other choice? (The kernel expects the memory chunk it runs from to be
> listed first in the bootinfo struct).
>
But finding the largest chunk and putting it first doesn't imply sorting
the whole list of bootinfo memory chunks by size. Moreover, the kernel now
apprently requires chunks to be sorted by physical address, not by size.
Why not sort chunks by physical address and omit any chunks prior to the
largest one, to satisfy both requirements? Then ask users to re-arrange
RAM SIMMs such that bank A is the largest.
> I wonder about the 020 sorting scheme though - is there a hardware rule
> that says the first chunk must be the largest on 020?
>
The Penguin-19 source code says,
/* Hack for 020/68851. Kernel "head.S" does not handle
* 020 with > 1 memory segment and kernel not in first
* segment. Force kernel into first memory segment on
* these (020) machines.
*/
This "hack" first appeared in Penguin-14. The file Penguin.doc says,
Status: Changed 980301
New setting - "68020: Don't force kernel into bank A".
Normally the 020's requires the kernel to be placed in
bank A memory. The Penguin will force the kernel to be put
in that bank on these machines. This setting will ignore
the "forcing" and put the kernel in the bank with the
largest amount of memory available.
NOTE: Current kernels will fail if the kernel is not
forced into bank A. Emergency setting if all else fails.
Only available on 020's.
That suggests that the bank A requirement comes from a kernel limitation,
perhaps stemming from a 68551 quirk (?).
Looking at MMU code in head.S in current kernels, mmu_map_tt() seems to
contain the only special case for '020. But mmu_map_tt() is only used for
Nubus slot space. So I'm none the wiser.
Perhaps we need to look at head.S from before 1998 to figure out what
motivated Penguin's '020 special case and the option to disable it?
> Cheers,
>
> hael
>
>
>
>
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