Re: need ProDos info, or How do I make...

[dempson@actrix.gen.nz (David Empson)]

Howard Moulton Jr. <howard25@ebicom.net> wrote:

> I have a couple of a2e's, 1 with a 5.25 unidisk and ProFile 10m drive,
> and one with a Disk ][ but I have no OS. The hd tries to boot, but comes
> up with "RELOCATION/CONFIGURATION ERROR" and then locks up the computer
> dead.

As Rubywand suggested, this could be due to a memory fault in the IIe.
It could also be due to something like a corrupted PRODOS file on the
ProFile.

About the only time I've ever seen this message has been on an Apple II
clone which is not supported by ProDOS, or a 48K II+ trying to run
ProDOS 1.1 or later.

Another possibility which occurs to me: there could be an incompatible
card installed in slot 3.  If there is a card in slot 3 which has a
firmware ROM on it, then the ROM must support the IIe extended memory
hooks, or it won't work with ProDOS.

> I believe the hard drive is in need of a low-level format, but I cannot
> find any technical info on the controller card or the controller card in
> the ProFile (which is running a Z8 processor from Zilog - what a switch
> for Apple!)

The procedure for doing a low-level format on a ProFile is gruesome.

For starters, you need an Apple III to do this, and it must have the
Apple III ProFile controller card installed (you can't use the Apple II
card).

You also need the appropriate software on the Apple III and a
replacement firmware ROM (usually a Z8 with a piggyback EPROM) which
gets installed in the ProFile.  This ROM must match the capacity of the
drive (there are different ones for the 5MB and 10MB ProFile).

-- 
David Empson
dempson@actrix.gen.nz
Snail mail: P.O. Box 27-103, Wellington, New Zealand