Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Kaj-Michael Lang]

Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
find anything.

--
Kaj-Michael Lang, Turku, Finland
milang@tal.org http://www.tal.org

Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Kaj-Michael Lang]

Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
find anything.

--
Kaj-Michael Lang, Turku, Finland
milang@tal.org http://www.tal.org

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Mike Barnes]

Kaj-Michael Lang wrote:
> Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> find anything.

I was wondering about these beasts the other day - I had one under my
desk when this email arrived.

Now I've cracked it open, what looks like the CPU is labelled ...

LR33120MC-40
MIPS GRAPHXCTLR

I'd be nice to get something running on these. I've got about half a
dozen of them scattered around the place.

Mike.

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Geert Uytterhoeven]

On Tue, 8 May 2001, Kaj-Michael Lang wrote:
> Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> find anything.

IIRC there's a different separate graphics chip in the 217. I think the 33020
is not a MIPS, but a RISC chip from LSI Logic.

Gr{oetje,eeting}s,

						Geert

--
Geert Uytterhoeven ------------- Sony Software Development Center Europe (SDCE)
Geert.Uytterhoeven@sonycom.com ------------------- Sint-Stevens-Woluwestraat 55
Voice +32-2-7248626 Fax +32-2-7262686 ---------------- B-1130 Brussels, Belgium

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Kaj-Michael Lang]

 > IIRC there's a different separate graphics chip in the 217. I think the
33020
> is not a MIPS, but a RISC chip from LSI Logic.
>

LR33020/33120: Embedded R3000 for X-terminals; reimplemented core; static
design; 25 to 40 MHz; 4-kbyte instruction cache; 1-kbyte data cache;
graphics coprocessor with bitblt processor and DMA channel.

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Kaj-Michael Lang]

 > IIRC there's a different separate graphics chip in the 217. I think the
33020
> is not a MIPS, but a RISC chip from LSI Logic.
>

LR33020/33120: Embedded R3000 for X-terminals; reimplemented core; static
design; 25 to 40 MHz; 4-kbyte instruction cache; 1-kbyte data cache;
graphics coprocessor with bitblt processor and DMA channel.

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Kevin D. Kissell]

> On Tue, 8 May 2001, Kaj-Michael Lang wrote:
> > Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> > a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> > chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> > find anything.
>
> IIRC there's a different separate graphics chip in the 217. I think the
33020
> is not a MIPS, but a RISC chip from LSI Logic.

The 33xx0 family are MIPS-compatible designs that were done
in-house at LSI logic.  At the level of the user-mode instruction
set, they are compatible with MIPS-I/R3000 - indeed, the basic
pipeline looks like it was taken directly from the R3000.  But the
system coprocessor was radically modified and simplified and in
particular there is no TLB/MMU.  Standard Linux therefore won't fly
on it, though some variant of uClinux might.

            Regards,

            Kevin K.

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Kevin D. Kissell]

> On Tue, 8 May 2001, Kaj-Michael Lang wrote:
> > Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> > a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> > chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> > find anything.
>
> IIRC there's a different separate graphics chip in the 217. I think the
33020
> is not a MIPS, but a RISC chip from LSI Logic.

The 33xx0 family are MIPS-compatible designs that were done
in-house at LSI logic.  At the level of the user-mode instruction
set, they are compatible with MIPS-I/R3000 - indeed, the basic
pipeline looks like it was taken directly from the R3000.  But the
system coprocessor was radically modified and simplified and in
particular there is no TLB/MMU.  Standard Linux therefore won't fly
on it, though some variant of uClinux might.

            Regards,

            Kevin K.

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Alan Cox]

> Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> find anything.

MMUless pseudo mips embedded CPU. Hardwired TLB's for KSEG etc. Also a few
other cute suprises such as multiply being interruptible and the irq handler
having to save cpu magic registers before doing another one.

Some of the 3com routers I hacked on used variants of these beasties. I suspect
its a ucLinux target unless you have one with loadable TLB's

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Alan Cox]

> Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> find anything.

MMUless pseudo mips embedded CPU. Hardwired TLB's for KSEG etc. Also a few
other cute suprises such as multiply being interruptible and the irq handler
having to save cpu magic registers before doing another one.

Some of the 3com routers I hacked on used variants of these beasties. I suspect
its a ucLinux target unless you have one with loadable TLB's

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Alan Olsen]

On Tue, 8 May 2001, Mike Barnes wrote:

> Kaj-Michael Lang wrote:
> > Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> > a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> > chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> > find anything.
> 
> I was wondering about these beasts the other day - I had one under my
> desk when this email arrived.
> 
> Now I've cracked it open, what looks like the CPU is labelled ...
> 
> LR33120MC-40
> MIPS GRAPHXCTLR
> 
> I'd be nice to get something running on these. I've got about half a
> dozen of them scattered around the place.

Good luck.

The Tek X-term business was bought by NCD a couple of years back.  There
is no one left at NCD who remembers how those things work anymore.  (Last
time I was there they had NO hardware engineers and one software
engineer.) Why this occured is a long and Dilbertian story too long to fit
in the margin of this message.

You are on your own on that one...

alan@ctrl-alt-del.com | Note to AOL users: for a quick shortcut to reply
Alan Olsen            | to my mail, just hit the ctrl, alt and del keys.
    "In the future, everything will have its 15 minutes of blame."

Re: Linux on a Tektronix XP217C xterm

[Ralf Baechle]

On Tue, May 08, 2001 at 10:00:38AM +0200, Geert Uytterhoeven wrote:

> On Tue, 8 May 2001, Kaj-Michael Lang wrote:
> > Any chance of getting linux running on a tektronix x-terminal ? It has
> > a LR33020 cpu, that I think is a R3000 integrated with some graphics
> > chip. I've tried searching for documentation for the chip but I didn't
> > find anything.
> 
> IIRC there's a different separate graphics chip in the 217. I think the 33020
> is not a MIPS, but a RISC chip from LSI Logic.

Which in turn is a MIPS licensee ...

  Ralf